British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Friday unveiled a one-billion-pound (1.24 billion U.S. dollars) fund to help pupils in England "directly tackle the impact of lost teaching time" during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The announcement came as Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the government had lowered the country's coronavirus alert level, after a recommendation by scientific advisers. 

The move from Level 4, where transmission is high or rising, to Level 3, where the epidemic is in general circulation, was "a big moment for the country," he said.

According to the government, 350 million pounds (433.5 million dollars) would be used to provide one-to-one online tuition for the most disadvantaged young people, while the rest of the 650 million pounds (805 million dollars) will be shared across all state primary and secondary schools for all pupils through the 2020/21 academic year.

Headteachers will decide how the 650 million pounds (805 million dollars) is spent, but the government said it expects the funding to be used for small group tuition for whoever needs it.

"We cannot afford for any of our children to lose out as a result of COVID-19. The scale of our response must match the scale of the challenge," said Education Secretary Gavin Williamson.

Johnson is under growing pressure to relax the rules to one meter to make it easier for schools and hospitality businesses to restart.

Children in Nursery, Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 have begun returning to primary schools in England, and some Year 10 and Year 12 pupils returned to secondary schools in England this week.

(With input from Xinhua)