Thousands of schools could refuse Government advice to reopen on June 1 as MP admits doubt over summer target

Justice Secretary Robert Buckland today revealed he was not expecting everyone to be back by then, with at least 23 councils expressing concern about the Government plans.

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Officials have instructed schools to get ready for reception, year one and six to return from the start of June, if it's safe to still do so.

They have issued advice on how to make sure classrooms and playgrounds are as secure as possible - including maximum class sizes of 15 and keeping desks further apart.

However, the plans have sparked a fierce backlash with unions warning teachers not to go, and now councils all over Britain saying they won't sanctions schools who don't reopen.

Among those against the plans are Birmingham, Calderdale council in Yorkshire, and Conservative-controlled Solihull, with at least 1,500 pupils facing not going back.

More councils are expected to join in rejecting the plans today.

This morning Mr Buckland insisted the government is still "working towards" a June 1 date, but admitted it was not looking good.

He said: "I'm not going to sit here and pretend that suddenly on June 1 everything will be uniform.

"We always said the 1st of June was conditional, not just on the R-rate but the need to make places of work safe.

"I am hearing what’s being said by our union representatives and brilliant teachers.

"We have to accept the fact that councils are employers and decisions have to be made collectively.";

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Labour support kids going back to school, but only when three tests have been met.

For schools to reopen, they want the scientific advice behind the June 1 date published , track and trace to be in place, and the Government to bring parent groups, teachers and unions together to find a consensus.

Sir Keir Starmers spokesperson said today: "We accept the return to school is a priority for the sake of pupil education and wellbeing.

"There are practical concerns with the proposals that have been put forward by the government and these have been raised by parent groups, school leaders, teaching staff and unions over recent weeks.

"Ultimately we recognise this is difficult and will be difficult for any government but the priority has to be finding a consensus that has the confidence of teachers, parents and all those concerned."

Sir Keir also backed councils refusing to follow the Government guidelines and re-open.

His spokesman said: "Ultimately councils will want to do what's in the best interest of children in their area, and there is no doubt the infection rate varies from area to area, so there is no surprise that some councils have particular concerns.

"It comes back to a wider point about there being a national consensus on this issue and the gov needs to work with teachers, parents and local authorities about finding a common way forward.”

It comes as a doctors' union said it no longer opposes the reopening of schools on June 1.

The British Medical Association said evidence shows the risk to kids is "extremely small," but schools should only reopen if it is “safe to do so".

Last week, doctors said it was too risky for kids to return to schools, despite the country's biggest primary school chains backing the Government's plans.

In an apparent softening of its stance, the British Medical Association (BMA) has admitted there was “growing evidence that the risk to individual children from Covid-19 is extremely small."

However, it warned there was still no consensus around how easily kids could spread the disease to vulnerable adults.

Writing for , Dr Peter English, the chairman of the BMA’s Public Health Medicine Committee, said: “The BMA wants schools to reopen as soon as it is safe to do so and the evidence allows – this could be before June 1 or after.

"A zero-risk approach is not possible. This is about ‘safe’ being an acceptable level of risk.”

UNION WARS

Dame Angela McLean, the deputy chief scientific adviser, said an effective track and trace system was needed to isolate those infected by the coronavirus before changes were made to lockdown rules.

She told The Times that this should be based on "observed levels of infection . . . and not on a fixed date".

And scientist John Edmunds, another member of SAGE, told Sky News that a track and trace system must be "embedded and working well" before schools re-opened.

Teaching unions are opposed to the Government's plan to re-open schools on June 1, claiming teachers, pupils and their families will be at risk of catching the deadly virus.

They were backed last week by the British Medical Association, who said unions were "absolutely right" to urge caution and prioritise testing before reopening schools on June 1.

BMA council's chair, Chaand Nagpaul, the BMA council's chair, said at the time: "We cannot risk a second spike or take actions which would increase the spread of this virus, particularly as we see sustained rates of infection across the UK."

Our current assessment is that schools aren’t safe to open, as our five tests have not been met.

Kevin Courtney, NEU

Kevin Courtney, the joint general secretary of the National Education Union (NEU), refused to back down on Tuesday, saying: “Our current assessment is that schools aren’t safe to open, as our five tests have not been met.

"But if our five tests are met, then on a national level, it would be permissible to go ahead with reopening schools.”

According to the Daily Mail, its leaders were caught making a series of slurs in a Zoom meeting last night.

The video footage exposed the joint general secretary Mary Bousted accusing children of being mucky by spreading germs and wiping their snot on people's clothes.

The hard-line leaders also discussed how to threaten head teachers should they try to get their staff back to work.

The NEU’s five tests include lowering the number of virus cases, plans for social distancing, more testing, strategies for entire schools and protection for the vulnerable.

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The reopening of primary schools could be delayed beyond June 1 as local authorities yesterday advised their schools to stay closed, including the first Tory-run council.

The Government made clear today that every school’s circumstances were different and that if a head teacher felt unable to open next month, they should “discuss options” with their local authority or trust.

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It comes as France makes a mockery of British demands, with teachers returning to French schools wearing masks and taking simple extra precautions.

They are among 22 European to countries which have re-opened classrooms - and evidence suggests that doing so has not been harmful to kids or teachers.