Schools could open for two weeks in summer holidays to allow students to ‘catch up’

Schools could open for two weeks in the summer holidays to help kids catch up, according to reports.

The government is reportedly devising a plan that could see schools open for two weeks in summer with the missed holiday added over the autumn and winter breaks.

The Sunday Times reported that schools could keep their windows open in the warmer weather to help reduce the risk of Covid transmission.

The Conservative chairman of the Education Select Committee Robert Halfon told the publication: “We have to reform the school year.

“There has to be change – things cannot carry on the way they did pre-Covid. From my discussions with No10, everything is up for debate.”

Kirsty Williams, the Welsh education minister, has also said that the Welsh government was looking into whether ‘summer holidays should be shortened to allow for longer firebreak half-term and Christmas holidays’.

She added: “There is a seasonal element to Covid-19. Therefore we have to think about what autumn and winter will look like.”

A further £300m will be spent on tutoring programmes according to a government spokesperson, adding to the existing £1bn Covid Catch Up Fund. 

They said: “The Prime Minister has been clear that extended schools closures have had a huge impact on pupils’ education, which will take more than a year to make up.

“The Government will work with parents, teachers and schools to develop a long-term plan to make sure pupils have the chance to make up their lost education over the course of this parliament.

“And we have just appointed Sir Kevan Collins to the role of Education Recovery Commissioner, to specifically oversee this issue.”

Health Minister, Edward Argar didn’t rule out the idea of extending the summer term, explaining that Education Secretary Gavin Williamson ‘is looking at a whole range of things to see how we can make sure the impact on them is minimised to the extent that’s possible’.

Boris Johnson has confirmed that schools will not reopen before March 8th.