GMB, NEU and UNISON in Dorset and Dorset Trades Union Council have released a statement to KeeP 106 on the re-opening of schools in Dorset:
The government has proposed to reopen schools on June 1 for children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 classes. School staff, parents and carers in Dorset are concerned that this will not be safe – that schools can be sites to transmit the corona virus, and that measures must be in place to protect children and adults.
The Independent SAGE Committee of eminent scientists warned recently: “It is clear from the evidence we have collected that 1 June is simply too early to go back. By going ahead with this dangerous decision, the government is further risking the health of our communities and the likelihood of a second spike.”
Schools are already open for children of key workers and for vulnerable pupils and those with an Education Health Care Plan – and GMB, NEU and UNISON support the wider re-opening of schools when it is safe to do so. Before much larger numbers are admitted GMB, NEU and UNISON request reliable evidence and transparent decision-making.
GMB, NEU and UNISON alongside Unite have also produced a checklist of preparations for the different education sectors such as primary, secondary and special schools, for use only when it is deemed that schools are safe to open.
The Department for Education has confirmed that 1 June is an ‘aspiration’ and therefore the responsibility for taking the decision about when it is safe to increase pupil numbers will rest with individual schools and the local authority. GMB, NEU and UNISON in Dorset and Dorset Trades Union Council say: ‘we note the difficult and stressful position in which our headteachers are placed. We believe therefore that it is important that we all stand together to ensure that everyone in the school and community is safe.’
GMB, NEU and UNISON in Dorset call on Dorset Council and on academy trusts in the county to only support the reopening of schools when it is safe to do so, working with them to put in place measures which can protect teachers, school staff, children and their families.
