Islington Council, in London, has advised its schools to move to online teaching as coronavirus cases rise in the capital.

The council has called on schools to remain closed until 11 January.

Richard Watts, leader of Islington Council, said: “This is a very difficult decision - however the public health situation in Islington and London is so serious that we have to do everything we can to stop this deadly virus spreading in our community and across London.

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“Throughout the pandemic, our top priority has been to keep our residents safe and supported. We are working closely with schools to give help and support they need in these very difficult times, including support with e-learning.”

The council has asked schools to remain open for children of key workers and vulnerable children. It said it will be supporting learning with learning packs, online resources and digital devices.

The move makes Islington the second London council to call for schools to close early before Christmas after Greenwich announced similar measures yesterday.

Yesterday, the heads of the two major school leadership unions called on the government to allow schools in Covid hotspot areas to be allowed to move lessons online while rapid testing is carried out.

There has also been controversy over the DfE raising the prospect of using legal action to ensure schools and trusts do not decide to close their doors early this term because of Covid concerns.