Secondary schools in Tameside have decided to hold their open evenings virtually again this year, it has been confirmed. 

Tameside Council says it follows a meeting between head teachers and the authority's education and public health officers. 

September doesn't just mean the return to school, but also the start of the secondary school open evenings season when parents can appraise their child's prospective school.

But for the second successive year, coronavirus has meant that schools won't be holding their usual face-to-face open evenings this year. 

Tameside still currently has the highest Covid infection rate among the 10 boroughs in Greater Manchester. According to Public Health England data, the borough's rate is 439.4 cases per 100,000 people as of the seven days up to 9 September. 

A Tameside Council spokesperson said: “Following a discussion between secondary school headteachers and our education and public health officers, our schools have taken the decision not to hold in person, year seven open evenings this year.

"This is not a decision that was taken lightly and was made following information and advice provided with our pupils' best interests in mind.

"Tameside has the highest rates of Covid infection in Greater Manchester - we need to be safe and sensible about the decisions we make in order to prevent further spread of the virus which will put people’s health more at risk and disrupt our pupil’s education further.  

"Our secondary schools are well equipped to deliver engaging, virtual open evenings and will support those who cannot access online facilities. And so future pupils will still gain the information and experience in the safest way." 

Read more from the Tameside Reporter

Click here for more of the latest news

Click here to read the latest edition of the paper online

Click here to find out where you can pick up a copy of the paper