A step back towards Section 28

As the Scottish Parliament heads towards Equal Marraige the menace that is some of the most vocal of those opposed is seeking to set the clock back. Scotland for Marriage in their response to the consultation have raised concerns about how the subject of same sex marriage and have urged that parents should have the right to remove their children from the classroom whenever such issues are to be discussed.

It is a step back to Section 28, which even now many of the Tories who voted to bring it in say was a mistake. But is also means that there will be some children in classes who will not learn that the family of some of their class mates is normal and allowed. Some of those who have two parents of the same sex will by those children who are excluded by their prejudiced parents been seen as odd, out of the ordinary. Also because they are not allowed to have heard about it with the rest of their class they will think it is disgusting and that those children are to be kept away from, shunned even bullied.

You see while those who fail to acknowledge that the next generation growing up do not come from homogenous families of one man and one women, those that do not fit into that mode, that they fail to let their children learn about will continue to be put under pressure from their kids. It is a self fulfilling prophecy that kids with same-sex parents will be picked on at school. If the attitude of some is to take their kids out of classes that discuss the issue those prejudices will be passed down.

As the victim of bullying at school, because I stood out as different, even though at the time I didn't realise (or maybe just didn't want to acknowledge) why I know that life can be tough. If some children are not allowed to discuss these issues in the midst of those that are affected they will not see them as normal and will therefore react in just the way that bullies have done through the years.

So Scotland for Marriage are merely going to propagate the continuation of homophobic bullying, not only of kids who are LGBT but also those perceived to be and those whose parents are known to be, if they achieve their goal.

I hope the Scottish Government stands firm. It is important that we do not slip back into a Section 28 like quagmire. For the well being of all our school children it is important that everyone learns about the fact that some people have a mum and dad, some two mums or dads, some multiples of one or both due to divorce and also that some only have one parent. Just as some are fostered or adopted. It doesn't make any of them any different from each other, nor the love of their parents is any less for any of them. That is the key, that is what the lessons will be trying to teach.

Never, say Never to second looks - Argyll and Bute Update

Earlier today Argyll and Bute Council issued this statement in relation to their decision banning Martha Payne's taking pictures for her Never Seconds blog from yesterday.

Published Date:
15 Jun 2012 - 10:53

Argyll and Bute Council wholly refutes the unwarranted attacks on its schools catering service which culminated in national press headlines which have led catering staff to fear for their jobs. The Council has directly avoided any criticism of anyone involved in the ‘never seconds’ blog for obvious reasons despite a strongly held view that the information presented in it misrepresented the options and choices available to pupils however this escalation means we had to act to protect staff from the distress and harm it was causing. In particular, the photographic images uploaded appear to only represent a fraction of the choices available to pupils, so a decision has been made by the council to stop photos being taken in the school canteen.

There have been discussions between senior council staff and Martha’s father however, despite an acknowledgement that the media coverage has produced these unwarranted attacks, he intimated that he would continue with the blog.

The council has had no complaints for the last two years about the quality of school meals other than one from the Payne family received on 6 June and there have been no changes to the service on offer since the introduction of the blog.

Pupils have a daily choice of two meals from a menu which is designed with pupils, parents and teachers. Our summer menu is about to be launched and includes main course choices like meat or vegetarian lasagne served with carrots and garlic bread or chicken pie with puff pastry, mashed potato and mixed vegetables.

Pupils can choose from at least two meals every day. They pay £2 for two courses and this could be a starter and a main or a main and a desert. Each meal comes with milk or water. Pupils can have as much salad and bread as they want. Salad, vegetables, fruit, yoghurt and cheese options are available every day. These are standing options and are not a result of any changes in response to the blog site.

As part of the curriculum for excellence, pupils in all our schools are regularly taught about healthy eating and at lunch breaks staff encourage pupils to make good choices from what is on offer. We use a system called ‘Nutmeg’ to make sure everything is nutritionally balanced. Our staff also get nutrition awareness training so they know how to provide a good healthy meal. There is portion sized guidance which we adhere to and it is matched to the age of the child so they get the right amount of food. Second portions would mean too many calories for pupils.

