News

Staff absence: Schools on Omicron alert as term begins

As the education secretary urges schools to prioritise face-to-face teaching, leaders warn that it will only take a small increase in staff absence to derail the beginning of the spring term.

Staff absence continues to be one of the biggest challenges facing schools as term got underway. The week began with familiar feelings of frustration about last-minute government decisions and guidance – just as we saw a year ago during the post-Christmas surge in Delta cases.

Early reports suggest that most primary schools opened on Tuesday (January 4), while secondary schools have spent the week organising on-site testing for all students before welcoming them back to class.

The National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) reported: "We are hearing from our members that they are finding some pupils are absent and some staff are off sick or isolating. It is not a uniform picture, but at the moment school contingency plans are being relied upon to keep the system working.”

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