Doncaster Council advises schools NOT to reopen on 1st June
Ministers want a phased reopening from a week on Monday
Last updated 22nd May 2020
Doncaster Mayor Ros Jones has gone against the government and recommended schools in the town don't reopen on 1st June.
Ministers want a phased return of some year groups at primary schools from a week on Monday but have faced opposition from teachers' unions and parents.
Ros Jones now says she's not recommending they open because she's worried there's not enough data on the transmission of coronavirus locally, not enough hand santizer available for kids, and not enough space in schools for social distancing:
“I am clearly recommending to schools and nurseries that they do not reopen on June 1st. It is of course an autonomous matter for schools and nurseries as they make their own decisions but I hope they will listen to parents and carers and unilaterally agree not to reopen at the beginning of June. "
She says there are three main areas she has concerns about - firstly a lack of data about the transmission of the virus in the town:
“This has been a major concern of headteachers and trade unions over recent weeks. The results of the parent/carer survey further emphasised this, with 74 per cent of the 9,500 plus respondents saying they would need reassurance on this issue before they would consider sending their child back to school.
"This is a concern I also share and something I have asked the Prime Minister to rectify immediately.”
She's also worried about PPE and hand santizer for teachers and children:
“Doncaster Council is working closely with schools to support them to source all of the relevant PPE, and although we are confident that we can get this to schools by June 1st, the more bespoke sanitising equipment – such as hand washing stations – will take longer.
"I am not comfortable sending children into school if we are not sure we will have the necessary equipment to allow good hygiene for increased usage.
And on the capacity of schools to deal with social distancing:
"The word ‘reopening’ is very misleading in these circumstances, as all of our schools have been open throughout the past nine weeks for key worker children and those classed as ‘vulnerable’ and I would like to thank all the teachers who have worked so hard to make this possible throughout.
"It is important that these children continue to be prioritised by our schools in coming months. In order to do this, there will be a significant impact on school capacity and the number of children who will be able to safely return under the Government’s physical distancing guidance.
"Schools have been working hard on these calculations, and working with children in the ‘vulnerable’ category to get them into school. Over recent weeks, we have seen a significant increase in the number of key worker and vulnerable children attending school and we expect this trend to continue so ensuring we can cater for them in maximum capacity numbers is vital.
"Again, this was something that came out strongly in the parent survey, with 46 per cent demanding smaller class sizes.”
Doncaster is the first of South Yorkshire's councils to defy the government's advice and recommend schools don't have more pupils back to class from 1st June.
It comes after Ros Jones wrote to the Prime Minister asking for more data on the spread of coronavirus in the town.