A North West council has told parents that schools will be closing and providing remote learning for the last two days of term to ensure that pupils and families do not have to self-isolate at Christmas.

Stockport Council has written to parents saying that schools in the area that were going to be open on 21 and 22 December will now provide home learning instead.

The letter said the council wanted to ensure that “as many children, young people and families as possible are able to enjoy a well-earned break without being asked to self-isolate”.

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The letter adds: “For this reason, Stockport schools that were going to be open on December 21 and 22 will now provide home learning on these days.

Coronavirus: Closing the school gates early for Christmas

“Our schools will end on-site provision two days early without any loss to your child’s learning time.”

Parents have also been told that schools will be in touch to tell them about the home-learning arrangements that have been put in place.

The letter adds: “We acknowledge that, particularly for families with children at primary schools, this decision will be disruptive to childcare arrangements, and have attempted to provide as much notice as possible.”

A multi-academy trust serving schools in the North West and West Yorkshire announced plans to close its 15 primary schools a week early because of Covid cases but was asked to review this by the Department for Education.

The DfE said today that Focus Trust had rescinded its plans but the MAT said it was still discussing the matter internally.

Last week Tes revealed that the DfE had rejected a request from schools in Hull to move on to a rota in response to increasing Covid disruption.

The Hull Learning Partnership, which represents schools across the city, had asked the DfE for the “latitude” to be able to move to the second or third tiers of the DfE’s system for managing Covid in schools.

Under tier 2 of this system, secondary schools move on to rotas, and in tier 3, some secondary school year groups would be sent home.

However, the regional schools commissioner for the East Midlands and Humber, Carol Gray, has told Hull headteachers that no local areas would be moved beyond tier 1 in the national lockdown and that any decision to move schools on to these tiers should not be made locally.

Tes has also revealed that education secretary Gavin Williamson and health secretary Matt Hancock have written to local public health directors to tell them they should not move schools on to rotas during the national lockdown.