Promised provision, particularly for autistic children, was announced a year ago but few schools will open on time
Plans to deliver thousands of new special school places by 2026 are falling seriously behind, with experts branding the building programme “a mess”, the Observer can reveal.
The news calls into question the only announcement on schools the chancellor made in last week’s budget – a commitment of £105m towards 15 additional special schools.
Continue reading...Road crash deaths are the leading cause of death for children aged 1 to 13 in Australia and experts say many could be prevented with better restraints
Leading child safety experts are calling for regulations around child car restraints to be brought into line with the medical evidence and similar countries worldwide, saying that “a large proportion” of Australian children are being put in danger of life-altering traumatic injuries or death every day due to inappropriate use of car and booster seats.
The calls come as the state and federal ministers for transport undertake a review of Australia’s child restraint rules, which have been condemned as out of step with safe practice guidelines.
Continue reading...Growing numbers buying protective gear as gangs recruit young people amid surge in violence across country
Police in southern Sweden have called for a ban on civilians wearing bulletproof vests, which they say do not have a place outside war zones because they cause fear in communities.
Increasing numbers of children and young people, including those under 15, are wearing protective vests in towns and cities, they said, as gang crime continues to pull in the younger generation in Sweden.
Continue reading...Inspector says he was ‘deeply shocked’ by incidents with no female officer present at young offender institution
An “incredibly vulnerable” girl held in a young offender institution was pinned down and stripped by an all-male group of officers on at least two occasions, a watchdog has discovered.
Charities have called for all female offenders to be removed from YOI Wetherby in West Yorkshire after the damning disclosure by the chief inspector of prisons.
In the UK, the youth suicide charity Papyrus can be contacted on 0800 068 4141 or email pat@papyrus-uk.org, and in the UK and Ireland Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is at 988 or chat for support. You can also text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis text line counselor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org
Continue reading...A local authority leader claims private equity groups are exploiting vulnerable youngsters in care homes in the pursuit of profit
Care companies are insisting on unnecessary and expensive support packages for vulnerable children to boost their profits, a council leader has claimed.
Barry Lewis, the Tory leader of Derbyshire county council, said that former family-run businesses acquired by private equity groups were trying to get “as much cash as possible” out of local authorities.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Guardian investigation for podcast series Black Box reveals names connected to app that generated nonconsensual images of underage girls around the world
The first Miriam al-Adib learned of the pictures was when she returned home from a business trip. “Mum,” said her daughter. “I want to show you something.”
The girl, 14, opened her phone to show an explicit image of herself. “It’s a shock when you see it,” said Adib, a gynaecologist in the southern Spanish town of Almendralejo and a mother of four daughters. “The image is completely realistic … If I didn’t know my daughter’s body, I would have thought that image was real.”
Continue reading...Daily registers will also be shared online with DfE as part of government drive to improve attendance
Taking an unauthorised family holiday is about to get more expensive, with the government announcing that fines for children in England missing school are to rise by 33%.
The education secretary, Gillian Keegan, is to overhaul the way local authorities fine parents for unauthorised school absences by bringing penalties “under a national framework to help tackle inconsistencies”.
Continue reading...Women and children suffering acute malnutrition as territory faces ‘catastrophic conditions’, according to UN
One in five pregnant women treated at a central Gaza clinic are malnourished, doctors have warned, as fuel and medical supply shortages closed the last hospital operating in the north of the strip.
“Every day, we see women and children coming into our clinic suffering from acute malnutrition,” said Dr Maram, the lead physician for Project Hope.
Continue reading...Home secretary’s mandatory reporting legislation plan already covered by statutory duties, say school leaders
Teachers in England face being banned if they fail to report evidence of children being subjected to sexual abuse under plans for new legislation announced by the home secretary, James Cleverly.
The new law would make it a legal requirement for healthcare professionals, teachers and others who work with children and young people to identify and pass on cases of possible sexual abuse.
Continue reading...Billy (not real name) is now being home-schooled after bullying turned into physical violence
Starting secondary school had not been easy for Billy (not his real name). What started as verbal taunts from one boy soon saw him become the target of a group of four boys. Bullying became physical violence. Yet the abuse got even worse, escalating to sexual assault. The group would corner him in the toilets and grope and touch his genitals. Unsurprisingly, Billy’s mental health quickly deteriorated. He is now being home-schooled and he struggles to leave the house because of anxiety.
Billy is receiving support from Embrace, a charity that works with children who have been the victims of crime. He says that he is starting to feel stronger, while his parents say his panic attacks and nightmares are receding thanks to the support he is getting. However, what he experienced was part of an increase in “peer-on-peer abuse” that is worrying schools, police and professionals who work with young people.
