Almost 75% of parents will send children back to school, survey finds
Video report by ITV News Correspondent Ben Chapman
Almost three-quarters of parents are planning to send their children back to school when they reopen next month, a survey has revealed.
The Parentkind survey found 74% of parents will definitely send their children back as soon as schools open, while 23% are unsure and 3% plan not to send their kids back.
The results come ahead of the planned reopening of schools in England, while pupils in Scotland and Northern Ireland have already returned to school and Welsh students will return in September.
The biggest concern about school closures was that it will have an impact on children’s education (35%) and mental health (30%), while the risk of children catching Covid-19 was third on the list (19%).
It comes after the UK’s chief medical officers warned children are more at risk of long-term harm if they do not attend school than if they return.
England’s chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty said the evidence that not going to school damages children in the long run was "overwhelming".
Prof Whitty said: "So the reason that is important to lay out is the chances of children catching Covid and then getting long-term serious problems as a result of it, solely due to going to school are incredibly small."
"They’re not zero, but they’re incredibly small."
However Pippa Hodge told ITV News her son Leo, who has Down’s syndrome, autism and respiratory problems and has been home-schooled since lockdown began, will remain at home and receive his education there.
“It is better for Leo to remain at home and receive his education based from home for the time being, while we watch and wait to see what happens when the schools fill back up and there are even more opportunities for this virus to spread,” Ms Hodge said.
“Especially now that we are hearing of cases of reinfection.
“It’s a really difficult decision because it also affects his two siblings, one of whom is going into Year 11 GCSE year, but in order for us to properly and effectively reduce the risk as much as possible we have to continue to maintain a very high degree of shielding with very careful outings where we don’t breach a two-metre physical distance.”
She said Leo’s school has been “exceptionally supportive” and has seen him “at his most medically vulnerable.”
Ms Lodge added: “They fully understand just how precious he is and they also don’t want to put him at risk and can’t guarantee that they will be able to maintain physical distance around him.
“It’s also made more complicated by the fact that Leo needs full support with every aspect of the school day including his personal cares which means it is impossible for adults to keep around that distance either.”
The survey found the majority of parents (65%) would like to be consulted or have already been consulted (26%) by the school on how the arrangements for their child's return would work.
The main reason why parents were undecided about their child’s return was concern about how social distancing will be managed.
Parents in Wales were most likely to be happy to return their child to school without social distancing measures in place (53%) compared to England (33%) and Northern Ireland (46%).
On average across the three nations, 40% of parents would not be happy for their child to return with no social distancing measures in place.
Face coverings in schools in England will be mandatory in schools in local lockdown areas.
The Department for Education (DfE) now advises in areas under local restrictions - such as swathes of Greater Manchester - that face coverings should be worn when moving around corridors and communal areas.
All schools and colleges will have the discretion to require face coverings in communal areas where social distancing cannot be safely managed – such as when the layout of a school makes it difficult to do so.