Children's Rights and Responsibilites - a practical approach

Kim Beat, Braintcroft headteacher, and pupils

In the wake of the recent disturbances there has been a lot of discussion about responsibilities - of children, parents, schools and the wider society. The concept of 'rights and responsibilities' is not new in Brent schools and something that is very much part of the ethos of many.  Schools have often drawn up agreements in consultation with children and their parents on everyone's rights and responsibilities.

Braintcroft Primary School in Neasden has gone further in embedding these issues into the way the school is run and in April of this year were awarded UNICEF's Rights Respecting Schools Award Level 1  The award is based on the implementation of the values of the UN  Children's Rights Charter.  The school was visited by assessors who talked with parents, children and staff  and watched the school in action.

Here are some of the assessors' comments:

All the staff and children interviewed by the assessors had excellent knowledge of rights and confirmed that in addition to lessons they learnt about rights through charity work, their allotment and healthy schools. Parents were informed through a booklet on rights and a stall at the Winter Fair. Children took a petition to 10 Downing Street as part of the 1 Goal Campaign which had a big impact on the whole school appreciation of global issues. Teaching and learning takes place in rights respecting classrooms. The children confirmed that they are being encouraged to take learning into their own hands; that they felt empowered to ask for help and to contribute to the planning process. They also confirmed that since Rights Respecting was introduced to the school there is greater engagement with learning as “before everyone just got distracted”.

All classrooms had a negotiated charter and the assessors noted high levels of good practice. The charters emphasised respect as well as rights and responsibilities and the children valued this move away from rules. Teachers used the charters to encourage children to reflect on their behaviour and put things right. Staff and students are modelling the language and behaviour of Rights Respecting in the classrooms. The whole school charter was developed with wide consultation and parents were able to vote with the children to prioritise the rights to be included.

Braintcroft School Council interview Sarah Teather

Braintcroft has a well established student council which has already interviewed Sarah Teather; their MP. The children valued the opportunities offered for voice and understood that; “school council takes your point of view to another level, you know that if you tell the school council it is going to be done”, The children believe that their voice has contributed to practical change in school – like new chairs and playground equipment. It has made school safer for some children and made school more welcoming for new children; “At Braintcroft everyone is welcome”.  The assessors noticed that school council minutes had become increasingly more positive as the school year had gone on. The children we met were confident and they knew that their teachers were helping them to make informed decisions. There is an active newspaper club which produces a school magazine clearly aimed at the general interests of the readers. Children took part in Day for Climate Change and were filmed by UNICEF. Students exchanged places with the teachers and took their responsibilities very seriously. They undertook a learning walk and reported their findings with perception and sensitivity.

Through participation and empowerment of pupils and parents this approach encourage values that go well beyond those of celebrity and consumerism. Of course it cannot cure inequalities in society but it can nurture the skills and commitment that will allow children to challenge such inequalities in a positive and informed way.


Declaration of Interest: I am a governor at Braintcroft Primary School

Brooms and Lollipops Protest in Kilburn

Brent Fightback are to hold a protest in Kilburn Square, Kilburn High Road from 11am on Saturday.

Supporters will be bringing brooms and 'lollipops' to protest against Brent Council's cuts in street sweeping and school crossing patrols. Veolia, the borough's cleaning contractor will make up to 50 street sweepers redundant in October and details of the numbers of school crossing patrols to be cut is currently under review.

The street sweeping cuts will mean that outlying residential streets will be swept just once a week instead of the three times they were swept under the previous administration.  All street sweeping in the borough will end at 2pm on Saturday and Sunday. Council officers said the event days at Wembley Stadium, when local streets are often scattered with beer cans and takeaway cartons, will come under a different budget but details have not been made clear.

The additional seasonal leaf clearance service will also end. Officers said leaves will be cleared in the normal scheduled sweep but as that it only once a week it is unclear whether workers will be able to keep on top of the job. Previously leaves were bagged and sent for composting and again it is unclear whether that will still be done. If it isn't Brent green credential will take a battering.

Concerns have been raised by residents about street safety if rotting leaves are left on pavements and become wet and icy in the autumn months.  Safety concerns have also been expressed about the safety of school children if school crossing patrol cuts go ahead. Both groups of workers suffer from low pay but are vital to the well-being of the community.

Brent Fightback welcomes any support. Please bring brooms and home-made lollipops, plus placards to Kilburn Square at 11am on Saturday.

Section 60 Stop and Search Likely to be Extended

 Matthew Gardner, Brent Borough Commander, Metropolitan Police in a message to the local community has confirmed that a Section 60 stop and search authorisation was granted for the whole of Brent for a 24 hour period on August 8th. He says that it will be reviewed and is likely to be extended.

