Richard Hogan: School refusal, why it happens, and how to tackle it

"The research on the impact of the Covid-19 restrictions on our children’s development has yet to be fully understood. But those working in schools, and in psychology, see the residual scars every day of dealing with teenagers and families."

Richard Hogan: "When a child avoids, they don’t believe they can manage what will come their way. When they think about the road ahead, the future, they are overwhelmed with fear or dread". Photograph Moya Nolan

We are now three weeks into the school term, and for some parents the struggle to get their son or daughter to school every morning has started to intensify.

School refusal has been a serious issue since the Covid-19 crisis.