A children’s charity has found that half of youngsters in Scotland say they’re worried about their futures because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Since the start of lockdown in March, the Children’s Parliament carried out a series of surveys, checking in with how their members have been feeling.
Experts found that during lockdown children started to feel more lonely and isolated, with a quarter concerned about their families finances.
Further concerns were also raised about how children were coping with doing school work from home.
Sophie, as 12-year-old who kept a journal, told STV News: “School is one of the biggest parts of my day and it’s weird having to sit at home not even being able to go to parks and meet up with friends.
“I miss seeing friends and family, it’s really sad because I’ve not seen them in ages. Spending time with the same people is really not fun all the time.”
Harris, who is also 12, said: “I’ve been feeling quite bored because I’ve not been able to see any of my friends or play with them.
“At first it was quite exciting being able to do work digitally but as it went on it became quite boring because usually when you do school work you would talk to your friends and ask them questions.”
Director of the Children’s Parliament Cathy McCollough believes that we can help children by listening and communicating.
Cathy said: “The majority of children are OK and they recognise the huge effort their parents and carers have been making to make sure they’re OK.
“They worry when they go back to school it’s all going to be focused on them catching up and they’re asking for time and space for their mental health and wellbeing.
“We need to set up conversations between children and decision makers so adults understand concurrently how children are experiencing their lives.
“They can take children’s views and experiences into account when they’re planning and framing these different transition phases for the coming months and possibly years.”
