A HEADTEACHER in Northwich says he would not want to enforce strict attendance rules if parents do not feel it is safe for their children to return.

Schools have been closed to all pupils apart from the children of key workers since March 20 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to deliver a ‘comprehensive plan’ this week outlining how the lockdown may be eased – hinting at efforts to get children back to school.

But Simon Kidwell, headteacher at Hartford Manor Primary School, says he has been contacted by families who are not ready to send their children back.

He said: “If parents feel their children are safer at home, I certainly don’t want to be enforcing school attendance with the usual levers that I have.”

Mr Kidwell’s comments come amid warnings from headteachers against reopening schools in a short timeframe if they are not prepared for it.

The National Association of Headteachers (NAHT) is concerned that reduced staff numbers, an inability to implement social distancing measures and a lack of personal protective equipment could make it hard for schools to reopen.

A poll conducted by the union found that 29 per cent of headteachers did not think they could implement some form of social distancing in their primary school, while one in four headteachers said fewer than half of their staff could return to work, with many shielding from Covid-19.

Paul Whiteman, NAHT general secretary, said: “If school leaders are not given sufficient time to prepare then we are going to have a very difficult return to schools.

“The public will not have confidence in schools’ ability to keep children safe if they haven’t been able to do the proper preparations to keep children apart and to make sure they have got all the right equipment there for children to wash their hands.”

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Asked what issues would prevent schools from reopening to more pupils by a date set by the Government, the top answers among headteacherss were an inability to implement appropriate social distancing measures (83 per cent), a lack of available staff (63 per cent), and a lack of PPE (57 per cent).

To maintain social distancing, school leaders said they were largely in favour of using rotas to limit the number of pupils (72 per cent), staggering lunchtimes and breaks (66 per cent), and rearranging furniture and seating in classrooms (60 per cent).

The union is calling on Government to improve its guidance on social distancing and provide the scientific evidence for pupils returning to class before schools are able to open again.

A Department for Education spokesman said: “Schools will remain closed, except for children of critical workers and vulnerable children, until the scientific advice indicates it is the right time to reopen and the five tests set out by Government to beat this virus have been met.

“We are also working closely with the sector as we consider how to reopen schools, nurseries and colleges, and will ensure everyone has sufficient notice to plan and prepare.”