All schools and pupils set to return on March 8

Boris Johnson confirmed that all pupils will return to school on March 8.

The Prime Minister delivered his roadmap to parliament this afternoon and spoke about schools.

He confirmed that from March 8 all pupils at school and college would return to the classroom.

The Prime Minister said: "All the evidence shows that classrooms are the best places for our young people to be and that's why I've always said that schools would be the last to close and the first to reopen.

"And based on our assessment of the current data against the four tests, I can tell the House that two weeks from today, pupils and students in all schools and further education settings can safely return to face-to-face teaching, supported by twice weekly testing of secondary school and college pupils.

"Families and childcare bubbles will also be encouraged to get tested regularly. Breakfast and after-school clubs can also reopen and other children's activities including sport can restart where necessary to help parents to work."

The Prime Minister opened his speech by saying that the vaccines were proving very effective but that no vaccine can be 100% effective and that not everyone would have them.

He said: "We can't escape the fact that lifting lockdown will lead to more cases hospitalisations and deaths, this would happen whenever lockdown was lifted as there will always be vulnerable people not protected by the vaccine.

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"It's crucial the roadmap should be cautious but irreversible, a one way road to freedom made possible by pace of vaccine programme.

"As more of us inoculated it will replace the need for restrictions.

"There will be five weeks between each step, as moving any faster would increase risk of us having to reimpose restrictions."