‘Desperate neglect’: teachers washing clothes and finding beds as poverty grips England’s schools

Schools risk being overwhelmed by hungry, exhausted children from freezing homes, headteachers and campaigners warn

If a child is hungry, it doesn't matter if you're a bloody good teacher'

Schools are finding beds, providing showers for pupils and washing uniforms as child poverty spirals out of control, headteachers from across England have told the Observer.

School leaders said that as well as hunger they were now trying to mitigate exhaustion, with increasing numbers of children living in homes without enough beds or unable to sleep because they were cold. They warned that desperate" poverty was driving problems with behaviour, persistent absence and mental health.