Category Archives: Society

Classes in character do little to narrow gap in pupil outcomes, says study

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Focusing on poorer children’s social and emotional learning barely helps their results catch up with those of better-off peers

Teaching character, grit and resilience in schools is valuable to children but is unlikely to play a major part in eradicating the attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their wealthier peers, according to research.

In recent years, policymakers in England and elsewhere in the world have focused on social and emotional learning, and the importance of developing character, determination and self-belief as a way of improving learning, particularly among children from lower income backgrounds.

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Alex Batty back in UK six years after vanishing on holiday in Spain

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Teenager whose disappearance, aged 11, sparked an international police hunt, flies home after being found in France

Teenager Alex Batty has returned to the UK six years after disappearing while on holiday in Spain with his mother and grandfather, police said on Saturday.

Detectives told a press conference at Greater Manchester police HQ that the teenager, who was 11 when he went missing, met his step-grandfather at Toulouse airport earlier on Saturday before flying back to the UK.

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The Guardian and Observer charity telethon 2023: call our writers and donate

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Marina Hyde, John Crace and Polly Toynbee are among those ready to take your calls in support of refugees

Readers have the opportunity to talk to some of their favourite Guardian and Observer journalists on Saturday as part of the annual charity telethon, this year in support of refugees and asylum seekers.

Journalists including Marina Hyde, John Crace, Polly Toynbee, Owen Jones, Peter Bradshaw, Sali Hughes, Simon Hattenstone, Nosheen Iqbal, Zoe Williams and many more will be on hand to take your calls and donations.

Non-telethon donations can be made online by credit card, debit card or PayPal.

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Primary schools in England close, merge and shrink as pupil numbers fall

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London boroughs among hardest hit due to falling birth rate and family struggles with Covid and rising costs

Primary schools are being closed, merged and shrunk as councils across England respond to falling numbers of pupils due to the falling birth rate as well as family upheaval triggered by rising costs, Brexit and Covid.

London boroughs are among the hardest hit, with thousands of school places being lost, but the closures and cuts extend to other cities and areas as they adjust to fewer children being born or moving into their catchment areas.

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Police officer stoned to death after rescuing FGM survivors in Kenya

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Activists see the killing as a setback in the efforts to eliminate the practice, despite it being illegal in the east African country

Efforts to eradicate female genital mutilation in Kenya have suffered a setback after a police officer was killed in a confrontation with a gang of youths.

Activists and local leaders condemned the murder, calling it a backward step in the fight to eradicate the practice in the country. Police in Elgeyo Marakwet county, in the Rift Valley region, had taken a group of girls who had been forced to undergo the illegal procedure to hospital when a mob of young men stormed a police station and stoned Cpl Mushote Boma to death.

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Rishi Sunak considers curbing social media use for under-16s

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Reports suggest a ban is among potential options to protect young people from online harm

Rishi Sunak is considering limiting social media access for teenagers under the age of 16 to try to protect them from online harm, with reports suggesting a potential ban is on the cards.

The government is considering further action despite bringing in the Online Safety Act, which requires social media platforms to shield children from harmful content or face fines of up to 10% of a company’s global revenue.

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Currys boss: minimum wage hike shows government does not ‘care’ about retail

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Planned 10% UK increase as business rates rise will put pressure on already overburdened industry, says Alex Baldock

The boss of Currys has accused the government of failing to “understand or care” about UK retailers by pushing through a “big hike” in the UK’s minimum wage.

Alex Baldock’s comments come weeks after chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced plans to increase the legal minimum wage for the UK’s lowest paid workers to £11.44 an hour, representing a hike of almost 10%, from April 2024. The move will force employers to pay full time workers around £1,800 more per year.

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Guardian and Observer charity appeal passes £350,000 in donations

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Donations in support of refugee and asylum seekers have got off to a strong start thanks to our readers

The Guardian and Observer charity appeal in support of refugee and asylum seekers has received more than £350,000 in donations from generous readers in less than a week since it launched.

The 2023 appeal is raising money for three charities – Refugee Councils of Britain, Refugees at Home, and Naccom – that support homeless and destitute asylum seekers and refugees and campaign for a fairer and more humane treatment of people arriving in the UK after fleeing war and persecution.

Donations can be made online by credit card, debit card or PayPal, or by phone on 0151 284 1126. We are unable to accept cheques.

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Public confused over physician associates working in NHS, research finds

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Exclusive: survey finds 57% of people have never heard of physician associates even though they are widely used

Many people are deeply confused about the growing number of “physician associates” in the NHS and wrongly assume they are doctors, research suggests.

Around 4,000 physician associates work in the NHS in England. Ministers and health chiefs plan to increase the figure to 10,000 to help plug widespread gaps in the NHS workforce.

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Risk of dying from cancer in England varies hugely between regions, say scientists

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Researchers say ‘astounding’ inequalities are widest where risk can be cut with lifestyle changes

The risk of dying from cancer in England “varies massively” depending on where a person lives, according to a study that experts say exposes “astounding” health inequalities.

Researchers who analysed data spanning two decades found staggering geographical differences. In the poorest areas, the risk of dying from cancer was more than 70% higher than the wealthiest areas. The findings were published in the Lancet Oncology.

