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A petition calling on the government to close UK schools over coronavirus fears has been backed by nearly 250,000 people.

The creator of the campaign, Sami Attout, is calling for a more “proactive” approach to the virus and wants isolating policies at places of study enforced.

The petition comes as the number of people diagnosed with the virus in the UK reached 456.

Parliament will consider debating the issue in the House of Commons because more than 100,000 signatories are in support.

The petition says it would like the government to look into closing schools and colleagues as soon as possible to prevent Covid-19 spreading further.

“We would like the Government or Parliament to enforce this action due to the growing fear among parents and students that attend school,” it reads.

“The ability to focus or concentrate is affected in addition to the growing fears of the Corona-virus.

“In our view, the government and health officials around the world are more 'reactive' rather than 'proactive'. This will result in more spread as time is given for the virus to do so.”

A number of social media users backed the petition.

One user said: “Ireland is cancelling St Patrick’s Day celebrations, Romania is closing schools and Italy is in lockdown. Yet all our government does is tell us to wash our hands!

"Please sign this petition to close schools to prevent the spread of coronavirus.”

Another added: “Please keep on signing”.

However, not everyone thought the petition was practical.

One user wrote: “Thing is that if the schools shut down, many parents do not have adequate child care, or funds, adults will have to take time off work, causing more upset to [the] system. Many students are engaged in exams. If it were to happen it would be very complicated to implement”.

Another said: "Closing schools will only work if the children are put on house arrest”

A Department for Education spokesman said it has set up a dedicated helpline for education leaders, teaching staff and parents to answer questions about coronavirus related to education but at the moment schools are to remain open.

This service "complements" the advice being provided by Public Health England and the regular updates it has sent to all educational settings since the start of February.

“The advice from Public Health England continues to be for schools to remain open, unless advised otherwise," he said.

“The Government’s action plan sets out current and possible future measures to respond to the COVID19 outbreak that are proportionate and based on the latest scientific evidence - they will be continually kept under review and the impact of all measures will be carefully considered.

“Public health is clearly the priority but we are also committed to ensuring that no child misses out on any education unless absolutely necessary.”