The first 100 days.

NB Recently built one-bedroom apartments with no car space are being rented for £1,700 pcm, and that’s up-north.
The £49.18 per person seeking asylum isn’t going to help.

That's not the up north where I live, Mollygo

2 bed terraced houses between £450 - £600 pcm. 5 bed detached £1,400 pcm...
🤔

Germanshepherdsmum

Whitewavemark2

On seconds thoughts forget it, as I really don’t won’t this thread ruined by silly debate.

That’s a bit rude. Is nobody allowed to comment on your thread? Talk about thread police …

Declining to join n an argument/debate is not being 'thread police'. Don't mangle the English language...

The first altercation. Goodness.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c2lk9yd04vgo

MaizieD

^NB Recently built one-bedroom apartments with no car space are being rented for £1,700 pcm, and that’s up-north.^
The £49.18 per person seeking asylum isn’t going to help.

That's not the up north where I live, Mollygo

2 bed terraced houses between £450 - £600 pcm. 5 bed detached £1,400 pcm...
🤔

That’s OK for you then, whichever part of up north you live in.
I’m quoting one specific recently built one bedroom flat, no car space in the area of up north where I live.
There are other older properties in various areas near here, some with more than one bedroom, starting at £795 pcm.
And then, there’s the student accommodation at unbelievable prices pp.

Casdon

The first altercation. Goodness.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c2lk9yd04vgo

She was appalling. We're done with this sort of politics,

Mollygo

MaizieD

NB Recently built one-bedroom apartments with no car space are being rented for £1,700 pcm, and that’s up-north.
The £49.18 per person seeking asylum isn’t going to help.

That's not the up north where I live, Mollygo

2 bed terraced houses between £450 - £600 pcm. 5 bed detached £1,400 pcm...
🤔

That’s OK for you then, whichever part of up north you live in.
I’m quoting one specific recently built one bedroom flat, no car space in the area of up north where I live.
There are other older properties in various areas near here, some with more than one bedroom, starting at £795 pcm.
And then, there’s the student accommodation at unbelievable prices pp.

It's really time that the government did something about capping rents, then, isn't it?

Are these rents high because it is more expensive to service rented accommodation in some parts of the country than it is in others (excluding London)? Or is it because shortage of rented accommodation enables landlords to profiteer?

I suspect it is the latter.

In Canada the rents are capped at 3% increase pa according to my bestist. She has a gorgeous apartment overlooking the sea south of Vancouver and pays a very modest rent, with laundry room thrown in together with a rather lively garden maintained as part of the rent.

Child Benefit - first rebellion?

The government faces growing pressure from its own MPs and charities to show it is prepared to help the very poorest in society by scrapping the controversial two-child limit on state benefits introduced by the Tory government.
The policy, which would cost about £1.7bn or 0.14% of total government spending to ditch, according to the Child Poverty Action Group, is blamed for plunging hundreds of thousands of children in larger families into poverty, worsening the class divide.

Before what could be the first rebellion of Starmer’s premiership this week, when the Scottish National party will trigger a vote on the two-child limit in the Commons, Phillipson refused to guarantee that it would be abolished. But she said the new taskforce would look at the two-child limit and the effect it has had on increasing child poverty as part of its work.

Last night Rosie Duffield, the Labour MP for Canterbury, increased pressure on Starmer from the backbenches, describing the cap as a “heinous piece of legislation”.
Writing in the Sunday Times, she said: “The Labour party needs to recognise that this is an issue of social cleansing, an anti-feminist and unequal piece of legislation, and scrap it in line with our previous party position since its conception.”

Education and working class children

Phillipson promised to deliver “the biggest transformation in education that we have seen for a generation”, with emphasis on the crucial early years of children’s development. In the short term this will mean extending help for children who have difficulties with language, and delivering 3,000 more nursery places in primary schools.
The new education secretary admitted Labour’s general election campaign had at times been defensive and cautious because the prize of victory was too big to put at risk.
“We were all terrified about screwing it all up,” she said, “because there was such a weight of responsibility.”

Education and difficult children

Isolation booths, frequent suspensions and strict behaviour regimes look set to be phased out in England as the Labour government shifts focus on how to keep the most vulnerable pupils in school.

Education leaders close to the new government say ministers are planning to change the inspection regime so that all schools are judged on whether they are properly representative of their local community, and aiming to stop schools telling parents their child with special educational needs would be better off at another school, or being repeatedly suspended because they aren’t meeting strict behaviour rules.

The Tory government’s behaviour tsar, Tom Bennett, is widely expected to exit the Department for Education soon. Bennett has championed a culture of silent corridors and strict sanctions for infringing any school rules, including not having the correct uniform or equipment. He said this weekend that his appointment was “not party political” and he would continue to advise on good behaviour in schools and what children need to succeed for “as long as required”. He said he was contracted to lead the behaviour hubs programme until 2025.

Paul Dix, a former teacher in challenging schools who now trains schools on how to manage behaviour, said: “Labour simply needs to say that an outstanding school is one that succeeds for all of its pupils.
“There are schools fixed-term excluding or isolating hundreds of kids a week and expecting their behaviour to get better … it won’t.”
He added: “By all means have discipline. But there is no need to have cruelty behind it. This sort of thing has to stop.”

Paul Dix, a former teacher in challenging schools who now trains schools on how to manage behaviour, said: “Labour simply needs to say that an outstanding school is one that succeeds for all of its pupils.
“There are schools fixed-term excluding or isolating hundreds of kids a week and expecting their behaviour to get better … it won’t.”
He added: “By all means have discipline. But there is no need to have cruelty behind it. This sort of thing has to stop.”

