UK schools voice objections to propping up Covid test and trace system, unpaid msn.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from msn.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Last modified on Sun 16 May 2021 02.08 EDT
Teachers, pupils and parents have greeted the easing of coronavirus safety measures in schools from Monday with a mixture of relief and, in the light of concern over the Indian variant, dismay and confusion.
The government has announced that students will no longer need to wear face coverings in schools. But some areas in the north of England are being advised to continue measures, following rising numbers of cases of the new variant, known as B.1.617.2.
For many pupils, wearing a face mask is one of many sacrifices they have made in the fight against the pandemic, and they are pleased the rules have changed. Jessie Wright, 12, from High Wycombe, said she would be “relieved” not to have to wear one in the classroom. “The masks would get in the way of our learning. They are nice to wear when the weather is cold, but they’re uncomfortable when it’s hot.”
âCrucially any extra money left over should be diverted towards supporting the many students who have suffered so badly as a result of the pandemic.
âSchools have to be pragmatic and ensure that exam boards cover their costs in a reasonable and fair way. Equally, teachers, school leaders and examination support staff have picked up an abundance of extra work as we prepare to deliver teacher-assessed grading for years 11 and 13, and manage both results and appeals.â
Last year, the three major examination boards that administer the exams â AQA, OCR and Pearson â refunded about a quarter of exam fees, and many heads are expecting more this year because the government cancelled formal exams earlier.
The survey, by Early Education and the sectorâs leading unions, including Unison and the National Education Union, found nursery schools were losing an average of £76,000 in annual income and having to spend an extra £8,000 in costs directly related to Covid-19.
Almost half of the 200 maintained nurseries across 75 local authorities said they would be running deficits for the financial year, and only one in four said they could continue to operate with current funding. One in five reported they had emergency financial recovery plans in place or under discussion.
Cathy Earley, the head of Greenacre community school in Sefton, near Bootle in north-west England, said the lockdown had meant her nursery school lost income from fees for paid childcare it had previously been able to offer, while it also lost income from having few new children signed up for government-funded places during the pandemic.