The newnormal makes the simple complex

THIS MONTH feels important as it sees a step towards something at least resembling normality, when after nearly six months, the children are finally returning to school. In the past, going back to school meant anxieties about preparing uniforms and buying new school shoes, getting back into the daily routine, meeting new classmates and booking the all-important after-school activities.

This time it feels much more complex.

Relatively few of us experienced a six-month interruption of our school career, and it is unclear how we prepare our children to be back in the classroom after such a long break.

Maybe the best thing to do is emphasise the need to sanitise, wear masks and observe social distancing, and trust the children to adapt their behaviours to changing circumstances in the same way as they have throughout the pandemic.

The start of the school term has always heralded the end of summer and the build-up to Christmas, in recent years punctuated by Hallowe’en. Will either of these festivals be recognisable if we need to continue with the existing measures?

It is difficult to imagine socially distanced

‘trick or treating’ let alone socially distanced nativity plays or carol concerts.

It would be such a boost to the country’s morale if somehow we are through Covid-19 by December, and this most terrible of years somehow ends with a traditional and recognisable Christmas and New

Year.

The question of how the pandemic has changed our society remains to be seen.

Some things do not appear to have changed.

For example, the Eat Out to Help Out campaign seems to have worked well, with the busy Wokingham restaurants over the past month demonstrating that we still have the appetite for a bargain.

The pubs are attracting customers, but my experience is that most people prefer to sit outside in a beer garden, which is extremely appealing on a sweltering July evening but rather less so on a drizzly November night.

There are mixed messages around the future of office work. At various times we have been urged to work from home whenever possible, and at other times, as circumstances change, we have been told to return to the office.

The technology exists for people to work from wherever they are.

However, particularly for people already living alone, being stuck at home all day can cause other problems around loneliness and lack of social interaction.

It seems most likely that there will be a mix of working from home and being in the office.

There has to be an opportunity for coffee shops and cafes in commuter towns such as Wokingham where face-to-face meetings which previously would have taken place in an office, and are not necessarily appropriate via Zoom can be informally hosted.

I believe that one permanent change is that there will be a far greater level of respect for key workers whose endeavours are so crucial in the country’s operation.

Another point that I heard last month was that some nine million people were put on furlough, and were paid when, through no fault of their own, there was no work for them to do.

It was funded by the Government, and although it was paid via an employer, the scheme was effectively a benefit.

If, in the near future, people are unfortunate enough to lose their jobs as a direct consequence of the pandemic, and go on to claim benefits, it would be good to think that there would be a greater understanding and support of people facing adversity caused through no fault of their own.

Can we really look forward to a more compassionate and less judgemental society?