Mistakes over schools reopening 'could reverse' Leeds' hard-won Covid sacrifices

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has stressed that any easing of restrictions needs to be in stages and in an "irreversible" way.

He will outline his "road map" out of lockdown on Monday, with schools expected to fully reopen on March 8,

But Chief Executive Officer of The Gorse Academies Trust, Sir John Townsley, said he was both '"concerned and surprised" that teachers remain "unprioritised" in the vaccination programme.

Sir John, who has a number of academies across Leeds, said: “It is clearly a national imperative for all pupils to return to school at the first opportunity.

"Nevertheless, such an undertaking requires a great deal of detailed and intelligent planning. Schools need to plan within guidelines provided well in advance by government and health specialists.

"We remain concerned and surprised that, in preparation for that return, teachers and other classroom professionals remain unprioritised in the vaccination programme.

"That programme will be central to our drive to ensure that all schools remain open in the months to come."

Leeds City Council wrote to the Government last month calling for teachers to be boosted up coronavirus vaccine priority list.

The council's executive member for learning skills and employment, Jonathan Pryor, said news earlier this month that the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine helps slow the spread of the virus only bolstered their case.

He added: "Just before the November lockdown it was just constant bubble collapses within schools. It was disruptive to parents. And actually, if we vaccinated teachers that disruption could be minimised massively.

"Sadly, they've chosen not to do that - but we have managed to vaccinate kind of any teachers that work with any clinically extremely vulnerable children."