Teachers have been warned they may be forced to work on Christmas Day to help with the track and trace if their school is hit with a Covid-19 outbreak.
Staff and pupils are expected to remain in schools until late afternoon on December 23, meaning teachers could be called into action at any time over the holiday period if a late positive test is found.
National clinical director Jason Leitch confirmed the extraordinary measures may have to be taken as he addressed a Covid-19 committee of the Scottish Parliament on Thursday.
Professor Leitch said: “(The Depute First Minister) has made it clear to the local authorities that arrangements will have to be made in some form for test and protect to be active during those holiday periods.
“The National Health Service won’t be having a day off, you can be assured of that, it never does – and test and protect will be active on Christmas Day.”
He added: “I can’t guarantee that every head teacher in the country won’t have some work to do during this period but we’re hoping to keep it to an absolute minimum.”
The admission was prompted by Green MSP for Mid-Scotland and Fife, Mark Ruskell, who has called the decision to keep schools open until late afternoon on December 23 as “bizarre”.
Mr Ruskell said: “The implications of this is that families could be asked to self-isolate on Christmas Day if a positive case came back earlier in the week for a child or staff member in the school.
“It would be far better to close schools earlier to minimise the contact. Teachers and pupils are exhausted after an impossibly difficult year.
“Academic value in keeping schools open that week will be minimal when hardly any of the usual seasonal activities can take place and attendance could be impacted by families forming cautious bubbles ahead of festivities.”
The festive warning for teachers comes as leading unions joined forces to launch a campaign highlighting classroom fears during the pandemic.
#NotAtAllCosts reflects deep worries in the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) about pupils and teachers remaining in class during the pandemic even in areas where Covid-19 infection levels are high.
A briefing sent to the First Minister includes teachers’ testimonies of being unable to socially distancing in large classes and pupils’ coughing on staff who challenge their behaviour.
In a letter to Nicola Sturgeon, EIS general secretary Larry Flanagan, said: “Teachers are working in crowded classrooms where social distancing is not possible, often with inadequate cleaning supplies and protections.
“Mounting workload and the stress of working under such conditions is having a significant impact on the mental health and resilience of our education workforce.”
The union also urged Education Secretary John Swinney to urgently rethink his decision against closing schools early ahead of the Christmas holiday.
