I hope all readers have had a lovely bank holiday weekend.  For young people who received their A Level or GCSE results in recent days, perhaps it has been an opportunity to celebrate with family and friends.  It has been lovely to see photos of young people across the county receiving their results at our local schools and celebrating with the staff who’ve supported them through their schooling.

This cohort of students has had more hurdles to overcome than previous generations, having had their learning impeded by the Covid-19 pandemic.  The three academic years 2019-20, 2020-21 and 2021-22 were all affected by lockdowns, school closures and online learning.  At the start of the pandemic there was a lot of uncertainty about the scale of the threat facing the country and in particular our most vulnerable residents.  It will be interesting to read the conclusions of the UK Covid-19 inquiry as to the impact it had on pupils and what could have been done differently.  It’s still disappointing that the Welsh Government continues to refuse to have a dedicated Welsh inquiry into the decisions made in Wales.  The Welsh Government had access to the same evidence as the UK Government, but decided to keep schools closed for longer, inevitably having a greater impact on young people’s learning.

My Conservative team was running the council back in 21-22 and I remember the arguments taking place behind the scenes because we wanted schools to be open as much as possible, but school term dates had to be agreed in co-operation with other councils in Wales, given that many staff travel in from neighbouring authorities.  In a more affluent area like Monmouthshire it is easy to forget, but there are some children here and in more deprived areas, who are safer in school than they are at home.  It was often these children who were at the forefront of our minds when making decisions during the pandemic.

The lack of social interaction was so tough for so many young people, who should have been out having fun with their friends.  To have overcome these challenges and still achieved great results is a credit to them, their parents and the school staff who’ve worked tirelessly to support them.  One of the privileges of being a councillor is getting to spend time in our schools seeing the excellent teaching and learning.  So, congratulations to Monmouthshire’s young people on your achievements and to those who’ve supported you.  Whatever your result, a new adventure awaits!