Children

Children, and children's rights

A parent's view on trans rights in schools

As a parent and as an educator, I have followed the development of the guidance for schools around transgender pupils from both perspectives. As a parent of a transgender child, this has made me think deeply around the rights of the parent to know what is going on with their child. Do I want to know that my child is questioning their gender, using a new name and new pronouns, exploring what it is to be gender non-binary? Yes. Of course I do. However the how and the when of that discussion is of supreme importance. My son came out in his own time. He had been using he-they pronouns for a year...

US bosses pursue child labour

The right and far-right in the US are emboldened and on the attack. Having already flooded state legislatures this year with hundreds of bills aiming to smash the rights of LGBTQ+ people, many of which explicitly target the rights of LGBTQ+ youth, the conservative right are likewise aiming for an unprecedented expansion of child labour. As the cost of living spirals, the right are waging amongst the most flagrantly abusive forms of class warfare; rolling back weak laws at the state and federal level to force kids from poor families into work. Over the past three years, at least ten states have...

Children, capitalism and communism

A string of reports on soaring mental illness among teenagers (and of increasing suicides, confirming there is more to it than just increased reporting of trouble). A spate of revolts by school students in England, mainly against uniform and toilet rules. The advance of technology and capital’s increasing demand for a generally-educated workforce has brought some advances for children and teenagers. In the broad sweep of history, it’s not so long since, even in richer capitalist countries, children mostly had pretty much no space to themselves at home, and socialised mainly on the street (or...

Make childcare a universal service

Sarah Ronan of the Women’s Budget Group talked with Solidarity in the run-up to the Budget. (This version includes some amendments sent by Sarah Ronan relative to the printed version.) We know that the current offer of free childcare is not funded at cost. Freedom of Information requests from 2021 show that the government knowingly underfunds the schemes by around £2.60 per hour. That obviously forces providers to cross-subsidise by increasing fees, and means that providers can’t pay the wages that they need to pay to compete in the current labour market and attract and keep staff. It doesn’t...

Childcare: gaps in Tory promises

The Tories’ 15 March Budget recognised the high cost of early years and childcare for working parents, and how little funding comes from the state. The present system of payments via Universal Credit and tax-free allowances isn’t making a difference. With labour shortages in almost every sector of the economy, the government is keen to find a way to get women with young children back into work, and promises to make childcare cheaper and more affordable. It promises to: • expand the free entitlement for some working parents from three-year-olds to include as young as nine months. That is to be...

Rights for under 18 asylum seekers!

Since 2021, the UK government has contracted hotels to house Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children (UASC) in lieu of moving them into Local Authority care. A recent investigation by the Observer found that dozens of under-18s had gone missing from a Brighton hotel with reports that they were being picked up from outside the hotel by traffickers, sparking outrage and protests. Fundamentally, this child protection failure is the result of decades of dehumanising anti-migrant sentiment and policy. Months before that investigation, another report counted over 200 children missing from hotels on...

Tories say they’ll review school trans guidelines

A case brought by parents of a child on the Isle of Wight is now said to have “prompted the government to revise its gender-related guidance for children”. The case goes back to 2017. Nigel and Sally Rowe, who are described as “Christian parents” (presumably self-defining), took legal action against the government for failing to intervene against school policy, and the government eventually conceded the case. Mr Rowe is reported as saying: “To cut a long story short, in the school, when our boys were six years of age, in the classroom one of their friends decided to transition from being a boy...

Battling a 2.5% pay offer in FE

Workers from Lewisham College joined the University and College Union (UCU) strike of 23 Further Education (FE) colleges on 6 and 7 October. Two further days next week and three the following week. Six other colleges are striking on other dates. The picket was lively, noisy and well supported by students and other supporters. The strikers rally heard speakers from Lewisham College, an RMT tube driver, UCU speakers from Lambeth College and Goldsmiths University and from UCU General Secretary, Jo Grady. Speakers pointed to the increased salaries of the college's principal and the leadership of...

Delhi's early years workers rise up

Between 31 January and 9 March many thousands of workers in the “anganwadi” early years childcare system of the Indian capital Delhi struck for higher pay, to be recognised as full public employees and other demands. In March their strike was declared illegal; hundreds of workers have now been sacked and thousands threatened with disciplinary action. The Delhi State Anganwadi Workers and Helpers Union has since organised a wave of protests, and says it will be restarting the strike. There have also been struggles by anganwadi workers in many other parts of India. At the end of July workers...

This website uses cookies, you can find out more and set your preferences here.
By continuing to use this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions.