Calls for Scottish government to scrap masks in secondary schools
As pupils in England remove their masks, questions are being asked about when Scotland's teenagers will do the same
The Scottish Government is being accused of changing the goalposts on mask-wearing in secondary schools, as the rules for teenagers in England are relaxed.
From today in England (Thursday 20th January) face coverings in classrooms are being scrapped, with mandatory masks no longer being required in places such as shops and public transport south of the border from next week.
Scotland's also easing more restrictions from Monday, with limits on indoor events, hospitality and nightclubs being lifted, but mask-wearing in schools is one of the Covid rules remaining in place, for now.
The exam diet in Scotland begins in May - but so far the Scottish Government hasn't committed to scrapping masks in classrooms by then.
Parent-Teacher groups in Scotland are making fresh calls for the Scottish Government to name the date for masks to be scrapped in high schools.
Calls from Parent-Teacher groups for face masks to go
Jocelyn Hammer from the group Stand By Me Scotland told us mask-wearing has been hugely damaging to pupils: "Face masks aren't good for any child to be wearing in schools , they're not good psychologically. We need to see the lower half of to actually be able to listen properly, whether you're hearing impaired or not."
Jocelyn said parents and teachers are becoming increasingly frustrated by the delay, and is calling for the Scottish Government to follow England and removed the rules for teenagers:
"If not now, when?"
"We were told just until Christmas, then we were told Omicron's here we need to keep them for a while longer. The children, teachers and parents want to know when these face masks are going to go.
Jocelyn is now calling on the Scottish government to pick a date, and stick to it, telling us "If not now, when?"
"There are kids who've never seen their teacher's faces, and don't actually know what their teachers look like. There are kids who are hearing impaired and can't follow what teachers are saying if they wear masks, can't follow what other pupils are saying, can't properly do group-work."
Teaching unions say it's too early to relax the rules
Larry Flannagan from the EIS Teaching union said now is not the right time to relax restrictions in secondary schools.
He said: "It's quite early to think about removing any mitigation's, including face coverings, and the last time the Scottish Government looked at this and we ended up moving to stronger mitigation's because the situation changed quite quickly."
"I think in Scotland we need to see further evidence and take feedback from schools before we move to that situation, clearly when it's safe to remove face coverings it will welcomed by students and, I think, by teachers but I'm not convinced that's where we are at the moment
We need to see further evidence and take feedback from schools
"The situation in schools remains at a fairly critical level. We have seen high levels of staff absence and we know in secondary schools where face coverings are worn there are concerns around disruptive learning, particularly to students who are on qualification courses."
The Scottish Government says its position on face coverings hasn't changed and that no timetable for mask-free classrooms has been set.