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A 57-year-old children's worker who was forced to resign over her desire not to work on Sundays appeared before an employment tribunal on Monday. Celestina Mba worked for over three years at the Brightwell Children's Home in Morden, a respite home for children with disabilities. She was forced to resign in 2010 after her employer chose to no longer accommodate her Christian beliefs. Her beliefs were initially respected by her employer, the London Borough of Merton, who were informed before she started the job that she would have difficulties working on a Sunday. But the Council later changed its mind and she was forced to choose between her job or her faith. Andrea Williams, Director of the Christian
Legal Centre said: ‘This is another case where we see intolerance towards the Christian faith and a lack of willingness to make accommodation for it.’
Pray: that the ruling by the employment tribunal will be reversed and justice would prevail. (Job.9:19)
In May 2010 the Government announced that it would end the immigration detention of children, but it is failing to do so say the Children's Society. Between May and the end of August 2011,in agregate 697 children were held at Greater London and South East ports. Almost one third were unaccompanied children. This could mean as many as 2,000 children could be detained each year. Shockingly the Home Office is not collecting information on the length of detention or reasons why the children have been detained. In December 2010 the Government published details of its new policy to end the detention of children; within this, the Government retained the right to only hold a few dozen families each year in border cases. The Children’s Society welcomed the progress made by the Government in response to the ‘Outcry!’ campaign; a joint initiative between The Children’s Society and Bail for Immigration Detainees to end the immigration detention of children.
Pray: that the authorities will stand by their promises. (Ps.36:3)
For the first time, the Children’s Commissioner for England has found a clear link between exposure to extreme images at a young age and a rise in “risky behaviours”. It emerged that children who regularly viewed pornography were more likely to have underage sex, develop “casual and hedonistic” attitudes, experiment with drink and drugs and indulge in sexting. Boys were much more likely to be exposed to porn than girls, it was revealed, resulting in “beliefs that women are sex objects”. The study – based on a large-scale review of international evidence – also found some evidence of a relationship between explicit images and a rise in sexual aggression and harassment of the opposite sex. Maggie Atkinson, the Children’s Commissioner, warned that “violent and sadistic imagery” was readily available among “very young children” because of easy access to the internet on home computers, tablets and mobile phones.
Pray: for a more serious response to address these issues by government, schools, parents, Internet providers and the media. (Col.3:23)
More: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/10076263/Childrens-Commissioner-pupils-raised-on-a-diet-of-porn.html
Frank Field claims that young people do much better in life if their mothers and fathers set clear boundaries for their behaviour as well as bonding with them and reading to them. The former Labour minister, who is now the Coalition’s ‘poverty tsar’, believes that the end of old-fashioned parenting has held back the poorest children, preventing them from getting good jobs. He proposes that the Foundation Years stage of education, which currently runs from birth to five, should begin when the mother-to-be registers as pregnant with a doctor. In his article today, Mr Field writes that social mobility has stalled over the past 50 years despite rising incomes. He claims the ‘subtle and influential’ force affecting life chances for children is the changing style of parenting in Britain. ‘The sociologist Geoffrey Gorer asked why England had moved by the 1950s from being a pretty violent and uncivilised nation to one of respectability.’ Tough love. Pray: that Frank Field’s report is accepted by all parents to improve the life chances of their young. (Mk 10:19)
The Archbishop of Westminster has affirmed marriage as providing the ‘best place’ for raising children, commenting that marriage gives children an opportunity to develop a sense of identity and experience the nurture and love of both their natural mother and father. Speaking at an annual mass for married couples in Westminster Cathedral on 26 May, the Most Revd Vincent Nichols criticised the increasing trend towards defining marriage ‘without any reference to children’, and warned that severing the vital bond between marriage and child-rearing could have ‘damaging consequences’ for society. He stated: ‘We know that the context of a marriage is the best place for children to be reared, providing them with a framework of love, within which they are sure of their biological heritage and not deprived, without grave reason, of the experience of being loved and raised by their natural mother and father.’
