Today marks a year since the first school in our area closed due to fears of coronavirus cases.

Schools have been heavily impacted since the pandemic started in early 2020 and back then most of us would not have predicted that pupils would be spending a lot of time learning from home rather than in a classroom.

Today (February 26) is a year since Rickmansworth School in Scots Hill, Croxley Green, became the first school to close its doors across Three Rivers and Watford due to the pandemic.

It came after two pupils were tested for the virus after developing cold-like symptoms since returning from a school ski trip to Italy.

An email that had been sent out to parents and carers explaining the situation at the school was circulated on social media.

In the email, head teacher Matthew Fletcher said he was advised by both Hertfordshire County Council and Public Health England and the decision was made to shut the school at 4pm on February 26, 2020.

The school had been close for a day before reopening.

March 2020 saw the closure of schools for the first time, except for key workers' children and vulnerable children, as Covid-19 spread in the UK.

After months of closure there had been a phased approach to them reopening during the summer last year, although many at the start of the Autumn term in September were sending pupils home when someone tested positive for Covid-19.

They were allowed to remain open during the second lockdown in November although like the first shutdown, schools are currently closed during England’s third lockdown.

Under Boris Johnson’s road map, all pupils will be allowed to return to the classroom on March 8.