Schools could be made to close early for Christmas amid fears that Omicron, the new Covid variant, may spark an explosion in infections.
The Department of Education (DfE) has insisted that sending kids home en masse is a "last resort", but it waits to be seen whether the virus will force their hand.
So far there have been 11 cases of the Omicron variant in the UK. Now, reports suggest that thousands of pupils have been told to swap back to remote learning as the number of positive tests increases, according to The Mirror.More and more members of staff are also said to be catching the virus - which may see education bosses act soon.On Sunday the DfE issued guidance on mask-wearing, strongly advising secondary school pupils to do so in.