CARMARTHENSHIRE COUNTY UNISON BRANCH, GMB and other education unions have called on Carmarthenshire County Council to close all its schools on the 11th December closing them a week early due to the rising number of Covid-19 cases in the county (224 per 100,000)and particularly due to the rising infection rates in schools.
In a letter to the leader of Carmarthenshire County Council, the groups wrote: “We were informed at the Education and Children’s Forum held on the 3rd December that last week was the highest number of cases ever in Carmarthenshire schools 26 cases in primary and 17 in secondary schools with far greater number self-isolating. We have been informed that 50% of schools have been affected by Covid-19 in Carmarthenshire and that 90% of Head teachers want schools to close and have distanced learning for the last week of term.
“While the Director of Education acknowledges (at least in words) that school staff are exhausted (as are other employees of the local authority) and frightened the council’s Gold command have decided in their wisdom to support the Director’s decision to keep schools open in the run up to Christmas.
“As you will be aware pupils and staff are being asked to take the increasing risk of being infected and the possible serious consequences of this for them and their families when there is likely to be very little learning activity going on in schools in the last week of term. Our branch previously warned that unless the conditions of the trade unions were met in regard to safety measures being place before schools fully reopened that schools would be in effect be petri dishes for Covid-19 putting pupils and staff at risk, unfortunately and predictably we have been proven correct. Schools despite the best of intentions are not able to maintain social distancing and as a consequence they significantly contribute the spread of Covid-19. The Director of Education informed the trade unions that he had made the final decision to keep schools open in consultation and with the agreement of gold.
“We assume that you as council leader are in agreement with the decision of the Director of Education who stated that he made his ‘tough’ decision after considering’ the pros and cons’. We ask that you and the council urgently review and reverse this decision while we appreciate that closing the schools early will cause problems for parents with childcare etc surely the overriding and most important issue is the safety of staff and pupils and they and their families are being put at increased risk of infection.
“We ask that the local authority considers its duty of care to pupils and staff and take the responsibility for closing the schools early otherwise it’s likely that many parents will take the responsibility themselves and not send the children to school after the 11th and staff may also vote with their feet.”
Add Comment