Mansfield MP Ben Bradley supports campaign urging Prime Minister to fully reopen schools

Mr Bradley is supporting a campaign by the parent’s pressure group, UsForThem, to fully reopen schools.

Other supporters of the campaign include Ashfield MP, Lee Anderson, and former Cabinet Minister, Esther McVey.

The MPs have warned the Prime Minister that children from disadvantaged backgrounds will fall further behind if schools remain shut to all children.

They are asking for the full analysis of this decision to be released to justify the closures, and have suggested that front line workers like teachers (and others) should be the next priority after vulnerable groups for the vaccine in order to help us get children back in school.

As a former member of the education select committee, Mr Bradley is particularly concerned about the impact the closures will have on disadvantaged children.

He has long campaigned to make society fairer and give children equal opportunities by raising his concerns about disadvantaged children, particularly white working-class boys, at every opportunity in Parliament.

He said: “Schools must reopen to students who want or need to be there.

"Each day they’re out of the classroom, the most disadvantaged children are falling behind in their education, and their life chances are poorer as a result.

"Narrowing the educational gap is fundamental to 'levelling up' and giving people a fair chance in life.

"These school closures are only going to make that problem worse, hold back the communities that put their faith in us even more, and in my view it's storing up huge issues for the future that are being grossly underestimated.

‘‘Let’s get through the vulnerable vaccination groups – which could reduce the mortality of the virus by as much as 88 per cent – and then prioritise teachers and school staff for the jabs, so that we can get those kids who would benefit from being in school back there after half term."

For more information on UsForThem, click here.