THE RETURN of secondary schools is expected to be delayed by up to two weeks in the worst Covid hotspots, Trending In The News can reveal.
Gavin Williamson is set to announce today at 4pm that schools will stay shut for even longer because of rocketing Covid rates.
Across England, secondary schools are expected to stay shut for an extra week.
This means that Years 11 and 13 – those taking key exams this year – will be the first to go back to classrooms on January 11, followed by every other year group on January 18.
Primaries are expected to go back on January 4 as planned, along with vulnerable children and those of key workers.
In Covid hotspots in Tier 4 areas, primary and secondary schools will stay shut for an extra two weeks.
This means millions of kids are set to be told they have to miss out on yet more classroom time because of the killer pandemic – and will have to learn at home.
The details of the announcement are still being finalised and could change over the next few hours.
Ministers hope the extra time will be enough to make sure they can roll out mass testing in schools.
The move comes after an almighty Cabinet row over whether or not to keep schools open amid soaring infection and hospitalisation rates.
Education Secretary Gavin Williamson has been battling to keep them open.
But Health Secretary Matt Hancock and Cabinet Office boss Michael Gove have been pressing for their closure while the second wave is brought under control.
When asked about when pupils would learn their fate, the Health Secretary stressed this morning the details are still “under review”.
Mr Hancock told BBC Radio 4: “The Education Secretary will be setting out his proposals later today.
“Clearly, we want to protect education as much as possible, that’s been part of our strategy.
“The new variant does make it much easier for this disease to transmit.”
It comes as:
- Downing Street will hold a press conference this afternoon
- The Oxford University/AstraZenca vaccine was approved by regulators today – with a million doses a week to be rolled out from next week
- And a change in strategy is expected to take place so people can get the vaccine sooner – with ministers to prioritise the first jab and give the second within 12 weeks
- More than 53,000 cases of the virus were reported yesterday
- A major incident was declared in Essex over Covid as hospitals struggle to cope with demand
- School pupils in some years are likely to be delayed to returning to the classroom thanks to the spike in cases
The mutant Covid which caused London and most of South East England to be thrown into Tier 4 lockdown, could be as much as 56 per cent more contagious.
Mr Hancock is preparing to announce millions more Brits will be plunged into the toughest lockdown restrictions later today.
The Health Secretary stressed that the Government focussed on keeping kids in school in autumn – but the new strain made it more difficult.
“What matters for the next few months, for the winter weeks for this country, we keep this virus under control, keep people alive.
“We know the vaccine is coming. we have to get through to the other side.”
Yesterday, UCL Professor Andrew Hayward, who sits on the Government group of scientists, Nervtag, said there would need to be tougher restrictions in order to safely get kids back behind desks.
But Dr Mike Tildesley, of the Sage advisory group, said: “We must avoid falling into the situation where schools are closed for next term.
Professor Neil Ferguson, the architect of the first Covid lockdown, said that even shutting them and universities may not be enough to regain control over the new virus strain.
“Just because there is a rise in cases in that age group doesn’t mean they’re being infected in schools.”
However, Prof Ferguson said: “Nobody wants to keep schools shut. But if that’s the only alternative to having exponentially growing numbers of hospitalisations, that may be required, at least for a period.
“My real concern is, even if universities and schools do have staggered returns or even stay closed, how easy it would be to maintain control of the virus is unclear now.”
MPs have warned there could be disastrous consquences if kids spent more time out of school.
Chair of the Education Select Committee Robert Halfon lashed out at suggestions schools could be kept closed, saying it would cause an “epidemic of educational poverty”.