Continue reading...Observer investigation in England and Wales reveals 40% increase in reports of sexual assaults and rapes where both victim and perpetrator were under 18
An alarming rise in sexual assaults on children by other children is being fuelled by access to a “toxic” online culture, Britain’s most senior child protection officer has warned, as an Observer investigation revealed a sharp increase in abuse by under-18s reported to police.
Police records of rape, sexual assaults and incidents of abuse carried out by young children in England and Wales have all seen a significant increase since the Covid pandemic. The Observer has also uncovered an 81% rise in reported incidents that took place on school property. One leading expert said the problem had reached “alarming levels”.
Continue reading...Abducted four-year-old boy in California reunited with family after Regan Dunn and Yenni Lee received alert and went to look for him
A missing four-year-old boy was reunited with his family on Tuesday evening after two women, who had received an Amber alert about an abducted child, located him.
The California highway patrol issued an alert for an abducted child in Long Beach and advised the public to be on the lookout for a gray Honda Accord. Police said the vehicle was stolen with Justin Chan inside after his parent left the car running while making a delivery.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Esther Ghey says she believes social media use left her daughter vulnerable, while killers were able to access violent content online
The mother of Brianna Ghey has called for her murder to be a “tipping point” in how society views “the mess” of the internet, warning that a generation of anxious young people will grow up lacking resilience.
Esther Ghey said technology companies had a “moral responsibility” to restrict access to harmful online content. She supports a total ban on social media access for under-16s – a move currently under debate in certain legislatures, including Florida in the US.
Continue reading...Researchers say study funded by the Australian Research Council demonstrates the need for strict gambling advertising regulations
Children as young as 12 believe celebrities and influencers who are paid to promote gambling are making the practice seem safe, normal, attractive and fun, according to a new study.
The study, funded by the Australian Research Council, heard from children who believed the use of stars like former basketball player Shaquille O’Neal in ads were making their peers more likely to consider gambling.
Continue reading...Labour MPs call to extend provision to every primary pupil in England after study finds health and learning improve
Labour is facing calls from MPs to back the provision of free school meals for all primary school children in England, after a new study found evidence that it reduces obesity and boosts reading skills.
Levels of obesity were reduced by 7% to 11% among reception children in the four London boroughs that have already adopted the policy, according to the study seen by the Observer. For children in year six, who had been given free school meals for their entire time in primary school, there was a 5-8% reduction.
Continue reading...Plans to make vaping less appealing also to include restricting fruity flavours and introducing plain packaging
Ministers are to ban disposable vapes as part of a UK-wide drive to curb youth vaping.
The government is also seeking to make vaping less appealing to children by restricting sweet and fruity flavours, introducing plain packaging and making displays less visible in shops, under newly announced powers. The changes are expected to come into effect towards the end of this year or early 2025.
Continue reading...The two names also held the top spots together in 2021, highlighting the ongoing popularity of both names with Queensland parents
Oliver and Isla have topped the list of Queensland’s most popular baby names for 2023.
Isla was the most frequent name for 285 newborn girls in 2023, while Oliver retained first place for names for boys (451) – for the 11th year in a row.
Continue reading...Coroner concluded 14-year-old girl took her life after prolonged and sustained bullying in person and online
The father of a 14-year-old girl who killed herself after being bullied has said his family are victims of a “failing system” after an inquest into her death.
Mia Janin, a year 10 pupil at the Jewish free school in Kenton, north-west London, was found dead at her family home in Harrow on 12 March 2021.
In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counselor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org
Continue reading...Traditional options standing the test of time in top 20 popular baby names for 2023
Names that have stood the test of time have prevailed again in the ranks of the most popular baby names in Victoria, with Amelia rising to be the most popular name for girls in 2023, and Oliver retaining the crown for boys for the tenth year in a row.
The name Amelia knocked Charlotte to second most popular after it held the title in recent years. It was followed by Olivia, Mia, and Isla, while new entrants to the top 20 most popular girls’ names were Harper, Evelyn and Sienna.
Continue reading...Police start to interview witnesses following Guardian reports on adoptions to the Netherlands nearly 50 years ago
Police in Bangladesh have launched an investigation into historical allegations that children were adopted abroad without their parents’ consent, after a Guardian investigation into adoptions to the Netherlands in the 1970s.
Bangladesh special branch in Dhaka confirmed it had opened an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the adoption of a number of children between 1976 and 1979.
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