Government has failed to provide evidence that opening schools is safe
1 min read
Responding to the evidence given today by Osama Rahman, Chief Scientific Adviser and Director of Analysis at the Department for Education to the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee about the basis for the Government’s plan to start to reopen schools from 1 June, Dr Patrick Roach, NASUWT General Secretary, said:
“The admissions by the Department for Education’s Chief Scientific Adviser are truly shocking and disturbing.
“The Government has simply not provided a single shred of evidence that opening schools from June 1st will be safe for children or for teachers.
“The Government’s health and safety guidance to make schools ‘COVID-19-secure’ is also woefully inadequate, and has done nothing to assure teachers or parents that it will be safe for schools to open to more children.
“Schools have been placed in a situation where the wrong decision will result in people becoming seriously ill and dying.
“The Government must now publish the scientific evidence it is relying on to claim that it will be safe for children to return to schools from June 1st.
“The NASUWT is clear that there is no requirement or obligation currently on any school to reopen to more pupils from 1st June.
“For the sake of public health, there must be no compromise on workplace health and safety.”
