A head teacher of a Catholic primary in one of London’s largest housing estates describes how the closure of schools has changed the lives of the children, staff and parents

On Wednesday 18 March, all schools in England and Wales were told that they must close at the end of the week to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

A wave of emotions washed over the staff, children, parents and governors of my own school, St John XXIII Catholic Primary in White City Estate in west London, as the news was announced. Many unanswered questions were left in the air, one of the main ones being what impact the closure of the school would have on the mental health and wellbeing of our children and their families.

For the children, “coronavirus” was already a word they were beginning to hear every day: on the news, or overhearing adults talking about the havoc it was causing across the world. Adults were, of course, already concerned and anxious. Now children were suddenly being told that they would no longer go to school, or go to church, or see their grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins, or have play dates or celebrate birthday parties with their friends – or even be able go outside to run around and play for more than an hour each day. No amount of words could prepare them for what the next few weeks would be like. The changes in their lives have been almost overwhelming.