Michael Gove confirms new back-to-school dates

Michael Gove this morning told Sky News: "We always keep things under review but teachers and head teachers have been working incredibly hard over the Christmas period since schools broke up in order to prepare for a new testing regime - community testing - in order to make sure that children and all of us are safer.

"We do keep things under review but that is the plan." Other anonymous sources in government have told newspapers schools could remain shut throughout all of February with a focus on online learning. https://twitter.com/SkyNews/status/1343469005345083392 Gove also confirmed A Level and GCSE exams would go ahead this summer as planned, although it's expected that grades will be heavily weighted upward in order to compensate for disrupted learning and the exam-free scores given to others this year. The cabinet office minister told Times Radio: "We do keep things under review, and we'll be talking to head teachers and teachers in the next 24, 48 hours just to make sure that our plans are really robust." "Teachers and head teachers have been working incredibly hard over the Christmas period in order to prepare for a new testing regime to make sure that children and all of us are safer. "We do keep things under review but that is the plan." It's reported education secretary Gavin Williamson will hold meetings today to decide how the staggered return of other pupils will be handled.