Part-time start for Falkirk school pupils in August

Pupils in Falkirk will not be back at school full-time for a fortnight after classrooms reopen.

Instead, the schools will keep to the ‘blended learning’ arrangements previously announced to families to allow pupils and staff to adjust to being back at school after more than four months.

That means staff will return on Monday, August 10 for two days of in-service and pupils will return on a phased basis from Wednesday, August 12.

From August 24, all pupils should be back at school full-time – unless there is a new wave of the virus or any local spikes.

The ‘soft start’ will help pupils and staff get to grips with new infection control measures that will be in place in schools.

It also means that primary one and S1 pupils, who have missed out on transition experiences, will be able to find their feet before the rest of the pupils return.

The decision was taken at a meeting of Falkirk Council’s emergency executive on Tuesday.

If there is a spike in virus transmissions, the arrangements that had been made for a part-time return to school will be used.

The meeting also confirmed that nurseries that are able to offer 1140 hours of nursery education will do so from August 24.

By Local Democracy Reporter Kirsty Paterson