Parentkind reveals over 250,000 parents’ biggest concerns about their children and coronavirus (Covid-19)
Over 1 in 3 (35%) are worried about their child’s mental health as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and lockdown restrictions.
Our research also shows that nearly 2 in 5 parents (38%) say that one of their biggest concerns is their child missing out on learning from their teachers and that nearly a third (31%) are concerned about their ability to juggle working and supporting their child’s learning.
More than a quarter-of-a-million (257,392) parents across England, Wales and Northern Ireland took part in our independent online survey, giving a tangible snapshot of parents’ concerns.
John Jolly, CEO of Parentkind“In these unsettling times, parents are desperately seeking clarity and certainty about their children’s schooling and education. As schools in England start to re-open to more pupils from next week, the government must listen to parents about the reassurances that they seek, and address any parental concerns that remain, especially when it comes to children’s wellbeing. Pupils will return to a very different school environment, where they will not be able to socialise with their peers like they used to, and they will need time to adjust following a lengthy absence from the classroom. How schools and parents can work together to support the mental health and wellbeing of every child as we experience this transition together must be the government’s top education priority.”
We asked parents to select their top three biggest concerns as a parent about Covid-19 from a list of seventeen options. The top ten results, are:
- My child not seeing their friends and socialising – 48%
- My child missing out on learning from teachers – 38%
- One or more of my family members catching Covid-19 – 35%
- My child’s mental health – 35%
- My ability to juggle working and support my child’s learning – 31%
- How my child will cope going back when the schools do reopen – 25%
- My child’s lack of motivation to complete the work set – 24%
- My child falling behind their classmates – 22%
- My child missing out on transition activities to their new school – 14%
- My mental health – 13%.
See more about our second survey on coronavirus and school closures..
