Students do not possess to follow two-metre rule at universities and colleges from the autumn

Students at Welsh universities and colleges won't have to follow along with the two metre rule for social distancing in the autumn and rules around group sizes can change, meaning more in-person learning.

Education minister Jeremy Miles has said that in the autumn more in-person learning is going to be allowed having a "move away from the strict two metre social distancing model for university students, adult and part-time learners".

Currently, the guidelines require two metre social distancing within the learning and teaching environment, as well as in all public areas on campus, meaning in-person learning is limited and the majority is online. These proposed changes would allow much more in-person learning to happen in the autumn term.

In an itemized statement to People in the Senedd, Mr Miles said: "We're likely to model the adult education contact groups on groups that'll be familiar in other areas of life, modelled on more than one number of up to six, or single categories of as much as 30 depending on the setting, room capacity and risk assessments within the setting, which should be using the requirements to take all reasonable measures. This approach would apply when the risk levels are low to moderate and we produce other robust mitigations in place.

"Contact groups for adult learners means we are able to convey more personally learning which must be our priority to rebalance the harms to education and our learners. We may still see close contacts inspired to self-isolate if Test Trace Protect contact tracers deem they ought to. We will use our partners within the coming weeks to build up the framework and provide further detailed guidance on how such groups will work".

In a press conference on Monday he explained schools would be able to decide their very own covid rules.

But headteachers and unions reacted angrily.

Mr Miles said there'll not be a "wholesale elimination of mitigating measures" but said hello means schools, colleges, universities and learning providers will be able to "decide based on the balance of harms and minimising disruption to learning – all inside the wider context of a national framework and our successful vaccine programme".