The Isle of Wight's National Education Union (NEU) says Government plans - which could see the reopening schools from next month (June) - are 'incoherent' and have generated 'genuine fear' among teachers. Islander Peter Shreeve, assistant district secretary of the NEU, has described the Prime Minister Boris Johnson's 'roadmap' as an 'unfinished drawing'. It was outlined during a pre-recorded address last night (Sunday), as Isle of Wight Radio reported at the time. The PM suggested that pupils in reception, year one and year six could be the first to return to primary school classes from 1 June. He said that this could be followed by the rest of primary years, if the Government's coronavirus measures are adhered to. Within an hour of his address, around 49,000 NEU members had responded to a survey. 85% of respondents said they disagreed with plans and 92% said they would not feel safe with the proposed wider opening of schools. Commenting on the Prime Minister’s announcement, Mr Shreeve said: “Yesterday's announcement – so out of step with Scotland and Wales and with its confusion about social distancing – has resulted in 92 per cent of NEU members saying they currently feel a wider opening of schools would be unsafe. "So does the science. A study, where researchers studied the success of different social distancing measures across 30 European countries – in terms of how effective they have been at reducing the number of Covid-19 cases and deaths, was published last week by the University of East Anglia. In it, they suggested that school closures are the single most effective way of suppressing the spread of the virus. "The Prime Minister describes this as a ''first sketch'' of a roadmap and it did indeed feel like an unfinished drawing, one that should be erased and urgently re-drawn. “The incoherence in this plan has generated genuine fear. For educationalists the lack of clarity about what is expected before, or on 1 June, is simply unacceptable." Mr Johnson says the plan is 'conditional' and reliant on the 'common sense' of Islanders and UK residents. The Isle of Wight Council says "any partial re-opening of schools has to take place cautiously with the safety of children and staff given paramount importance”. A spokesperson said: “We understand that the Department for Education will be producing detailed guidance outlining the measures schools take in relation to partial reopening. As soon as that is received we will work with school leaders on how that guidance can be interpreted operationally to ensure children and staff are kept safe.” Read more here.
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