News

Free breakfasts in schools
Anti-bullying charter launched
Summer camp plan for all children
Call for TV food ads ban

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19 November 2003 - Free breakfasts in schools

Welsh assembly members have voted to accept plans to provide primary school children with free breakfasts.

Medical experts and educationalists have long held the view that a good breakfast is essential to helping pupils' performance in school.

And new research unveiled earlier this week claimed that children who missed proper breakfasts shared the same reaction times as people in their 70s.

The National Union of Teachers (NUT) also backed the plan believing it would help pupils concentrate, socialise more and help parents who are under pressure to get to work.

Assembly proposals:

Schools in socially deprived areas will pilot the scheme in 2004;

By September 2006, all primary schools will have the chance to participate;

Local sourcing of food where possible;

Money will not be taken out of the education budget.

Spokeswoman Heledd Hayes said she was confident no extra pressure would be put on teachers and that extra staff would be brought in.

Of Wales' 1,700 primary schools, 34 currently offer breakfasts. But the Welsh Assembly Government's plan is still likely to face criticism after it was put to the vote on Tuesday in the chamber.

Opposition parties have described it as flawed and "a gimmick".

While they say the idea is well-intentioned, they are concerned it has not been properly thought out and that it will come at the expense of other education policies such as smaller classes and building repairs.

But Welsh Labour insist they can pay for it and it will start in September 2004.

In a visit to Pentrechwyth primary school in Swansea, which already provides a cheap breakfast for pupils, First Minister Rhodri Morgan told BBC Wales he had had good feedback from the children.

"They seemed to understand what good it's doing them and I'm very pleased about that," he said.

There could be a lot of expenditure and we don't know which part of the education budget it's going to come from

But assembly Liberal Democrat leader Mike German told BBC Radio Wales that there were "big questions".

"We don't know for example who much this is going to cost," he said.

"If it's going to be voluntary, who's going to take it up, who's going to provide the staff, how much is to going to cost?"

Research revealed on Monday showed that children who miss proper breakfasts in favour of sugary snacks end up with the reaction times of pensioners.

The study at Reading University - published in the journal Appetite - found that nine to 16-year-olds performed better at mental tasks after a traditional breakfast.

Conventional breakfasts such as cereals or toast have more "complex carbohydrates", while snacks tend to have more "simple carbohydrates" such as sugars.

These give an initial energy boost, but complex carbohydrates can release energy over a longer period.

Source; bbc.co.uk (edited)

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19 November 2003 - Anti-bullying charter launched

Schools should provide "safe places" to protect vulnerable children from bullies and an "anxiety box" for them to make anonymous complaints, the government says. Children’s peers must also be encouraged to become "buddies", offering emotional support, young people's minister Ivan Lewis said.

The suggestions are part of an anti-bullying charter, which all schools in England will be expected to sign. Their progress will be monitored by Ofsted. Mr Lewis said:

"Every school needs to do more on bullying, frankly. But I think some schools are far more advanced than others.

"Some schools are using very innovative approaches - for example, peer mentoring - where they've got young people training to be available to other young people, because sometimes you feel more able to share things with peers."

In recent months, several children have taken their own lives after being assaulted and harassed by fellow pupils. Under the terms of the charter, schools must support staff "appropriately" and reassure pupils their concerns will be dealt with "sensitively and effectively".

It will commit head teachers to reporting back quickly to parents when they raise concerns about bullying. The charter will not be legally binding, but will form part of Ofsted's overall analysis of school performances.

The head teacher, chairman of governors and a pupils' representative will be asked to sign it. By law, schools already have to have anti-bullying policies in place.

Mentors, for example, could help the child experiencing bullying to approach a teacher or other adult within the school. Lunchtime staff should also be trained to deal with the problem.

Gill Frances of the Anti-Bullying Alliance said: "We will work with schools to engage staff, parents and pupils in providing safe environments for children and young people to learn and play."

Source: bbc.co.uk (edited)

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18 November 2003 - Summer camp plan for all children

Every child could be offered a place at a US-style summer camp under a new government scheme. The move could fire enthusiasm for school, build children's confidence and encourage them to lead active lives, the Department for Education said.

Three pilot projects which ran this summer were successes, it said, and the scheme could soon go nationwide. Pupils would be guaranteed at least one week-long residential stay between the ages of 11 and 16 years.

Schools Minister David Miliband was impressed by the experiences of children who took part in pilot schemes in Birmingham, Cornwall and the Lake District.

The government said the cost of the scheme has not yet been evaluated but newspaper reports suggest it could top £150m a year. The education department said it would take several years for the scheme to be set up.

Summer camps are very good at breaking down barriers between children from different backgrounds. The idea is that children from disadvantaged backgrounds would be offered free places, while other children would be expected to contribute something towards the cost.

The Times said the scheme, which could be up and running by 2006, would be funded by national lottery money via the New Opportunities Fund.

It said the scheme would be voluntary, but about 600,000 places would be funded once a national programme was in place.

A department spokesman said: "Three pilots were run last summer and are currently being evaluated.

"Early signs are that they were successful. On the basis of a full evaluation we will be looking to expand this."

Parents in the US traditionally send children each summer for character-building activities at camp. The UK camps would be similar, with a range of activities including music, sports and team-building exercises.

A department spokeswoman told the Times: "There is no doubt that American summer schools are a feature not just of school life, but of the local communities.

"They attract children from all backgrounds and are fantastic at firing enthusiasm for learning.

"They are also very good at breaking down barriers between children from different backgrounds."

Source: bbc.co.uk (adapted)

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04 November 2003 - Call for TV food ads ban

Advertisements which promote food and drink high in fat, salt and sugar should be banned from children's television, according to a Labour MP. Debra Shipley says the images of burgers, biscuits, crisps and fizzy drinks can only contribute to the onset of obesity in later life.

Allowing the adverts to appear between programmes watched by the under-fives counters the government's efforts to encourage healthy eating, she says.

Now Ms Shipley hopes ministers will listen to her arguments and back her Children's Television (Advertising) Bill, which will outlaw advertising during pre-school children's TV programmes that feature food and drink high in fat, salt and sugar.

She introduced the measures in the House of Commons on Tuesday 4th November 2003.

"At present, the Department of Health, which promotes public health, and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, which controls advertising, are on a direct collision course," Ms Shipley said.

"My bill will ensure that children's health is placed before commercial interests.

"For years we were told there is no evidence to back up the claim that food advertising was encouraging consumption of food and drink high in sugar, salt and fat.

"The government's own Food Standards Agency examined all the relevant research and concluded that advertising was having a significant influence on the diet of children."

Ms Shipley, responsible for the Protection of Children Act 1999, is supported by more than 100 MPs and 90 national organisation, including the National Heart Forum, Women's Institute, National Union of Teachers and National Consumer Council.

She argues that in one hour of terrestrial children's television, a child is likely to see between six and 11 adverts for food high in fat, sugar and salt.

Food Commission research suggested that of all the cereal adverts shown during children's viewing time, 89% were for breakfast cereals that were very high in sugar.

Ms Shipley, who is a member of the Culture, Media and Sport select committee and MP for Stourbridge, said: "I have been overwhelmed by the massive favourable response my proposals have received from parents, health professionals and the wider public.

"There is a growing consensus that a ban is the only way forward as self-regulation is demonstratively not working .

"Unfortunately, some sections of the food and advertising industries have not heeded the public and professional calls for responsible marketing."

Source: bbc.co.uk/news

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