Schools to stay shut until early March

Parents of children studying in England finally got an update this week on how long the nation's novel coronavirus lockdown will keep classrooms closed, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson saying a reopening will not happen before March.

Devolved governments in Northern Ireland, Wales, and Scotland will set their own timetables.

The news offered short-term certainty for parents and care-givers who had previously been told schools could reopen in mid-February; a date that looked increasingly unlikely in the wake of record-levels of transmissions of the virus and deaths from COVID-19.

Johnson's statement to lawmakers also confirmed that that nation's lockdown will continue for at least five more weeks, because he has consistently said schools will be the first thing to reopen when the lockdown is relaxed.

"The first sign of normality starting to return should be pupils going back to their classrooms," he told lawmakers on Wednesday.

Johnson said the government also plans to make 300 million pounds ($409 million) of additional funding available to help students catch up.

"We recognize that these extensive school closures have had a huge impact on children's learning, which will take more than a year to make up," he said. "So, we will work with parents, teachers, and schools to develop a long-term plan to make sure that people have the chance to make up their learning."

The Financial Times reported that the government also plans to ensure impoverished students continue to receive free meals during the extended closure period.

Geoff Barton, the general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said he would like to see the government also detail how rapid virus testing will be deployed in schools, how vaccinations will be rolled out to teachers and school workers, and how schools can be made as safe as possible.

"Everybody agrees that getting all children back into class is vital as soon as possible, but this clearly cannot be rushed," he told the BBC.

The Guardian newspaper noted that March 8 is merely the earliest date by which students could return. It said classrooms could remain closed for much longer.

Johnson said schools will only be able to reopen on March 8 if the government has managed to vaccinate the 14 million people deemed to be the most vulnerable to the virus, Sky News reported.

"I'm hopeful, but that's the earliest that we can do it and it depends on lots of things going right," Johnson said at a news briefing on Wednesday evening.

Mary Bousted, from the National Education Union, said educators need more certainty, so they can start planning.

"The prime minister may now be immune to the embarrassment of U-turns, but school leaders, teachers, and support staff, not to mention families and students, are utterly exhausted by them," The Guardian quoted her as saying.

Schools in England have been closed since the nation introduced its third national lockdown on Jan 5, although most have been shut since before the Christmas holiday because of regional lockdowns.