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Schools minister defends asking secondary school pupils to wear masks

2 mins read Education Coronavirus
Schools minister Robin Walker has defended “fine balanced” Department for Education guidance for wearing masks in secondary schools.
Secondary school pupils are advised to wear masks in school. Picture: Adobe Stock
Secondary school pupils are advised to wear masks in school. Picture: Adobe Stock

Walker, Conservative MP for Worcester, was quizzed about the need for the guidance at a meeting of the education select committee earlier this week after “huge numbers” of students refused to wear masks in schools, according to the NASUWT teachers’ union.

Currently, all pupils and teachers in secondary schools are advised to wear masks indoors during school hours unless they are exempt. Teachers at the front of the classroom are exempt from wearing a mask to aid education and communication, DfE guidelines state.

The education select committee referenced a government study into the effectiveness of masks in schools for reducing transmission of the omicron variant of Covid-19, which cited the results as “not conclusive”.

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