Coronavirus / Schools back on Monday, council confirms
FOLLOWING Tuesday’s announcement by first minister Nicola Sturgeon that all pupils in Scotland will return to the classrooms after the Easter break, Shetland Islands Council has confirmed that full-time education is due to re-start on Monday (12 April).
A strict two metre physical distancing requirement between secondary aged pupils in schools will be relaxed to accommodate their return, the local authority confirmed.
However, other Covid-19 mitigations and control measures such as ventilation and twice-weekly lateral flow testing will be increasingly important.
Twice-weekly testing will be available for all secondary aged pupils, as well as all school and early learning and childcare staff.
Director of children’s services Helen Budge said her department would write to parents and carers today (Wednesday) with further clarification and reassurance.
“Now that we have the required confirmation of the full-time return from the Scottish Government, as well as published supplementary guidance, we will update our local Covid-19 guidance to ensure that we have all the appropriate control measures and mitigations in place to support the safety of children, young people and staff, she said.
“All our education settings are Covid-19 secure and the safety and wellbeing of staff and learners continues to be paramount to all our planning.”
Education committee chairman George Smith added: “A huge amount of effort has gone into making remote learning work, but our secondary aged children and young people have missed the stability of attending school last term and interacting with their peers, their teachers and their support staff.
“It will be a significant step forward to see the full-time return after the Easter holidays.”
Become a supporter of Shetland News
Shetland News is asking its many readers to consider start paying for their dose of the latest local news delivered straight to their PC, tablet or mobile phone.
Journalism comes at a price and because that price is not being paid in today’s rapidly changing media world, most publishers - national and local - struggle financially despite very healthy audience figures.
Most online publishers have started charging for access to their websites, others have chosen a different route. Shetland News currently has over 600 supporters who are all making small voluntary financial contributions. All funds go towards covering our cost and improving the service further.
Your contribution will ensure Shetland News can: -
- Bring you the headlines as they happen;
- Stay editorially independent;
- Give a voice to the community;
- Grow site traffic further;
- Research and publish more in-depth news, including more Shetland Lives features.
If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please become a supporter of Shetland News by either making a single payment or monthly subscription.
Support us from as little as £3 per month – it only takes a minute to sign up. Thank you.