MY biggest little boy started reception this week and I didn’t cope well.

Oh, I talked a big game the night before as my wife wiped away her tears as she got his uniform ready.

"He’ll be fine, why are you being so soft?"

But I was bluffing.

My wife calls me a curling parent, (think the winter Olympic sport) where I am constantly one step ahead of the boys, smoothing the course so there is no disaster.

I always have biscuits on me if they get hungry, their teddies in case they fall over, a plethora of coats if they get cold.

So, in the interests of curling and making sure he didn’t get hungry at school I decided to organise his school lunches using Parent Pay.

I must now take this opportunity to congratulate all the parents of Whitmore High pupils and pass on my admiration as they have all managed to add money to their children’s accounts.

I sadly could not…I added £50, the balance said £18.50…I orders two meals at £2.40 each, the system told me I had no credit…I reordered the same meals…he now had two meals booked per day…I gave up and called the school.

What this has emphasised for me is that Whitmore High need to do a bit more curling to smooth things out for parents during the initial weeks.

With all the new protocols for covid, parents are going to keep on having questions that they would like to be answered quickly.

What should my child wear for PE?

When will they be set?

How does my child get a dinner fob?

We as a school aim to anticipate these questions over the coming days and provide answers for parents before they have to go through the frustration of trying to work it out on their own.

Now, if any parent can call the school to tell me how to order a tuna sandwich for my child, I will be forever grateful.