Teachers and school staff should be at the front of the queue for any booster vaccinations, Scottish Labour has said.
With less than four weeks to go before the start of term, the party has criticised the Scottish Government for failing to communicate clearly with parents, pupils and staff how the return from the summer holidays will go.
The party is calling for ventilation checks — similar to ones carried out by school authorities in New York — a rise in the number of covid tests in-class and a country-wide review of the school estate to make sure buildings are suitable.
An action plan for how the country’s under-18s will be vaccinated, if evidence suggests they should, has been called for.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) concluded earlier this month the Pfizer vaccine is safe to administer to children aged 12-15.
Four weeks from start of term
Scottish Labour education spokesperson Michael Marra, said: “Scotland is now four weeks from the start of the new school term and none of the strategic decisions necessary have been communicated to education authorities, headteachers and parents.
“Clear and timely communication is vital if we are to avoid the chaos that has marked the Scottish Government’s handling of education throughout the pandemic.
“We must always be guided by the science, and these additional measures are based on lessons learned during the pandemic so far.
“From testing, to vaccines and ventilation, this is a robust plan of action. Not only is it necessary to first and foremost keep pupils and staff safe, but it will also help reduce the disruption to schooling which has been significant since the outbreak of Covid-19.”
Safety top priority
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The safety of school pupils and staff has been a top priority throughout the pandemic. We are continuing to develop updated guidance that will support schools to reopen safely after the summer holidays.
“It is important this is not done unilaterally, as Labour propose, but as we have done throughout the pandemic via the Covid Expert Advisory Group which includes parents, teachers and young people.
“We expect that advice will make clear which baseline mitigations should be retained in schools as we move beyond Level Zero, and which should be removed at the earliest safe opportunity following the return.
“That will include work to consider whether and to what extent there is a requirement for children and young people to self-isolate as contacts of positive cases can safely be reduced.
“We are currently planning for the booster programme using the interim advice from the JCVI, but these plans will be updated once we have final advice from this independent clinical group.
“We are considering how best to protect the most vulnerable as part of our plans for both seasonal flu and a covid booster.”