Commenting on the National Audit Office report on the action
taken by the Department for Education in the early months of the
pandemic, published today, Kevin Courtney, Joint General
Secretary of the National Education Union, said:
"This past year has been phenomenally challenging for schools and
colleges. While no one could have predicted every step of the
way, Government has certainly been the cause of a great deal of
unnecessary confusion and upset.
"It is understandable that the Government would not have an
off-the-shelf plan for schools having to operate under an
extended lockdown, as was the case from March 2020, but it
continued to dither and delay over many months. Its refusal to
listen to scientific advice on the impact on transmission rates
of full on-site openings of schools and colleges, had
consequences not only for children's learning but for wider
society.
"We know that teachers, leaders and school and college staff did
all they can. Learning has continued throughout this period, but
there was little sign of it in Whitehall.
"At every turn the Government prioritised good press over good
practice. The most damaging aspect was its state of denial over
the need for a plan B even before the second lockdown loomed, not
to mention the third. Nearly a year on, the Government limps to
the finishing line with its laptops scheme - but this should have
been resolved last summer. It is shameful that it continued for
so long, leaving children and young people who qualified for the
scheme without the support they desperately needed.
"As far as the education profession is concerned, the
Government's reputation has greatly suffered. It idly sat by as
case rates rose in schools throughout autumn term, waving away
calls for a circuit break, or more robust safety measures. So
much was foreseeable, so many warnings went unheeded - not least
plans being put in place to prevent last year's examination
debacle.
"The Government failed to listen to the profession time and time
again and must now own its mistakes. Going forward, schools and
colleges still need the support and funding to address the impact
Covid has had on children and young people's education. The
pandemic has shone a light on the curriculum, and parents are now
much more conscious of its faults. We need to see it reformed.
"The impact of this past year will not disappear overnight.
Measures need to be in place not just for the remainder of this
academic year but for the foreseeable future to ensure no child
is left behind."
