Council vows to stay safe in school

Education chiefs have said efforts will still be made to encourage physical distancing between pupils when they return to school next week despite Scottish Government advice suggesting this isn’t necessary.

In documents presented to Renfrewshire Council’s emergencies board, officers have said schools will still try and keep children apart where possible in order to further minimise the risk of spreading coronavirus.

Scottish Government ministers have said children do not have to socially distance when in school, nursery or on public transport.

The board papers also stated staff would be asked to avoid putting children in large groups at events or assemblies and there will be restrictions on visitors coming into schools.

The council has said it has recruited a “significant number”of additional staff to further support learning during the pandemic.

Pupils in P1 and P7 will return to primary schools on Wednesday while S1 and S6 year groups will be back in secondary school classrooms.

On Thursday, P2, P3 and P4 will be back in schools as well as students in S4 and S5.

By Friday, all schoolchildren will have returned to full-time learning, with P5 and P6 coming back along with S2 and S3.

Primary pupils at Mary Russell School in Paisley and Riverbrae School in Linwood will arrive back on Wednesday, while secondary students will return on Thursday.

Nursery children will also begin to return on a phased basis from Wednesday at council-run centres.

School transport is set to continue as normal for eligible pupils and children will not need to physically distance or wear face masks, but there will be a rule on no food or drink on school buses.

In other safety measures at schools and nurseries, children will be expected to wash their hands before they leave home in the morning and when they arrive before settling into the classroom.

Lunchtimes may also be staggered to reduce children queing in large numbers.