Students may have to go to school on Saturdays and stay longer during the week in order to catch up with work they missed during lockdown, the education secretary has said.
Speaking in the House of Commons yesterday afternoon, Gavin Williamson said it would be up to schools and their teachers to assess the individual needs of children.
“That might mean extending the school day for some, that might mean Saturday classes for others," he told MPs.
“There are so many different interventions that can really deliver significant results in terms of helping youngsters catch up on the learning that they have lost.”
He also claimed the government is “very much” in control of the situation in schools, despite Covid-19 cases being recorded in schools across the country.
In Greater Manchester, hundreds of pupils have been asked to self-isolate after positive coronavirus cases in their schools during the first week back.
At least 15 schools in the region have had to tell some pupils they must now stay at home for a fortnight.
Mr Williamson added that schools will only ever be closed as an “absolute last resort”.
“On July 2, we outlined our expectations and what is required for schools in terms of delivery of continuity of education," he told the Commons.
“That’s why we’ve made an investment of a further 150,000 laptops that will be provided for those communities that are in a position where they’re not going to be able to be providing face-to-face teaching within schools.
“But to be absolutely clear – schools will only ever be closed as an absolute last resort because we all understand in this House, on both sides of this House, how important it is for children to be benefiting from being in school with their teachers and learning in the school environment.”
