Ms Laura Keane:

Absolutely. I echo everything said by Ms Connolly. I will answer the Deputy's specific question on what we can do to counter the impacts or the legacy that will be there post-Covid for the children and families that Barnardos works with. One of the key ways we can support children into the future is by creating that sense of belonging and connectedness for them. We do that primarily in our work on the ground in Barnardos by supporting parents to have a better understanding of their child's needs; have a better insight into their emotional world and what is going on for them; build up their skills to be able to support their children in their overall development; and improve parent and child relationships and communication. In my work on the ground, a key way to support children post-Covid is by supporting their parents to better able to be that front line of support to them.

The other key piece of work we are doing at the moment is working with children one to one to build their resilience, as mentioned by Mr. Church, and to develop their capacity to cope with stress, to understand what stress does to their bodies, and to help them to calm themselves and to re-engage with those really critical opportunities of education, hobbies and social networks. From a practical perspective on the ground, our direct work with parents and children is helping them to develop those skills to mitigate the impact of what they have been through.