Universities told to prepare for the evacuation of students for Christmas holidays

To get students home for the Christmas holidays, Downing St has told universities in England to prepare for a 7-day "student travel window".

This comes as the news of a 90% effective COVID-19 vaccine with rapid results could possibly be available for students by the end of the month.

It is thought that universities within England with higher rates of infections will be prioritised when it comes to the distribution of the tests.

The move will occur between the 3rd and the 9th of December, a small enough window after the national lockdown, to reduce the risk of creating new cases of coronavirus.

It is hoped that the remaining lectures and seminars that the students may have for the rest of December will transfer online.

And if some students are found to have COVID-19, then they have enough time to self-isolate and then return home for Christmas.

But university unions have criticised the move as too small of a "travel window" for the millions of students hoping to come home for the holidays. They recommend that if teaching services were transferred online now, it would give universities more time to prepare for the transfer of their students.

Similiar plans for students in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales to return home for Christmas, will be announced at a later date.