A number of headteachers and councils have told parents they can keep their children at home as schools have started to rebel against Government orders to reopen.

Although primary schools are closed in a limited number of tier four areas to help contain the spread of coronavirus, Boris Johnson assured parents yesterday that young people are safe in class.

Yet a number of schools concerned over rising cases in their areas have decided to close anyway – even though they are on the list to reopen.

Gil Denham, headteacher of Marish Academy Trust which runs two primary schools in Slough, said she couldn’t guarantee pupils or staff wouldn’t be exposed to Covid-19.

According to Berkshire Live, she wrote: ‘As a parent and grandparent myself, if I feel that the risk of my child or someone else in my family contracting Covid-19 is too high, if they attend school from Monday, I would keep them at home.

‘It may be that this is the decision some of you come to for your own families. Rest assured, online learning will be provided for all those pupils who do not attend in person.’

Following her statement Slough Borough Council said it would support any primary school’s decision to close.

It comes after councils in Norfolk, Greater Manchester and Southampton said they would let schools decide if it was safe enough to open.

A letter from the leader of Southampton City Council said: ‘The Government has not shown clear leadership and refuses to engage with headteachers and trade unions’ legitimate concerns.

‘It’s becoming apparent that there will not be enough teachers in all schools to reopen safely.’

Brighton and Hove City Council went a step further and advised primary schools not to open, going against Department for Education orders.

And Cumbria’s local director of public health and Kent’s council leader wrote to the Government yesterday, requesting to be allowed to keep schools closed.

A number of primary schools in North Essex, Derbyshire, Merseyside and Nottinghamshire have also made the decision not to open.

Aside from the risk of catching the virus, a number of schools have claimed there are not enough staff for them to reopen due to so many having to self-isolate.

The Local Government Association has called for headteachers and councils to be allowed to keep schools shut where they feel it is appropriate.

Judith Blake, chairperson of its children and young people board, said: ‘It is important that schools have the local flexibility to take decisions about reopening – in consultation with their councils – based on the latest public health advice and data.

‘This is vital to reassure parents and carers that it is safe for their schools to reopen.’

And nine education unions have called on the Welsh Government to delay the reopening of schools.

In a joint letter the unions say they ‘are at a complete loss to understand’ how schools can begin a phased return.

Primary schools in all London boroughs, 11 boroughs in Essex, nine boroughs in Kent, two in East Sussex, four in Hertfordshire, and Milton Keynes in Buckinghamshire have been ordered to stay closed from today, when term begins.

These schools will now only be open for vulnerable children and those of key workers until at least January 18, when coronavirus restrictions will be reviewed.

All secondary schools in England will remain closed – regardless of whether they are in a coronavirus hotspot – but vulnerable children and those of key workers can return to the classroom. All other pupils will begin online learning from today.

GCSE and A-level students (Years 11 and 13) will return to the classroom next Monday, with the rest of secondary school pupils returning on January 18.

It comes after the Prime Minister insisted on the BBC Andrew Marr Show yesterday that schools are safe enough for children to return to.

‘Absolutely they should [go back] – in the areas where schools are open,’ he said.

‘And what we’re doing clearly is grappling with a new variant of the virus, which is surging particularly in London and the South East, and that’s why we’ve had to take exceptional measures in some parts to keep primary schools closed temporarily.

‘Not something anybody wants to do, we’ve really fought very hard throughout the pandemic across the country to keep schools open.

‘For lots of reasons – schools are safe – very very important to stress that – the threat, the risk to kids, to young people is really very, very small indeed.’

He said parents should be guided by public health advice, adding: ‘Which at the moment is that schools are safe, where we’re not being driven by the new variant, where children’s education is priority’.

But a Government scientist said yesterday teenagers between the ages of 12 to 16 are much more likely than any other age group to bring Covid-19 into a household.

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