A-level students have been failed by the government | Emma Kay

It has left many young people on edge and stressed.

Their trust in the Government was already wafer thin and now they see our institution as a group of people who can alter their futures without a single thought.

Why was the Government so set on putting educational gain in a high castle where only a few can tread? It was creating a real unfathomable fear among teachers that this would be changing the way in which they teach and grade with an unwillingness from government to adapt.

Teachers gave predicted grades for pupils during the early days of lockdown. Around 40 per cent of these were flushed down the toilet and adjusted by an algorithmic moderation process that took into account the school’s previous exam attainment rather than the current pupils’ abilities. In short, promising and talented people were artificially and inexplicably held back by a government that prioritised a system over a young person’s natural ability.

These manufactured results meant young hopes were ruthlessly dashed. Yet private schools, with smaller class cohorts, would have had a grade jump of 4.7 per cent. Ofqual said: ‘One of the factors for the increases in higher grades for some centres will be if they have smaller cohorts because teachers’ predictions are given more weight in these circumstances’, fuelling a growing bias of educational disadvantage. A U-turn maybe, but the damage has already been done.

Students protests in Whitehall were marching their frustration towards the Department for Education chanting: ‘Teachers Not Tories’. The education secretary said how sorry he was for the distress caused to young people. Yet, this could have been avoided if the government had been more ‘in touch’ with real people doing real jobs.

Young people should not have to experience the ups and downs of a government whim, and feel like their futures are being tested on a shambling and shoddy rollercoaster. Something has gone horribly, horribly, wrong here.

They may well feel there is no point in perusing further education so that they do not have to put themselves through this again. The inconsistency and anomalies in grading aren’t just numbers and percentages, these are real people with ever-fading futures.

The government has failed. How much further will they fall?

Boozing to beat the boredom seems inevitable – with 22 per cent of adults having increased their alcohol intake during lockdown.

At home for long periods, the inclination to order online is greatly increased. You can douse your worries with wine because what else is there to do?

Days and weekends melt together like leftover chocolate, leaving stability and social norms scattered. Alcohol provides the short-lived high to quench everyday stresses.

Lowering our immunity to infection and with domestic violence on the increase, alcohol can only stoke the flames.

With so much chaos and disruption, we need a serious look at our alcohol consumption before it overflows.

I was very impressed with my weekend visit to Marwell Zoo. The heat was unforgiving, but the staff were more than happy to help and keen to educate with people masking up in the inside areas with little fuss.

The tropical house was ironically the coolest place in the park. Perhaps watching the fish devouring a head of lettuce in the water had a cooling effect?

The animals did provide some entertainment, with their comparisons to us humans in the extreme heat.

The red panda, an adorable clump of red fluff, was hanging atop the tallest tree with his tongue hanging out to stave off the heat. Flamingos guzzled fresh water like little pink cocktail umbrellas, while the pygmy hippo lay on the cold concrete displaying its rather large bottom to us.

Equally, dishevelled humans were spread out on the grass like melted butter searching for shade.