Commenting on the latest statistics from the Department for
Education on attendance in education settings, Kevin Courtney,
Joint General Secretary of the National Education Union, said:
"The rise in Covid cases in schools in England is extremely
worrying. Over 100,000 pupils were absent last week with a
confirmed case, two-thirds of them in secondary schools.
'Despite its promises, the Government has not done enough to slow
the spread through measures such as mask wearing, roll-out of
carbon dioxide monitors and improved ventilation. As the weather
turns and it becomes harder to leave classroom windows open, the
Government’s continued failure to improve ventilation in schools
leaves staff and pupils needlessly exposed to higher risks of
illness and further disruption to education.
'In Scotland, by comparison, infection rates and absences among
children have fallen for three weeks. Almost a quarter of 12-15
year olds are now vaccinated in Scotland, compared to just one in
14 in England. Secondary school pupils are asked to wear face
masks, and pupils with a confirmed Covid case in Scotland are
also asked to undertake a PCR test before returning to school.
The Government should consider adopting this approach in England
and further pushing vaccine rollout to slow the spread, alongside
stepping up other mitigation measures".
