Schools send pupils home early as teachers prepare for January shutdown

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Hull City Council wrote to parents at St Mary’s College to say that year nine students should stay home for the rest of the term because “a very small number of cases showed an indication of a PCR sample that is often, though not always, associated with an omicron variant.” “.

The council’s director of public health said more testing will be done to confirm the alternative but it will take a few days, adding: “With Christmas approaching and the number of cases increasing, we want to stop the opportunity for further spread as quickly as possible.”

Arabella Skinner, director of parent campaign group UsForThem, said the government’s “confused” guidance means children are being “punished” for lost time in class.

She said, “The Department of Education needs to get a grip on making sure that face-to-face education is a priority. It appears the panicked reactions from local public health officials are disproportionate and do not put children first.”

Fourth-year classes at Lime Tree Primary Academy in Salé, Trafford, have been asked to stay home until the end of term after a suspected case of Omicron.

Phoenix Collegiate, in West Bromwich, also closed its doors until January after one confirmed case of omicron, and Hampton Primary was sent home its third year after a positive case.

Elsewhere, schools have begun making lists of the children of key workers in preparation for January. A primary school in Wiltshire said it “believes it is prudent to plan in the unlikely event of school closures”, asking parents to provide details of their jobs so it can update a registry of critical workers.

Thomas’s London Day Schools, a group that operates several prestigious private schools in London including Thomas’s Battersea, which Prince George and Princess Charlotte attend, are making plans for distance education in January if the government requests it.

An informed source said: “The council is in the process of developing plans to prepare for remote work. Discussions have been underway in recent weeks and an announcement is likely to be made soon.”

A spokesperson for the group said that “like all schools, Thomas is managing ongoing contingency planning in line with government advice on Covid.” He added that this is “standard contingency planning that covers many potential elements in this ever-changing situation.”

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