AHDS chief wants pupils’ return to school delayed for week to allow staff to prepare

Calls have been made to delay pupils’ return to school for a week to allow staff time to prepare.

Greg Dempster, general secretary of the AHDS union, which represents primary school head and depute head teachers, claimed efforts to ensure a safe return had been “trampled” by the Scottish Government.

Many had worked 12-hour days, seven days a week, he said, to plan for the blended learning mix of home and school learning.

On Tuesday, with teachers about to break off for the holidays, schools and council education departments were sent back to the drawing board by Education Secretary John Swinney’s announcement they should prepare for a full return on August 11.

Mr Dempster said teachers needed to take their holidays and have time at the start of the new term to prepare.

He said: “We have lots of members who have been working 12 hours a day, seven days a week, since the guidance came out to get everything organised.

“Now the expectation it will be on a completely different basis, that requires a whole lot more of what they have just been doing – lots of replanning, redoing risk assessments, redoing physical arrangements that have been made, passing on information.

“They are just desperate for some down time, they have been working their socks off since the start of this, lots of them right through the Easter break, supporting hubs, supporting home learning.”

He said there was a lack of clarity about measures including social distancing, PPE, other infection control measures, extra classroom space and outdoor teaching.

Schools including those in Dundee and Angus, which finished yesterday, he said, would have finished preparing for blended learning.

The Scottish Government pledge that a final decision on how schools will return will be made no later than July 30 was welcomed by Mr Dempster.

If pupils do return full-time, he said, teachers need the first week from August 10 to get ready.

A Scottish Government spokeswoman said: “We know how hard councils, schools and teachers have been working on this – it is vital work and we can’t thank them enough.

“The education recovery group, which brings together councils, teachers’ representatives, parent bodies and trades unions, will continue to meet over the summer to discuss the next steps to ensure the reopening of schools.”