10 hour school days

"State schools should operate 10-hour days to boost standards so they are indistinguishable from private schools, the Education Secretary has said."

"Children should also sit private school-style Common Entrance exams at the age of 13 to make sure that they are "on track for later success".

"Delivering a keynote speech at the London Academy of Excellence, Michael Gove said he wanted the country's schools to be among the best in the world and that the "Berlin Wall" between state and private schools must be torn down."

"He also said teachers should be willing to use disciplinary measures such as detentions, line-writing and litter-picking to combat poor behaviour."

"Hailing the achievements of academies and free schools, which are already able to run longer school days, Mr Gove said he would be providing resources to allow all state schools to extend the day..."

"Announcing the Conservative manifesto pledge, he said: "So a future Conservative Government would help state schools - just like independent schools - to offer a school day 9 or 10 hours long - allowing time for structured homework sessions, prep, which will be particularly helpful for those children who come from homes where it's difficult to secure the peace and quiet necessary for hard study."

http://news.sky.com/story/1205596/michael-gove-pledges-10-hour-school-days

The Children`s Parliament

The Children`s Parliament does not advocate on behalf of children because it believes children can advocate effectively for themselves. The name `Children`s Parliament` came from the children attending a European environmental education project in Scotland.

Our work is based on children having fun and engaging in projects and investigations in and across our themes [my emphasis] which reflect the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

When children come into this space we want them to bring with them their knowledge of what it is like to be a child, their ideas and their opinions, and to be willing to voice and explore them. [my emphasis]

So the `usual suspects`are involved: the European Union (funding) and the United Nations encouraging authoritites to get closer to children by way of psuedo-independent charities. 

Funding for some projects in Glasgow also came from the Big Lottery`s `Realising Amibition` fund. Primary school classes in six schools explored children`s human rights and what it means to be healthy, happy and safe in their home, school and community. [GIRFEC] At the Winter Gardens in Glasgow parents and teachers heard the children voice their aspirations for the future and what adults could do to help them realise their dreams.

How sad. What future have some of these children got in an age of unrelenting austerity?

The Secondary programme involved working with groups of pupils across six secondary schools in North East Glasgow.

Our Children’s Parliament workers and Glasgow Life Learning Assistants establish positive relationships with young people, supporting them to think about their personal goals and ambitions, and to begin planning how they might achieve these.

The Children`s Parliament list their project partners. Amongst them there is the Glasgow City Council, Police Scotland and, surprisingly, the Social Research Unit. This is the independent charity (?) who collaborated with Perth and Kinross Council to introduce the controversial survey to schoolchildren in that area. [See the link HERE ]

Meanwhile The Children`s Parliament are developing their own national survey for children and young people aged 8 to 18 years old.  It will be based on the subjective measure of wellbeing.

This means that it measures how the child or young person is now in the context of their environments and relationships – at home, at school and in the community. So, rather than count what children and young people do or don’t do, or focus on problems or challenges from an adult perspective, our survey looks at wellbeing and rights from a holistic, empowering and positive view of children and young people’s lives, as defined by them. 

The Children`s Parliament

Cathy McCulloch is Co-Director of the Children`s Parliament. She is also co-founder of TASC along with Dr Colin Morrison. TASC provides a range of services which include social research and service evaluation. Their use of language is quite revealing.

TASC has a real interest in people - how they experience their lives and what their dreams, hopes and ambitions are for themselves and for their families and communities. We work with policy makers and service providers to help ensure that the needs and interests of service users are recognised and met.

TASC researched, consulted on, wrote and produced 6 booklets for pupils from P6 to S6 which support sexual health and relationship education in Glasgow Schools. The booklets are used at the heart of the new SHRE curriculum being rolled out in Glasgow.  TASC website

They work with policy makers and service providers.. and set up companies to provide the services and the sex education booklets to implement the policices ...

It`s a bit of a scam isn`t it?

See Sex Education

6 year old excluded from school because of mini cheddars in lunch box

"A six-year-old boy who went to school with a bag of Mini Cheddars in his packed lunch has been suspended for four days after teachers said it contravened its healthy eating policy. Riley Pearson, from Colnbrook, near Slough, was excluded from Colnbrook C of E Primary School after teachers discovered the snack and called in his parents."

"After a meeting with headmaster Jeremy Meek, they were sent a letter telling them Riley would be excluded from Wednesday until Monday because he had been 'continuously breaking school rules'."

"The school, which was placed in special measures after Ofsted inspectors deemed it 'inadequate' in 2012, introduced a healthy eating policy at the start of term. A letter was sent to parents saying that from 14 January, packed lunches should be 'healthy and balanced'."