Pray: for the clear Biblical message emphasised by the Archbishop and the Church to be accepted more widely. (Pr.20:7)
Children are being put under too much pressure from exams, the Internet and celebrity culture, parents have warned. An investigation into children's welfare in 21st century Britain has found high levels of concern that their development is being damaged. Research by Mumsnet, the parenting website, found that adults believe it has never before been harder to be a child growing up. The study found that nearly nine out of ten parents feel their offspring are suffering from pressure to look like unrealistic images used in the media. Almost two thirds of those polled said that there was too much testing in schools, while three quarters admitted they struggled to spend enough time with their children because of their long working hours. More than half said the rise of the Internet had added to young people's problems, while 78 per cent said children do not play out enough on their own.
Pray: for young people and for secure, strong families who can support children faced with increasing life-pressures. (3Jn:4)
Children are still turning up to school hungry and skipping meals at lunchtime because they cannot afford to eat, research suggests. Some youngsters have been spotted stealing toast as they are so hungry, and in another case, a teacher found two girls sharing a packed lunch in the school toilets because one had no money for food, according to a report by the Children's Society charity. The study, based on a survey of around 570 teachers, reveals serious concerns among school staff. Almost three in four (72%) of the teachers surveyed said they have seen pupils coming into school with no lunch and no way to pay for one. Nearly half (45%) said that children are often hungry during the school day. The study, conducted with the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) and the National Union of Teachers (NUT), also reveals that two-thirds (66%) of school staff say that teachers are providing pupils with food or money for meals if they turn up for lessons hungry.
Pray: for the children who are missing out on lunches because of poverty or stigmatism. (Pr.10:
Two thirds of parents in the UK believe children are exposed to unsuitable content on television before the watershed, a survey has shown. An online survey of 1,004 parents of children under the age of 18 revealed that 67 per cent thought inappropriate content was broadcast before 9pm. A further 80 per cent said they felt films and video games with violent or sexual themes can be accessed too easily by children. The research, conducted for The Mothers’ Union, also showed that most parents think television, films, magazines and the Internet make children sexually aware at a younger age. The charity has called for a ban on marketing and selling sexualising products to children under 16 and put in place safeguards to protect children under 16 from viewing displays of goods of a sexual nature. Pray: for the media to recognise their responsibility in protecting children and young people. (Dt.5:29)
New analysis, released Monday by The Children’s Society, shows that the government’s proposed cap on benefits will cut support for more than 200,000 children. Children will be around nine times more likely than adults to be affected. The Department of Work and Pensions’ proposed scheme aims to promote fairness and get adults back into work by limiting benefits for out-of-work households to £500 per week for couples and families with children. But analysis by The Children’s Society suggests that children will be by far the biggest losers if the proposals become law - with three quarters of the total number of individuals affected being children. The charity found that the cap will impact around 50,000 households, 95 per cent of which are estimated to have children. These families will lose an average of £93 a week - the equivalent to around double the average weekly family food bill.
Pray: that the Government would not ignore the most vulnerable in our society. (Is.58:10)
Downing Street is launching a review of childcare and child-minding to see how it can be made more affordable by cutting red tape. Government research suggests six out of 10 parents feel there is insufficient childcare in their area. The move comes as an official review of early years education in England calls for all nursery staff to have A-level standard professional qualifications. The Nutbrown Review also wants their maths and literacy skills strengthened. Prof Cathy Nutbrown was asked by the government to look at how the childcare workforce could be strengthened. In her report, she says the current system of early years qualifications is not ‘equipping practitioners with the knowledge, skills and understanding they need’ to give babies and young children a good start. She warns that there are too many qualifications and calls for them to be strengthened.
Pray: that following the review the government will raise the standards of childcare and that parents will take their roll and responsibilities seriously. (Pr.9:9)
More: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-18496847