Coronavirus: Labour warns against fines for poorer parents as government announces mandatory return to schools in September

Full return to classroom ‘critical’ for children and national recovery, says education secretary

Labour has urged ministers against fining the poorest parents over school attendance as the government laid out its plans for a mandatory return to the classroom in the autumn.

Gavin Williamson, the education secretary, said it was “critical” for pupils and for the national recovery to fully reopen schools as he unveiled guidance centred around keeping whole year groups in “bubbles” to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Fines for non-attendance have been suspended during the pandemic and parents have been able to opt whether to send their children back since schools began being reopened more widely in June.

Mr Williamson said mandatory attendance would be brought back for September as the government wants all children who can be at school to return.

And he told the Downing Street press conference that ministers could take "very specific action" to force reluctant schools to reopen in September.

Teaching unions and MPs have raised concerns about the safety of pupils and staff, prompting frequent clashes with the government over its botched attempts to get children back in the classroom.

Speaking in the Commons, Mr Williamson said: "It is critical to ensure that no child loses more time in education and that from September all children who can be at school, are at school.

“Schools and colleges will need to work with families to secure regular attendance from the start of the new academic year with the reintroduction of mandatory attendance.”

But Kate Green, the new shadow education secretary, said the government had been “asleep at the wheel” for most of the crisis, leaving headteachers to make “desperate pleas” for more clarity.

She also urged Mr Williamson to rethink fines, saying: “I support the secretary of state in reintroducing compulsory attendance but fining poor parents will not serve the best interests of their children.

“Parents need reassurance that their children will be safe, especially in communities – including ethnic minority communities – where the prevalence of Covid is higher.”

Downing Street suggested headteachers would be able to judge whether parents should face being fined for failing to send their children to England’s schools in September.

Under the new guidance, children and teenagers will be placed in class or year-sized "bubbles" in an effort to limit the spread of the virus.

All pupils in a year group or even the whole school could be sent home if there are two or more confirmed coronavirus cases within a 14-day period.

Mobile testing units will be dispatched to schools by local authorities “where an outbreak in a school is confirmed”, and small numbers of home testing kits will be made available for pupils and staff.

Schools have been told to avoid large gatherings, such as assemblies, and to avoid singing in school choirs. Break times should be staggered, as well as start and finish times to prevent children from coming into close contact with one another.

Desks should all be rearranged to face forwards, the guidance says, with children facing the front of the classroom rather than side by side. Unnecessary furniture should also be removed from classrooms to enable social distancing.

Elsewhere, exams regulator Ofqual announced a delay to the start of next year's GCSEs to allow more time for teaching.

Education unions called on the government to develop a "credible plan B" following the closure of schools in Leicester as part of a localised lockdown to cope with a spike in cases in the city.

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders' union NAHT, said: "The situation seen in Leicester this week has demonstrated that this crisis is far from over, and there will be further disruption ahead.

"It is therefore essential that government continues to monitor the data when it comes to school return and that it also has a credible plan B in place should it be required."

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said: "The logistics of keeping apart many different 'bubbles' of children in a full school, including whole year groups comprising hundreds of pupils, is mind-boggling.

"School leaders will have to consider implementing staggered starts, finishes and lunchtimes, alongside transport to and from school, on an epic scale."

The education secretary insisted children would not be taught a "watered-down curriculum" at the Downing Street press conference on Thursday afternoon, saying the claim was "totally untrue".

"It is going to be a full and total curriculum that is going to be delivered for our children across all subjects," he said.

However his words were odds with the government guidance, which states there may need to be "substantial modification" to the curriculum at the start of the year. Schools are told they must return to a normal curriculum by next summer.

Mr Williamson also suggested breakfast and after-school clubs could resume despite coronavirus guidance aimed at preventing children from different year groups mixing.

Deputy chief medical officer Dr Jenny Harries said schools were actually less risky for the spread of the virus among teenagers than outside of the classroom - and urged parents to "control their teenagers" outside school.