Ms Áine Lynch:

The difficulty with talking about children as a collective is that all children are different. Some children will adapt to going back to school easier than others. What we need to do is ensure we support parents and schools because we do not know how this will go. We have never had a situation where children have been out of school with their families for such a prolonged period. Some children may experience separation anxiety. Some children will have heard more about Covid-19 than others while they have been out of school and will already be coming back to school with some anxiety. That came through in our survey and what parents were saying about their anxiety around returning to school.

When children return to school it is important that schools are seen as a supportive environment. As I said, the curriculum should perhaps be put on the back burner for a while. Reconnecting with the school and teachers and being able to socialise should be prioritised at the beginning. Different children will find the return to school difficult and it is important that schools approach the issue on an individual basis.

Partnership between the home and school is key to all of this. While this has always been important, communication between home and school is more important than ever. Planning the reopening needs to be done in partnership between the home and school. It is important that parents are consulted on how schools are reopened and that their input is sought and included in the plans for reopening. Those kinds of anxieties can then be alleviated where possible.