‘We refuse to be defined as the Covid generation’: how Manchester schoolchildren have coped with the pandemic

Manchester’s children have lost 19 million hours of school time due to Covid. Around a third of the city’s children are currently growing up in poverty and those young people have felt the impact of the pandemic more than most.

For those able to access online learning, academic studies continued – but extracurricular activities and work experience opportunities were missed.

And the impact of social isolation on mental health has been immeasurable.

“We all had a very tough two years during this pandemic,” Filipos Kola from Burnage Academy for Boys told a town hall meeting at the end of the year.

“The teachers and all the staff were always there with a smile on their faces. Always helping us, guiding us through these difficult times.

“We all worked together like a family because school in my opinion is like your second home.”

How has the pandemic affected normal classes?

Even when schools reopened, the persistently high infection rate in the city meant many children still missed school when their bubbles were breached.

On average, pupils missed 43 days of school due to Covid – but those who live in the most deprived parts of the city are thought to have missed much more.

In October, the government announced a further £1.8bn of funding to help students catch up on the classes they missed – but critics have said this support package for children and young people lacks ‘scale and ambition’.

However, rather than simply moaning about it, Manchester is taking action.

Manchester City Council wants 2022 to be ‘Year of the Child’ – and it is asking local businesses to play their part by throwing their support behind the campaign.

Business leaders and influential figures from across the city have already committed to contributing their experience, talent and time to the cause.

They will be involved in masterclasses, TEDx-style talks, a summer sports festival, culture and arts sessions and an immersive careers event as well as fundraising projects to support Manchester’s most vulnerable youngsters.

Manchester is also hoping to become internationally recognised as a Child Friendly City – an initiative by UNICEF to realise the rights of children locally.

And as the council kickstarts the two-year accreditation process by launching this ‘transformative’ campaign, children and young people have had their say.

What pupils have told city leaders

Dozens of schoolchildren addressed the final full council meeting of the year in December, telling councillors of their hopes, dreams and demands for 2022.

Speaking at the town hall, they said schools need more funding to support children in dysfunctional families and offer free supplies for those in need.

Better access to the city’s rich cultural heritage is key to a broader education, they said, and healthier lifestyles that start in school would ‘feed the mind’.

And some spoke of the need to take more action on the climate emergency.

The audience watched as St James’ Primary School pupils recited a poem by Manchester poet Reece Williams – and one line in particular stood out. 

“Though our mental health suffered with social isolation, we refuse to be defined as the Covid generation.”

‘Education is not just books’

But Hakeem Zaki from Burnage Academy for Boys stole the show, receiving a standing ovation and high praise from the Lord Mayor of Manchester himself.

“Education is more than just books, Maths and English,” Hakeem said.

“We are lucky at Burnage Academy. We have a big focus on extracurricular activities and we would encourage everyone working with young people to ensure that they share this vision too.

“The move to online learning allowed us to continue with our academic studies, but school-age students lost the breadth of education that we as young people want to achieve and learn from.

“The educational visits, the cultural experiences, the community events – is it right that the responsibility should be solely down to teachers?

“How can everyone in this city support this goal?”

Hakeem highlighted transport, awareness and costs as barriers which may be preventing families from being able to access the city’s libraries and museums.

He called on the council to ensure that there are opportunities for everyone.

And he said businesses should support schools by offering students ‘quality’ experiences in the world of work, investing in education ‘in its broadest sense’.

“A focus on meaningful experiences not only returns us to a sense of normality,” he said, “but gives us the opportunity to turn an inconvenient situation into a platform from which to improve the lives of our youth.”

Hanan Ahmed and Katie Lee from Connell College told councillors of the impact the coronavirus crisis has had on young people’s mental health.

They want support to be available for those young people who need it most.

“Our ultimate message is that we don’t want to ask. We want it to be there.”

Rohit Kurien from St John’s Primary School said young people are excited to make up for all the experiences they have missed in the ‘best city in the world’.

Harriet Palmer, a pupil at the same primary school, said 2022 will be the year of ‘self-expression’ – a time to nurture talents and celebrate individual identities.

“All children in Manchester and around the world have had to show enormous resilience and patience,” she said. “They’ve not been able to go to school, they’ve missed their friends and missed all their clubs and hobbies.

“2022 is the year of discovering and celebrating the joy in our communities.”

Angelika Mason-Penny from Lancasterian School said she was happy to see that young people were being heard at the COP26 conference in Glasgow.

She told councillors that they have the power to make better spaces and a cleaner environment to live in – but she feels she should have a voice too.

“We are all responsible for our world and I believe everybody can make an impact,” she said. “However, it is up to you to lead the way.”

Noor Fatima Rafi from Manchester Youth Council told the town hall meeting how Covid continues to impact the lives of children and young people today.

“Covid has been a big part of our lives and impacted us in so many ways with young people missing out on creating valuable memories and experiences with their friends and family,” she said. 

“Even now, Covid continues to impact us. The effects are still there even if we chose to ignore them.”

She told councillors that young people have been finding it difficult to secure work experience and professional placements since the start of the pandemic.

The mental health of young people deteriorated during this time too, with the social isolation of lockdown’s leaving ‘damanging effects’ on their social skills.

“We need your support now to bring back a sense of normality to young people who have been deprived of doing simple things such as to hold their family and not being able to enjoy their childhoods to the fullest,” she said.

“Given everything that young people have faced, this year is instrumental in making young people feel prioritised.

“It’s now the time to stop listening and to start taking action. We’ve been discussing it for a long time, but that won’t get us the results we want.

“It’s time for this council to show more of its commitment to Manchester’s young people.

“I urge you to invest in our young people because we are the future. This pandemic may have hindered our progress, but we will not stop making sure we are consulted in the position of our future as we deserve.”

Manchester council chief executive Joanne Roney said 2022 will be a year ‘brimming with opportunities and experiences’ for children and young people.

The council’s vision, she said, is for Manchester to be a place where every child is given the chance to realise their potential – and are part of every decision.

“Making a better future for the children in our city means a better future for businesses in our city,” she said in a promotional video for the campaign.

“My ask of you is to be part of this drive to put young people at the heart of the city’s future, whether it’s sponsorship or in-kind support.

“We need you to help us make 2022: Our Year a reality and create a lasting legacy for the next generation of Mancunians.”

Newly-appointed council leader Bev Craig said Manchester has a ‘powerful social conscience’ and this campaign is about ‘closing the gaps’ in the city.

“We cannot shy away from the challenges that face our city,” she said. “It is our responsibility to do everything we can to ensure that everyone in this city can share its success.

“This work won’t happen overnight, but the aim of this journey is to show our young people that they can succeed.

“We want to inspire them to think big, believe in their own potential and – ultimately – we want Manchester to be the very best city a young person can grow up in.”

Speaking on his last day as council leader, Sir Richard Leese said he is ‘at the opposite end of the spectrum’ from the schoolchildren who spoke before him.

The veteran politician who led Manchester council for a quarter of a century said Our Year: 2022 is a ‘challenge’ that the local authority needs to rise to.

He said his successor will work with everyone to make sure the council does.

“But what I really want to say, particularly on my last day here, is… what a fantastic future this city’s got.”