Students across the Harrogate district face an uncertain future after A level exams were cancelled.
Now awaiting their grades – to be awarded by teachers based on mock exams and predicted results – they are unsure whether they will even be able to take up their university offers in September.
For some, the unexpected end to their schooling has led them to question their plans for the future, too.
Oriana Lioi, 18, had her last day at King James’s School in Knaresborough on Thursday.
“I’ve applied to uni, but I was never completely set on going,” she said. “I don’t know whether to take a year to collect myself. I feel better knowing that everyone is in the same boat.”
Eighteen-year-old Morgan Glazier, left, is still waiting to hear whether his application to London School of Economics has been accepted, with other offers already in place. He left Rossett School on Friday and has cancelled all plans for the summer.
“I was going to Spain with my friends this summer and then to America with my family,” he said. “It’s the year of my 18th so it was a big celebration.
“I was going to work full-time to earn some money and go to some festivals, but they’re all being cancelled too. It was going to be the best summer.”
Oriana, meanwhile, has lost her part-time job at the Everyman cinema in Harrogate after it closed its doors this week.
“That’s hard, because this year I’m going to start needing the money,” she said. “They have been really generous and supportive – they’re saying a job will be available to me at any time in the summer when they re-open.”
Final goodbye to schoolmates
Complying with social distancing advice, Oriana plans to spend the summer learning new skills, including Spanish, and on self-care. Born and raised for the first few years in Los Angeles, she said hearing from her friends about the severity of the situation there has made her take it very seriously.
“Some people have a different mindset about having a last ‘hooray’,” she said.
“Everyone has vulnerable people they love nearby. I’m not taking part in anything. I want this to be over as quickly as possible.”
Morgan was one of those who grouped on the Stray in Harrogate after the schools closed on Friday. For him, there was no extra risk after spending all week with his fellow students in school.
“People have got to put themselves in our shoes,” he said. “We aren’t going to see everyone again. We have effectively been robbed of our summer and this might be the final send-off.”
