All Welsh schools will remain shut until this date at least, says Education Minister

Schools in Barry, and the rest of Wales, will not open until 18 January for face-to-face teaching, at the earliest.

The Welsh Government Education Minister Kirsty Williams confirmed that reopening schools will be delayed, among growing concern for rising cases of Coronavirus.

The Vale of Glamorgan Council had arranged for schools to open from Wednesday 6 January, if the right risk assessments and staffing measures were in place.

This afternoon the council then announced that schools in the county "were not in a position to open this week".

In a statement this evening, Education Minister Kirsty Williams said:

"It is now clear that a national approach of online learning for the first fortnight of term is the best way forward.

"We know that schools and colleges have been safe and secure environments throughout the pandemic.

"However, we also know that education settings being open can contribute to wider social mixing outside the school and college environment.

"We are confident that schools and colleges have online learning provision in place for this immediate period."