Face masks to be worn in schools after Government U-turn

Children will be told to wear face masks in schools after a government about-turn on its coronavirus policy.

New guidance will apply in secondary schools only and will require all pupils in Year 7 and above in England to wear face coverings in corridors and communal areas but not in classrooms.

It will be mandatory in schools that are in local lockdown areas and left to the discretion of head teachers in the rest of the country.

Government scientific advisers have not been asked to review the new guidance but ministers believe it will boost confidence among parents.

A senior government source said: “This is a scientific approach – we know schools are safe but in areas of high transmission we do have to be even more careful.”

The change comes despite ministers insisting for days that there would be no change to guidelines, which stated that face coverings were “not recommended” in schools.

Scotland had already made face coverings compulsory in communal areas for over-12s, with Wales and the Mayor of London also announcing reviews.

Robert Halfon, chairman of the Commons education committee, said the Government had made the “right decision”. He said: “I have thought for a long time that head teachers should be able to decide on this. What we need now is absolute clarity and consistency on the scientific advice, and it would be helpful if the Chief Medical Officer put out a statement explaining in simple terms what the guidance is.”

The change is the latest reversal of Covid-related policy, after the Government changed its mind on the wearing of masks in general, on the need for mass testing, on the need for quarantine and on the way A-level and GCSE results were awarded after exams were cancelled because of the virus.

Government scientific advisers warned that making younger children wear masks could actually increase their chances of spreading the virus, and said ministers had been left “on the back foot” by failing to study the issue more closely.

However, Mr Johnson believes the move will help build confidence among parents and teachers about the safety of schools returning next week.

It will also head off a growing row with unions and parents’ groups, who had suggested England should follow new advice from the World Health Organisation (WHO), which said over-12s should wear face coverings in the same circumstances as adults.

Senior Government sources told The Telegraph that the WHO had made “a strong case” for secondary school children wearing face coverings in corridors and shared spaces, where maintaining social distancing was difficult. Both Public Health England and the Department for Education are understood to have approved the change.

Unions and parents’ groups signalled on Tuesday night that they expect heads will choose to make children wear masks in corridors, even in parts of the country where they are not compulsory.

John Jolly, chief executive of Parentkind, the national parent-teacher association, backed the move “as long as we are not moving into a situation where children are wearing face masks in the classroom”. He said masks could reassure the estimated 25 per cent of parents who were “very worried” about their children returning.

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, had said it would be “prudent” for the Government to review its guidance and provide clear direction before term begins.

The Government had until now insisted that measures instigated by schools, including segregating pupils and staff into separate “bubbles” as well as strict cleaning and handwashing regimes would be sufficient to ensure Covid-secure surroundings, and the Government’s own scientists said that remained the case.

Prof Russell Viner, a Sage adviser, and President of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, suggested the evidence did not support such policies.

He said: “There are lots of concerns about mask wearing for children, particularly younger children, because they touch their face, they are constantly worried about the mask, it actually could potentially spread the virus more.”

When it came to older children and teenagers, “we don’t have the evidence that this is useful” he said.

Dr Jenny Harries, England’s Deputy Chief Dedical Officer, has previously said the evidence on whether children over 12 should wear masks in schools was “not strong”.

Prof Susan Michie, a member of the Sage sub group on behaviours (SPI-B), said she was in favour of masks at secondary school, if it was carefully managed.

But she said: “It does seem on this, as with many things, that the Government is on the back foot.”

“The problem about face masks is that if people fiddle with them, it can make things worse.”

Pressure on Mr Johnson to change tack had built steadily over the previous 24 hours, starting with Ms Sturgeon’s decision on Monday to introduce masks in schools, which was followed on Tuesday by the Welsh Government and then London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who said he was looking to introduce masks in schools in the capital and criticised the Government for being slow to respond to the latest health advice.

Other councils were also preparing to change their advice even before the Government moved.

Post-primary pupils in Northern Ireland will also be asked to wear face coverings in corridors and other communal areas, Peter Weir, Stormont’s education minister said.