In Lochgilphead Primary School we are piloting a new pre-ordering scheme which is designed to encourage class discussion around meal choices and also improves the accuracy of meal choices. The pupils use a touch screen to select their lunch option and the data is downloaded in the kitchen so they know how many portions of each meal are required. As they place their order, the pupils are given a coloured band which relates to their meal choice that day. They wear it during the morning, and at lunchtime they hand it to the catering assistant, who will give them the corresponding meal.

The council’s focus is now on supporting the school in the education of young people in Argyll and Bute.

What a difference two and half hours more careful consideration brought to the situation they have since changed that statement on the same page to this from the council leader

Published Date: 

15 Jun 2012 - 10:53

Updated: 14:19 - 15 June 2012

Statement from Cllr Roddy McCuish, Leader of Argyll and Bute Council

"There is no place for censorship in this Council and never will be whilst I am leader.   I  have advised senior officers that this Administration intends to clarify the Council's policy position in regard to taking photos in schools. I have therefore requested senior officials to consider immediately withdrawing the ban on pictures from the school dining hall until a report can be considered by Elected Members. This will allow the continuation of the "Neverseconds" blog written by an enterprising and imaginative pupil, Martha Payne which has also raised lots of money for charity.

But we all must also accept that there is absolutely no place for the type of inaccurate and abusive attack on our catering and dining hall staff, such as we saw in one newspaper yesterday which considerably inflamed the situation.  That, of course, was not the fault of the blog, but of the paper.

We need to find a united way forward so I am going to bring together our catering staff, the pupils, councillors and council officials - to ensure that the council continues to provide  healthy, nutrious and attractive school meals.  That "School Meals Summit" will take place later this summer.

 I will also meet Martha and her father as soon as I can, along with our lead councillor on Education, Michael Breslin to seek her continued engagement, along with lots of other pupils, in helping the council to get this issue right.   By so doing Martha Payne and her friends  will have had a strong and lasting influence not just on school meals, but on the whole of Argyll & Bute."

This statement supersedes all other council statements on the matter already issued.

You somehow think that if the latter statement had been the way the council decided to proceed on this matter intially, listening to Martha and other children about the state of school meals under their influence that maybe people would never have heard of Argyll and Bute. Some would still think it is spelt Argyle or something to do with Plymouth, and Martha would not have soured to her target by over 400% of fundraising for Mary's Meals most of that in the last 24 hours.

But seeing as the council leader says there "There is no place for censorship in this Council and never will be whilst [he is] leader" before totally replacing the previous disingenuous statement with his own, I'm sure he won't mind me copying them both here in full. I only do that so that we can see how someone in the press departments knee jerk reaction was so poorly letting down the children and end users of school meals provision earlier today.

Argyll and Bute Council censoring 9-year-old creativity

Argyll and Bute council yesterday made a very supportive head teacher in a primary school take one of their nine year old pupils out of class to inform her that she could no longer take photographs of her school dinners and rate them in a fun way with fun facts and blog them. As the blog grew to over 2 million hits since it started in April to feature international school dinners as well.

My friend Andrew (aka Scottish Liberal) wrote this excellent post about it, which explains he take on what she has done from a professional photographer and .

Another Scottish twitter Wings Over Scotland talking to Andrew came up with the idea that every  Scottish blogger should blog one of her pictures today.

So while Argyll and Bute council can censor a 9-year-old they can't silence all of the MacBlogosphere

All the best Veg and don't let the heavy handed bureaucrats stop you being creative.

Central Integrated Primary take campaign to the hill

At the front Cllr. John Barry, Stephen Farry MLA, Steven Agnew MLA
and Peter Campbell  (Principal)
Picture by Joanna Braniff

Earlier today a petition from supporters of Bangor Central Integrated Primary School was taken to Stormont to be handed into the speaker of the Assembly. The petition is the urge the Minister of Education and North Down Borough Council to reconsider selling the adjacent Leisure Centre site to a private company, while the school built for 300 pupils houses 600 next door on a somewhat suffocating parcel of land.

When you consider that the 600 pupils currently have to take their lunch at Bangor Academy next door. Have their sports' day on the Academy playing fields. And all around their playground are a series of huts. This is hardly an ideal situation for the only Integrated Primary School in town.

