WE JUST WANT TO GO BACK TO SCHOOL
Kids across Britain demand return plan saying their health & future are suffering
THE majority of children want to go back to school as lockdown is affecting their mental health and future hopes.
A Mirror poll found more than 70% revealed they have been damaged by being kept away from class, friends and support.
One said: “I’m desperate to go back.” But No 10 and Boris Johnson fuelled confusion with conflicting messages on lifting curbs.
AFTER repeated demands for clarity on schools reopening, Boris Johnson yesterday sparked further confusion over the relaxing of restrictions.
The clueless PM announced at 10.22am that he would look at easing wider lockdown rules in February, boosting hopes struggling children could soon be back in class. But at 12.15pm, his official spokesman suggested pupils would be kept at home until March.
It came just a day after Health Secretary Matt Hancock warned any rules relaxation was a “long, long way” off.
The fiasco led to more fears the education of millions of kids would suffer further and leave many with psychological problems after being isolated from friends and vital school support.
Shadow Education Secretary Kate Green said: “Boris Johnson has once again let down parents trying to juggle work and their children’s education.
“The Government should be working with education staff to develop a credible plan to get pupils back to schools and colleges safely as soon as possible.” Shadow Schools Minister Wes Streeting added: “Boris Johnson has once again created confusion for parents and school staff who are working incredibly hard to support children’s learning despite incompetence from this Government.” Mr Johnson had seemed to signal light at the end of the tunnel for parents struggling with home schooling when quizzed on the matter at a North London vaccination
centre. He said ministers were studying data, including infection rates, and said inoculating the priority groups should be completed by mid-February. The PM added: “Before then we’ll be looking at the potential of relaxing some measures.”
But less than two hours later, his spokesman said: “We continue to keep the latest scientific evidence and data under review, and it remains the case that we want to ease restrictions when it is safe to do so.
“The Prime Minister was just making clear that we continue to look at the latest evidence in transmission, the number of people hospitalised, and the number of people who sadly go on to die. And he was making the point that ahead of February 15, which as you know is the review point, we will look at that evidence closely, and that will inform what we may or may not be able to ease from the 15th onwards.”
Education Secretary Gavin Williamson has said schools will be given two weeks’ notice of reopening – meaning even if an announcement was made on February 15, the earliest lessons could restart for most pupils would be March 1. Mr Hancock last night refused to put a date on school returns.
He said: “Everybody wants to have a timeline for that, but I think most people understand why it is difficult to put a timeline on it because it’s a matter of monitoring the data.”
A survey of parents for Mumsnet website found 75% said lockdowns are harming their children’s education and wellbeing. Children’s Commissioner for England Anne Longfield said: “Children are more withdrawn, they are suffering in terms of isolation, confidence levels are falling, and some have serious issues.
“Families will need hope and clarity about what comes next, and that of course is what the speculation we’re hearing really feeds into, that confusion.”
Ofsted chief inspector Amanda Spielman added: “Pupils’ motivation and engagement remains an issue.”
Dr Bernadka Dubicka, of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said: “There’s been a whole host of children lost to this pandemic, perhaps being abused in the home or living in traumatic circumstances that have lost contact with teachers and sources of support.”
The UK Covid death toll yesterday climbed by 592, to 98,531.
But Mr Hancock revealed there were “early signs the actions we are taking are working”, with the rise in case numbers slowing and falling in some areas.
YOUNG people demanding a credible plan to resume their education must be heard because they are our country’s future.
Our stories today about the mental and physical health impact of shutting schools deserve a detailed response from the Education Secretary and Prime Minister.
Gavin Williamson and Boris Johnson have turned their backs on young children and teenagers, with the uncertainty surrounding their lives adding to the stress of the pandemic.
Whether it’s infants missing crucial early years as they learn to read and write, or teenagers who should be preparing for exams, a generation is being abandoned.
They deserve much more consideration and honesty, including an invitation to be part of a national conversation on schools reopening.
They deserve proper answers to important questions – instead of being fobbed off by these two dunces.