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Scotland looks to phased re-opening for nurseries and schools
Today, the First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon announced a phased return to school for Scotland’s youngest children, with nurseries and all primary pupils from P1 to P3 back in the classroom from 22 February.
Sturgeon confirmed that the current lockdown – with its stay-at-home message – would remain in place until the end of the month, although she added she was “optimistic” that there could be some easing from the beginning of March. Schools and nurseries have been closed to the vast majority of children across Scotland since the Christmas holidays.
At Holyrood chamber, the First Minister said:
‘To get the virus more under control, and so that we can prioritise every bit of headroom we create to get children back to school, we must all stay at home except for permitted, essential purposes for a bit longer – at least until the end of this month
She added that teachers and other school and nursery staff would be offered at-home testing twice a week.
Purnima Tanuku OBE, chief executive of NDNA Scotland, said:
‘The First Minister’s announcement will come as a huge relief to nurseries and parents across Scotland. Some nurseries have been unable to open at all because of small numbers of children eligible to attend; the rest have been open only for key worker and vulnerable children.
‘Nurseries are crucial for children’s development and early learning. Families need them for stability and to enable parents to work. It’s good to have two weeks’ notice for settings that are not already open to get ready.
‘We’re also pleased that the Scottish Government will extend their asymptomatic testing plans to include private and voluntary early learning and childcare settings. We will urge the Scottish Government and the Minister to ensure they announce their plan with dates for this as soon as possible.
‘Children and staff safety is the number one priority for all nurseries. Practitioners and parents need the reassurance from regular testing that their child’s nursery is as safe as possible.’
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