During a Downing Street press conference, Boris Johnson urged parents to get their children vaccinated to keep schools open, adding: “We know how crucial it is to keep children in school, so let’s all make sure our children and young people are vaccinated before they go back next term.” By Camilla Turner, The Telegraph.

According to BBC News, schools across the UK have said that they are prepared to switch to online learning if they have to next term as a result of rising numbers of children staying at home due to COVID. By Hazel Shearing.

Alex Burghart, the schools minister, has said that the Government would give secondary headteachers some flexibility over reopening in the new term to allow them to test their pupils for COVID. By Richard Vaughan, iNews.

The Department for Education has announced £10 million in funding to help schools in areas hardest hit by learning loss caused by the pandemic. By Samantha Booth, Schools Week.

BBC News takes a closer look at whether schools are likely to have to close again in January and outlines current COVID measures in schools.

Pupil absences in Scotland due to COVID-related reasons have more than doubled in a fortnight - about 26,500 absences were recorded on Monday, up from 12,000 on November 29. By Mark McLaughlin, The Times.

An article in The Telegraph looks at data from both Oxford and Cambridge universities, which show the number of offers they have made to every school over the past five years. By Camilla Turner and Alex Clark. The article includes quotes from ISC chairman Barnaby Lenon.

Dame Rachel de Souza, the children’s commissioner, has issued a guide to parents written by young adults about conversations they wished had taken place before they had digital devices. Dame Rachel said: "Young people want parents to be better informed about the risks of the online world and how to prevent early exposure to harmful content." By Nicola Woolcock, The Times.

Oxford University Press (OUP) has suggested that parents should move on from reading old classics to their children and expose them to more modern books so that they learn about diversity, homelessness and the need to care for the environment. By Nicola Woolcock, The Times.

Writing in The Times, Fiona Rintoul argues that independent schools work against the common good.

A survey by the National Association of Head Teachers has found that nine out of 10 school leaders say the early career framework (ECF) has created extra workload for new teachers, with concerns mentors are also “drowning” in work. By Samantha Booth, Schools Week.

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