COVID-19 | Schools Week

Covid outbreaks in schools double in a week

The number of Covid outbreaks in schools and other education settings doubled last week, new government data shows. Public Health England’s latest flu and Covid-19 report shows there were 48 new acute respiratory infection (ARI) “incidents” involving Covid reported by education settings in the week to May 9, up from 23 the week before and […]

School masks rule may be reintroduced in response to ‘localised outbreaks’, DfE says

Schools in areas facing “localised outbreaks” of Covid may be asked to reintroduce masks for pupils, the Department for Education has said. The government announced earlier this week that the recommendation that masks be worn in secondary classrooms and by pupils in secondary corridors will be lifted from Monday, in line with step three of […]

Caterer Compass repays furlough cash after free school meal parcel row

A multinational catering firm at the centre of the free school meal parcel fiasco has announced plans to repay millions in furlough cash and serve more plant-based meals. Official figures published this month show Compass Services UK claimed between £12.5 million and £25 million between December and February alone to pay staff wages. Data has […]

More primary pupils off with suspected Covid, but overall attendance remains high

The number of primary school pupils absent because of a suspected Covid case increased by over 60 per cent last week, according to government attendance survey data. However, only around 1 per cent of pupils nationally were off for Covid-related reasons nationally last week. The latest statistics published by the Department for Education show that […]

Pupil face mask rules to be lifted from May 17

Pupils will no longer wear face masks in school from next week, Boris Johnson has confirmed. The recommendation that masks be worn in secondary classrooms and by students in communal areas will be lifted from May 17. However, the rule that staff and other adults wear face coverings in situations where social distancing is not […]

Special school ‘ineffective’ during pandemic, says Ofsted

A special school judged to be ineffective in providing education during the pandemic has been criticised by Ofsted for setting “time-filling activities rather than education”. Inspectors also warned that safeguarding failures such as damaged electrical sockets and missing fire extinguishers meant pupils were “not safe” at Unified Academy in Surrey, part of Orchard Hill College […]

New Covid study finds no reading loss, but confirms maths drop

Interim findings from another study into Covid lost learning have been published today. This one, funded by the Education Endowment Foundation and carried out by FFT Education, investigates whether Covid has widened the attainment gap. Here’s what it found. 1. Gap widens in maths, but not reading… The study found the attainment gap between […]

Attendance: Isolation due to potential in-school Covid contact almost doubles

The number of pupils absent because of potential contact with a Covid case in school has almost doubled in a week, new attendance data suggests. Attendance survey data from the Department for Education shows 46,900 pupils were off last Thursday because of potential contact in-school, up from 25,200 on Thursday April 22. The number of […]

Keep face masks in the classroom for another month, urge unions and scientists

Lifting the recommendation that face coverings be worn in secondary classrooms this month will have “consequences” for the health of children and parents, a group of unions and scientists has warned. Teaching unions the NEU and NASUWT and support staff unions Unite, Unison and the GMB have sent an open letter to education secretary Gavin […]