Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he plans to take to help ensure that clinically vulnerable pupils will be protected from health chiefs' predicted rise in childhood respiratory illness from September 2021.

All nurseries, schools, colleges and out-of-school settings are continuing to put in place a combination of measures to help minimise the risk of spreading COVID-19. These include handwashing, enhancing cleaning, ventilation and managing confirmed cases.

The department will continue to keep these measures under review, in partnership with health experts and informed by the latest scientific evidence and advice. Further information is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/schools-covid-19-operational-guidance.

Schools, colleges and nurseries should continue to conduct risk assessments for their particular circumstances and take appropriate action in line with the guidance: https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus/education-and-childcare.

If parents, carers, staff, students, pupils or early years children are anxious about attendance, they should speak to the school, college or nursery about their concerns and discuss the measures that have been put in place to reduce the risk.