Generation lockdown: What happened to the children ‘let down’ by Boris Johnson?

At eight years old, Cass loved going to school. A sociable child known for his big character, he was accustomed to the familiar rhythm of class and thrived in the lessons he loved; a creative spirit, he won awards for his written stories. 

In March 2020, just as Cass had started to establish vital first friendships with classmates – the kind he would have remembered into his adulthood – he and 10.6 million children in the UK were told they wouldn’t be going to school anymore. 

The little life he had built for himself at his Hackney primary school was wrenched away by the coronavirus pandemic, with an uncertain and bleak-looking future suddenly ushered in, where he was forced to adapt to face masks, two-metre distancing and social isolation. 

‘He retreated inside himself, becoming introverted and nervous,’ Cass’s mother, talent manager Carolyn Owlett, tells Metro. ‘I was desperate for him to be happy again.’

Causing a global shutdown, Covid-19 and its many variants had a seismic (arguably ongoing) impact on society, with its tendrils trickling down to every aspect of our lives, from the way we worked to socialising. 

With little known about the deadly virus in its early days and fears that it could wipe out a significant proportion of the population, then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a lockdown to protect the elderly and immunocompromised. 

Five years on

At the Covid Inquiry earlier this week, Johnson acknowledged the immense sacrifice children made and admitted his haphazard handling of the pandemic ‘let down a lot of kids’. 

Researchers are only now beginning to decode the impact had on young people – and finding for many, the emotional scars run deep. 

While his primary school tried hard to galvanise and deliver online lessons, Cass struggled. He was too young to know how to use a computer independently, and Carolyn, who was working full-time, couldn’t provide much additional help. 

‘I’m not a teacher,’ Carolyn states. ‘His work was totally different from how we did things at school.’

As Cass was heading towards the end of Year 3, he was being assessed more heavily on his spellings and grammar – and found it disheartening that he wasn’t excelling. 

‘He started to withdraw,’ Carolyn remembers. ‘It became clear he was dyslexic and had ADHD symptoms – he couldn’t sit and concentrate at the computer all day – but because schools were closed, we couldn’t get an assessment.’

On average, schools were closed for 5.5 months, seeing many children missing vital milestones and disrupted learning. 

Oscar was five when Covid-19 hit, and his mother Charlotte Dodds noticed problems with his speech, which she feared would see him fall behind.

‘He couldn’t speak in sentences and we didn’t understand what he was saying at all,’ the baking marketer explains. ‘He couldn’t master it until working with a speech therapist, which was impossible in lockdown.’

Lockdown’s legacy

‘We are seeing significant delays in young children and their development after lockdown,’ Dr Gavin Morgan, Educational Psychologist at University College London and Vice Chair of the British Psychological Society, Division of Educational and Child Psychology, tells Metro. ‘Children learn through interaction and from copying the behaviours of those around them. 

‘By denying opportunity to interact with children of the same age, along with taking the lead from adults, their ability to learn and safely practice basic social skills may have been delayed, which are the grounding for success later in childhood, at school and beyond.’

Carolyn saw a difference between Cass and her then 13-year-old son, who had a phone and interacted with friends on social media. 

‘He was really lonely – he didn’t have anyone his own age to talk to,’ Carolyn recalls. ‘I bubbled with friends when the rules permitted, so our kids could be together.’

Studies suggest that children suffered from higher levels of anxiety, depression, anger and irritability than adults during lockdowns. They also showed increased signs of internalisation and behavioural problems.  

But that didn’t mean there was excitement about returning to school when they reopened. According to one American study, 36.8% of children struggled with panic attacks, and 26.8% had separation anxiety. Charlotte noticed this when dropping Oscar off at school in Gateshead for the first few times: ‘He’d cling on to me at the gates and wail.’

‘Overnight, we made school optional, or even worse, forbade attendance,’ Dr Morgan explains. ‘Before this, school was compulsory. This bond was broken.’ 