Gardner said that although there had been no large scale incidents two officers had been hurt while dealing with offenders. He continued:

We will tackle any further disorder whilst continuing to deal with normal policing across the borough and keeping our people and businesses safe.  Throughout the weekend we continued to make sure emergency calls were dealt with and that major events - like the Community Shield at Wembley and Olympic test events - passed off safely and successfully.

 

Officers from Brent will be working closely with you to assess any impact of the London-wide disorder.

 

The Metropolitan Police Service has set up an investigation team whose sole purpose will be to identify those people responsible for violence, disorder and crime. We will take every opportunity to bring criminals to justice.  There have already been an unprecedented number of arrests across London for public order, violence, and theft (looting) offences.

 

In relation to the shooting of Mark Duggan in Tottenham last Thursday. It is absolutely right that the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) investigate the circumstances. The communities of London clearly want this and deserve it.

 

I understand that you will be concerned and appalled at the recent events and are looking to the police to make sure you can go about your lives without fear of disruption and violence, wherever you are in the city.  I urge you to ensure you know where your children are during these challenging times. Please keep them at home during the evenings whilst this unrest continues so that they do not confuse a situation by being present when disorder is taking place. This will greatly assist my officers and staff by enabling them to get on with the difficult job we have to do - addressing the actions of a mindless few.

 

Campaign against disabled children's benefit cut

Message from Sam Royston, Policy Officer for Family Action

25 national organisations including the Children’s Society, the TUC, Barnardo’s and Action for Children have come together to call for a change in the Government’s plans for a substantial cut to welfare support for disabled children under the new “Universal Credit”.

Sign our petition! The new system will result in many of these children losing up to £1400 per year (£27 per week) compared to the current system – by the time a disabled child reaches 16, this could cost the family £22,000.

In total the Government estimates that 100,000 disabled children would lose out under this change – other estimates suggest the number could be considerably higher.

* * * * * *
Antony Best, 23, from Bradford, is a full-time father after losing his wife to swine flu last winter. He has three children to look after and two of them also have a disability. Casie, 4, has Down’s syndrome, while her eight-month-old brother, Alfie, has cerebral palsy.

Antony is already relying on family and friends to help him out with caring from time to time and his budget is at breaking point. He receives £197 a month from the tax credit and disability allowance systems.

I can spend more than that just getting the basics for the kids, and that is before I have thought about feeding myself.Any cut to what we survive on now would have a real impact on our living. So many of the things we need every day, like milk for my youngest and nappies, are already more expensive . . ..We just about manage.

£27 is more than half the average family’s food budget – enough to mean the difference between a family meeting their child’s basic needs, and being left simply unable to cope.

The Comprehensive Spending Review announced that £2 billion will be set aside over the next four years for the introduction of the Universal Credit. At a time of strict financial constraints, we believe that the Government cannot justify a commitment to such additional spending, if it fails to support the most vulnerable families with disabled children.
Please:
- sign the petition now and
- promote it on your Facebook, Linked In and Twitter accounts.
We have a one-off opportunity to make a real and important change for disabled children and young people; together we really can make the Government think again on this.

LINK to original post on Liberal Conspiracy

Riots and financial turmoil just short-term issue say Quintain

Reuters report that Quintain, developers of the regeneration site around Wembley Stadium are unfazed by the riots:

Quintain Estates, the urban regeneration specialist behind Wembley City in north London, said rioting in the capital over recent days will not damage the city's long-term appeal

The company, which is also developing part of the Greenwich peninsula on the river Thames, said sentiment would only be affected in the short-term by the rioting and current financial market turmoil.

"I firmly believe over the long-term London prospects remain robust," Chief Executive Adrian Wyatt said in a statement today..

In June the company said it had sold land and development contracts to Keystone Partners for a 660-bedroom student accommodation building at Wembley City for £53m..

Barry Gardiner concerned about 'dangerous tipping point;' as youth loses faith in a society which doesn't provide jobs or respect

The Willesden and Wembley Observer website is carrying these remarks from Barry Gardiner MP on the current disturbances: LINK

I was out until two in the morning last night meeting with different groups of youths. There were a lot of people out on the streets, mostly aged from 16 to 26, but I think most of them were there to see if anything was happening. They weren't going to start any trouble. There was only one incident involving a theft from a car, but this could have happened on any night of the year.


The police posted people where they thought there would be trouble, but the situation didn't develop. I would like to think nothing happened because people didn't want to see the things that had gone on across London happen in their community.

