The adjustment to remote learning during the national lockdown has not been easy for Cumbria schools.

However, despite the challenges posed, Queen Elizabeth Grammar School in Penrith are making the most of the situation.

"The shift to remote learning has been very smooth for every year group," a spokesperson for the school confirmed.

As a school we had done a great deal of work in preparing for this eventuality and built on our experiences from the last lockdown. Our staff and students have responded positively to the challenge of working at home."

A new online learning hub has now been invested in.

"At QEGS we have recently purchased and introduced an excellent, centralised online hub for learning which has been unbelievable value and hugely beneficial to students and parents in the circumstances. However, the current period of school closure highlights once again the issue around rural broadband speeds and access to IT equipment for all.

They now are asking the Government to step up their support.

"We have again risen to the challenge of access and initiated a system for students to borrow school laptops for home learning, whilst also offering a purchase scheme with a local computer firm. We have made full use of the government laptops that we have been able to order, but the allocation from the Department for Education has fallen short of requirements by some distance."