Why don't we...?

I was talking yesterday with a group of friends about schools and the seemingly endless agonies of choice which parents have to go through to find the right school for their children, be it junior or secondary school. State or private? Local or out of borough? What's the reputation like? How did they do in the latest league tables? How many places do they have? what is the admissions process? etc etc etc

A common problem is that once a school gets a bad reputation (whether deserved or not), parents no longer want to send their kids there if they feel they have a choice. So a lot of the brighter children with better, more supportive home environments don't go and the schools concerned then have a much higher concentration of children from more difficult backgrounds. So the school's reputation and league table performance then suffer even more..and a vicious circle is established.

So why don't we do what they do in France and much of the rest of Europe and simply say that children will go to their local schools and remove the exhausting and frequently illusory process of "parental choice"? And..if a school is not performing to an adequate standard, ensure that there are clear mechanisms by which parents, teachers, governors and students can rectify matters so that it DOES perform? And while we're at it, let's insist on ALL schools teaching emotional intelligence and communication skills to their students at all levels. Some do this already and it makes a great difference for the better to the school's atmosphere and culture and to the confidence and behaviour and attitude of the students - so why not all?

Transition Westcombe is underway!

The Transition Towns movement continues to grow nationally and internationally and last night was the first public event of our local group, Transition Westcombe. Nearly fifty people came to watch a really interesting and inspiring film about how Cuba has coped with its own version of "peak oil" following the break-up of the former Soviet Union and to participate in a discussion afterwards about what we can do in our area to prepare for the inevitable transition to a low carbon economy.

It was great that so many people turned up and took part enthusiastically in the discussion. We've got a follow up meeting planned for 8th April which will hopefully start to turn the ideas and suggestions made into some tangible projects that will have a material impact on our bit of SE London