Teachers must be vaccinated to protect them against coronavirus

The Liberal Democrats have called for teachers to be vaccinated against coronavirus after the government admitted schools were the epicentre of high community transmission.

Daisy Cooper, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Education, has written a letter to Gavin Williamson and Matt Hancock to ask them to vaccinate teachers as part of category seven.

This would make them a top priority after everyone working in the NHS and social care and those most at risk by virtue of their age, being clinically vulnerable or having an underlying health condition.

It comes as the Secretary of State for Education announced that teachers' estimated grades will replace GCSE and A-level results.

Daisy Cooper, Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Education, said:

"Teachers and school staff have put themselves at enormous risk during this pandemic in order to keep schools open.

Now that the Prime Minister has finally admitted that schools are at the epicentre of high community Covid transmission, teachers must be given priority access to the Covid vaccine.

But vaccinating teachers on its own won't be enough to re-open schools safely. To reduce transmission among pupils and their families, the government must review how pupil 'bubbles' should work, ensure every school has its own single-school transport, and that the schools Covid testing programme is fit for purpose.

We welcome the fact that teachers' estimated grades will replace GCSE and A-level results but this decision could have been made sooner and would have avoided undue stress and worry."

Kate Clegg, Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Education in Rochdale, added:

"I do appreciate that prioritising who gets vaccinated first is incredibly challenging, teaching staff must be safe to return to work before we get children back in the classroom."

Kate is a University lecturer currently adjusting to teaching her courses remotely - and a mum of two who is juggling her work with home schooling.