One in eight pupils out of school as Covid worsens

About a million children in England - one out of every eight pupils - were off school last Thursday, as Covid-related absences rose.

The official figures also show staffing problems worsening, with a quarter of schools seeing teachers and leaders’ absence rates above 15%. Across England as a whole, about 9% of teachers were absent.

Of the one million pupils (12.6%) absent, 415,000 were out of school for Covid-related reasons.

Also on 20 January, 47,000 teachers and school leaders were absent - 3,000 more than two weeks previously - half for Covid-related reasons.

The Department for Education is also launching a consultation on managing school absences, after statistics showed persistent absence is rising.

Mr Zahawi said: “Absence due to Covid is unavoidable, but there are other reasons children miss out on school too.”

Well, he would say that, wouldn’t he … :roll_eyes:

It seems, however, that getting children back to school always (and unsurprisingly) precipitates a surge in reported COVID cases and classroom absences.

My granddaughter has just gone down with covid I expect the others will follow

My son and his partner have got it at the moment. It coincides with their 3year old daughter starting nursery and after five days, the nursery was shut down as so many cases of Covid amongst the children and nursery staff. She hasn’t got it, just my son and his partner.

My daughter’s friend is a nurse on a children’s ward and they have seen a big increase in children with Covid issues.

My daughter also mentioned she knows of two children who have been affected long term with heart issues but l’m not sure if that is as a result of the Covid vaccination.

Strange isnt it, how it gets some people and not others, even those in close proximity.
My next door neighbour got it last summer, yet his wife didnt even though they were both in isolation together, and both in their 70’s.