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Comfort eating can impair body’s recovery from stress, study shows

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Researchers find turning to fatty and other unhealthy foods for solace reduces vascular function and raises risk of heart disease

Using fatty foods to comfort eat during times of stress can impair the body’s recovery from the pressure, research suggests.

Many people turn to unhealthy foods such as chocolate or crisps when they are feeling the strain, but researchers have found that this can reduce blood flow to the brain and cause poorer vascular function – which in turn can have a negative effect on mental health and cognitive function, and increase the risk of heart disease.

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Wes Streeting says NHS uses winter crisis as excuse to ask for more money

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Shadow minister tells health service ‘money is tight’ and that it must provide better value for taxpayers

The shadow health secretary has accused the NHS of using every winter crisis and challenge it faces as an excuse to ask for more money.

Speaking on a visit to Singapore, Wes Streeting said the health service needs to accept “money is tight”, and that it must rethink how the care it provides could provide better value for money for the taxpayer.

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Covid lockdowns had ‘catastrophic effect’ on UK’s social fabric, report claims

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Research by centre-right thinktank says gap between the mainstream and poorest in society is widening

Covid lockdowns had a “catastrophic effect” on the UK’s social fabric and the most disadvantaged are no better off now than at the time of the financial crash, a new report claims.

The country is in danger of sliding back into the divisions of the Victorian era, marked by a widening gap between the mainstream and the poorest in society, according to an inquiry by the centre-right thinktank the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ).

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‘Nobody speaks about this’: Diana Rigg made impassioned plea for assisted dying law before death

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In a recording in 2020, the actor made a case for giving ‘human beings true agency over their bodies at the end of life’

• Read more: ‘Push me over the edge’ – Diana Rigg’s daughter Rachael Stirling writes about her mother’s dying wishes

Diana Rigg made an impassioned case to legalise assisted dying in a message recorded shortly before her “truly awful” and “dehumanising” death from cancer three years ago.

The actor’s statement calling for a law that gives “human beings true agency over their own bodies at the end of life”, published today in the Observer, adds to the ongoing debate on assisted dying, with MPs expected to publish recommendations to the government within weeks.

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NHS apologises for sending wrong body for family cremation

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Health board launches investigation after family forced to hold second funeral service after hospital in Cwmbran, south Wales, told them of its mistake

An investigation has been launched after a family cremated the wrong body due to a mix-up at a hospital in Wales.

An NHS board has apologised over the incident in which relatives held a funeral service after being given the body of a different person, who is not believed to have any surviving family members.

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‘I need mum and dad here’: the charity helping young Afghan footballers reunite with relatives

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The Refugee Council is welcoming those who fled the Taliban and providing legal advice on resettlement in the UK

• Donate to our charity appeal here

Two years on from their arrival in South Yorkshire, young footballers Elaha Safdari, Najma Arifi and Narges Mayeli are still baffled by the array of regional accents in the UK. “I’m always like, ‘Pardon? Can you please repeat? What did you say?’” laughs Arifi, now 20.

This barrier is only a minor hurdle for the trio, who were forced to flee for their lives when the west pulled out of Afghanistan and the Taliban seized power in August 2021.

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US regulators approve two gene therapies for sickle cell disease

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Blood disorder that can lead to premature death affects estimated 100,000 people in the United States, most of whom are Black

The US Food and Drug Administration has approved a pair of gene therapies for sickle cell disease, including the first treatment based on the breakthrough Crispr gene-editing technology, opening up two “transformative therapy” avenues for some patients.

The FDA approved Lyfgenia from Bluebird Bio, and a separate treatment called Casgevy by partners Vertex Pharmaceuticals and Crispr Therapeutics. Both therapies are made from the patients’ own blood stem cells and were approved for people aged 12 and older.

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‘Sense of exhaustion’: Scottish trans community reacts to UK veto of gender reforms

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People say they are disheartened by the court’s ruling but hopes remain that the case can continue

The court of session ruling upholding the UK government’s veto on Scotland’s gender recognition reforms contributed to a “sense of exhaustion” in the trans community, said Jennie Kermode, a writer, film-maker and adviser for Trans Media Watch, based near Glasgow.

“People are still hopeful that this case can proceed further but there is a sense of exhaustion that there is always this waiting, which is the case for all trans people whether it’s gender recognition or waiting lists which are so long even to get psychological help.”

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India unveils ‘flatpack’ field hospital with mini x-ray for use in disaster zones

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The portable unit, comprising mini cubes of medical equipment, enables surgeons to be operating within an hour, designers claim

India has designed and built a “flatpack” field hospital that can be flown to a disaster area by helicopter and assembled faster than an Ikea bookcase.

The hospital is contained in 72 small waterproof cubes, each weighing under 15kg and measuring 38cm x 38cm x 38cm (15 x 15 x 15in). They are packed with tents and specially designed medical equipment.

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HIV vaccine trial in Africa halted after disappointing initial results

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African-led trial ended a year early as researchers conclude there is ‘little or no chance’ new combination vaccines cut HIV risk

The first trial in Africa of two combination vaccines to prevent HIV has been halted after researchers concluded it was not working.

The vaccines (part of the PrEPVacc study) were being tested on 1,500 people aged between 18 and 40 in Uganda, Tanzania and South Africa.

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