Schools divided over sticking with masks after rule changes

Thousands of London schoolchildren will continue to wear face masks despite rule changes meaning they are no longer required from this week.

Headteachers from a range of London secondary schools told the Standard that their students will still be expected to cover their faces because of the risk of Covid, with one saying he will “insist” pupils wear them even in classrooms.

From Thursday, masks will no longer be required in communal areas of schools. The requirement to wear them in classrooms was removed last week.

School leaders said the rule changes took them by surprise and they have not had a chance to consult teachers or parents.

There is also confusion over whether schools are obliged to follow the new guidance.

But Ashid Ali, head of London Enterprise Academy in Tower Hamlets, said he will continue to provide free daily masks to pupils and will insist on them in classrooms, as well as continuing with weekly Covid testing. None of the windows at his school — in a former office block — can be opened.

He said: “I understand the government guidance, I must think about the local situation and manage the risks accordingly.”

At Croydon High School, headteacher Emma Pattison was “pleased to be able to ask pupils to remove [face masks] in the classroom”, but said senior pupils will continue to wear them in communal areas due to a slight surge in cases.

Clare Wagner, head of Henrietta Barnett in Hampstead Garden Suburb, will discuss the guidance on masks in communal areas with senior staff.

She said it would be “so helpful if the Department for Education could give school leaders notice in advance of a change in guidance rather than announcing a change to be implemented the very next day”.