ADAPTING to a new way of teaching pupils posed a difficult for challenge for Swindon's schools.

Lockdown brought a heavier focus on learning over the web instead of in the classroom and forced staff to suddenly change the way they worked.

And it brought the usual school year to an abrupt end for hundreds of students who now faced an uncertain future.

Commonweal School had just taken the first steps towards setting up an online platform when the crisis hit and they had just two days' notice to prepare for closure.

Assistant head Nick Bartlett said: “Back in March, we were told on the Wednesday that we were shutting that Friday, so we had to create a complete online facility in a very short amount of time.

"Taking away the stability of a school environment was pretty nerve-wracking for staff and students, and parents, and especially carers.

"It's been very emotional for everyone, and it was unpredictable because there were no exams, Year 10s didn't know when they would be back in school, and we said goodbye to our Year 11s much earlier than usual.

"Edulink One had been introduced into the school a month earlier and we used it to create an online community, so it was like having the classroom experience and same curriculum but at home, though it took a bit of adjusting.

"Working remotely for three months does make you think outside the box, especially with 1,380 children and more than 200 staff. It pushed independent learning to the absolute maximum.

"Pre-lockdown, we talked to the students a lot about resilience and managing their own learning process, so them working from home put all of that into practice.

"We are doing everything as a community to support people on an individual level."

The school surveyed parents during lockdown to find out what parts of their online learning provision worked and which bits needed improving.

Last month, 80 per cent of parents agreed to their Year 10 and 12 children coming back to the classroom - a higher amount than the school expected.

Like many other schools in Swindon, Commonweal is putting plans in place that will allow all of its pupils to safely return in September.

Mr Bartlett added: "It will be a challenge and we want to make sure we look after the welfare of these students because they have had a very diverse experience during lockdown.

"It's been great to see some of them face-to-face again and we look forward to supporting them all. Now we have the technology to improve the learning experience they have at Commonweal going forward."