Earlier this morning the Principal Peter Campbell was on the radio pointing out that the reasons the school needed improved premises on its current location were firstly the capacity issue, also that is was currently part of an education village with Central Nursery and Bangor Academy on the same pocket of land and Glenlola Collegiate and the South East Regional College sites a few minutes walk away. It therefore allows for ease of parents dropping off and collecting children of differing ages. Plus with its unique integrated status for key stage 1 and 2 pupils it needs to be accessible to all of the town's population.

Friends in the Scottish party may remember me talking from an intervention mic during a policies for the future session about how the fact that there was a move to integrated education slightly further to the West of the West of Scotland was a reason why it made most sense to move towards it in Scotland. This school is a prime example. But while others with more land have been updated to do away with the need for temporary classrooms this one has been overlooked by successive Education ministers. This is despite promises to consider working to acquire the Leisure Centre site by the previous minister to enable that improvement.

The petition which has over 3000 signatures is calling for the DUP led North Down Borough Council to reconsider its decision to sell the site to private developers but keep it for public use for the development of the school. If the ministers for education in Northern Ireland are serious about a future where pupils from all historic communities work and learn together schools like BCIPS need to be allowed to develop. My primary school elsewhere in town has less pupils, but more space and an extension adding five new classrooms. My secondary school over in Newtownards in recent years also has had an extensive modernising extension project again doing away with the multitude of temporary classrooms. In both cases many of the temporary classrooms where present for over 20 or 30 years.

We need to do better for our children and their education, a school whose enrollment is twice what its buildings were designed for, that is continuously oversubscribed every year needs to be allow breathing space. Not just for its current pupils but so that it can provide all the service that it needs to, including its own room for sports.

People who inspired me: Richard Lowry 1955-2011

Earlier tonight while over at my brother's he turned to me from Facebook to tell me that Richard Lowry had died earlier today.

Mr Lowry as we knew him was the younger Economics teacher at Regent House Grammar School when I started my A' Level in the subject. But he was the one who was more inspirational. He was only 15 years older than us but he had ways to get us involved in practical Economics.

When it came to learning about how the stock market worked, he gave us all pages of accounting paper and the sum of £500 on the credit side. For the next three months until the end of that first term we would trade shares at the closing day closing prices from the previous day. He would have to sign off any transactions so on the days we didn't have him for economics we would end up in his hut with our broadsheet paper ( in my case the Guardian, or the new Independent) to carry out our trades. At the end there was a prize of a mint Bank of England one pound note* in a frame. That One Pound Note has traveled to London and back then off to Scotland and back in my safe possession since.

The first time I watched the budget was actually in one of Mr Lowry's classes, wonderfully scheduled for the Chancellor's presentations (they were in the Autumn in 1986). We knew what we were looking out for and were filing in notes of key changes as we went through. It is something I've done many times since, so the fact that I learn of his death on the day of a Chancellors Autumn Statement seems even more poignant.

However, with Doctor Bell seemingly part of the furniture at Regent Mr Lowry looked for better options so before the end of our first year of our A' Level he went of to Glenlola as the head of Business Studies. He later went on to be head of sixth form and Vice Principal. He'd only taken half our our A' Level classes but we always looked forward to them. When he let at the start of June his substitute was Sammy Wilson who is now in charge of the Northern Irish Executive budget.

One morning  he drew up a graph of a good type on the board and started to tell us what to write about it, then half way through started to say that in reverse this meant something else, which got more and more ludicrous as he carried on speaking. I either sadly, or happily, don't have all that he said as more and more of us stopped writing until he got the the line. "Many people have taken this reverse theory as truth and written long studies of this principle but are no better than April Fools" Yes there were a few still writing when he got to those last two words. One person even didn't stop until he wrote down 'fools'.

It was Mr Lowry who inspired me to take Economics further to University (okay I started out at Polytechnic, but my degree is from a University). Of course doing so also got me involved in politics, not the them and us of Northern Irish politics but the real politics of the rest of the UK. I got involved with the exciting new party that had just formed from two founding parties in their first freshers events in September 1988. It has led to so much more (see the political experience tab).

I seen him occasionally around Bangor since he took the role at Glenlola and had told him about standing for Westminster in 2005. He was truly and inspiration that led me to what I've been involved with for the past two decades.

He truly was an inspirational teacher. He took early retirement in January 2010 on health grounds, sadly he has died at the all too early age of 56. So my thoughts and prayers are with his wife Sharon and sons Matthew and Peter.

