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When will the children go back to school? Matt Hancock Refuses to Rule Out Keeping Classrooms Closed After Christmas Break
- Union leaders say return from secondary schools should be delayed by two weeks
- Ministers have promised to keep schools open after they closed in the first closure.
- Matt Hancock urges school principals to make sure student testing is up and running
Matt Hancock refused yesterday to rule out keeping schools closed after the Christmas holidays in the parts of England under the toughest lockdown.
Schools closed across the country in the first closure, and ministers have since vowed to keep them open, saying children’s learning is suffering.
But when asked to ensure that schools in Level Four areas would remain open, the Secretary of Health said: ‘I have learned not to rule out anything in this pandemic.’
Over the weekend, union leaders said the return of secondary schools should be delayed two weeks to allow time for infection rates to decline.
He told the BBC’s Andrew Marr: ‘The plan is not for a normal opening. It is a staggered start to ensure that there is testing to be able to isolate children who are positive and therefore keep people safe. ”
Mr. Hancock urged the principals to work through the Christmas break to ensure that an assessment system for students is working at the beginning of the trimester.
Over the weekend, union leaders said the return of secondary schools should be delayed two weeks to allow time for infection rates to decline.
Kevin Courtney, deputy secretary general of the National Education Union (NEU), said: ‘Delaying the opening of the high school until January 18 would be the right thing to do. The latest figures show that the highest rates of infection are now found among high school students. “
But Commissioner for Children Anne Longfield cautioned that this could mean sacrificing children’s learning and well-being.
Hancock said, “Our goal is for schools to come back in January with a great testing regimen, and that means we need a staggered start to testing people with the coronavirus test.”
Responding to claims that the test plan had been announced too late, he said: ‘There are three weeks between now and the start of the quarter and like so many people on the NHS, you will have to do some work over the Christmas holidays. ‘
Schools closed across the country in the first closure, and ministers have since vowed to keep them open, saying that children’s learning was suffering.
