The Acting Chief Medical Officer has moved to reassure parents and teachers that the risk of Covid-19 spreading amongst children in schools is low.
In an open letter, Dr Ronan Glynn, says while there is "no zero risk options", now is the right time to reopen.
He says there's enough evidence the risk's outweighed by the benefits of being back in education.
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Hundreds of thousands of primary and secondary students will be back at their desks today for the first time since March.
Chief Nursing Officer at the Department of Health, Rachel Kenna, explains what parents will be told if their child's classmates tests positive:
