Parents shut out from school sports events

It is ‘indefensible’ that lives of children are not back to normal along with rest of society, complain families

CHILDREN are having to take part in gymnastic competitions via Zoom with families banned from watching them live, as parents complain that youngsters have returned to a “degraded” version of normality.

Sports clubs around the country are holding competitions in the coming months – many for the first time in two years – but with restrictions still in place.

Certain schools competing in the boys’ Independent Schools Gymnastics Association nationals did so virtually, meaning they competed at their own school while judges watched via video link.

Elsewhere, gymnastics and swimming clubs are preventing parents from watching their children compete at regional championships, citing Covid and the safety of participants.

Parents have been banned from attending the Valdez Gymnastics Club championships in Bishop’s Stortford, but are allowed to watch on Zoom.

Meanwhile, the children competing in Staffordshire’s youth swimming championships have been told that their parents are not allowed to attend, nor will the event be live-streamed.

“They are saying there cannot be any spectators at all,” one mother said.

“Loads of parents have queried it. All the parents are saying, please let us watch, our children haven’t been able to do this for two years.

“Everyone is devastated. Parents have said that we will wear masks, we will do lateral flows. But they are saying they have to put the children’s safety first.”

Staffordshire’s amateur swimming association, which runs the championships, says on its website that the “unprecedented situation” of the pandemic means that “there will be no spectators allowed at this event”.

The Northumberland and Durham swimming championship has also banned spectators from this year’s event.

Dave Low, the event manager, said it would be live streamed for families and supporters to watch instead, but parents have said they are “dismayed”. One father complained: “Yet again, opportunities for children are more limited than for adults and restrictive measures are going above and beyond Government guidance and that of Public Health England.”

Another parent, whose daughter is due to compete in a gymnastics competition that has banned spectators, said it feels as though her choice has been taken away.

“This is the first opportunity I have had to see my daughter compete and she is really upset that I can’t come along to watch her,” she said. The Sunday Telegraph revealed last month how schools are continuing with their own “Plan B” measures such as keeping libraries closed, banning hot lunches and insisting on face masks.

Some education leaders are citing high Covid case numbers as the reason for suspending choirs and clubs, while others say it is a precautionary measure aimed at protecting the school community. Molly Kingsley, cofounder of the parent campaign group UsForThem, said it is “indefensible” that children’s lives are still not back to normal when the rest of society is.

“We appear to have opened the door to a degraded version of normality for children,” she said.

“It is very clear from the reports we have received that these are far from isolated examples.

“This is happening in some cases behind closed doors, it is not obvious to wider society.”

Ms Kingsley urged ministers to make a clear statement that children’s extracurricular activities should not be subject to additional curbs.