ONE of the north's largest secondary schools is to remain shut this week - after half its 1,600 pupils caught the winter vomiting bug.
The Department of Education said as many as nine schools have closed to allow for deep cleans to fight the norovirus.
Its rapid spread has affected primary and secondary pupils and comes as the Public Health Agency (PHA) has reported an increase in flu-like illnesses.
Hundreds of primary school children are among those who have fallen ill - many of whom are preparing to take the final Common Entrance Assessment (CEA) 11-plus paper on Saturday.
The AQE, which sets the exam, has advised children suffering symptoms not to put themselves or their classmates at risk.
There are three CEA papers and pupils' best two scores count, meaning they can afford to miss one.
If a child misses two due to being sick, they can apply for special circumstances.
"If children are suffering from symptoms of the virus they should not put themselves or others at risk by sitting the test on Saturday," said AQE chief executive Darrin Barr.
Some children also missed the separate GL Assessment papers, which are mostly used to determine admission to Catholic grammar schools, on November 16. There is a supplementary assessment on December 7.
Pupils who also miss this due to illness can apply for special circumstances.
Bangor Academy, meanwhile, said up to 800 pupils were sick - half its total enrolment.
Posting on the school website, principal Matthew Pitts said: "Despite our best efforts and good intentions, we are unable to remain open this week. Our attendance has dropped to around 50 per cent and we are still having to send a significant number of children home.
"Unfortunately, this means we will be closed on Friday. Friday will allow us to deep clean the school and prepare the building for next week."
Meanwhile, the PHA's latest flu bulletin shows there has been an increase in flu-like illnesses.
The latest figures, although low, did show that people consulting their GP with flu or flu-like illness had risen sharply.
Dr Gerry Waldron, Assistant Director of Public Health said while the increase was not unusual, it was slightly earlier than expected.
"This reflects the unpredictable nature of flu, which is why it is important to get the vaccine to maximise protection," he said.
"Receiving the seasonal flu vaccine is the best way to help protect yourself and others from getting the virus, so we are calling on everyone who is eligible to make arrangements now to get it if you haven't already Those who can receive it for free through GP surgeries include people with an underlying health condition, people aged over 65, pregnant women and pre-schoolers aged 2-4.
"Primary school children get the vaccine through their school, so we would also encourage parents to make sure they have returned their consent forms for this."
