News

Extended schools 'boost results'
New child car seat laws in force
Many ADHD pupils excluded - poll
Thousands 'spared poor childcare'
Modern life 'poisoning' childhood
Ofsted promises ethnic diversity
Career worries for minority women
Schools to offer cooking lessons

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov

19 September 2006 - Extended schools 'boost results'

Schools which open their doors outside of school hours can expect improved results, research suggests.

According to a report by Newcastle and Manchester universities, extended services help improve educational achievement and reduce exclusions.

Meanwhile, the Department for Education and Skills said it had exceeded an aim for 2,500 extended schools by September 2006.

The government said it hoped the report would give more schools the incentive to push ahead with extended services.

Ministers want all schools to offer access to extended services by 2010, with half of primary schools and one-third of secondary schools doing so by 2008.

Beverley Hughes, the minister for children, young people and families, suggested that such extended services would help "put schools at the heart of their communities".

www.bbc.co.uk/news

page top


18 September 2006 - New child car seat laws in force

New laws which mean more children must use child car seats are now in force in England, Wales and Scotland.

Child seats or booster cushions are now compulsory for under-12s under 135cm (4ft 5in) tall, but consumer group Which? says many parents are not ready.

Drivers face fines from £30 on-the-spot or up to £500 in court if they do not ensure that the children they are carrying comply with the regulations.

In Northern Ireland, the new rules are set to come in by the end of the year.

Retailers have reported soaring sales of child seats but supermarket chain Asda has urged ministers to drop VAT on the seats as they are now compulsory.

Halfords said sales of child seats and boosters had doubled compared with last year and booster sales at Tesco up 1,000% on last year.

Asda reported a 387% year-on-year surge of all types of car seats but said parents were paying too much because they were also being charged VAT on their purchases.

The supermarket chain argues that the seats should carry the same zero VAT rating as certain other goods deemed to be essential items, such as some foods, books and children's clothing.

There have also been concerns that parents have not been properly informed about the new laws.

Pat Harris, director of the transport pressure group, Belt Up School Kids, said: "Not only is it a short run-up to the actual law changing but also the way it is worded is very confusing for parents.

"Not just parents, but head teachers of schools, also some county councils who are unsure how to apply the new legislation."

Which? researcher George Marshall-Thornhill said: "It's really worrying that so many of the parents we've spoken to don't understand what the law means."

There's unacceptably high numbers of children being killed... because of the incorrect use of child restraints

It is also unclear how stringently different police forces will implement the new law from the outset.

The onus will be on drivers to ensure they have the correct seats and that they are used.

The rules have been updated because most cars now have rear seat belts and without a booster seat, children using adult belts risk neck injuries or slipping out of their restraint in an accident.

Superintendent Phil Davies of South Wales Police said: "We will be targeting schools and shopping areas to educate members of the public about the new legislation.

"At the moment there's unacceptably high numbers of children being killed or seriously injured due to them either not wearing child restraints or because of the incorrect use of child restraints."

Safety groups have welcomed the move, which the government says will prevent 2,000 child injuries every year.

Duncan Vernon from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents said the fines were to "reinforce the fact that children do need a suitable restraint in order to carry them safely".

Exemptions do apply, such as if the car is not big enough to accommodate three seats across the back, then two will be sufficient.

And children who are on a short and occasional journey made for reasons of "unexpected necessity" - such as giving a youngster from another family a lift home - will be exempted from having the necessary restraint.

But several police forces have pointed out this will not cover arrangements between some families to ferry each other's children on the daily school run.

Source: www.bbc.co.uk/news

page top


18 September 2006 - Many ADHD pupils excluded - poll

More than one third of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have been excluded from school, a survey of parents suggests.

The poll of 526 families found 39% had had a child excluded from class, and in 11% of cases this was permanent. Almost two thirds said their child's ability to achieve at school was "very affected" by their condition, which makes concentration difficult.

ADDISS - the Attention Deficit Disorder Information and Support Service - carried out the survey of 526 families as part of the first national ADHD awareness week.

The charity said the survey highlighted a lack of resources and support available for children with ADHD and their families.

More than two thirds of parents questioned did not have access to a local ADHD clinic, nurse or advisory teacher.

Parents said the disorder affected the rest of the family, with the associated behaviours - extreme difficulty sitting still or concentrating - making normal family life difficult.

Over half of parents surveyed said it had an impact on the family's ability to go on holiday, 76% said it hindered their ability to visit friends and 82% said it affected their ability to go shopping.

And 80% felt their child with ADHD had low self-esteem compared with other children. The survey also found many parents felt the benefit of early diagnosis.

Of those questioned, 80% felt their child's relationships with other children has improved as a result of receiving treatment, be it medical or non-medical.

