Questions Without Notice from Party Spokespeople

Part of 2. Questions to the Minister for Education – in the Senedd at 2:32 pm on 25 November 2020.

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Photo of Kirsty Williams Kirsty Williams Liberal Democrat 2:32, 25 November 2020

Certainly. And can I say to the Member, she talks about huddling—we've got a lot of huddling going on in schools. As you can imagine, we've received numerous reports from our local authorities about adults huddling together at school gates. And indeed, within the playground setting, the idea that all children are running around and keeping 2m apart, that's a lovely idea, it's a beautiful thought, but let's face it, that's not exactly what is happening. Pupils do indeed huddle together in playground or field situations. Each of our schools is different. Some are able to have enough outdoor space to keep their bubbles in unique parts of their outdoor part of their school; other schools are having to bring bubbles together in outdoor spaces. And this is another mitigating measure that we are introducing to try and minimise disruption and keep children in schools for as long as possible. All of us, even when we're outside, should look to socially distance, and if we can't socially distance, or choose not to—we all need to be wearing masks. And unfortunately, we're in a position now where we are seeing this disruption that we feel this is the appropriate test.

Lateral flow testing is an important development. We are looking to roll out lateral flow testing in our schools as a result of the Merthyr Tydfil pilot. And in that circumstance, we are not compelling anyone to take a test. They are purely voluntary, and we wouldn't force a child, or an adult, to take a lateral flow test if they did not wish to do so. But clearly, as we go through the pilot and learn the lessons for that, we will be in a better position to make policy statements when we see a greater roll-out, I hope, of that technology.