Oak National Academy has seen a sharp increase in teachers and pupils using its online lessons as Covid disruption in schools increases.

New figures show that the number of people using Oak lessons is at its highest level since March.

There have been big increases in use of lessons in the North West, Yorkshire and South Northamptonshire, according to the online provider.

In Salford, Oak saw lesson starts increase by 249 per cent when comparing 21 June with 10 May.

Disruption: One in 20 pupils now off because of Covid impact

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Covid: Schools told to plan for more remote learning

Covid: The rise in schools using Oak National Academy lessons

Separate figures provided to Tes show how steep the increase has been over just the past two weeks, as many schools report an ”out of control” surge in Covid cases.

Lesson starts w/c June 7

Lesson starts w/c June 21

% increase

Manchester

4,518

10,344

129%

Liverpool

3,436

10,400

203%

Salford

2,088

5,355

156%

Leeds

5,236

14,036

168%

Bradford

4,012

6,942

73%

This comes as the latest national figures from the Department for Education show 5.1 per cent of pupils in state-funded schools were off school for Covid-related reasons on Thursday of last week.

That is an increase from 3.3 per cent on 17 June and 1.2 per cent on 10 June.

The figures also show a rise in staff absence due to Covid, with 2.5 per cent of teachers and school leaders in state schools off work on 24 June - up from 1.7 per cent on 17 June and 0.9 per cent on 10 June.

Oak National Academy says its data shows schools across the country have continued to use their teacher resources and online lessons when teachers and pupils are in the classroom, too.

On average, Oak has seen around 150,000 pupils and 30,000 teachers accessing its site each week - with one-third of all schools in England using it.

Matt Hood, principal of Oak National Academy, said:
“The disruption faced by schools is challenging. The best place for a child is in the classroom with their teachers and peers.

“They have been hit hard by this last year and the spread of the Delta variant has added to the disruption. Our data shows pupils are continuing to learn when self-isolating with a sharp increase in the numbers using our online classroom.

“We are now offering one-to-one advice to schools in the worst affected areas so they can get the best out of our resources, set remote lessons and tailor learning for pupils in these last vital few weeks of term.”