Few pupils have escaped having to isolate from school this last year and some have been hit more than others. In fact absence rates due to Covid are now higher than they've been since schools reopened in March, with children in Greater Manchester impacted more than most.
It's not only having an impact on children's education and well-being, but on their parents' ability to work. Mum Fiona Armstrong, an NHS consultant and a chair of governors at Hawthorns School, in Audenshaw, Tameside, is among those frustrated with the current school isolation rules, which have seen thousands of children sent home to learn remotely.