Cass’ return was a ‘nightmare’, says Caroline: ‘He wasn’t used to paying attention in a classroom and his behaviour nosedived. He became a shell of who he used to be.’

Things became untenable, and Carolyn moved him to a different, less academically focused school. ‘My child’s mental health is more important than exams. I wanted him to be happy,’ she explains. 

Vickie Collinge, a PR manager from Luton, noticed a significant change in her son, now 10, including loss of confidence.

‘Beforehand, he was an outgoing, happy chappy. But in lockdown, he lost that. He became bored, easily distracted, and doesn’t like big groups,’ she says.  

‘He struggles with anxiety, while his little brother doesn’t.’ 

Lives altered forever

Older children who were in secondary school during the ongoing pandemic had similar struggles. New research has suggested that teenagers experienced a decline in their mental health, with boys more adversely affected in the long term. 

Dr Morgan explains: ‘Chances to continue developing social skills and closer relationships; boyfriends, girlfriends, flirting, breaking up – these important adolescent experiences were denied.’

This had devastating consequences in some instances. In 2021, 17-year-old Gabrielle Treharne took her own life and was found in her Somerset home. In the inquest, her father, Jago Treharne, reported that Gabrielle struggled with the lack of social contact due to Covid restrictions.

Not all teenagers were initially distraught at the lockdown news. Archie Payne, then 15, was thrilled to have three weeks’ respite from mock GCSE revision. 

‘It was fun,’ Archie, now a 20-year-old London university student, recalls. ‘We didn’t have to have our camera on for lessons, so we all skived. I mostly played FIFA.’

However, the novelty quickly wore off; Archie’s mental well-being declined as he missed out on playing football, which helps him relieve stress and socialise. Messaging mates wasn’t a long-term substitute for these interactions. 

Now, Archie almost feels mournful that he missed the heady and exhilarating part of his teenage years: ‘It’s that age where you start to have drinks, go to parties, experiment, and become closer with your friends before school gets serious with exams. It was snatched away.’

Archie adds that his watered-down GCSE exams in 2021, where teachers gave students topics to revise, poorly equipped him for further study and work. 

‘I was proud to pass, but it felt less authentic,’ he tells Metro. ‘It made us all lazier. We’re used to learning online, so people don’t want to turn up to lectures as all the tools are at home.’

Archie’s sentiments are echoed by Dr Morgan: ‘For many children, the Year 11 exams are what they work for throughout school. This just didn’t happen, so it left many questioning the worth of what they had been doing for years. 

‘Remote working has remained post-pandemic, so again, we are making interaction and community optional. Managers need to be mindful, support young adults, and encourage interaction beyond workspaces.’ 

A new normal

So, can we do anything to rectify the unintentional damage that could have been inflicted on young people in a bid to prevent the spread of a virus? With every child being different and having varied experiences of the pandemic, it’s clear there’s no one-size-fits-all approach. 

Carolyn fought hard to get Cass an ADHD and dyslexia diagnosis the moment lockdown restrictions eased, and a course of therapy. While Cass, now 13, still struggles to concentrate, Carolyn believes he’s far happier and better in his approach to school than in the immediate aftermath. 

‘Therapy helped him deal with the feelings of anger, uncertainty and unfairness he still holds due to lockdown,’ Carolyn says, before adding that she’s aware it isn’t an option for everyone.

Meanwhile, Vickie formed a coalition with other parents to ensure that all their children could get used to socialising with one another again. 

‘Both my kids go to numerous after-school clubs. I also run a homework club and a park day with other parents,’ says Vickie

‘I actively encourage them to introduce themselves to other kids they meet so they get used to being around each other. But I worry this is going to be a barrier that my eldest will have to overcome for the rest of his life.’

For Archie, the impact has also had a significant ongoing impact. ‘Lockdown made us more dependent on our phones, as if we weren’t hooked enough already,’ he explains. ‘It was the only way we could chat, and that never really went away. 

‘Ultimately, I feel like my generation has been made more immature – I feel younger. I look at myself and my peers and feel like I’m not where I should be.’

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