Children: Coronavirus
(asked on 11th May 2020) - View Source
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reason children in reception, Year 1 and Year 6 will be the first to return to school in response to the easing of the covid-19 lockdown measures.
From the week commencing 1 June at the earliest, we will be asking primary schools to welcome back children in nursery, reception, year 1 and year 6, alongside priority groups. The rationale for identifying these year groups is included in guidance for schools and childcare settings to prepare for wider opening from 1 June 2020:
The three year groups within mainstream primary have been prioritised because they are key transition years – children in reception and year 1 are at the very beginning of their school career and are mastering the essential basics, including counting and the fundamentals of reading and writing, and learning to socialise with their peers. Year 6 children are finishing Key Stage 2 and are preparing for the transition to secondary school, and will benefit immensely from time with their friends and teachers to ensure they are ready.
We will prioritise younger children in the first phases of wider opening, for several reasons. Firstly, because there is moderately high scientific confidence in evidence suggesting younger children are less likely to become unwell if infected with COVID-19; and secondly because evidence shows the particularly detrimental impact which time spent out of education can have upon them. In addition, older children are more likely to have higher numbers of contacts outside of school so pose a greater transmission risk, and they are typically better able to learn at home.
Our approach is in line with other countries across Europe, who have begun to bring pre-school and school-age children back in a phased way and are focusing on primary schools and younger children.