All Cambridgeshire schools and colleges will re-open in September – but students and teachers will notice some differences.

The county council says that over the summer, schools in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough worked through “rigorous and detailed risk assessments” individual to their own school environment and circumstances.

They were also asked to clarify how they meet the steps set out by government which all schools must follow to minimise the number of contacts a pupil has during a school day.

Jonathan Lewis, direction of education for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, is confident that our region’s schools are safe spaces, and are hoping parents and children are excited and ready to come back.

Mr Lewis said, “Most of our schools remained open throughout lockdown, so we have a lot of working knowledge and experience of how to make schools safe spaces.

“We know this is a moving picture, but the peer-to-peer support I have seen from our schools, academies, diocese leaders and indeed parents through this pandemic has been nothing short of incredible.”

He said: “We will continue to monitor the situation and adapt as we need to, together. Each school is unique, but each one is safe. Schools have been contacting parents to let them know of their re-opening plans.

Cllr Simon Bywater, chair of the children and young people committee, said: “Even as little as six months ago we could not have predicted just how much of an impact this pandemic would have on how we educate our children.

“With very little warning our schools had to adapt to accommodate vulnerable children and those of key workers, and many parents have had to provide the role of ‘teacher,’ alongside being mum or dad.”

He added: “The way parents and school leaders have stepped up has been phenomenal, and I cannot thank them enough for everything they have done to ensure our children have been able to continue learning. Your efforts have not gone unnoticed.”

The county council reminded students that its libraries are back open with that IT facilities and book lending services again available.

Customers can use IT facilities by appointment only.