Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to help protect clinically vulnerable members of staff from covid-19 in schools in England.

Most people who were previously identified as clinically extremely vulnerable (CEV) are now well protected after receiving their primary and booster vaccination doses. For most people who were identified as CEV, they are no longer at substantially greater risk than the general population and are advised to follow the same guidance as everyone else on staying safe and preventing the spread of COVID-19, as well as any further advice they may have received from their doctor.

As individuals are now mixing in an otherwise open society, regular testing within education providers is no longer as effective as it once was at preventing transmission. Instead, the most effective protection against severe disease from COVID-19 for everyone, including those at higher risk from COVID-19, is to get vaccinated.

Education providers should undertake a risk assessment of individuals with clinical vulnerabilities attending the provider and, as employers, should be able to explain the measures they have in place to keep staff safe at work.

Those at higher risk may also wish to consider additional advice:

• Those previously considered CEV may wish to consider taking extra precautions outlined in guidance from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-on-shielding-and-protecting-extremely-vulnerable-persons-from-covid-19.
• Individuals with a weakened immune system should follow guidance from the UKHSA and DHSC for people whose immune system means they are at higher risk from COVID-19. The guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-for-people-whose-immune-system-means-they-are-at-higher-risk.
• In some circumstances, staff, children, pupils or students may have received advice from their specialist or clinician. They should follow this advice, which may be set out in a healthcare plan.