Commenting on the latest Welsh attendance figures, NAHT Cymru Director Laura Doel said, 

“The latest figures show that schools are still very much in the grip of the pandemic. Learner absence, coupled with staff absence rates which continue to cause concern means the delivery of education is still being disrupted across Wales.

“We anticipated that the relaxation of measures outside of schools would very much have an impact on case rates in schools and this is a pattern we have seen over the last two years.

“That is why we continue to urge the government to be cautious when it comes to lifting mitigations that are currently in place in schools until half term. 

“If the priority is to keep learners in school, that may mean keeping some measures in school into March out of necessity.

“Covid is not over for schools and the Government needs to be mindful of this when forging ahead with yet more education reforms, like reviewing the school day, which is putting increased pressure on an already overburdened profession.”