Responding to the situation, Rocio Cifuentes MBE said:
“This situation has the potential to cause significant anxiety to children and their parents, which is why I wrote urgently to the Education Minister last week (1st September) to seek clarity on the position in Wales. In my correspondence, I asked the Welsh Government to issue urgent updates and provide reassurance on how this issue will be dealt with in Wales. Welsh Government must ensure that any impact on affected children’s education is mitigated, and they must provide regular and clear messages to keep families informed as this issue develops over the coming days and weeks.
“Statements issued by the minister so far don’t give families the clarity they need on what this means for them or the next steps for their school, in a way that is easy to understand. What children and their families need to hear is not a blame game but details of the extent of the problem, what exactly will happen over the next few weeks and reassurance that schools are safe. It is unacceptable that this situation has been allowed to develop to the point of disrupting children’s education and causing worry to families.”