A widely referenced article in The Lancet, a medical journal, cited a finding that school closures alone could have a 2-4% impact on mortality rates in the U.K. from COVID-19.
The modeling study in question was conducted by Imperial College in London. It sought to estimate the impact of multiple policy choices to slow COVID-19 transmission through March 2021. The study presented complex calculations to estimate the impact of school closures, considering waves of closures triggered by specific infection rates.
It did not find a conclusive 2-4% reduction in mortality rates from school closures.