Prime Minister Boris Johnson said reopening schools any earlier could result in another surge in covert cases, he said.

Data on hospital admissions on the vaccine rollout would all need to be carefully studied before any relax ation was possible.

Now, by the end of February, the government aims to publish what it calls a road map for the gradual easing of restrictions in England.

Schools could then start to reopen from the eighth of March, and once England schools back, there will be a gradual unlocking of other restrictions as long as the data supported that.

Northern Ireland has already extended its locked down into March, and plans in Wales and Scotland are set to be reviewed, thereby ministers in the coming days.

Our political editor, Laura Kuhns Berg, has the latest.

The SOFA will still be part of the crowded classroom for Alexis, seven year old six year old and four year old twins.

They didn't make much of the prime minister on their curriculum today.

It will not be possible to reopen schools immediately after the February half term.

She'll still be the teacher, like millions of parents until at least the start of March.

I'm tired.

Um, it's been almost almost a year of my kids being home.

Ah, lot.

And you're not only being their teacher, but you have to.

Then go be the lunch lady and you have to clean the toilets and you have toe.

You make sure everything is printed off.

I don't have a teaching assistant to make sure the work is done right or to make sure the top is over.

There are happy.

While I worked with the older ones, he made it official English schools will still be closed to most on the lock down will go on.

We hope it will therefore be safe to begin the reopening of schools from Monday, the eighth of March, and I know how frustrating that will be on will be for pupils and teachers who want nothing more than to get back to the classroom.

The labor leader himself isolating at home once teachers at the front of the queue for vaccines on, is disappointed with more delay.

The truth is this was not inevitable.

It wasn't just bad luck.

It's the results off a huge number of mistakes by the prime minister during the course this pandemic.

Over the next few weeks, the government will track how the virus is moving among us and the effect the vaccine has on.

Only then at the end of February, when the decisions be made, how do you rate the chances of being able to stick to the eighth of March for the beginning of the end of this lock down Laura?

The date of the eighth of March is the earliest that we think it's sensible for the Thio set for schools.

Thio Go back on bond.

Obviously, we hope that all schools will go back, I'm hopeful, but that's the earliest that that we could do it.

And it depends on lots of things going right.

Plans for Northern Ireland are being reviewed tomorrow.

Whales on Friday, the next Tuesday in Scotland to but without dramatic falls in cases, don't expect much to change.

With cases so high on hospitals so full in theory, it's not really a surprise that it will still be at least a month before Gates, open again to all on restrictions, could even start to be eased off.

But in practice, it feels like a big admission that we're heading towards 12 months of coronavirus restrictions in one way or another whole year of families and farms coping with life in and out of lock down.

A year when coronaviruses dominated so much with such heavy costs, I was gonna shut the door behind me because we have now locked down due to national down.

Sean built up his gym business in Africa, even with some financial support from the government, is proved hard toe hang on.

He's desperately hoping this extended locked down will be the last.

It's been a little bit more, I've had said.

Put more funds of my own what the business is accrued on the ears back into the business.

So now banking is financially unstable.

The risk from the disease means the weight largely endorsed, goes on for much of the country.

A glimpse of the end that that tonight is marked in pencil, not in ink.

Laura Ginsburg, BBC News Westminster Well, as we've heard, the prime minister has said that most pupils in England won't be returning to school until March, the eighth at the earliest, meaning that many more weeks of remote learning are ahead.

Boris Johnson said he was acutely aware of the pressures on parents.

The government already provided more than 800,000 laptops to help.

That was also a promise of more funding to help Children catch up on Miss Learning.

On extended support for Children on free school meals are education editor Brahma Jeffries has Bean talking to pupils, teachers and parents.

In Warrington, only a third of pupils were in today, leaving Year six spread out in class, their classmates not back for a least a month.

We are not really used having so many people in because of how long it's really been like this.

I'm looking forward to having everyone back in school because I miss all my friends and at least I've got some muff it, my friends here everyone will definitely be happier because working from home is a lot harder than working in school, which I do know because last week I think I worked in.

I worked from home for two days to help kids catch up a promise today of more money.

But for those running schools, some questions, arm or urgent two weeks warning isn't long to plan for reopening.

Is it going to be a staggered return?

Is it going to be similar to what they expect us to do in September?

Are we expecting certain year groups that come in?

Are we opening?

Are we starting from day one?

With everybody in, we need to know those kinds of things.

So when will classrooms fill again?

Well, March the eighth is a tentative date on ambition.

So much depends on the pressures on the NHS, the infection rates, the vaccination program, all that certain for parents on for Children.

Is there going to have to manage at home for a good few more weeks?

The biggest education union said the prime minister couldn't guarantee school return in early March.

The moment over a million people in the UK are infected with coz it on.

He can't know what the death rate will be.

So I think this is premature and I think it will give parents on Children some false hope, and that's the last thing that they need.

Schools will be the first to open, says the government.

No one, including parents, thinks thes decisions air easy.

I'm quite lucky because I'm a key worker.

Three girls.

That's cool.

But I think it's for the kids mental health.

It's very important for them to be a school.

Understand, the prime minister is a lot of pressure.

I hate to be in this position to make that decision.

It is difficult for the government, but again, like I said, there's just no light at the end of the tunnel.

We should be a lot further down the road now then we are.

I've got some really close friends that are at home with three Children in three different ages.

It's not doing very much for their mental health.

To be honest, families and schools will have to go on coping with the promise off a plan by late February.