Schools ‘will have to stick to social distancing’ if they reopen

Schools have been closed for a month and ministers have not yet given a date when they can resume.

Social distancing rules will have to be enforced within schools if they reopen during the coronavirus pandemic, the Environment Secretary said.

Schools have been closed since March 20 and ministers have not yet given a date when they can resume.

But Environment Secretary George Eustice has said they will have to make sure they’re doing everything to limit the spread of Covid-19 when they reopen. 

Mr Eustace said during the daily coronavirus press conference: ‘Dominic Raab addressed this earlier this morning and stressed the importance, that even as you start to consider steps such as that (reopening schools), it would still be important in such a setting to have social distancing measures.’

Asked about tests for care home residents and staff, Mr Eustace added: ‘We have been ramping up capacity to do those test.

‘It currently stands at over 50,000 a day. We have started to invite large numbers of people working in the care sector and care homes to undertake those tests and significant numbers have.’

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The national medical director for NHS England has said the slowing death toll from coronavirus is evidence the ‘hard work’ of lockdown is paying off.

Speaking during today’s daily press conference, Professor Stephen Powis said the improving numbers were ‘absolutely’ the results of the public listening to and obeying current social-distancing restrictions.

He added: ‘We now have a very definite trend in a reduced number of people in hospitals. That is most marked in London but I think you can also see that in the Midlands and the beginnings of that in other areas of the UK.

‘That is definitely showing that our compliance with social-distancing is proving to be beneficial. It is reducing the transmission and spread of the virus.’

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