It was an “extraordinary dereliction of duty” for the Department for Education (DfE) not to plan for Covid school closures earlier in March 2020, an academy boss has said.
Sir Jon Coles, chief executive of United Learning Trust and former director general for schools at the DfE, told the UK Covid-19 Inquiry on Monday he “almost fell from [his] chair” when he read former education secretary Sir Gavin Williamson’s statement.