This will make fascinating reading for all those who deal with challenging behaviour in classrooms, right from EYFS.

Anyone who comes up with a viable scheme which works to the benefit of these children, whilst not being detrimental to other children and staff either physically or via impact on the school budget will be welcomed.

It's such a dilemma for schools, isn't it? Much of the behaviours exhibited that causes exclusions stems, of course, from the child's life outside of school, and not being in school puts them at risk of increasing exposure to these influences.
However, if other children, and staff, are to be kept safe, and learning is to happen, then hugely disruptive pupils must be removed. It's a problem for education, but also for other agencies as we try to understand, deal with, and help these young people.

MaizieD

Mollygo

MaizieD

NB Recently built one-bedroom apartments with no car space are being rented for £1,700 pcm, and that’s up-north.
The £49.18 per person seeking asylum isn’t going to help.

That's not the up north where I live, Mollygo

2 bed terraced houses between £450 - £600 pcm. 5 bed detached £1,400 pcm...
🤔

That’s OK for you then, whichever part of up north you live in.
I’m quoting one specific recently built one bedroom flat, no car space in the area of up north where I live.
There are other older properties in various areas near here, some with more than one bedroom, starting at £795 pcm.
And then, there’s the student accommodation at unbelievable prices pp.

It's really time that the government did something about capping rents, then, isn't it?

Are these rents high because it is more expensive to service rented accommodation in some parts of the country than it is in others (excluding London)? Or is it because shortage of rented accommodation enables landlords to profiteer?

I suspect it is the latter.

I think a lot of it is due to Liz Truss crashing the economy and sending interest rates and mortgages through the roof.

The Tory government’s behaviour tsar, Tom Bennett, is widely expected to exit the Department for Education soon. Bennett has championed a culture of silent corridors and strict sanctions for infringing any school rules, including not having the correct uniform or equipment. He said this weekend that his appointment was “not party political” and he would continue to advise on good behaviour in schools and what children need to succeed for “as long as required”.

I have followed Tom for years on X. This is a travesty of his principles which shouldn't be taken as accurate. He is a humane and sensible individual who promotes sensible and practical advice on behaviour.

Tge teaching profession is still deeply divided on how to deal with problem behaviour, it has been for decades. I don't think that either 'side' has entirely the 'right' solutions.

I do think that a great deal of the behavioural problems in schools has been caused by the tories cutting school budgets so severely that they have lost the ability to provide the support that pupils were getting when Labour was last in power.

Labour simply needs to say that an outstanding school is one that succeeds for all of its pupils. Yes. I don't know much about Paul Dix, but does he recognise that the strategies of excellent teaching practitioners are very much personality based? Strong classroom management can't be replicated by all teachers, just like strong discipline works for some pupils but not others.
Theses issues are timeless, but if they can be cracked in the next 5 years, then well done to thise in charge!

PS. Just to confirm, the question isn't to Whitewavemark2.

Could Labour be out after honeymoon period first term?

Question being asked on TV just now.

An initiative I saw this morning, to target finding people who are illegal immigrants. A sensible use of resources.
news.sky.com/story/nail-bars-and-car-washes-to-be-targeted-in-summer-immigration-raids-13182400

Trevor Phillips - brilliant!

Primrose53

Could Labour be out after honeymoon period first term?

Question being asked on TV just now.

No. That’s the same sort of question that was asked about Conservatives in the weeks after Labour lost power last time.

Casdon

An initiative I saw this morning, to target finding people who are illegal immigrants. A sensible use of resources.
news.sky.com/story/nail-bars-and-car-washes-to-be-targeted-in-summer-immigration-raids-13182400

We have several nail bars in our High St, along with takeaways and a car wash, all have been raided at some time over the last few years.

Staff disappear only to be replaced with new ones.

This is not a new initiative.

5.5% pay rise on the cards for teachers and nurses. I’m happy with that (disclaimer: our youngest daughter is a teacher these past 15 years) but can the country afford pay rises above inflation? Doctors will be next. Behind them, the firefighters, police - in fact all public sector workers I think.

I appreciate that GrannyGravy13. I think though that by adding significantly more officials there will be many more people caught, which then sends a message to the business owners, and reduces the incentive to employ illegal workers. We will have to see how many additional people are caught over the period.

Mollygo Anyone who comes up with a viable scheme which works to the benefit of these children, whilst not being detrimental to other children and staff either physically or via impact on the school budget will be welcomed."

Our local Men's Shed workshop were asked if they could have two boys (not related) from a local secondary school for a couple of hours a week to teach them some basic woodwork skills. The lads were not doing at all well at academic subjects, caused a distraction in class, and were picked on by other children. Neither had a permanent male role model at home and they were thought to be in danger of "going to the bad"

After some months of spending one afternoon a week learning how to take instruction and remember it, use sharp tools safely, measure accurately and work systematically, and how to join in with the tea break chat and banter with the elderly men, they had made several bits of joinery which were all their own work, to take home and show off.

They had something that they had achieved by their own efforts - something that the others in the class couldn't do. That gave them pride and confidence in themselves. They were less disruptive, and less resented by their peers. Also they had had a taste of working alongside experienced adult men who valued a job well done.

It takes a village to raise a child.

It will be a real test of Keir Starmer’s resolve if he manages to do the right thing by giving a rise to teachers and nurses and junior doctors without giving them exactly what’s demanded.
A middle course that doesn’t lead to strikes would be best.
There is some worry that Labour will have to break election promises already by putting up taxes.If not it means lots more borrowing.
If all public sector rises are met it could cost 10 billion.

That’s heartening Elegran and could easily be replicated around the country.