Teachers worried about safety in schools

The majority of teachers do not think that schools can effectively put in place social distancing measures, according to a survey. Our education experts, in collaboration with Schoolzone, conducted a survey in the middle of May which asked teachers what they thought of the reopening of schools. Of those teachers who responded to the survey, the majority (85 per cent of primary and 75 per cent of secondary teachers) did not think that their schools could effectively implement class size reduction and social distancing measures. They were not confident that staggering breaks, lunchtimes, drop offs and pickups could be practically carried out. Reopening of schools Responses were collected from 4,600 teachers and lecturers from across different phases of education. The phased reopening of schools has now started with primary schools admitting children from Reception, Year 1 and 6, while secondary schools pupils in exam years are also given some time in school with teachers. However, Government figures suggest that a week after the partial reopening just 52 per cent of primary schools were opened, and only a quarter of children in these year groups turned up.