An Update from NPFS...

As a parent myself, remote learning with 3 children, balancing working from home and carrying out this voluntary role I can certainly relate to how hard this REALLY is! I genuinely hope that you are all doing ok.  We are having to cope with day-to-day practicalities too - washing, cleaning, food shopping, and cooking. Does is anyone else dread the words – can I have a snack? Or what’s for dinner at breakfast time!
We are also trying to cope with the emotional impact of being separated from our extended family and our friends. All this affects our children too. Across Scotland, our experiences of lockdown differ because of our individual circumstances. 
Some of us are working, some of us are furloughed, some of us did work but aren’t now and are worried about money. The list goes on, and many of us are feeling overwhelmed. But we are doing AMAZING and our children are too. I was counting down the days to February mid-term from about mid January.

This week we are launching a  “refreshed nutshell” for Learning at Home in Lockdown which  emphasizes the importance of working in partnership with our schools, reaching out to ask for support from them if and when we need it. There are links to organisations that offer advice and support for looking after your family’s wellbeing. Our children are likely to be spending more time online so we need to make sure that they’re safe, happy and resilient while doing so, so please look at our Online Safety and Securing your Device nutshells.
Remembering to protect our own mental health is not easy as “remote learning” can cause tensions and anxiety. Be kind to each other and yourself. We are all doing the best we can under these circumstances.
The full re-opening of ELC settings and P1 – P3’s on 22^nd  February will relieve the pressure for some families but may also be causing anxiety to some. Therefore we are co-hosting with Public Health Scotland/Scottish Government a Q&A session on Thursday 18^th February at 19:45 to explain why those groups have been chosen to return and is it safe? What is the evidence? Will it look different?  
To register to attend: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/141533603819

We are arranging the same for parents of S4-S6 children on Monday 22^nd of February and on Thursday 4^th of March for parents of children in P4 – S3. 
You can keep up to date with what we are doing on our Twitter @parentsforumscotland and Facebook too.

Please continue to stay safe.

Margaret
Chair, The National Parent Forum of Scotland