A balance of risk versus benefit

Although the guidance on social distancing concerns everyone in the UK, there seems to be a growing concern among politicians and in the media about the many "vulnerable" children we are told are not in school. Who are these children? Why should they be in school when everyone else has been told to stay home?

The government says that "vulnerable children" are those with a social worker, those with an education health and care plan (EHCP) or children assessed as otherwise vulnerable by educational providers or local authorities. The growing concern appears to be because - as at 17 April – only an estimated five per cent were reported to be in school. Children can be vulnerable for many different reasons with many different consequences and their vulnerability fluctuates according to their own circumstances and the context around them. Indeed, there are families, never previously considered vulnerable, where both parents have lost their jobs as a result of the pandemic; who knows what pressures this will place upon their family and how this will impact on children? This nuance is currently missing from the national debate, which concerns me.