We turn now to probably the biggest challenge of our time, the destructive force of COVID-19, of which the long-term implications for young people may turn out to be the most significant. Of course, we have no means of knowing how long the pandemic will last, including the possibility of its return or another virus of even greater virulence. All we can be sure of is that a shadow has been cast over the generation most directly affected in terms of life chances, for which significant investment will be needed to put in place the necessary safeguards to protect young people's futures.

In the best case scenario the virus effects are a temporary phenomenon for which only a handful of young people have been damaged by the experience. In the worst case the whole generation is significantly affected, of which those in the process of leaving school, facing examinations and seeking work risk losing most. At the same time, to take a more optimistic view, with analogies from the post-World War II period, it is also possible that the shakeup brought about by the pandemic will trigger new thinking and practice in education and other public services. Long-term critics of the status quo have an unexpected opportunity to be heard.

But such development is critically dependent on ensuring that change moves in liberating and progressive rather than regressive directions; that is to say, matching the digitalisation transformation that preceded COVID-19. Surprisingly, and encouragingly, public opinion polls in both the UK and Germany appeared to favour not returning to ‘things as they were’.

In the meantime, society has experienced the world of lockdown and social distancing with the consequence of devastating threats to the economy and risks taken in every attempt by government to ameliorate them. Previous chapters have highlighted key areas, where the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic have brought various forms of disruption, some of which are likely to become permanent. Here we consider what has been learned about the effects of the virus in broad terms and what might be expected to happen next. Each of the following topics reflects issues that needed resolution ahead of arrival of COVID-19 but were then further compounded by the action taken to control its spread. What issues do they raise for youth prospects?