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A London borough leader has said he “has no choice” but to tell schools to stay open after threats of government legal action.
Danny Thorpe of the Greenwich council insisted that it was not the “right choice”, but that he could not “justify using public funds to fight the decision in court.”
Follow a yesterday’s order from Education Secretary Gavin Williamson that schools must remain open.
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Restrictions will be partially lifted for five days over Christmas
Several schools in the capital, which tomorrow will enter Level 3, the highest band of coronavirus restrictions: they have said they want to move to online learning for the remainder of the period due to the increase COVID-19 rates.
Infections are said to be increasing most rapidly among children ages 10 to 19, and the government promised to implement massive tests in schools in some districts to counter the spread in the run-up to Christmas.
Some schools wanted to move to virtual learning for the rest of the term
But that is taking time and there are fears that children could pass the virus to vulnerable family members during the five day rule relaxation where people from three households can socialize at home together from December 23 to 27.
Three London city councils – Greenwich in the south, Islington in the north and Waltham Forest in the east – have urged schools to close early to help curb a resurgence of cases.
And Mayor Said Khan said Prime Minister Boris Johnson should consider letting all of the city’s high schools and universities close early and reopen later in January.
Closing schools on short notice could pose childcare problems for parents
But the government has resisted those calls, and Williamson said yesterday: “It is simply not in the best interests of the children for schools in Greenwich, Islington or elsewhere to close their doors.”
Now Thorpe has said that schools in Greenwich should remain open, despite COVID-19 cases “increasing rapidly” locally.
“The action we took on Sunday was based solely on doing the right thing for our municipality, not on a lengthy legal discussion with the government, which absolutely no one needs at the end of an extremely difficult term,” he explained.
Amanda Spielman, Ofsted’s chief inspector, said it was “right” for the schools to remain open.
“Organizing childcare on short notice: we could take doctors, nurses on duty, out of vaccination clinics, inadvertently shoot ourselves in the foot,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today program.
“It’s a difficult balance to strike. We need clarity and consistency, not last minute decisions.”
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