We are sad to see the worrying findings and huge disparities in children’s education as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in research published by @theNFER and @EducEndowFoundn. https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/news/eef-publishes-new-research-on-the-impact-of-covid-19-partial-school-closures/

These interim findings reveal that:

- on average pupils in UK primary schools are two months behind

and that:

- there is a large and concerning gap for disadvantaged pupils, stretching to seven months between richest and poorest students.

All of this is deeply upsetting and demands immediate action.

There are ways to tackle this, as we found in our My School, My Planet project delivered during the return to schools after the first lockdown last year.

Our pilot project engaged children from disadvantaged ethnic groups and low socioeconomic backgrounds through outdoor learning.

#MySchoolMyPlanet

One teacher reflected:

"My School, My Planet helped us to prioritise the children’s emotional and mental health and wellbeing by getting outside and immersing ourselves in nature.”

Another teacher:

“This is huge, not only for the children during the pandemic, but also the community responsibility... to reconnect with the environment to create a society that will be able to look after themselves better because they've been able to make those connections.”

These concerning findings present an opportunity to reconsider children’s education, to focus on the mental health and wellbeing of children in schools, and to tackle embedded inequalities head on.

We urgently need to leverage funding through national governments to bring projects like My School, My Planet to every school in the UK and tackle the social injustices felt by so many children.

@educationgovuk @Ofstednews @EducEndowFoundn

Findings from our My School, My Planet evaluation by @TheCfEY will be published Tuesday 9th February.