Schoolgirls have been hosting virtual birthday parties and quizzes to help maintain social interaction during lockdown.

Simple activities we have taken for granted all of our lives like seeing friends in school or going round to people's houses have been on hold for weeks and weeks due to social distancing rules.

The government says is keen to get schools reopened because it says it recognises the important of children being able to interact with each other.

And headmistress at independent school Haberdashers’ Aske’s School for Girls in Elstree, Rose Hardy, says "healthy social lives are just as important as learning".

She said: "We have been hugely impressed by the adaptability and strength our students have shown over the past months, during what has been a difficult time for us all.

"Healthy social lives are just as important as learning; in fact they work in conjunction to develop well-rounded, productive, happy young people."

Pupils have kept in touch with each other via ever increasingly popular social media apps like Zoom, What's App, House Party, Snapchat, Tik Tok, and Instagram.

A recent survey by the school has revealed that some of its older students, in particular, have been enjoying social time by playing classic card games online and acting out plays together, as well as hosting small virtual parties for birthdays, participating in outdoor exercise challenges at home and hosting quizzes remotely.

One year 10 student said: "It’s important to stay in touch as keeping those connections will help many of us get through quarantine and when times get tough, you have your friends to talk to as well as your family", while another said: "I tend to be on call with one of my friends from a class we share during that lesson time (if no teachers are on a call with us) as you have a partner to work with and ask questions to and it makes working from home feel more normal and easier."

A year 9 pupil said: "We are definitely speaking to our friends more digitally now, however we would usually see our friends throughout the whole school day and have contact with them after, but now we work on our own during school study periods, which means we are really missing out on some experiences and memories with our friends, that are really important to experience, especially as teenagers."

Ms Hardy added: "Obviously the challenge of maintaining social contact with friends is more difficult for younger children who will rely more heavily on their parents to help facilitate that contact.

"The key is that children are socialising safely and in a healthy way.

"Relationships impact our mood and how we feel day to day about school, so it is vital that we try to support those interactions in the best way we can."