Keep campus mask mandates, union urges, as Covid restrictions end

Students and staff should be told to keep wearing face masks on English campuses, a union said, amid fears that universities could become “incubators for Covid”.

The Westminster government confirmed on 12 July that most of the last remaining lockdown restrictions would be lifted in a week, meaning – as new government guidance puts it – “there will be no restrictions on in-person teaching and learning in universities”.

Most undergraduate tuition is not due to resume until the autumn, and several universities have indicated that large in-person lectures will remain online-only for at least the autumn term.

However, the University and College Union said the government should agree to meet with unions and employers to “jointly agree safety measures, and ensure students and staff are confident that campuses are as safe as possible”.

One emerging flashpoint is on the use of masks, with Department for Education guidance published last week advising that as of 19 July “face coverings will no longer be required for students, staff and visitors either in teaching and learning environments or in communal areas”.

The guidance says that, in the case of a coronavirus outbreak, public health directors “might advise that face coverings should temporarily be worn in communal areas or teaching rooms”. However, it adds: “No student should be denied education on the grounds of whether they are, or are not, wearing a face covering.”

Jo Grady, the UCU’s general secretary, said universities needed “robust health and safety measures to limit further Covid outbreaks” such as those seen at the start of 2020-21.

“Calling for people to be cautious is simply not good enough. Staff and students need clear guidance that masks must remain in place to lower the risk of transmission,” Dr Grady said.

“The scrapping of public health measures once again leaves campuses at risk of being incubators of Covid, and this is especially dangerous for those who are clinically vulnerable or immunosuppressed.

“The government needs to quickly change course and meet with education unions, the National Union of Students and employers so we can jointly agree safety measures, and ensure students and staff are confident that campuses are as safe as possible.”

The rolling-back of restrictions will end universities’ roles in contact tracing, with NHS Test and Trace taking on responsibility for this, and social distancing rules will also be dropped.

DfE guidance says universities can help to minimise the spread of Covid by promoting regular handwashing, ensuring good ventilation and “utilising outdoor space”.

But Dr Grady argued that the government needed to “speed up vaccine roll-out and give students the opportunity to receive a double dose of a Covid vaccine prior to the start of the next academic year”.

Some scientists have warned that the lifting of coronavirus restrictions as case numbers are spiking risks a significant increase in hospitalisations and deaths.

James Naismith, director of the Rosalind Franklin Institute and senior research fellow in structural biology at the University of Oxford, said cases “will mainly be in the young, who are at much lower risk of serious disease – but not at zero risk”.

“There is a lot of debate around masking. I will be wearing mine at work, on the train and indoor spaces. I do this to protect others, [since] as a doubly vaccinated man in my fifties, the mask offers me no benefit. I see this as tiny inconvenience that benefits wider society,” Professor Naismith said.

“Masks are not a panacea; they help, but as part of package of measures. That package includes avoiding <1m contact indoors, improving ventilation, being outside where possible, testing twice a week and avoiding very crowded places.”

chris.havergal@timeshighereducation.com