Poland to extend school closures for most children

Schools in Poland will stay closed until the end of the academic year on June 26, the deputy education minister said on Thursday, with only day care for young children provided as the country tries to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.

In recent weeks, Poland, the largest economy among the EU's eastern states, has sought to loosen some restrictions put in place due to the coronavirus. Restaurants and hairdressers will reopen on Monday. Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Wednesday that schools would partially reopen to provide day care for children in the first three years of primary school.

"It is clear that until the end of classes...there is no decision to start the work of other classes in primary or secondary schools," Deputy Education Minister Maciej Kopeć said in an interview with website wp.pl. The education ministry was not immediately available for comment.