By Gavin Mackintosh-
Uk secondary schools may shut for longer over the Christmas holidays due to a need to speed up the testing process against the omicron variant.
Tory MP Robert Halfon, (pictures)chair of the Commons Education Select Committee, said he fears we are moving towards “de facto school closures”, dismissing assurances from .Education Minister Alex Burghart said extra funding has been put in place so schools can test their pupils before heading back into the classroom.
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Downing Street today warned parents not to take their children out of school before term ends, responding to suggestions that some parents keep their kids at home to protect them any risks of catching the Omicron varaint.
More parents than ever have been opting for home schooling since the pandemic, witheven more considering private academic training for their children.
The overwhelming number of parents do not have time to home school their children and prefer to see their children taught in school, but there are fears that more parents and teachers want to see pupils at home for longer over christmas to allow more time for schools to implement extra funding and prepare for the new semester in January
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The Prime Minister’s spokesman said: “The best place for children – who have in many respects suffered the most through this pandemic – is in school, receiving vital face-to-face education.”
Responding to a barrage of claims that schools may close, Mr Burghart told the Commons Government remains “committed” to ensuring schools reopen in January as normal, amid fears the spread of Omicron will keep kids at home.
He said the “classroom is the very best place for children” and their development.
Mr Halfon said: “It seems to me we are moving sadly towards de facto school closures”, as he urged the Government to create an “army” of volunteers and public awareness campaign for the education sector.
“The four horsemen of the education apocalypse have been galloping towards our young people in the form of a widening attainment gap, an epidemic of mental health problems, a rise in safeguarding hazards and a loss of life chances,” he added.
They include on site lateral flow testing on return for secondary school students, continued regular testing at home and a comprehensive contingency framework to manage potential outbreaks.
Tory MP Lia Nici echoed Mr Halfon’s calls for better messaging, so parents and students feel safe returning to the classrom.
She told the Commons: “We need to make sure that parents understand that it’s more important for the children to be at home and then not to be afraid.
“Could he just make sure that that we get the message out now to parents to say school is safe and school is the best thing for your children?”
Former health minister Steve Brine made regference to union calls for a staggered return in January, adding: “What is the Government going to do legally to see that its will is enforced and that schools are back, as they should be, as they need to be in January?”
Shadow schools minister Stephen Morgan accused the Government of “complacency” on pupils’ health and education, claiming ministers were “falling short” on the issues of vaccination and ventilation in schools.
He said: “Time and time again this Government’s failure to plan ahead has left children bearing the brunt of the pandemic. Ministers must stop treating them as an afterthought and act now to avoid chaos next term.”
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