Category Archives: Children

US education department to lay off 1,300 people as Trump vows to close agency

Posted on by

Firings announced Tuesday as administration decried as ‘detached from how Americans live’

The US Department of Education intends to lay off nearly half of its workforce. The layoffs of 1,300 people were announced by the department on Tuesday and described by the education secretary, Linda McMahon, as a “significant step toward restoring the greatness of the United States education system”.

In a post on X, McMahon said: “Today’s [reduction in force] reflects our commitment to efficiency, accountability, and ensuring that resources are directed where they matter most: to students, parents, and teachers.”

Continue reading...

Toilet training and cutlery use key part of England’s ‘school-readiness skills list’

Posted on by

Checkpoints backed by education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, follow complaints from teachers of children arriving in nappies

Toilet training and the ability to use cutlery are two key checkpoints in a new list of “school-readiness” skills developed by a coalition of early-years educators and endorsed by Bridget Phillipson, the education secretary.

The group said the guidance was the first of its type, intended to help parents to prepare children starting in reception classes in England from the age of four and came after complaints from teachers of children arriving at school in nappies, lacking basic skills and unable to play with others.

Continue reading...

Bog standard? Study seeks most effective toilet training methods

Posted on by

UCL team is inviting parents to share their experiences, as age at which children in west acquire the skill rises

Storybooks about potties, underpants featuring superheroes, rewards for doing a wee: toilet training is a rite of passage for any child. But with the average age of toilet training steadily creeping upwards, scientists are now hoping to crack the question of which methods are most effective.

A team at University College London is inviting people from across the world to share their experiences and techniques as part of the Big Toilet Project. The ultimate aim is to uncover evidence that could help parents toilet train children earlier and reduce the massive contribution that disposable nappies make to landfill waste.

Continue reading...

Most school leaders in England, Wales and NI say pupils’ parents have abused them

Posted on by

Parents banned from school sites after leaders spat at and trolled, poll finds

Four in five school leaders in England, Wales and Northern Ireland say they have suffered abuse from pupils’ parents in the past year, according to a poll that found they had been spat at, trolled on social media and even physically attacked.

The problem has become so serious that more than two out of five (42%) of those who took part in the survey said they had been forced to ban parents from the school site in the last year. Nearly a third (32%) have reported parents to the police and almost three-quarters (72%) have issued a warning letter or email.

Continue reading...

Social media platforms could face $50m fines if Australian children access adult content on their sites

Posted on by

Under proposed new codes submitted to eSafety commissioner, tech companies would have six months to implement new measures

Social media and technology companies would have six months to implement a suite of new measures to restrict Australian children from accessing adult content online, or face fines up to $50m, under proposed new codes developed by the industry.

The draft codes, submitted to the eSafety commissioner last week for approval, would require social media platforms that allow pornography to prevent access to minors, and implement age assurance measures for users.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Thousands of children in England accused of witchcraft in past decade

Posted on by

Figures emerge as Kindoki Witch Boy film tells true story of Mardoche Yembi who underwent an exorcism as a child

Thousands of children in England have been accused of witchcraft over the past decade, according to new figures that come alongside a film released on Monday.

Faith-based abuse is a worldwide phenomenon but experts found 14,000 social work assessments linked to witchcraft accusations since 2015. In the year running to March 2024 alone, there were 2,180 assessments linked to witchcraft.

Children accused of witchcraft can call Childline on 0800 1111 or NSPCC on 0808 800 500.

Continue reading...

Texas measles outbreak grows to 90 cases, worst level in 30 years

Posted on by

Epicenter of latest outbreak had one of state’s highest immunization exemption rates for 2023-24 school year

The measles outbreak in Texas has grown to at least 90 cases, reaching historic levels, according to officials.

Since late January, 90 cases of measles have been identified in the South Plains region, the state’s department of state health services (DSHS) reported Friday. At least 16 patients have been hospitalized as a result.

Continue reading...

UK parents suing TikTok over children’s deaths ‘suspicious’ about data claims

Posted on by

Platform cites ‘legal requirements around when we remove data’ after lawsuit filed over deaths of children attempting ‘blackout challenge’

Four British parents who are suing TikTok for the alleged wrongful deaths of their children say they are “suspicious” about the social media platform’s claim to have deleted their children’s data.

The parents have filed a lawsuit in the US that claims that their four children died in 2022 as a result of attempting the “blackout challenge”, a viral trend that circulated on social media in 2021.

Continue reading...

E-scooters blamed for big jump in children caught in UK driving without insurance

Posted on by

Hundreds of teenagers have been given an IN10 police endorsement since 2020, says road safety charity


Electric scooters have been blamed for a surge in the number of children being penalised for driving without insurance.

Since the start of 2020 almost 800 children aged between 13 and 16 have been given an IN10 endorsement – the code used by the police for “using a vehicle uninsured against third party risks” – according to data obtained by a road safety charity.

Continue reading...

Parents working from home is affecting school attendance, says Ofsted chief

Posted on by

Martyn Oliver says less office-going since pandemic has led to a shift in attitudes among pupils in England

School attendance rates are being affected by parents working from home after the pandemic, the head of Ofsted has said.

The chief inspector of the schools watchdog in England, Martyn Oliver, told the Sunday Times that the widespread change in working habits after the pandemic had led to a shift in attitudes among pupils.

