London university prepares for students' return

The UK's largest university has opened its campus using a one-way system and created its own COVID-19 testing laboratory to aid safety for students and staff during the pandemic.

The University College London (UCL) unveiled changes to campus life to include a one-way route through courtyards and buildings, social distancing measures, and mandatory face masks, as it tries to safely welcome students back in the next few weeks.

The school leveraged state-of-the-art medical and research facilities to build its own laboratory for testing students and staff who show symptoms of coronavirus infection.

UCL also launched a reporting app on Thursday that authorities can use to monitor infections and identify potential clusters that are forming.

"We've been doing a pilot of one of our laboratories just to make sure everything works," said UCL President and Provost, Professor Michael Arthur.

"And what we've decided to do is to scale up so that we can do up to 1,000 tests a day. We're going to test those that are symptomatic."

The campus will also be operating at a reduced capacity, ensuring that only 25% of students and staff will be there in person at any one time to reduce the chance of virus spread.

All student union activities, including welcome week, will take place online.

Student representative Carol Paige said students are adapting to a very different campus life.

"I do know that there is a sense of loss," Paige said.

"But then there's also the understanding that things are different for a reason. And the reason that there are these restrictions is so that they remain safe and they ensure that their community is safe."