A number of parents are, understandably, concerned about sending their children back to school amid concerns for their safety. However, on the other side of the coin, many will be happy to see a return to normal life as they breathe a sigh of relief their children are back in education. Hugo Tilmouth, CEO of hygiene and charging stations company Cleaned Up/Charged Up has provided Express.co.uk with an insight into what children can expect as they resume lessons.
Mr Tilmouth told Express.co.uk: “We have been working hard with education providers in a bid to help them operate effectively and safely in the coming weeks with our hand sanitising stations.
“This should help to provide parents with added confidence.”
In terms of whether schools will be safe upon reopening, Mr Tilmouth said: “Schools are a a vital part of our community and we want to help get the country moving again post lockdown to get back to normality.
“Each school should have their own procedures put in place to keep their students safe, such as smaller classes and track and trace systems.”
READ MORE: Boris Johnson accused of ‘devolving responsibility’ to headteachers
What can I expect as my child goes back to school?
There will undoubtedly be a number of changes to schools and how lessons are conducted in the wake of coronavirus.
Smaller classes are a likely outcome, limited to a maximum of 30 pupils in every room.
However, Government guidance does advise that when possible, class numbers should be kept below 30.
Your child will also be assigned to a bubble – a group they will have to stick with at all times.
A bubble can range from the size of a whole classroom to the size of a year group, with the idea being that if one child tests positive the whole bubble will be sent home for two weeks.
He said: “The hand sanitiser station services that we provide can help schools across the UK keep their pupils safe by encouraging regular hand sanitisation and prevent germs from spreading.
“We have been working hard with education providers to help them operate effectively and safely in the next few weeks.
“This should provide parents with the confidence and assurance they need to send their children back to school – especially if they are feeling a bit apprehensive!”
Mr Tilmouth also recommends a number of measures you can take in preparing your children for their return to school.
Social distancing, for example, is one of the most effective ways of keeping the virus at bay, but is something which children find extremely difficult to enact.
To help your child understand, Mr Tilmouth suggests using simple and positioning language.
Explain that we have to keep our germs to ourselves in an effort to keep everyone else healthy, and try not to give them too much information on the science behind the virus.
A good way of doing this would be to make a game of practicing social distancing outside school, for example: when you are doing a food shop suggest they walk 1m apart from you and other people.
If they manage to do so for the duration of the whole trip, reward them with a sweet or chocolate bar.
Additionally, children should be reminded of the importance of washing hands, especially in preventing the spread of the virus.
Children copy adults, so wherever you go, make sure to use hand sanitisers provided and encourage your child to do the same.
This will make the process a normality, so they know to do it even when their parents are not around.
It is most important to sanitise hands when they first get to school in the morning and when they finish for the day, so create a routine of doing it before and after school to get them into the habit.