Continue reading...

UK judge warns women about sperm donor who ‘fathered 180 children’

Posted on by

Judge takes rare step of naming Robert Charles Albon, who subjected mothers to ‘nightmare’ of controlling behaviour

A sperm donor who subjected a couple to a “nightmare” of controlling behaviour over their child has been named by a judge as a warning about the dangers of unregulated sperm donation.

Robert Charles Albon claims to have fathered more than 180 children in several countries after advertising his sperm donation services under the name Joe Donor.

Continue reading...

‘Time running out’ for UK to apologise over forced adoptions

Posted on by

Campaigners demand government issue formal apology to women forced to give up their babies in 1950s-70s

Time is running out for the UK government to issue a formal apology to women who were forced to give up their babies for adoption in the 1950s, 60s and 70s, campaigners have warned.

Most of the estimated 185,000 women involved in forced adoptions are now in their 70s and 80s, and some have died without an apology on behalf of the state being issued.

Continue reading...

‘I just didn’t see mess’: help emerges for children of parents who hoard

Posted on by

Local authorities urged to intervene earlier and charity preparing to launch dedicated support group

“I don’t remember ever having had a home-cooked meal,” says Richard, crunching over the food wrappers and crushed cardboard boxes that cover his mother’s kitchen floor.

He glances at the broken cooker, cracked microwave and windows blocked by piles of unwashed mugs, some inexplicably tightly wrapped in cellophane. There are no clear surfaces. Blackened, disintegrating cabinets sag under yet more wreckage. Not an inch of floor can be seen.

Continue reading...

Parents of two murdered Southport girls speak of hearing news of attack

Posted on by

Parents of Bebe King and Elsie Dot Stancombe also criticise televising of Axel Rudakubana’s sentencing

The parents of two of the girls murdered in Southport have spoken of the moment they were told “something awful has happened” to their children at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class.

The families of Bebe King and Elsie Dot Stancombe also called for more protection for children from the internet and criticised the decision to televise the sentencing of Axel Rudakubana, who was jailed last month for a minimum term of 52 years.

Continue reading...

Children still being sent far from home for mental health care in England

Posted on by

Figures show practice continues eight years after pledge to end it, potentially impeding young people’s recovery

Children and young people in England with serious mental health problems are still being sent for treatment many miles away from their homes because bed shortages in some areas remain so severe, despite a pledge to end such practices eight years ago.

NHS England promised in 2017 to stop forcing highly troubled under-18s to leave family and friends after some received care more than 300 miles from where they lived.

Continue reading...

‘Strong reasonable doubt’ over Lucy Letby insulin convictions, experts say

Posted on by

Exclusive: ‘No scientific justification’ to say former nurse definitely poisoned babies with insulin, according to study authors

The claim that Lucy Letby definitely poisoned babies with insulin has “no scientific justification whatsoever” and there is a “very strong level of reasonable doubt” about the convictions, according to the authors of a 100-page study on the case.

Prof Geoff Chase, one of the world’s foremost experts on the effect of insulin on pre-term babies, told the Guardian it was “very unlikely” anyone had administered potentially lethal doses to two of the infants.

Continue reading...

UK childhood mental health crisis to cost £1.1tn in lost pay, study finds

Posted on by

Researchers estimate lifetime earnings lost as charities call for independent review of causes of the crisis

More than £1tn will be lost in lifetime earnings in the UK as a direct result of the mental health crisis in young people, research estimates.

Published to launch the new Future Minds mental health campaign, the study forecasts the financial burden of failing to tackle the mental health crisis.

Continue reading...

AI tools used for child sexual abuse images targeted in Home Office crackdown

Posted on by

UK will be first country to bring in tough new laws to tackle the technology behind the creation of abusive material

Britain is to become the first country to introduce laws tackling the use of AI tools to produce child sexual abuse images, amid warnings from law enforcement agencies of an ­alarming proliferation in such use of the technology.

In an attempt to close a legal ­loophole that has been a major ­concern for police and online safety campaigners, it will become illegal to possess, create or distribute AI tools designed to generate child sexual abuse material.

Continue reading...

Gender dysphoria diagnoses among children in England rise fiftyfold over 10 years

Posted on by

Study of GP records finds prevalence rose from one in 60,000 in 2011 to one in 1,200 in 2021 – but numbers still low overall

The number of children and young people in England with a diagnosis of gender dysphoria recorded by a GP has risen fiftyfold over 10 years, researchers have found, though numbers are still relatively small.

The growing number of birth-registered females seeking referrals to gender clinics has raised concerns in recent years, with tensions over how best to tackle gender dysphoria in children resulting in the Cass review last year.

Continue reading...

Child mental health admissions to acute wards in England rise 65% in a decade

Posted on by

Hospital wards struggle to cope with rising cases of self-harm and eating disorders, the study warns

The number of children admitted to acute hospital wards in England due to serious concerns over their mental health has increased by 65% in a decade, with a particularly alarming surge in girls who have self-harmed, research reveals.

Doctors are treating almost 40,000 children with acute mental ill health in general wards every year, up from about 24,000 10 years ago. The increase is six times higher than the rise in admissions of children for all conditions (10.1%) over the same period.

Continue reading...