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Boris Johnson’s push for summer catch-up schools shows how desperately out-of-touch he is

To truly ‘leave no child behind’ we need targeted help. I’m sick of the lives of children being used as pawns during the this pandemic, writes Georgina Fuller

Sunday 28 February 2021 15:58 GMT
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<p>Children have faced a lot of disruption to their schooling during the last 12 months</p>

Children have faced a lot of disruption to their schooling during the last 12 months

My heart sank read about Boris Johnson’s latest plan to run summer schools as part of a £700m catch-up scheme. Apparently, the government is going to allocate £200m to schools to run face-to-face summer tuition programmes to help children, who have faced a year of disruption to their learning, catch up.

It is a laudable aim – however I believe children don’t need more pressure, structured learning or assessments. They need to be able to play outside with their friends, have some freedom and to enjoy this long-awaited summer after a year of having to put their lives on hold to protect the vulnerable and the NHS during the Covid-19 pandemic.

I think the government have completely missed the point. School is not just about obtaining academic targets. It’s also about spending time with your friends, playing sport and learning the so-called soft skills which are an essential need for adulthood – negotiation, compromising and having fun.

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