FILE PHOTO: Head teacher Polly Goodson and Deputy Head Claire Cowgill measure out social distancing lines at the entrance to St Anne’s CE primary school as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues in Sale, Britain, May 27, 2020. REUTERS/Phil Noble
LONDON (Reuters) – British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is working with Education Minister Gavin Williamson to ensure all schools can open in September and to provide support packages to help children catch up on lost learning, his office said on Saturday.
Detailed work is underway with schools, councils and unions to make sure all children are able to return in September if it is safe to do so, a Downing Street source said.
Schools shut to most pupils in March due to the coronavirus pandemic but selected age groups have been able to return since the beginning of June, although some educators decided not to re-open because they said it was not safe.
The decision to gradually re-open schools has divided opinion, with Britain suffering one of the world’s worst death tolls from COVID-19 and some critics warning of the need for caution to prevent a second wave of the virus.
Johnson has asked for measures to be drawn up to help children over the summer and further into the future, said the statement. For social justice reasons help was especially needed for those who had less support at home, it added.
Reporting by Sarah Young; Editing by David Holmes