Children in the German city of Hamburg were four times more likely to catch coronavirus during private gatherings than at school, an analysis of infection cases between August and October showed.

The Hamburg school authority said 78% of the 372 children infected with the virus caught it outside school, with children under 12 only half as likely to become infected as older ones.

It said many schools only registered one infection in a year group within 10 days, suggesting it was unlikely that the affected student spread it to classmates. Most children became infected at home, at parties or other private gatherings.

Of the 472 schools in Hamburg, 171 recorded infections, but only 23 of those had multiple infections.