Schools North East says Covid is ‘not over’ with school attendance still low

Schools North East has said the coronavirus pandemic is far from over after they reported a drop in school attendance figures.

As part of the Government’s latest coronavirus plan, all restrictions have been dropped, including the need to wear masks in schools.

But the Department of Education this week released attendance figures that show a drop in all state-funded schools.

89.7% attendance was recorded on March 17, with a drop of 1.1% following through a fortnight later, with 88.6% attendance on March 31.

In a statement, Schools North East said: “While attendance improved after the February half-term holiday, schools are now once again facing increasingly difficult operational challenges from the ongoing pandemic.

“Throughout this term, many schools have been in ‘crisis management’ mode, and are far from ‘back to normal’. This is having a significant impact on staff workload and wellbeing, with limited supply available to cover for staff absences.”

Schools North East has also alleged that the Government plans for living with coronavirus “do not recognise the regional context North East schools are working in.”