TEACHING unions have questioned whether the government was following scientific advice or just “prioritising political expediency”  after ministers U-turned on advice for face masks in schools.

Updated guidance from the Department for Education issued on Tuesday night said that in areas of England under local lockdown, face coverings should be worn in corridors and communal areas of secondary schools.

While the government was still not recommending that face coverings were necessary in all schools, headteachers were also given discretion over whether pupils should wear face masks in areas that aren’t under lockdown.

Last week, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said that children over the age of 12 and teachers should wear face coverings in areas where they cannot keep at least one metre’s distance from others.

Teaching unions had previously urged clarity on face masks and sought reassurance for pupils, staff and parents before schools reopen next week.

Dr Patrick Roach, general secretary of the NASUWT union, lamented that the government had “failed to heed concerns until the last possible moment.

“The latest announcement on face coverings raises serious questions about whether the government is seriously following the scientific advice or is simply prioritising political expediency in order to meet the Prime Minister’s wish to ensure that every school reopens fully at the start of term, come what may.”

Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of the National Education Union, said there was a “lack of confidence when ministers and senior medical advisers say different things for four days.”

“The government should have been looking at that WHO advice, coming to a considered position and then presenting it to the public,” he said. “The alternative has been slow, incoherent and a failure of leadership.

“We welcome the steps now being taken, but it is a halfway house to pass the decision to headteachers.”

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said that the flexibility of the updated guidance would be welcomed by some headteachers.

But Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders’ union NAHT, said: “When it comes to protective measures, what school leaders require is absolute clarity, not discretion.”

Shadow education secretary Kate Green criticised the government for having “passed the buck” to schools, describing the U-turn as “half baked.”