And 89% felt their child's performance at school had improved as a result of receiving treatment and 84% that their child's relationship with their teacher had improved.

"Early identification of ADHD is key," said Andrea Bilbow, founder of ADDISS.

"With the right help from schools and access to appropriate medical and non-medical treatment, we can support children with ADHD through their developing years and help them succeed in life."

Source: www.bbc.co.uk/news

page top


18 September 2006 - Thousands 'spared poor childcare'

Almost 200 childcare providers in England have gone out of business after being judged inadequate in Ofsted inspections, the watchdog has revealed.

It added that up to 10,000 children had been spared inadequate childcare thanks to new inspections.

Most of the 1,100 providers that had been judged to be inadequate between April 2005 and June 2006 had improved by the time they were inspected again. But 180 resigned their registrations and 11 had them cancelled.

One example given in the report is of an unnamed nursery where, Ofsted said, children's hygiene was "poorly promoted" - with "inappropriate" access to pets and no emphasis on hand washing after using the toilets and before eating.

Their safety was compromised by poor supervision, particularly when they were playing outdoors.

"Children had to wait for too long between activities, behaviour was poor and they were not encouraged to show respect for each other," Ofsted said.

"The nursery had a poor partnership with parents, including a lack of necessary records and consents to meet children's needs."

Following the inspectors' intervention the provider resigned.

Ofsted's report said there had been a loss of childcare places as a result of its enforcement actions, but they had been poor quality ones.

"Ofsted's actions ensured that children in these settings were removed from the risk of harm," it said.

Another 61 providers were put on immediate notice to improve.

"The remaining providers judged to be inadequate will be re-inspected - on schedule - by the end of June 2007."

Chief inspector Maurice Smith said: "Ofsted's vigilance has 'made a difference' for 10,000 children.

"They now have a better quality of care because we picked up on providers' evident weaknesses and insisted that improvements were made quickly."

The level of improved childcare following re-inspection was higher among childminders than day-care providers.

The National Day Nurseries Association said Ofsted's latest report was welcome but further work was needed to promote the high-quality care that the vast majority of day nurseries provided.

It said people should remember that 97% of providers gave a satisfactory, good or outstanding level of care for children.

A spokesman for the Department for Education and Skills said: "This report by Ofsted shows that the vast majority of parents can be very confident that their children are kept safe and healthy in their chosen childcare setting.

"The significant investment that we have put into childcare and early years services is paying off by giving children access to high quality care.

"Where childcare settings are failing to meet the national standards, Ofsted works with the provider to improve the quality of care or takes the necessary steps to cancel registration."

Source: www.bbc.co.uk/news

page top


13 September 2006 - Modern life 'poisoning' childhood

Childhood creativity is being stifled by a combination of junk food, school targets and mass marketing, a group of authors and academics has claimed. Dozens of teachers joined children's authors and psychologists to write a letter to the Daily Telegraph.

The signatories highlighted "the escalating incidence of childhood depression" and demanded action. Children's writers Philip Pullman and Jacqueline Wilson, and scientist Baroness Greenfield signed the letter.

In their letter - entitled: Have we forgotten how to bring up our children? - lead signatory Sue Palmer, author of Toxic Childhood and a former head teacher, claims the government has failed to understand how children develop.

The group also includes former Children's Laureate Michael Morpurgo, childcare expert, Dr Penelope Leach and environmentalist Sir Jonathan Porritt.

They warn that poor diet, restricting exercise, putting children in "academic straightjackets", and dressing them like "mini adults" will "restrict their creativity and enrichment".

The end of their letter reads: "Our society rightly takes great pains to protect children from physical harm, but seems to have lost sight of their emotional and social needs.

"However, it's now clear that the mental health of an unacceptable number of children is being unnecessarily compromised, and that this is almost certainly a key factor in the rise of substance abuse, violence and self-harm amongst our young people."

The childhood experienced by today's children is significantly different from that of previous generations

The group has also recommended a public debate be initiated on "child-rearing in the 21st Century", which should be "central to public policy-making" in the future.

Bob Reitemeier, chief executive for The Children's Society, said that there was "fear and confusion surrounding childhood".

"The childhood experienced by today's children is significantly different from that of previous generations," he said.

"Despite our wealth as a nation, the well-being of children in the UK is amongst the lowest in Europe.

"Too many children in the UK are still experiencing poor childhoods."

He said the charity was opening an independent inquiry into childhood which would inform future debate.

Patrick Holford, a psychologist and nutritionist, who heads the Food for the Brain Foundation, believes swift action is needed to help children.

He said: "There is absolutely no question that there is a profound link between children, their poor performance and a poor diet."

