PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Schools: Stockport (14 November 2022)

Over the last year, backed by £25 million in Government funding, the Department has provided 386,699 CO2 monitors to state funded schools and colleges, including early years and further education institutions.

In January 2022, the Government committed to fulfil all eligible applications for air cleaning units to state funded schools and colleges for poorly ventilated teaching spaces where quick fixes to improve ventilation were not possible. All eligible applications received have been fulfilled, with 8,026 air cleaning units distributed.

During 2022, the Department has provided 121 CO2 monitors and 36 air cleaning units to schools and colleges in the Stockport constituency. The bulk of the CO2 monitors were rolled out in 2021.

The Department does not monitor ventilation or the provision of air cleaning units in independent schools and colleges. The law says that all employers, including all education and childcare establishments, must make sure there is an adequate supply of fresh air (ventilation) in enclosed areas of the workplace. This has not changed during the COVID-19 pandemic.