Tag: children

Bishop of Bristol highlights negative impact of lack of digital access for children

On 8th February 2024, the Bishop of Bristol spoke in a debate on a report from the Communications and Digital Committee on digital exclusion, emphasising the impact of lack of digital access on children:

The Lord Bishop of Bristol: My Lords, it is a pleasure to follow the noble Lord, Lord Lipsey, whose speech imaginatively took us into the life and world of Joe Soap. I congratulate the noble Baroness, Lady Stowell, on securing this timely debate—timely in one sense—and I offer my thanks to all members of the Communications and Digital Committee for a thorough and wide-ranging report. I also lament the lack of a government cross-departmental strategy.

Today, I focus my comments on digital inclusion and exclusion in and around schools, about which I have a little knowledge. In 2021, UNICEF produced an excellent report on the effect of digital exclusion on schoolchildren. That report said that

“digital inclusion must be seen as the cornerstone to ensuring social justice and equitable life chances for every child”.

Those words were written while the pandemic was at its peak and the long-term impact on education was still difficult to predict.

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Bishop of Durham speaks in support of financial education in primary schools

The Bishop of Durham spoke in a debate on financial education in schools on 31st January 2024, urging that teachers be equipped to teach financial education as part of the primary school curriculum:

The Lord Bishop of Durham: My Lords, I too thank the noble Baroness, Lady Sater, for securing this debate and introducing it so clearly. I declare my interests as stated in the register.

The evidence finds that a child’s attitude towards money is well developed by the age of seven. The foundations of our skills in managing money are laid in these early years. Yet, unlike in the secondary curriculum, financial education is absent from the requirements of the primary curriculum in England. This is seen by 60% of teachers as a key obstacle to its high-quality delivery. Further challenges include training, time and funding. Young Money and City Pay it Forward are examples of external providers supporting teachers with high-quality resources and training.

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Victims & Prisoners Bill: Bishop of Manchester supports amendments on child criminal exploitation and access to victims’ services

On 24th January 2024, the House of Lords debated the Victims & Prisoners Bill in committee. The Bishop of Manchester spoke in the debate, in support of two amendments:

  • amendment 10, which would seek to provide a definition of “child criminal exploitation” in the text of the bill
  • amendment 15 in the Bishop of Manchester’s name, which would specify that responsibility for accessing services for victims does not lie with the potential service user

The Lord Bishop of Manchester: My Lords, as I said at Second Reading, this is a good Bill for victims. It contains many provisions that I strongly support. I hope and believe that we can make it an even better Bill by working across the House, which is the mood tonight, as it was then.

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Bishop of Durham asks about UNICEF report on child poverty

The Bishop of Durham received the following written answer on 22nd January 2024:

The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government:

  • what steps are they taking to prevent children falling into poverty during future economic crises, in response to the conclusions of the UNICEF report Child Poverty in the Midst of Wealth, published on 6 December 2023.
  • what assessment they have made of the UNICEF report Child Poverty in the Midst of Wealth, published on 6 December 2023, and its finding that the UK has seen the greatest increase in child poverty out of the 40 countries featured in the report; and what steps they are taking to prevent a further increase.
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Bishop of Durham asks about implementation of children’s charter

The Bishop of Durham tabled a question on whether the government plans to implement the recommendations of the Coram’s Charter for Children on 16th January 2024:

The Lord Bishop of Durham: To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of Coram’s Charter for Children, and what steps they plan to take to implement its recommendations to create better chances for children.

Baroness Barran (Con, Department for Education): My Lords, we welcome the publication of Coram’s Charter for Children and are grateful for its work in supporting children, young people and families. All children need love and stability to be happy and to grow up capable of fulfilling their potential. The Government are committed to prioritising the needs of children, ensuring that their best interests are at the centre of policy- and decision-making.

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Bishop of Chelmsford asks about provision of cots for families in social housing

The Bishop of Chelmsford asked a question on provision of cots for families in temporary and social housing on 10th January 2024:

The Lord Bishop of Chelmsford: May I say on behalf of these Benches, too, how pleased we are to see the noble Baroness back in her place. We know that cots are extremely important for the health and well-being of babies and young children. What is the Government’s policy on the provision of cots to those in social housing? The charity Justlife states that around 25% of temporary accommodation falls under the purview of the social housing regulator. With nearly 140,000 children living in temporary accommodation in England alone, what steps are being taken to ensure that cots are provided for families in temporary accommodation under the purview of the social housing regulator?

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Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham asks about use of a register for home educated children

The Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham received the following written answer on 10th January 2024:

The Lord Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham asked His Majesty’s Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Barran on 19 December 2023, what consideration they have given to expediting the introduction of a statutory register of children schooled at home and online, given the rise in those numbers, in order to identify children (1) who are at risk, or (2) who have unmet needs.

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Bishop of Durham asks about rates of child poverty in the UK

The Bishop of Durham received the following written answer on 10th January 2024:

The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the UNICEF report Child Poverty in the Midst of Wealth, published on 6 December, and its conclusion that of the 39 OECD and EU countries featured in the report, the UK has seen the largest increase in child poverty since 2014.

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Bishop of St Albans asks about underage and illegal workers in delivery services

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 13th December 2023:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Offord of Garvel on 28 November (HL427), whether they have assessed how many (1) underage children, and (2) illegal workers, have been working as delivery riders; and if so, how many of each there were in (a) 2021, and (b) 2022.

Lord Sharpe of Epsom (Con, Home Office): The Home Office does not hold this information.

Hansard

Archbishop leads debate on support for families and households

On 8th December 2023 the Archbishop of Canterbury led a debate in the House of Lords on the following motion:

The Lord Archbishop of Canterbury to move that this House takes note of ‘Love Matters’, the report of the Archbishops’ Commission on Families and Households.

The opening speech made by the Archbishop is below. More information and a copy of the report on which the debate was based, can be read here.

The opening speech by the Archbishop of Canterbury in his House of Lords debate on families
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