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TYounger pupils could start returning to primary schools in Wales after the February semester if rates of coronavirus continue to fall, Prime Minister Mark Drakeford said.
When asked why this happened earlier than in England and Northern Ireland, Drakeford told BBC Breakfast: “Because the context is different. Today we have 175 people in Wales for every 100,000 who contract coronavirus.
“In England, a couple of days ago, the average was 350, and our 170 figure is dropping every day, so you can see that the context is very different.
“We want to take advantage of that. Our children and youth have had a torrid time for the past 12 months, they are missing their education every week.”
Drakeford said the Welsh government was working with local education authorities, teaching unions and the Commissioner for Children to return young people to face-to-face learning “as soon as it is safe to do so”.
“As long as the next three weeks see more drops, we think we can do it right after midterm. That’s what we’ll work on together,” Drakeford said.
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