* Younger readers (who aren't from Scotland) may not believe in the mythical one pound note, whose greenness is mentioned in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. The reason being in 1987 they were phased out.

Tha'll not come a changin' wi' t'rest #LG

I can't believe the findings that Sheffield Hallam University have come up with today. In its study Tackling Homophobia and Transphobia In Settings Supporting Young People it found that LGBT young people in more than one school across Yorkshire were being asked to change for sports and PE in a separate room or toilet and not in the changing rooms with other students.

It made me think back to the article I wrote about the stupidity and homophobia of the American Family Association on just such an issue early last year. I never thought I'd be taking up keyboard about the same issue in my own country.

The reason cited was when students complained about being singled out in such a way was because it was "for their own safety" or to "stop causing a fuss". The problem of course is in singling anyone out as different. Whilst there may be a fear of letting an openly or perceived LGBT pupil face what might happen in a changing room, singling them out and taking them away from the situation makes them more of an overt target, not just in the changing room but elsewhere.

Knowing the layout of my old school changing facilities the only option to change elsewhere would have been in the staff changing room. Surely that is open to other dangers! Or misinterpretation! Or along a long corridor well away from the changing rooms of the rest. Causing a pupil to walk in gym kit to and from the sports centre while other pupils are going about their change of class. In other words making the 'difference' of that LGBT pupil spread outside their year group, possibly to older pupils, or maybe also in vision of other closeted LGBT pupils.

The effect of such policy certainly leads to LGBT pupils wanting to avoid physical education classes or school altogether on such day. May as a result of the isolation and picking out as different by staff lead to increased bullying, increased homophobia and false assumptions of paedophilia based on the actions, lead to other pupils still questioning or hiding their identity not to come out.

I faced enough bullying on the assumption by others (as I was denying it myself) that I was gay in secondary school. Although never in the changing rooms, possibly because I was a team player and one of the sportsmen who went on to earn an honours tie for representing my school at the senior level. It happened often enough away from the eyes of teachers and I served a couple of punishments for fighting back at the wrong point, because the teachers never seemed to take action over the homophobic bullying, or maybe I was scared to admit that was an element of it.

So how do you deal with homophobic bullying in the changing rooms?

• First don't isolate the victims, if you have to isolate the bullies in a separate changing facility. 
• Never publicly mark out somebody who already feels different as such, then the others will jump to their own conclusions as to why the steps are being taken. Look for example at the above comment about paedophilia. While you may think removing an LGBT pupil is for their safety the rumour could start by those left that it is for theirs and a new generation grow up with that stereotype. Grr!
• Learn and teach that not every naked (fe)male body is going to be attractive to an (L)GBT pupil. I still go to the gym and there are some very unattractive and off-putting sights in the male changing rooms.
• If you are being inclusive that means encourage LGBT pupils to take part in sport, not every LGBT person is poor at sports look at Martina Navratilova, Steven Davies, Dónal Óg Cusack, Matt Mitcham and others as examples who excel at their sport. Doubt if any of them ever had to change in alternative changing facilities because of their sexuality.

So lets look at the needs of the already possibly nervous LGBT pupil in a sensible way that won't hinder them or others in the long term. Isolation and a separate changing regime most certain is not going to prevent that.

Left Out of the Equation report show homophobia not tackled in Northern Ireland Schools

The Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister last year produced their Draft Programme for Cohesion, Sharing and Integration which as many people pointed out ignored LGBT issues, failed to promise to deliver a Sexual Orientation Strategy before 2012. Indeed failed to take us on much since the investigation intohomophobic harassment and violence of 2003.

Is it any wonder that with such institutionalised inaction by the NI executive that the Left Out of the Equation report from The Rainbow Project and Cara Friend looking at the experiences of LGBT young people at school is so harrowing?

• 94 per cent said that there was nothing taught in sexual health education that was relevant to them
• 87 per cent felt that their school took not effort to prevent homophobic bullying
• 69 per cent said that teachers took no action to stop homophobic language and that 8% reported that staff laughed along or joined in

These are all figures that I would have expected in my school days over 20 years ago, the fact that this is still the case means that another generation of school children are going through the bullying that I endured and worse another generation are getting away with believing that it is alright to do so. 

