Five Partner families, working across the John Lewis Partnership, talk us through their challenges, triumphs and hopes for the back-to-school routine
As the summer holidays draw to an end, it allows us a moment to pause and reflect. Whatever your set-up as a family, there’s no denying that parenting this year has been a greater challenge than usual. There have been highs (more time together), lows (grappling with homeschooling while trying to host a Zoom meeting) and plenty of moments to cherish along the way. We caught up with five Partner families to discuss the lessons lockdown has taught them, their hopes for school in September 2020 and some top tips for getting back into the school routine. And we can’t think of better models for the collection than the Partners’ children. Like kids across the land, they have got through one of the trickiest academic years in history. Here’s to all the little heroes everywhere.
The Iswarans
Preeti Iswaran, Partner & Sales Consultant, John Lewis & Partners, White City, is currently on maternity leave. She lives in west London with her husband Shivan and their children, Isa, four, and Ila, eight months
At first it was really tough, especially for Isa as she goes to nursery full time and she missed it so much. We locked down with my mum so we kept the grandma/granddaughter relationship going and it was good that we were all under the same roof. Our place isn’t very big and trying to juggle so many humans in one area was a challenge.
The most important thing for me has been making memories with the little ones. I bought a cargo bike and we put the kids in the front for local journeys, we bought a skateboard for Isa and took her to the skate park and we played more board games. We have an old VW campervan and a classic mini and spent a lot of lockdown doing up the car, something we used to love before having kids. Isa would come and sit behind the steering wheel with us.
Isa is now back at nursery and she loves it, and she’s going to a summer camp over the holidays. When her new uniform for September came she couldn’t wait to wear it and wanted to keep it on all the time. She thrives on the formality and structure. It’s not the same seeing your friends on a computer; she wanted to see her friends in real life.
Top back-to-school tips?
Go to bed on time. Be relaxed, know that it will take time for the kids to get used to their uniforms and get dressed in the morning.
The Heaths
Nathalie Heath is Partner & Senior Communications Manager, Food & Drink, Waitrose & Partners. She lives in Surrey with her husband Ben and their children, Charlie, 11, and Daisy, eight
This year has been interesting and tricky and very hard. When lockdown started everything was chaotic; loads of phone calls, emails and endless Zoom meetings coupled with the general bewilderment of the situation. All of a sudden we were at home working full time with two children who hadn’t used a laptop before.
Roll on a few months and now Daisy can just turn on a laptop, open Google and get on with her homework. The kids have been amazing considering. Both have been on Zoom and sent emails and used Powerpoint for mini projects. They have both pretty much done everything that was set by their schools and loved seeing videos of their teachers being silly and class videos that parents put together.
Charlie was in year 6, his last year of primary school, and loved going back to school in June in a bubble of 15 kids. He started cycling to school with his friend, creating independence before he joins secondary school. With that came a mobile phone so he has definitely grown up a lot since lockdown.
This year has reinforced that we like routine and being with other people. For September we just really hope that the kids can enjoy all the aspects of school that they previously enjoyed. For Charlie it will be different as he is heading to a very large secondary school but I think he will take it in his stride as he knows that it is better than home school!
Top back-to-school tips?
Be organised. I always have their clothes laid out the night before, ready for them to put on and school bags ready. I tell them, ‘You have three jobs: eat breakfast, clean teeth, get dressed – in that order.’ Any ‘spare’ time then they can do what they like.
The Sannis
Sim Sanni, is Partner & Branch Manager, Waitrose & Partners, St Katharine Docks. She lives in Essex with her son, Timi, 12, and daughter, Tara, 7
This year has been extremely tough at times, especially when lockdown began. As a branch manager, I found myself torn between work and home. I’m lucky that I have a fantastic team, which meant that when I wasn’t in the branch, they were all committed to striving to do the best for Partners and customers.
I’m a single mum and Timi has really shown me how responsible he can be. He has been an amazing big brother to sister Tara, even dropping her at school when I had to be at work. He helped with both the housework and cooking and was able to complete his work from school by himself and with minimal intervention from me.
