Following numerous lockdowns and disruptions to education caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, major delays have been seen in children’s development of communication skills, sparking significant concerns among experts. Research from Speech and Language UK last year suggests that up to 1.7 million children are behind with talking and understanding words – a figure that equates to around one in five schoolchildren, and a rise of roughly 10 per cent on pre-pandemic levels.
These delays are not limited to younger children – some 72 per cent of primary teachers surveyed by the charity said they expected those entering secondary school to struggle more with their speech and language recognition compared with students transitioning pre-pandemic.
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