"Parents were told: 'Chocolate, sweets, crisps and fizzy drinks are not allowed."

"Riley's parents, who both work at nearby Heathrow Airport, will be attending a meeting with the head on Tuesday to learn whether their son can return to the 290-pupil school."

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2549618/Boy-six-suspended-school-four-days-packet-Mini-Cheddars-lunchbox.html

When the school begins to lobby the producers of chocolate, sweets, crisps and fizzy drinks to produce healtheir products for children maybe then we can  believe they actually care about children`s diets. Until then, it is acting defensively, and it`s rules for rules` sake.

Fracking and increased birth defects

Barton Moss UK

"Hydraulic ‘Fracking’ is a process of fracturing rock with the use of pressurized liquid consisting of water, sand and chemicals. It drills deep underground, forming fractures that force gas and other chemicals to come out of rock and into the hole. Proponents believe it is a much more economical way of getting to the gas and oil. Environmental groups maintain the process can cause small earthquakes and badly contaminate water, leading to a myriad of problems."

"A new study from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIH) reveals how unborn babies living within a 10-mile radius of fracking wells are much more at risk to birth defects."

RT.com

"Although fracking already attracts controversy as an allegedly bio-hazardous industry, a new study takes it up a notch by showing that the practice can badly impact the health of unborn children."

"Babies still in their mothers’ wombs living within a 10-mile range of fracking wells are in much greater danger of congenital heart defects (CHD) and neural tube defects (NTD). This was surmised in a recent study correlating birth data with geographical locations of gas wells and congenital conditions."

"The study, called "Birth Outcomes and Maternal Residential Proximity to Natural Gas Development in Rural Colorado"comes from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIH) and Environmental Health Perspectives (EHP), and explores three variations of birth defects, fetal growth and pre-term birth."

"Fracking causes babies to be deformed – the more we learn about fracking, the worse it gets," Gary Wockner, the director of the Clean Water Action program in Colorado, told environmental business portal Ecowatch.com while commenting on the research."

http://21stcenturywire.com/2014/01/31/new-study-living-near-fracking-sites-increases-infant-birth-defects/

"Hydraulic fracturing may soon take place under thousands of homes across the United Kingdom without their owners’ knowledge. Based on a proposed law change the burden of notifying homeowners will be lifted from energy companies, the Guardian reports."

"Planning Minister Nick Boles said a change in UK law will allow gas companies to put in drilling applications without notifying those in the area whose property could be affected, the Guardian reported. Companies will instead have to post notices in local newspapers and erect site displays in local parishes."

"Many opposed to fracking cite potential health risks, air pollution and water contamination, as well as possible earthquakes. Nevertheless, the government portrayed alerting all those possibly impacted by localized fracking as too much of a burden for companies to weather."

http://rt.com/news/uk-fracking-notification-homes-466/

Serious failings at adolescent mental health unit

CQC inspectors, who visited the Alpha Hospitals’ service in Woking in November and December, failed the unit against five of the six care standards it was assessed against. The CQC issued formal warnings to Alpha Hospitals on three of these standards – safeguarding people from abuse, records management and protecting the care and welfare of people.

The CQC’s inspection report raised a number of concerns over the use of restraint and seclusion at the service’s adolescent admission ward. Specific concerns included:
A lack of suitable arrangements for the use of control and restraint. Staff had taken people up and down stairs whilst being restrained, in breach of the Alpha Hospital policy. This meant "people were not safeguarded when restraint and seclusion was used", the CQC found. Inspectors saw records which "showed a lack of response from staff when people became unwell whilst in seclusion".
Patients told inspectors restraint or seclusion were not always used as a last resort. One said that as soon as anything ‘kicked off’ they were restrained or put in seclusion. Another said "seclusion and inter-muscular injections are regularly used as threats". http://www.communitycare.co.uk/2014/01/23/cqc-takes-action-serious-failings-young-peoples-mental-health-unit/

Abuse at Medomsley Detention Centre

The short sharp shock treatment

We have to ask why these investigations were never conducted in an appropriate manner to begin with, and it is only after certain key witnesses are dead that they are re-opened.

Police reopened a 10-year-old investigation into abuse at a former County Durham detention centre last year when a former inmate said he was also abused. Since then the force said it has been contacted by more than 100 alleged victims.

It is insulting to the public that the authorities, including the police,  should expect that they get away with such weak explanations. Many alleged victims who came forward were ignored.

Following the original investigation, Neville Husband, who worked at the detention centre as a prison officer, was jailed for 12 years in 2003, and Leslie Johnson, a store man, was sentenced to six years in 2005.

