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Boris Johnson is facing calls to provide extra funding for school cleaning after a new survey suggested heads were struggling to make premises Covid-secure for pupils ahead of reopening in September.
Labour, the Greens and trade union Unison all urged education secretary Gavin Williamson to foot the bill for increased cleaning - of toilets, classrooms and toys in nurseries - or force schools in England to cut other services instead.
New government guidance issued this summer states that more rigorous and regular cleansing of classrooms, washrooms and items touched regularly, such as chairs, should be undertaken to limit the infection risk from coronavirus.
All pupils are expected to return in September for the first time since March, but schools minister Nick Gibb has now told MPs that heads and councils “should use their existing resources” when planning to welcome all children back for the autumn.
A newly released survey by Unison, shared exclusively with HuffPost UK, found that nearly three in 10 (29%) staff said there had been no increase in cleaning services since schools went back at the start of June.
Four in five (81%) of those questioned said non-cleaning staff at their school - often teachers and teaching assistants - were being asked to clean classrooms and items such as chairs and books.
Based on responses from more than 8,000 employees working in primary, nursery and special schools in England, it also found that nearly two thirds (65%) of workers reported that regular cleaning staff were expected to carry out ‘deep cleans’ rather than hand it to specialists.
A fifth (20%) who took part in the survey said cleaners at their school had no access to the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE).
Many English schools have not hired more cleaners despite the extra demands created by Covid-19, Unison found. Other employees such as teaching assistants are having to help clean toilets and sanitise toys, according to the survey.
More than a quarter of those surveyed by the union (27%) said their cleaning staff had not received specialist training on handling hazardous substances and a similar proportion (26%) said they had not been risk assessed.
Many school cleaners are employed by private firms, often paying only the minimum wage and statutory sick pay.
Unison head of education Jon Richards said: “Cleaning a school properly is a specialist job, yet the workers doing this are often overlooked, underpaid and haven’t been trained for the extra demands.
“Lots more cleaners are needed. Other staff shouldn’t be expected to step in to help out. Teaching assistants are stretched enough as it is. They should be focusing on supporting pupils, not standing in for cleaners.
“Everyone wants to see children back in the classroom, but this must be done safely. Given the extra cleaning needed, the government must give schools the money to employ cleaners with the necessary training and protective kit to keep the whole school safe.”
One cleaner in a primary school in Bedfordshire, who did not want to be named. said: “We’re two cleaners down as they’re shielding. It’s unlikely the school will recruit more cleaning staff for September – they and the local authority don’t have the money.”
Another said: “We’ve been scrubbing floors, walls and deep cleaning, even though we’re not deep cleaning specialists.”
“Out of four cleaners, only two have been at work. The workload has trebled and now we have to split our shifts to ensure a cleaner is on site all day.
“Due to the sheer quantity being used, I’m struggling to replace hand soap. I’ve never run out before in my career as a cleaning supervisor. It’s physically and emotionally demanding.”
Yet another cleaner added: “The teaching staff are cleaning the desks during the day and the midday supervisory assistants are coming in to empty bins and clean toilets at lunchtime.”
Shadow education secretary Kate Green told HuffPost UK: “We want to see every child safely back in school in September, but the government needs a credible plan to make that happen.
“If schools are not given additional resources then children across the country will foot the bill, with resources that should fund their education instead paying for public health measures because the government refuse to do so.
“If the government are serious about getting our children back to school then they will give schools the resources they need to make it happen safely.”
Green MP Caroline Lucas, whose parliamentary question prompted Gibb’s response, said: “Head teachers are telling me that with the time and money, they can do everything being asked of them to get children safely back to school but without it, they cannot.
“Schools are facing the impossible choice of not deep cleaning, which could put staff and pupils at risk, or cutting other services to fund it. The chronic lack of government strategy and resource in education is one of the long list of failings in the response to Covid, and it’s not acceptable - schools should be a top priority.”
A Department for Education spokesperson said: “Schools and teachers have gone to incredible lengths over recent months to get children back to the classroom, and we are immensely grateful to them.
“Schools are receiving a £2.6 billion boost in funding this year compared with 2019, as we invest over £14 billion in total over the three year period through to 2022-23 - giving every school more money for every child. Our £1 billion Covid catch-up fund will provide additional support to tackle the impact of lost teaching time.
“Throughout the pandemic, schools have continued to receive their core funding while also being able to claim for specific exceptional costs such as additional cleaning required due to confirmed or suspected coronavirus cases.”
The DfE provided an “exceptional costs fund” earlier this year that allowed schools to claim for specific costs incurred between March and July – worth up to £75,000 for large secondary schools. But there appears to be no such extra funding since July.