Schools: Coronavirus

(asked on 1st June 2020) - View Source

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will launch a national communications campaign to reassure children and parents about returning to school as the covid-19 lockdown restrictions are eased.


Answered by
Nick Gibb Portrait
Nick Gibb
This question was answered on 17th June 2020

The Department is communicating with parents, carers and children to reassure them about the measures that are in place to reduce the risk to children, staff and their families and inform them about the benefits of eligible children being in school. In addition to direct communications with parents, the Department has been working closely with schools, local authorities and education leaders to ensure our guidance on the phased wider opening of schools in England is clear and to encourage them to support parents and children returning to school.

The Department has produced a range of communications content to help inform parents about the carefully managed plan to widen the opening of schools as well as the social, wellbeing and educational benefits to children. We are working with key partners and other Government Departments to reach a wide audience and coordinate with other communications activity such as the Department for Transport’s safer transport campaign. We are working closely with the Cabinet Office who coordinate the national COVID-19 public information campaign to ensure key messages on education are communicated through the Stay Alert campaign. Additionally, we are working with the Cabinet Office on sharing our messaging to reassure parents and children through a media partnership with around 600 national, regional and community media titles.

It should be noted that that education is a devolved matter and it is right that individual jurisdictions take decisions in line with their circumstances. It is for the Scottish Government to take the decisions that are right for them to address concerns and reassure parents and children who are learning in the Scottish education system, be this through a national communications campaign or other means.

Reticulating Splines