Schools across Britain are to be shut down as part of emergency measures to tackle the spread of coronavirus.
At Parliament today Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said classrooms in England will close from Friday until further notice for all pupils except children of key workers and the most vulnerable.
It comes after the regional governments of Scotland and Wales announced they would do the same from Friday at the latest.
Northern Ireland then announced it has closed all of its schools with immediate effect.
The UK is following in the footsteps of several other European countries including Italy, Denmark and Ireland.
At a Downing Street conference, Boris Johnson said schools would not be shut for children of those in crucial jobs such as police officers, delivery drivers and medical staff, but it is not yet clear how this exception will be implemented.
The Prime Minister said the Government would ask nurseries and private schools to comply with the measure, which will see exams cancelled for this academic year.
Westminster’s top scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance said the decision was not being taken because Covid-19 is dangerous to children, but because it is an extra step to stop others being infected.
