Senior Tories have piled pressure on ministers to reopen schools after the February half-term break in areas where Covid-19 infections are low, describing the current situation as a “national emergency”.
It comes after Public Health England (PHE) suggested primary schools would be safe to reopen should daily infection rates of the disease continue to fall.
i’s education newsletter: news and analysis as schools try to return to normal
A series of comprehensive PHE studies found primary pupils play a minor role in the spread of Covid infections, adding there is now a “strong case” for bringing children back into the classroom.
Two weeks notice
Ministers have indicated that schools will not reopen until March at the earliest, as a review of the lockdown restrictions is due to take place on 15 February and schools will be given two weeks’ notice before any reopening.
But Conservative MPs demanded the Government move faster in the Commons yesterday. Robert Halfon, chairman of the Education Select Committee, warned of raised levels of anxiety, depression and self-harm…
