The government has admitted the evidence for using masks in schools to reduce spread of Covid is “not conclusive”.
The uncertainty is acknowledged in a review used by ministers in England to make their decision to introduce face coverings in classrooms.
The government’s own study in the autumn did not provide proof of a statistically significant impact.
The evidence review says other studies have provided mixed results, but taken together suggest they may help.
The review has only just been published following the announcement on Monday about the return of face coverings in classrooms.
Schools where face coverings were used in October 2021 saw a reduction two to three weeks later in Covid absences from 5.3% to 3% – a drop of 2.3 percentage points.
In schools which did not use face coverings absences fell from 5.3% to 3.6% – a fall of 1.7 percentage points.
It said this was not statistically significant and the greater reduction in schools where masks were worn could be down to chance.
The review also acknowledged the use of face coverings could harm learning.
But a full analysis of the costs versus benefits of the policy has not been done.
Unity News Network (UNN) Staff Writer | To find out more details about our staff, please head to the About Us section on our website.
