SCHOOLS are yet to call on volunteers to help them provide supervised learning to children of key workers.
A recruitment drive has now been suspended although people may be asked to help out during the summer holidays.
Minister Peter Weir made two calls in 10 days for those working in education to provide "urgent assistance" to teachers and classroom assistants.
While a blanket closure has been in place for six weeks now, some schools are remaining open to look after a small number of pupils.
Volunteers were being sought because many teachers and classroom assistants are unable to attend their schools.
Several would fall into the vulnerable group or be looking after others in their households.
More than 1,000 people from the immediate education sector - including school governors, retired teachers and retired classroom assistants - applied.
Almost 400 schools have indicated to the Department of Education that they would be willing to welcome these volunteers.
The scheme has been paused, however, as the department has said school staff have been coping.
The department said Mr Weir's calls had been answered overwhelmingly.
"To date, it has not been necessary to call upon the volunteers who have registered with the department; as our dedicated teaching and non-teaching staff in the schools settings providing for vulnerable children and the children of key workers have been coping well," a spokesman said.
"Volunteers will only be called upon when the Education Authority has exhausted a school's own resources, the wider teacher workforce and the NI Substitute Teacher Register."
Should the situation surrounding Covid-19 escalate, the scheme will be reinstated, the department has advised.
Those who have been cleared will be contacted to determine their availability over school holiday periods - including summer - to ensure that provision can be maintained for key workers, should the current situation to combat Covid-19 continue.
Meanwhile, the number of children undertaking supervised learning in schools is on the rise, with principals suggesting anxiety levels among parents are lessening.
Latest figures show that on Thursday, there were 1,245 young people being looked after in 474 schools across the north. More than 15,000 staff were available either remotely or in school.
This week is on course to see the highest average daily attendance since the lockdown began. There has been an average of 1,222 up until Thursday. The high, to date, was last week when there were 1,056 children in schools on average each day.