“This year has taught us that we don’t need to fill all of our free time with different activities or friends. It’s been really nice to relax at home, or go for walks together”
I’m no teacher, and not overly patient, but I have been helping Tara learn to tell the time at home. Listening to her read, I’m always so gobsmacked at how articulate she is at seven, and I love all of the different voices she uses to bring the characters to life!
This year has taught us that we don’t need to fill all of our free time with different activities or friends. It’s been really nice to relax at home, or go for walks together.
Timi started year 7 at secondary school last September and has been at home since March so I’m hoping that the schools schedule extra sessions for the children to catch up on the work that they’ve missed. I also hope they both bond with their friends again when they return.
Top back-to-school tips?
Have absolutely everything prepped the night before – uniforms, bags, packed lunches. The less to do each morning the better.
The Emmetts
Annie Emmett, Partner & Content Producer, John Lewis & Partners, lives in Essex with her husband Tomas and their two boys, Oliver, four, and Finley, one
Both Tomas and I were initially furloughed and it couldn’t have come sooner. We enjoyed the downtime with our boys; going for long walks in our village and discovering new parts of the woodland to explore. Our local community has been great too, we have made fairy walks for children to follow, participated in socially-distanced cake sales and helped erect a socially-distanced library.
Oliver starts school in September so we haven't been too strict on keeping an academic routine, but we do lots of learning-through-play activities across lots of subjects and we’ve spent a lot of time growing flowers, fruit and vegetables. We now have a daily lettuce harvest and are patiently waiting for the sunflowers to bloom.
“We realised we didn’t need to always have something in the diary, just being at home is enough”
This year has taught us to savour the little things in life. We led such a hectic lifestyle before lockdown, every weekend would be filled with a paid-for activity or visiting multiple friends and relatives – it was relentless. This has made us slow down and value the time we have together. We realised we didn’t need to always have something in the diary, just being at home is enough.
We hope Oliver will be able to start in September – we have been told they will have a slightly extended settling-in process and the local mums have created a WhatsApp group to try and arrange a socially-distanced meet-up for the kids in the holidays. Oliver loves putting his uniform on and calls it his ‘school costume’. I’m not sure he realises he will be wearing it everyday for years to come!
Top back-to-school tips?
I’ve been told life long-friends are made at the school gates. My tip would be to make conversation with as many people as possible as the new term begins, and develop close friendships over time.
The Tongs
Rebecca Tong, Partner & Insight Manager, Research, John Lewis & Partners, lives in Buckinghamshire with her husband Winson and their two children, Luca, five, and Lily, three
Suffice to say this year has been incredibly challenging. When the schools were closed it initiated a sinking feeling. We did a lot of juggling. We both work full time so we tried to divide and conquer. Luca is in reception and it was his first year of formal education. For me the main priority has been being there for them and the emotional support. Not rejecting any questions or curiosity. Just letting all of that come out.
We soon got into a rhythm. My husband would put Lily down for her nap at lunchtime and then I’d do the homeschooling with Luca – as he says we’d, ‘smash out all his jobs’. I learnt which ones to start with, ie the trickier ones and I’ve seen a massive improvement in his writing. There were so many online resources. At the beginning it was overwhelming. Luca loved Carol Vorderman’s Maths Factor and he's had such pleasure doing it.
Lockdown forced us to be more present at home and gave me the opportunity to really nurture my relationship with my children. That’s been the real silver lining for me. It taught us to manage expectations, just go with it rather than forcing things. If they are not in the mood for learning, you are not going to achieve anything.
“It’s not all about being on a treadmill and achieving the next stage in the plan, it’s about embracing the children and really engaging with what they are saying”
This year has made us realise it’s not all about being on a treadmill and achieving the next stage in the plan, it’s about embracing the children and really engaging with what they are saying. For me it’s now completely normal to have the kids on my lap doing some colouring while I'm on mute during a meeting.
Lily will hopefully be going to nursery full time in September and Luca will be moving into year 1 with a new teacher and new teaching assistant. They will still be having packed lunches in their classroom and on staggered drop offs, but he’s looking forward to going back and being with all his friends in a bit more of a normal situation.
Top back-to-school tips?
Don’t ever give your kids the sense that you are working against the clock, because they will inevitably derail you. And always allow an extra half an hour to get ready.
