Many children missing out on home education during lockdown - despite screen time increasing

More than a fifth of parents say their primary school-aged children are not getting any home education during the Covid-19 lockdown.

Screen time for primary school pupils has increased by around two hours a day on average amid school closures, according to a charity's research.

The findings, published by charity Booktrust, follows warnings that disadvantaged children are likely to fall further behind their peers the longer schools remain shut.

Overall, 22 per cent of parents questioned said neither they or their partner are doing any homeschooling with their children during the lockdown, and 14 per cent of parents are not reading with their children.

Many children are not getting any home schooling (WalesOnline/ Rob Browne)

More than half of parents – who had children aged four to 11 – said they are finding it hard to stick to a timetable and three in four say that they are taking a “flexible” approach to school work.

Schools, colleges and nurseries across the UK closed their doors to the majority of pupils, apart from the children of key workers and vulnerable youngsters, more than five weeks ago.

But the survey, of 2,000 parents of primary school pupils aged between four and 11, also found that children are taking part in more traditional activities, such as board games and arts and crafts.

It reveals that 47 per cent of parents say they are seeing their children reading more by themselves since lockdown, and 34 per cent of parents say their children are being read to more.

And yet, more than a quarter of families polled said that they are “never” reading bedtime stories during lockdown.

“With schools closed, reading together has never been more important,” said Gemma Malley, BookTrust director.

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, added: “These figures show that a number of parents are finding it difficult to support their children’s education at home.

“We need to recognise that these are extremely challenging circumstances, and there will be a variety of reasons why this is the case, not least illnesses and bereavements caused by coronavirus."