Reader's letter: Children need education

It had a devastating effect on my education. I failed the 11 plus and ended up in the bottom stream of a secondary modern school. My grades slowly recovered and was labelled a ‘late developer’. I transferred to a grammar school at 16 and eventually got a postgraduate degree (PhD).

Unfortunately, my experience of missing schooling, has been experienced by huge numbers of children during lockdown, albeit with a lucky minority getting an almost normal education. I would agree with the prime minister that it is vital for the future of the country as well as the children themselves that normal education be restored as soon as possible.

Children are normally exposed to minor infections from each other which help their developing immune system. This has presumably been happening less during lockdown. Therefore, when they return to school, the common cold (a human coronavirus with no known cure!) will presumably be at least as much of a problem as is normal for the Autumn term. What is the policy when this inevitably happens? Will the children get tested for CVID-19, sent home, or what? If tested, will there be enough kits?

I suspect, but don’t know, that teachers are more likely to catch the CVID-19 coronavirus off each other rather than off the children and that therefore the staff room should be closed and teachers asked to continue to video conference with each other as now.

The government needs to give clear guidance and not just muddle through with crisis management, as they have done so far; children’s education is too important. Teaching is a rewarding but exhausting profession and teachers don’t need the added argro of a woolly policy. Teachers deserve our whole-hearted support as they return to the chalk face this September.

Chris Carter, Stannington.