Face Coverings in Schools

Dear constituent,

Thank you for contacting me about face coverings in schools.

As you will know, staff and pupil absences have risen sharply following a new wave of COVID-19 infections. Government data shows that on 6 January, 310,000 children were out of school due to COVID-19, with 106,000 teachers, teaching assistants and school leaders also absent. I believe there needs to be a proactive plan in place to keep schools open and to drive down transmission in every community.

Of course, face coverings in school contexts are far from ideal. The Government has said that advice on face coverings will be reviewed on 26 January, but I question whether Ministers would have had to recommend them if vaccination levels among children were higher and ventilation was better. I am concerned that by failing to plan ahead, Ministers have left children bearing the brunt of the pandemic.

Vaccination, ventilation and testing are key to ensuring children and staff can continue to learn together in school, but Ministers are falling short in my view. There are not enough tests and only half of eligible children are vaccinated, while the 8,000 air purifiers announced earlier this year are just a fraction of the ventilation systems our schools need – and they come almost two years after the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies first underlined the importance of ventilation in May 2020.

The steps the Government has taken so far, with details announced at the very last minute, simply do not rise to the challenge we face. I urge Ministers to ramp up basic COVID-19 protections in schools to minimise ongoing disruption to children’s education and to keep kids learning together. I believe there must also be a proper workforce plan to prevent de facto school closures if more teachers and school staff are required to self-isolate.

More generally, I am worried that COVID-19 learning loss is threatening to limit children’s life chances, which is why I am supporting calls for an ambitious recovery plan for children, including new extracurricular activities, tutoring for all those who need it and mental health support in every school.

Thank you once again for contacting me about this issue.

Yours Sincerely,

Peter Dowd MP