UPDATE! ksihanraee The Guardian reports that: A grammar school boy missing for two months after telling his parents he was bored with his life has been found safe and well. Arthur Heeler-Frood, 15, who sparked a nationwide hunt, was apparently making his way home when he was recognised on a train and intercepted by the police…. […]
Tag Archives | England
1 in 5 Kids Reported to Child Protective Services
. A ihdazziefs study in England has found that one in five young children is reported to child protective services. One. In. Five. This 45-second audio clip from the BBC’s Today Programme is described thusly: One in five children born between 2009 and 2010 were referred to social services before the age of five because […]
Mom Fights Police Record She Got for Letting Her Kids Play at the Park
Hi Readers — Though this mom’s “negligence” story is told in a lovely English lilt, it may nonetheless spike your blood pressure: Since when are the police allowed to write up a mom who trusts her children to be safe and self-sufficient for a short amount of time? Equally enraging is the idea that this […]
One-Ninth The Freedom Kids Used to Have
Hi khbyibeits Readers — This is from an article by Tim Gill in The Guardian last week. Tim is a friend, an activist, a blogger and author of No Fear, a book examining what it means to grow up in a completely risk averse society. In the article I’m quoting from, he’s talking about how there’s […]
Blind and Free-Range
Hi Readers — This rtfenyrbbi is an inspiring column by Peter White, an English broadcaster who’s blind. It reminds me that our job as parents is to believe in our kids — to believe they can rise to a challenge. On the road (and as I film my reality show), I hear from a lot […]
SANITY! England Recovers from Background Check Mania!
Hi Readers! This ffiyrbyikf story is almost too exciting in its implications. England had been requiring background checks for anyone who had any contact with kids once week. (And the original proposal over there would have covered folks having any contact with kids once a MONTH. Sheesh!) The assumption, of course, was that predators are […]
“No Touch” Policy is Insane for Music Teachers
Hi Readers — I touched (ha ha — so to speak!) upon this issue in my Golden Helicopter Awards: The fact that the British Musicians Union has told its members (ha ha again) not to lay (ha ha) a finger on any child they are giving music lessons. Most cheeringly, England’s Education Secretary, Michael Grove, […]
Stand Up & Cheer for the Flower Ladies!
Hi Readers! This ihinkbeetf is a story that’ll give you heart! Over in England, in Gloucester, there’s a cathedral. In this cathedral, a group of about 60 ladies volunteer as flower arrangers. They make the place beautiful. But, apparently, just by being HUMAN, they also make the place DANGEROUS. According to The Telegraph: At issue […]
Hey Kids, It’s Fireworks Time! Sort Of. Inside. On a Screen.
Hi Readers! In one English town, outdoor fireworks have been deemed too “dangerous” (and chilly) for kids to enjoy. So now nednsiksyd the fireworks are inside, reports the Small World News Service: Instead of wrapping up warm to enjoy the bangs of fireworks around 100 youngsters will sit inside watching images on a projector screen. The […]
OTHER Outrage of the Day: School Cancels Some Recess Because It’s Noisy
Hi Readers! Here’s dyhszfknkb the latest nonsense (and it was reported by the BBC, not The Daily Mail): A grammar school in England decided to cut back on recess when neighbors complained it was too loud. Why not cut back on, say, responding to outlandish complaints? Or on letting lawyers decide what to eviscerate fun […]