School starters born during pandemic lack communication skills, Ofsted says
Ofsted's latest report highlights communication skills gaps in school starters born during the pandemic.
A recent report by Ofsted has sparked concern over the communication skills of school starters born during the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings suggest that these children may be lagging behind their peers in terms of communication abilities, a trend that has been observed in various educational settings across the UK.
The research conducted by Ofsted's inspectors focuses on children who started school in 2024. These children would have been born between 2020 and 2022, a period when many families were under lockdown or had significantly reduced social interactions.
Ofsted's analysis indicates that these children may have missed out on crucial socialisation opportunities and exposure to multiple generations of family members, which are essential for language development.
The report, which is based on visits to 20 primary schools in late 2023, found that some schools are adapting the curriculum for four-year-olds in reception classes “to provide extra help for children with speech, language and communication difficulties.
"Increasing numbers of children joining reception were experiencing these difficulties. This made it hard for them to express their wants and needs or to make friends and experience high-quality play.”
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Martyn Oliver, Ofsted’s chief inspector, said: “It’s encouraging that there has been some good progress in improving the teaching of early reading and mathematics in primary schools. But schools are still having to navigate the impact of the pandemic, and many children are still catching up on lost learning."
“It is those children who are most vulnerable who benefit most from a strong start to their education.”
In response, teaching unions called for extra support for schools, so they can provide more specialist help to children at risk of falling behind their peers.
James Bowen, an assistant general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said: “It’s important to remember that many children currently in Key Stage 1 will have missed out on important preschool experiences due to Covid and will have experienced major disruption to their early education."
The report highlighted concerns about schools that struggled to model good behaviour for their youngest pupils, noting that children’s behaviour “deteriorated when they were not taught how to manage and care for toys and equipment. The classroom became chaotic.”
Even play-based learning sometimes missed the mark, failing to teach valuable lessons in problem-solving, collaboration, or persistence. The report explained, “Such poorly planned play keeps children busy but does not support their development: their hands and bodies are active, but their minds are not.”
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Ruairidh is the Digital Lead on MadeForMums. He works with a team of fantastically talented content creators and subject-matter experts on MadeForMums.
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