Delivering subject content through nine life themes
The name said it all: Requires Improvement: Urgent change for 11–16 education. Published in December – and focus of Parliamentarians call for change, our penultimate blog of the year – it was a report from a House of Lords cross-party education committee which had… Continue Reading “Review of 2023”
This year, 2024, is almost certainly going to be an election year in the UK (though it could actually be as late as January 2025). Expect to hear detailed descriptions of ‘broken Britain’ – and not just from the government’s opponents, if the PM’s… Continue Reading “Rescuing our public services”
According to official figures, more than one in five children in England are persistently absent from school, double the rate before the Covid pandemic. It is no surprise then that a newly published report on school attendance uses the term ‘crisis’, or that both… Continue Reading “School attendance”
The cost-of-living crisis is having a “significant impact” on participation levels in sport and physical activity, particularly for the most disadvantaged, according to a newly published report. Anything that negatively affects people’s ability to lead active lives should trigger alarm bells, not least because… Continue Reading “Boosting participation in physical activity”
Children’s laureates past and present are calling on the government to commit to long-term national investment to offer children “a life that is rich in reading”. The letter is in support of a new campaign by the charity BookTrust to highlight the importance of… Continue Reading “Reading together”
MPs heard last week that doing more to help children play out and socialise close to home would be “a gamechanger” for children’s mental and physical health and wellbeing. At the moment, children’s needs are rarely taken into account despite the many benefits that… Continue Reading “Benefits of playing out”
A new study has found that childhood obesity is “soaring” following the pandemic and is set to cost the UK more than £8 billion – a figure the study’s authors describe as the potential cost of inaction on obesity. They warn of lifelong health… Continue Reading “The cost of inaction on obesity”
A new report produced by child health experts from across the UK has highlighted wide-ranging evidence of declining health among children under five in the UK. Issues such as the Covid pandemic and the increased cost of living have exacerbated inequality, it says, and… Continue Reading “Action on failing child health”
New research suggests that school uniform may be deterring young people from being active, particularly girls of primary school age. The findings, though not conclusive, are of concern nonetheless. The majority of children do not currently meet recommended physical activity levels. We also know… Continue Reading “School uniform and activity levels”
A new report from the Resolution Foundation lays bare the impact of poor mental health on young people, warning of the “scarring effect” it can have on someone’s long-term life chances. It points out that young people are now more likely to experience a… Continue Reading “Action on young people’s mental health”