SCHOOL PUPILS TOLD TO WEAR MASKS ALL DAY

As Boris says keeping classrooms open is his number one priority in face of Omicron and testing chaos...

SECONDARY school pupils will be told to wear face masks from the moment they arrive until they leave when they return to classrooms this week.

In a desperate effort to protect the education of millions of youngsters amid a sharp rise in cases of the Omicron variant, Ministers have requested that pupils cover their faces all day – including while they are being taught.

Students are already asked to wear masks in communal areas.

Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi last night said he and Boris Johnson saw schools as their ‘No1 priority’, adding that they wanted to ‘do everything in our power to minimise disruption’.

The wearing of masks is not a legal requirement, but Ministers expect schools to follow the guidance, which also applies to teachers and support staff. The measures will be reviewed on January 26, with a Government source saying they ‘will

not be in place a minute longer than they need to be’, and adding: ‘It is obviously a better classroom experience without masks.’

Ministers are braced for a ‘big bang’ of Omicron cases and staff shortages when students and teachers are tested for coronavirus this week. A substantial surge in either could see larger class sizes or a return to remote learning for some pupils. In London, where rates of Omicron are particularly high, parents have been warned that school closures cannot be ruled out.

‘As a general rule, the more you test the more you are going to find Covid,’ the source said. ‘But the idea is that by containing it early, you stop the spread in schools.’

Many MPs are opposed to online lessons given the damage already done to the education of millions of youngsters by successive lockdowns.

Writing in The Mail on Sunday today, Conservative MP Robert Halfon, who chairs the Education Select Committee, says: ‘Pupils do not need to take any more time off. Every day lost is another day that we are damaging children’s lives.’

As well as the new measures on masks, the Government is deploying 7,000 extra air-cleaning units across the education sector to improve ventilation and slow the spread of Omicron. The schools regulator Ofcom is also temporarily suspending inspections.

The moves came as:

● A daily record of 162,572 Covid cases was recorded in England, up 47.9 per cent on last Saturday. There were 1,915 hospital admissions, up almost 50 per cent week-onweek, and 154 deaths;

● Ministers rejected calls to cut the isolation period for those with Covid-19 from seven to five days because up to 30 per cent would still be infectious;

● The continued shortage of lateral flow tests sparked fears of staff shortages in schools and hospitals and travel chaos when Britain returns to work this week;

● Official figures show that 132million coronavirus jabs were given last year, with more than 90 per cent of over12s now having had at least one jab. Health Secretary Sajid Javid said the figure was ‘astounding and a true reflection of the fantastic work of our NHS and its volunteers’;

● The head of NHS Providers, which represents health trusts, said the next few days would be crucial in understanding the impact of Omicron and Ministers ‘must be ready to introduce new restrictions at pace if they’re needed’;

● As a dozen hospitals temporarily suspended routine visits, the British Medical Association said further public health measures should be urgently introduced. But analysis of official figures reveal that just one in 40 NHS hospital staff were unavailable to work because of coronavirus in late December;

● MPs called for action after health trusts reintroduced Covid restrictions which force pregnant women to attend scans and appointments alone;

● Thousands of revellers from Scotland and Wales, where tougher coronavirus restrictions are in place, crossed the border into England to welcome in the New Year;

● One in eight of those hospitalised with Omicron are from black communities, but studies suggest the variant does less damage to the lungs than previous strains;

● As the MoS discovered dangerous anti-vax propaganda on YouTube, a father whose pregnant daughter died after being persuaded by such material not to get jabbed urged the tech firm to step up its efforts.

Teaching unions broadly welcomed the Government’s move on masks. Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said: ‘Reintroducing face masks in secondary classrooms appears to be a sensible move, given the circumstances.’

Dr Mary Bousted, joint general secretary of the National Education Union (NEU), said the decision was ‘overdue’ and urged Ministers to make it a ‘requirement’.

No10 is understood to have ruled out a return of the ‘bubble’ system which saw entire classes – and sometimes years – sent home if a single pupil tested positive.

‘That’s all in the past. We want to carry on classroom teaching,’ the source said.

Given the prospect of staff shortages, Ministers have

‘Pupils do not need any more time off’

‘A sensible move in the circumstances’

‘It is mission-critical to keep schools open’

renewed efforts to lure retired teachers back to the classroom. A website through which former teachers can volunteer has received 30,000 visits and Tory MPs Jonathan Gullis and Caroline Ansell, both qualified teachers, have signed up.

Tom Hunt, another Conservative MP who sits on the Education Select Committee, urged the Government to keep an open mind on reducing the isolation period from seven to five days, as countries including the US and Greece have done.

‘Remote learning should not be on the table... It is missioncritical to keep schools open and keep kids physically in school. No stone should be left unturned,’ he said.

Mr Hunt also urged teaching unions to be ‘constructive’. His call came as it emerged guidance issued by the NEU advised school leaders that teachers should only have to cover for colleagues on ‘rare’ occasions.

Further guidance issued by the union before Christmas said: ‘If you are asked to cover for a colleague who is off with Covid or any other absence greater than two days, you should refuse to do it.’

Chris McGovern, the chairman of the Campaign For Real Education, said: ‘This is educational sabotage. Teachers have a choice. The best and the bravest will continue to put their pupils first and they will be remembered for doing so.’