England’s schools to get two weeks’ notice for reopening

As reported by BBC news, schools in England will be given two weeks’ notice before reopening, the education secretary has said

Gavin Williamson told BBC Breakfast he was “not able to exactly say” when pupils will return to class. The government has said reopening of schools would be prioritised when the current coronavirus lockdown restrictions are eased.

Schools have been closed to most pupils so far this term, with primary schools closing after one day back, in response to rising COVID levels. Pupils are expecting to stay learning at home until at least half term.

But Williamson was pressed on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme whether he could guarantee that schools would reopen at all this term, before the Easter holidays.

“I want to see them, as soon as the scientific and health advice is there, open at the earliest possible stage – and I certainly hope that would be before Easter,” said the education secretary.

He said schools and parents would have “absolutely proper notice” of when children are going to return, which he said would be a “clear two weeks” for teachers and families to get ready.

Last week Williamson indicated to the Commons Education committee that schools in some parts of the country might stay closed at the end of the lockdown, with a return to the “contingency” arrangements in which schools in areas of high infection would be shut.

On Wednesday, England’s deputy chief medical officer Jenny Harries said schools may reopen region by region after the February half term.

Schools are also closed in the other nations of the UK. In Scotland and Northern Ireland they will remain closed until at least the middle of February, while in Wales the next review of restrictions will be on 29 January.

The government has also paused plans to roll out rapid daily coronavirus testing in all but a small number of secondary schools and colleges, with health officials saying the new variant meant the risk of missing infections had risen.

But Williamson emphasised that mass testing in schools would continue, clarifying and that it was the daily tests for those who had been in contact with a positive case which had been stopped.

The education secretary was also challenged on the fairness of setting tests as part of the replacement for cancelled GCSEs and A-levels, when pupils will have missed different amounts of time out of schools.

Williamson said the tests were only “one element” for deciding replacement results, which will be based on teachers’ grades.

“That’s why we’re asking teachers to make a judgement in the round. We’re asking teachers to look at the work they’ve been doing over the whole period of time they’ve been studying the course,” he said.