Grantown Grammar School headteacher welcomes full-time return date
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A Scottish Government announcement that schools will return full-time in August if the country continues to make progress on suppressing coronavirus has been welcomed.
Claire McGonigal, headteacher at Grantown Grammar School, hopes that her classrooms can return to normal in time for the start of the 2020/21 academic year.
But she said that the 'blended' model plans have been drawn up in such a way that they can be adapted to fit the circumstances in two months' time.
Ms McGonigal said: "It’s great news from John Swinney but there are a lot of ifs and buts to overcome first.
"We are going to sit tight with the plan for August until we have definite instruction to change it.
"The plan was deliberately written so it can be changed at short notice because it’s based on the school timetable.
"This means that when we have a definitive picture at the beginning of August we can go back 100 per cent, 50 per cent or 25 per cent of pupils in school and blended learning depending on what the current advice is.
"I am very much hoping that we will be back 100 per cent as I am just as keen as everyone else to get back to normal which for me is teaching!"
The unexpected moves comes after significant progress was made in reducing incidence rates of the virus, putting Scotland on a more positive trajectory than previously expected.
As a result, the Scottish Government has now made it a central planning assumption that pupils will return to class full-time in August.
This is conditional on infection rates being sufficiently low to continue to control the virus, public health and testing systems being in place and protective measures and risk assessments being carried out in schools.
A new sub-group of the Covid-19 Advisory Group will monitor progress and provide further advice to Ministers shortly. The Education Recovery Group will also meet over the summer to oversee next steps.
Councils will continue to prepare blended learning models as a contingency and these will be scrutinised by Her Majesty’s Inspectors of Education.
Mr Swinney also revealed that an additional £100 million will be invested over the next two years to tackle the impact of lockdown on schools and pupils, including ensuring every current probationer teacher who meets the standard for full registration having a teaching post for the year ahead.
Education Scotland will work with E-Sgoil, the digital training platform, to develop a national e-learning provision for all senior phase pupils to access high quality lessons online learning by qualified teachers.
This is in addition to the investment of £25 million to provide tens of thousands of laptops for disadvantaged children and young people.
Mr Swinney said: “Since May, because of the efforts of ordinary people to stay at home, we have seen Scotland make significant progress.
"There are now only around 2000 infectious people in Scotland – a reduction of around 90 per cent since May.
"There has been a sustained downward trend in Covid-19 deaths since the end of 20-26 April, and intensive care cases now stand at a fraction of what they were.
“If we stay on track, if we all continue to do what is right, and if we can further suppress this terrible virus, then the government believes that we should prepare for children to be able to return to school full time from August.
“A return to full time schooling would enhance the life chances of our children and young people and start to reverse any damaging impacts of recent months.
“I must stress: this is the aim that the Government is now working towards. However, because it has to be achieved safely, it inevitably remains conditional and dependent upon ongoing scientific and health advice."
Mr Swinney commended the work of local authorities and school and early learning and childcare staff across Scotland for the way in which they have responded to the Covid-10 emergency.
He said: "They have worked tirelessly to protect the interests of our children and young people – through our childcare hubs, ensuring ongoing provision of free school meals, delivering remote learning, and planning for the next term."
