DfE shares briefing on Covid-19 in educational settings
By Rachel Lawler
The benfits of keeping children in education far outweigh the risk to them of Covid-19, according to the Department for Education's latest briefing on Covid-19, children and educational settings.
Using data, analysis and advice from a number of different sources including SAGE, Public Health England, the Office for National Statistics, and the Joint Biosecurity Centre, the DfE briefing argues that the impact of missing education is "severe" for children both now and in the future.
The briefing also says that there is "no clear evidence" that educational settings are playing a significant role in the spead of Covid-19 and says that keeping settings open is a "priority" for the government.
Statistics show that the prevalence of Covid-19 in younger children was in line with the reported prevalence across the general population.
Data also suggests that the risk fo severe disease and death from the virus to children is very low.
The DfE briefing also says that there is "reassuring evidence" that staff working in education are not at any higher risk than those working in other sectors. It also says that staff working in education do not post any higher risk to their household than other key worker groups.
Find out more
Read the briefing in full here