When one of the parents at Old London Road Pre-school in St Albans shared a touching poem on their experiences in lockdown, pre-school leader Janet Charles was inspired to put the words to some music.
Written by Liz Binks, the lyrics reflect the voice of a young child asking “Can we do it again, Mum?” as they list activities they have enjoyed while spending time with their parents at home during the lockdown. The lyrics were inspired by the writer’s own experiences with her daughter, Amelie.
Janet wrote the music to accompany the poem and then recorded the song with the help of her son Tobias’ vocals and husband’s guitar. Her nephew then created a video, with the help of some photographs shared by families from the setting.
After a fantastic initial response to the song, the pre-school is now using it to help raise money for the setting and other local charities that have had to cancel their usual fundraising activities due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Liz said: “I shared my poem on a couple of family Facebook pages and was astounded by the response – hundreds of parents said it really resonated with them and brought them strength at a time when they were really struggling.”
Janet added: “It was such a special time recording this with my own son, who is now a grown-up but attended the pre-school in 1999. The video features many of the children from our pre-school. We hope you enjoy it and are grateful for any donations you may wish to make.”
The song has already raised more than £800 for the pre-school and other local charities.
You can donate to the pre-school's fundraising campaign .