News

It's not over: Covid 'rampaging' through our schools

The government may think that Covid has “disappeared from the scene”, but the illness is “rampaging” through our schools as cases nationally continue to rise.

In an update to members of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) this week, general secretary Geoff Barton reported “turbulence” and “anxiety” in schools as we approach the end of term.

It comes as the Office for National Statistics reports rising infections across the country, with more than one million additional cases being reported each week now than at the beginning of June.

The rising pupil and staff absences come after Covid infection rates in the general population have increased due to the Omicron variants BA.4 and BA.5.

In England the week ending June 24, there were an estimated 1,83 million people testing positive for Covid (3.35% of the population). This figure has risen by more than one million since June 2 and is up from 1.36 million on June 17 (ONS, 2022).

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