Since the investigation was reopened in August, Durham Police has received statements from 143 alleged victims of abuse.

Many of those sent to Medomsley were first-time offenders often detained for relatively minor offences...

In 2003, Newcastle Crown Court heard Husband used his position of authority at the centre to systematically abuse his victims from 1974 to 1984. He was jailed after being found guilty of 10 counts of indecent assault and one of a serious sexual offence after police said almost two dozen victims came forward.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-25834368

Here is an alternative source but be warned that it is a very harrowing account from Bill Malloney.

Youtube video - Bill Malloney

Shutterbug surveillance

21st century wire have a post showing a video `Special Agent Oso` made by Disney for children that quite clearly is propaganda for the surveillance state. A little girl is not able to put on her seat belt and this is spotted by Shutterbug who transmits the message to satellite which is then relayed back to Earth where an agent receives the message and goes on a rescue mission.

http://21stcenturywire.com/2014/01/29/nsa-and-disney-animation-grooming-children-for-total-big-brother-and-big-nanny-society/

MP explains his controversial comments on family courts

　
John Hemming MP responded to the criticisms expressed in Community Care regarding his advice to certain parents that they should emigrate if they wish to have a family life. He believes the child protection system is concentrating too much on very young children but this comes from managerial pressures and Government policy to have more children adopted rather than from front line staff. The checks and balances in the system do not work either, with the consequence that young children are removed from their families unnecessarily while older children in need are not being protected as the increase in child deaths reveal.

There are quite a few social workers who have raised concerns with me about how the system is working. However, they know that they would be subject to disciplinary action were they to make the same points publicly...

I welcome the proposal to have greater scrutiny of care proceedings. It remains that unless the family courts operate as an effective quality control mechanism, management priorities will predominate. That is not good for children, parents or social workers.

http://www.communitycare.co.uk/2014/01/22/social-workers-experts-john-hemming-mp-responds-

ECHR rules in favour of Irish woman

"An Irish woman`s courageous 30 year battle for justice ended in trimph today when the European Court of Human Rights ruled in her favour. Louise O’Keeffe (46) wept as the 17 judge Strasbourg-based Court delivered a majority ruling in her favour that the Irish State had been negligent in failing to protect her from abuse in national school."

"The court ruled that her human rights had been breached under Section 3 and 13 of European law – with the Irish State now liable to compensate the mother for what she suffered."

"The judgement is also expected to open the floodgates to over 200 compensation claims by Irish victims abused by State employees. Louise’s first reaction today was to cry with joy. "

"This is a great day for the children of Ireland," she said.

"The mother of two also paid glowing tribute to her legal team lead by solicitor Ernest Cantillon. The ECHR decision will also have enormous implications for European law given the fact dozens of countries other than Ireland also rely on the principal of vicarious or separated liability."

"Louise was abused by her then-principal, Leo Hickey, in a Cork primary school in the 1970s."

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/courts/landmark-victory-after-30-years-for-abuse-victim-louise-okeeffe-29957162.html

Data trawling and the digital agenda

In Brussels, Neelie Kroes, vice president of the European Commission, welcomed the support of the European Parliament for the eHealth Action Plan which addresses barriers to the full use of digital solutions in Europe`s healthcare systems. The Commission will be working towards an EU eHealth Interoperability Framework. "Plainly speaking," he said, "eHealth will only have a future in Europe if our homes, hospitals, healthcare centres and public services can connect to affordable high-speed internet connections. eHealth needs ultra-fast broadband."

 http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEMO-14-12_en.htm

In the United Kingdom we learn that information from GP practices in England will begin to be extracted and sent to the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) in the spring 2014. GPs only have a few weeks to inform all their patients that confidential data from their records will be shared outside the NHS.
 

Data from care.data will be shared with commissioners, researchers and private companies in de-identified and identifiable forms. Health secretary Jeremy Hunt announced earlier this year that patients will be able to opt out of having their information extracted, but NHS England has ruled out a national publicity campaign and said the responsibility lies with individual GP practices. 

http://www.pulsetoday.co.uk/your-practice/practice-topics/it/eight-weeks-to-inform-patients-their-data-is-going-to-be-harvested-gps-warned/1/20004562.article?&pageno=1&sortorder=dateadded&pagesize=20

The issue is discussed on mumsnet which shows the level of confusion there is about it. Children`s data is to be mined as well and parents need to decide on their behalf if they wish to comply or not. Once the information is obtained and placed with HSCIC there is no way to have it removed.

medConfidential explains how to opt out HERE

In Scotland mining of children`s and their families`data is being implemented through the GIRFEC approach.  See Scotland`s secret files and No2ID