The recommendations of the report are that:

• Government must ensure that all schools are required to have an effective policy and intervention  strategy to combat homophobic bullying.
• The Minister for Education must ensure that there is an appropriate complaints mechanism where pupils and their families can challenge the decisions of Boards of Governors.
• The Minister for Education must ensure that the legal protections afforded to LGB people are not denied to young people.
• The Minister for Education must ensure that all teachers are required to have effective training in how to intervene when they witness homophobic language and behaviour.
• The Minister for Education must ensure that there is a legal duty placed on schools; that they must show due regard to the necessity of promoting equality of opportunity for all young people.

I look forward to finding out what the Minister of Education intends to do about these once he is not standing in as Deputy First Minister.

Labour Admitting Failure on Education

After 12 and half years can a Government who had as its mantra "Education, education, education" be allowed room for error over those at Primary School level? The answer has got to be no.

Yet this morning the Prime Minister and his School's Secretary are going to announce plans to guarantee extra tuition for primary pupils who fall behind. Considering Ed Balls is also calling for a debate with his opposite numbers does he really want to defend that Labour record and that election pledge after 13 years of Labour Government. Brave man.

So why after 12 and half years of Labour controlling the purse strings for most of the UK on education has our current crop of Primary School children been failed to this extent. In Scotland at least the reduction of class sizes in the early years was something that came in as part of a Lib Dem partnership, even it the SNP haven't managed to take it further there is a thrust in Scottish education to give our children the best start possible. The same is not true of England and possibly to an extent Wales.

The other news today that too many of our children are too slow to learn to talk may go part of the way to explaining it. The development of early vocal ability comes from the family of the child. In our society too many parents of young children don't have the time to sit down and spend time with their children to learn these key early skills. However, our education system should then be capable of picking up on these situations and make amends for them as soon after the child enters their doors as possible. Is that too much to ask?

I don't want to hear Brown and Balls using this other breaking news story on the same day as they will be announcing this education proposal as an excuse to get Labour off the hook for over 12 years of failure, failure, failure on education, education, education. For most of that 12 year period we have been reasonably prosperous as a nation and the funding would have been then to set up such a scheme long ago. I doubt this is a new issue that has suddenly dawned on the Department of Education and Children

Can We Afford this Effrontery?

Apparently the Nat Government has effectively turned down £13bn from Westminster aimed to get PFI projects such as schools and hospitals off the ground when the private sector element is not forthcoming.

It clearly is one problem when there is a recession that private companies clam up in new capital investment if they can and focus on things that currently exist. However, as the SNPs Scottish Futures Trust (SFT) has failed to materialise after 21 months and because of their opposition and cessation to the previous PFI model on which SFT is based. There has yet to be a single SFT .

The Scottish Secretary Jim Murphy said:

"The UK-wide temporary fund means PFI projects in Scotland can be considered for support on the same terms as UK departments. The Scottish Futures Trust has yet to procure a single project which might be eligible.

"The Scottish Government needs to stop putting its dogmatic position before Scotland's interests when it comes to PFI. We need to get Scotland building again if we are going to get through the recession and it would make sense for Scottish ministers to reconsider their opposition as soon as possible."

Not a single project! Just what are they playing at? When can we expect something to kick off? Also what does this mean should they gain their wish for Independence will be also see Scotland stall while the lacking infrastructure is uhmed and ahhed about?

Jeremy Purvis the Lib Dem finance spokesperson added:

"This shows very clearly that the SNP has brought to a halt the pipeline of projects vital for Scotland to work through a recession.

"In 2006-7 there were over £1 billion worth of PPP/PFI and NPD contracts awarded in Scotland; now this is down to less than a third of that, with catastrophic timing."

The Nats tried to divert attention by saying the bail-out was "proof positive" that the PFI model was the "economics of the madhouse". Rather ironic use of words at least they was some sort of "house" being build even if the system did need refining, but the do nothingness of SFT really is a madhouse especially with the First Minister himself ranting on about the need to invest money in Scotland to secure Scottish jobs.

The stubbornness of the Nationalist mule to make everything in their own image and cut down things that were in place before a working replacement is in place together with trying to ignore that Scotland is still part of a larger entity is the real economics of the madhouse.