Most Shetland pupils to stay home until February as part of measures to tackle rising Covid-19 numbers

The Anderson High School will be closed due to teacher strikes.

Most Shetland pupils will not return to school until at least February, the First Minister has confirmed.

Nicola Sturgeon made the announcement today (Monday) to help tackle the surging numbers of the virus across Scotland and the UK.

The majority of pupil had already been told to stay home until 18th January, with a programme of remote learning set to begin next week.

Now, however, Ms Sturgeon said  home learning will be continued for at least a further two weeks.

The announcement covers primary, secondary and nursery schools. 

Ms Sturgeon said the decision to keep pupils at home for longer was the “most difficult” to make and its impact “the most severe”.

Although Ms Sturgeon praised staff and pupils for working to ensure schools had remained safe, she said the uncertainty around the new strain of Covid-19 meant it was not practical to reopen.

She said the government would continue looking at testing in schools and would also begin discussions on when to vaccinate school staff.

Vulnerable pupils and the children of key workers will still be able to attend school, as had previously been agreed.