Physical education to be revamped
The government has announced plans to invest £300m over a two year period into developing physical education in primary schools in England. This is partly due to the success of the London 2012 games, and the desire for the Olympics to create a legacy of young people enthusiastic about sport. The money will insure better quality coaching, more primary teachers specialising in PE and tougher assessments of sports provision.
RE teachers lack training
A report by the All Parliamentary Group on RE has shown that more than half of RE teachers lack training and expertise in the subject. The inquiry, which looked at over 300 primary schools, also found that a quarter of RE classes were being taught by teaching assistants. Budget cuts in the area of religious education training are thought to be to blame.
Lego parts ways with The Sun
Lego was recently faced with an outcry from 12,000 petitioners due to their continued partnership with The Sun newspaper, but has now announced their partnership has come to a ‘natural end’. Parents were outraged by the TV promotions and front page adverts offering free Lego, and reported that their children were asking them to buy the newspaper famous for the sexually explicit ‘Page 3’.
Collapse of childhood in Syria
The report ‘Childhood under Fire’ has shown that countless Syrian children are being forced to act like adults in order to survive. Many have been separated from their families and are living in barns, parks and caves under the threat of malnutrition, disease and beatings. In order to find protection, young boys are becoming porters and human shields for armed groups and girls are being married off early.
Churches prioritise safeguarding of children
The Churches Child Protection Advisory Service (CCPAS) has announced that it has over 6,000 members. 95% of these are local UK churches. Simon Bass, CEO, says, ‘The fact that so many individual congregations, from many Christian denominations, have chosen to join is one indication that thousands of local churches are putting safeguarding children and vulnerable adults at the top of their agendas.’ See our article on the work of CCPAS.
