The videoconference summit’s aim was to finalise the details of plans for getting students back to classrooms safely, amid a recent spike in new coronavirus cases across the country.

Key areas for discussion included the management of coronavirus cases in schools, the wearing of face masks, temperature checks, class sizes and social distancing guidelines, particularly in relation to school transport.

Education Minister Lucia Azzolina and several other government ministers took part in the summit, along with regional governors.

Also in attendence were the COVID-19 commissioner, Domenico Arcuri, and the head of the civil protection agency, Angelo Borrelli.

The summit was called after some 20 teaching staff tested positive for coronavirus in Umbria, and a further six in the Treviso area.

Some regional authorities dispute the current government guidelines on the reopening of schools, with Liguria’s governor, Giovanni Toti, saying he was against pupils having to wear face masks during lessons.

He claimed his view was supported by several other regional governors.

While children under six years old will not need to wear a face mask in school, government officials are yet to give a final decision on the rules for older students.

Meanwhile, Emilia-Romagna’s governor, Stefano Bonaccini, said the guidelines for reopening schools were correct, but there was a risk of “chaos” when it comes to school transport.

The transport issue was not resolved at the summit and the government said it was awaiting further proposals from regional authorities.

The Ministry of Education has published details of many of the safety protocols for the new school year, though several points are yet to be clarified. 

Class sizes are to be cut, and safety protocol stresses the need to ensure a distance of at least one metre between students on school premises. 

It’s left up to each school to decide how to arrange their classrooms accordingly – though the government has put out a tender for more than two million one-person desks, which are hoped to remove the need for students to wear face masks in class.

Schools are still awaiting the arrival of the desks however, and there are concerns some schools may not receive their desk deliveries before October.

Amid a lack of clarity about the rules with just weeks to go before schools reopen, some Italian principals have raised concerns that they may be held legally responsible for outbreaks at their schools.

Health authorities said last week that school reopenings must go ahead as planned in September despite the recent spike in new coronavirus cases, partially due to Italian holidaymakers returning home from other European countries.

Franco Locatelli, the president of Italy’s Higher Health Council, said keeping schools closed beyond September 14 is “out of the question”.

“We need to reopen schools with the lowest possible number of cases,” he said.

“The better we are doing on September 14, the higher the probability of resuming lessons without the risk of having to close classes or buildings.”

Italy’s schools closed in the early stages of the pandemic, on March 5, and did not open before the end of the 2019-2020 school year.

With ANSA