Source: www.bbc.co.uk/news


page top


11 September 2006 - Ofsted promises ethnic diversity

Ofsted is looking to recruit more inspectors from ethnic minority groups. Ofsted has published guidelines which it says will ensure its staff deal appropriately with schools, colleges and childcarers.

It is also promising more up-to-date records of the achievement of children of different races. Currently 9% of Ofsted's staff are from ethnic minorities, compared with 8% for the civil service as a whole.

The organisation will be responsible for inspections of children's social care and adult learning from next April. Jean Humphrys, Ofsted's dignity at work champion, said: "Ofsted is keen to develop and maintain good race relations, as an employer and also as regulator and an inspectorate of education and care providers.

"We are strongly committed to racial equality and fairness for employees, children, young people and learners of all backgrounds and our revised race equality scheme sets out how we intend to promote race equality in all aspects of our work."

Last week, the School Governors' One-Stop Shop charity said it wanted to attract more non-white volunteers to "keep up with a rapidly changing environment" in education.

Source www.bbc.co.uk/news

page top


07 September 2006 - Career worries for minority women

Some women are achieving highly at school but not in their careers. Women of Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Caribbean descent are doing well in schools but are still being penalised in the workplace, a report suggests.

The Equal Opportunities Commission found 80-89% of 16-year-olds from those ethnic groups wanted to work full-time. But it said they were up to four times more likely to be jobless.

Business organisation the CBI said better careers advice and work experience was needed but it did not accept such discrimination existed. It said "too many restrict themselves by only going for jobs or careers where they can see women from a similar background already present".

According to the EOC, in 2005, 60% of white girls attained at least five GCSEs grade A to C, compared with 59% of girls of Bangladeshi descent; 54% of girls of Pakistani descent and 49% of girls of Caribbean descent.

This is compared with 50% of white boys; 33% of boys of Caribbean descent, 43% of boys of Pakistani descent and 47% of boys of Bangladeshi descent.

The three groups were chosen by the EOC as those who faced the most discrimination, despite having the same aspirations as white girls to combine work and family life.

It found women from each group faced specific problems. For example, of 1,000 women under 35 questioned, one in five of Pakistani or Bangladeshi origin - of whom 90% were Muslim - said they had experienced negative attitudes to religious dress at work.

And one in six women of Pakistani descent and one in eight of Bangladeshi or Caribbean descent aged under 35 said they were "often" asked at job interviews about their plans for marriage and children or that they had been asked by employers what their husband and/or partner thought about them working.

The research, into 16-year-olds, found half of girls of Caribbean descent and two-thirds of those of Pakistani and Bangladeshi origin felt there were certain jobs they could not apply for because of their ethnic background or gender.

They were also significantly more likely to look at whether an employer made it clear it welcomed applications from all ethnic minorities and whether women from ethnic minorities were in senior management.

Women of Caribbean descent were also finding it difficult to break out of health and social care jobs.

Jenny Watson, chair of the Equal Opportunities Commission, said the next generation of confident, ambitious young black and Asian women had a lot to contribute to their families, to local communities and to the economy.

"The bad news is that not enough employers are tapping into this pool of talent - despite demographic predictions that suggest women of Bangladeshi, Caribbean and Pakistani origin will make up, in some areas, a significant proportion of the workforce of the future," she said.

"And many of these young women are telling us they have to deal with racism, sexism and negative stereotypes."

"It's not only employers who miss out - we all do when young women's ambitions are dashed and we fail to build cohesive communities.

"More must be done before another generation of promising young women fall prey to the same negative cycle of poor pay, poor prospects, and occupational segregation."

Susan Anderson, CBI Director of HR Policy, said the report showed the girls were "confident and ambitious" and "just the sort of employee that businesses are looking for".

She added: "Employers report that they receive too few applications from women and ethnic minority groups, and they recognise that they need to take positive steps to attract these young girls."

Reference: www.bbc.co.uk/news


page top


04 September 2006 - Schools to offer cooking lessons

All schoolchildren are to be offered cooking lessons - from baking cakes to making spaghetti bolognese. It forms part of a government scheme to get children to improve both their diet and culinary skills, and will be formally launched on Monday.

Under the plan there will be 24 one-hour classes for 11 to 16-year-olds and once completed children will receive a 'licence to cook' certificate.

The courses will not be compulsory, but from 2008 all schools must offer them. A spokesperson for the Department for Education and Skills said: "We want to see a resurgence in the art of cookery. All kids will now get the chance to learn hands-on cookery."

Currently students may be taught some food skills during their Design and Technology (D&T) lessons, but they are usually theoretical and normally focus on health and safety.

"Schools could have it as part of their D&T over the course of an academic year, or it could be done as an after-school club.

"But what they will really have is life skills that will stand them in good stead for the future."

Source: www.bbc.co.uk/news

page top


Printer friendly page