It is a very dangerous situation when you have people losing respect for society and not wanting to be on the side of the law. They ask themselves 'why should I help to protect the society which doesn't provide me with a job and which respects other people more than me?'. That's a very dangerous tipping point indeed.

Boris hasn't handled the situation. Where has he been? He said when he became mayor that he would increase police on the streets, but look what has happened to the Safer Neighbourhood teams in Brent, they have all been amalgamated and people don't have any contact with the police in their area. They are more likely to report crimes if they know their local policeman.

Should we be subsidising PoundWorld's low pay?

Green Party member and disability rights campaigner Simone Aspis has sent me copies of these letters she has sent to the CEO of PoundWorld and the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions

To Chris Edwards, CEO PoundWorld:

I have just watched the C 4’s Undercover Boss, a feature of PoundWorld.    I understand that PoundWorld has made millions of pounds profits and can well afford to pay all their staff more than the minimum wage.  Please do not tell us that you cannot afford to pay your sales assistants more than the minimum wage.   I work for a charity and get paid more than your sales assistants.   I am sick and tired of subsiding national and multinational companies’ staff wages in form of Government’s benefits and in-work tax credits.   Anyone who works hard for 35 hours per week should be paid enough to live on without Government’s subsidies.   No one can live on the minimum wage whilst working and living in London.   Many of your staff would still need to claim housing benefit in order to live in rented shared accommodation.    It’s an absolute disgrace.  

You are in a position to pay all your sales assistants enough money so they can:

1)     Rent a self-contained flat in a relatively safe area
2)    To pay for all bills (fuel, food, television licence etc)
3)    Have some leisure
4)    Provide for their family

Please stop forcing me and other hard paid workers from subsiding big companies sales assistants wages through their taxes.   PoundWorld and you are more than financially capable of paying every member of staff a sufficient wage so they do not become a “burden on the state”.   What angers me the most is not subsiding the unemployed, but rather your company’s employees’ wages. 

To  Lord Freud, Minister for Welfare Reform

I am urged to ask the Government what its policy will be to ensure that employers pay all their full-time workers a sufficient wage so they are able to maintain themselves without relying on Government’s subsidies through in-work benefits after watching Undercover Boss.  Please see letter I wrote to Chris Edwards, Pound World’s CEO.  I am getting really sick to death of my taxes being used to subside big profitable company’s wage bills.  For example every time I enter into any chain store (Pizza Express, McDonalds, Tesco, Sainsbury's, Pound World), I am mindful that my taxes are being used to subside their wage bill.  This is because many of their staff’s wages do not cover the cost of living and renting a flat.   

All but one of my friend’s wages is being topped up with in work tax credits.   All my friends are paying rents for one bedroom flats.   

As a tax payer I much rather pay for someone looking for a job rather than subsiding a company that chooses to pay their staff poverty wages.  

When you respond to me, please refer to only what will the Government do to make sure employers pay a sufficient wage for their workers to live on.   I know about the welfare reform programme and the universal credit.   I think employers should be increasing their employees’ wages rather than Government increasing the amount of money that benefit claimants can keep if they accept low paid work.   Please do not tell me that many of the well-known employers you and I know, cannot pay employees a sufficient wage so they can provide for their family in a self-contained rented accommodation.   And please do not tell me none of these companies are not making a profit even during a recession because they are!  

It is the Council causing pain to librarians - not us, say library campaigners

Graham Durham,Secretary of the Save Cricklewood Library Campaign, has responded to Brent Council Leader Ann John 's comments on Brent librarians in which she said that the delay in the Judge's decision means uncertainty for Brent librarians and is painful to them:

The suggestion that campaigners to save libraries are causing distress to librarians in Brent is bizarre.Ann John has sanctioned an unnecessary spend of £50,000 of scarce  Brent council taxpayer resources  to defend in the High Court  the indefensible proposal to close six libraries.In the consultation organised by the Council 82% of public respondents rejected the closure plans but Brent Council proceeded anyway.

Librarians across Brent  have been subjected to crude and insulting competency tests and been issued with notice of redundancy - it is unsurprising  that many are demoralised at their treatment by the Council.Ann John needs to accept responsibility for this disgraceful situation.

Those of us campaigning to save libraries know that once vital community resources and opportunities are destroyed young people are denied all hope.The  youth rebellion this week in Brent, London and across the country is a direct result of so-called Labour councillors carrying out the wishes of the Tory/Liberal Democrat Cabinet of millionaires rather than defending their communities against this attack by the richest on the poorest.