Stockton children's holiday scheme funding plea
More than 9,000 children are eligible and demand is expected to rise with the expansion of free school meals, the council said.The 1,580 children who attended at Easter 2024 took up 5,227 spaces of the 6,000 available.
Clark said: "The funding goes down every year, but free school meal eligibility goes up. "More children meet the criteria but we're getting less money."I don't know how councils are expected to survive - we can only do so much."Mandie Rowlands, service lead for school support and sufficiency, said funding had only been agreed until March 2026. The programme had previously been hampered by a non "user-friendly" booking system but that has now been replaced with a "sophisticated" system which goes live on 4 July, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said. Ms Rowland said: "We are going to really make sure we concentrate on our 10 most deprived areas and have those activities in all those areas. "We've had over 50 providers apply, which is creating over 17,000 spaces for the summer."Councillor Ray Godwin said it was "ironic" that as the booking system was "perfected" the funding could run out."I think maybe all the councillors need to lobby to make sure the funding doesn't go away," he said.
Follow BBC Tees on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
22 minutes ago
- The Independent
Supreme Court allows enforcement of Mississippi social media age verification law
The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to block enforcement of a Mississippi law aimed at regulating the use of social media by children, an issue of growing national concern. The justices rejected an emergency appeal from a tech industry group that is challenging laws passed in Mississippi and other states that require social media users to verify their ages. NetChoice, which brought the lawsuit, argues the Mississippi law threatens privacy rights and unconstitutionally restricts the free expression of users of all ages.
The Independent
22 minutes ago
- The Independent
Large drop in number of pupils studying Welsh at A-level since 2005, data shows
There has been a dramatic drop in the number of pupils studying Welsh at A-level, with almost a third fewer taking the subject than two decades ago. More than 500 fewer students studied Welsh to a high level this year than in 2005, the latest data shows. The drop has come despite the Welsh Government having set a target of one million Welsh speakers by 2050. Around 538,000 people can speak the language in Wales. Data examined by the PA news agency shows some 372 students took Welsh as a first or second language at A-level this year, down from 927 in 2005. The lowest year on record was 2023, when just 353 pupils took the subject. This year has been the lowest year for people taking Welsh as a first language, with 185 entries, compared with 260 in 2020. Some 187 pupils took the subject as a second language, with 209 having taken it in 2020. Efa Gruffudd Jones, the Welsh Language Commissioner – an officer appointed by the Welsh Government to oversee an independent body aiming to promote the use of the Welsh language – described the drop as a 'matter of concern'. Speaking to PA, Ms Gruffudd Jones said she supported calls from the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol (Welsh National College) for Welsh to become a protected subject. She said: '(This would) make sure that every educational institution post-16 offers the course. 'What I hear from people who get in touch with my office, if only you know three or four people want to study it, then schools don't offer the subject at all. 'I believe they need 12 before they decide to run the course. I don't think that's right. 'I think it should be offered at every educational institution post-16.' Ms Gruffudd Jones also said the qualification itself is under review, and the content needs to be made more attractive and relevant to students. She added: 'The other thing is that you can study many more courses through the medium of Welsh now than you used to be able to. 'You can study psychology, criminology, etc, through the medium of Welsh. 'Maybe people in the past who would have wanted to study through the medium of Welsh chose Welsh, but now they have a wider range of choice.' The commissioner stressed that Welsh is not the only language to have seen a decline, with many European languages having seen a drop across the UK. Total entries for French, German, and Spanish were down by 20% from 443 to 352 in Wales this year, with Ruth Cocks, director of British Council Wales, describing the drop in interest in international languages as a 'concerning story'. Ms Gruffudd Jones said the reason for the move away from studying languages was unclear, but may be due to pupils being encouraged to study more Stem subjects. 'I understand that we need people with technical ability, but I would argue that you also need linguistic ability in order to communicate with people in workplaces, to articulate yourself well in future,' she said. 'I would argue that literature gives you some insight into the world. 'I don't think really that it should be either or. 'What's important is that it doesn't go any lower, and we continue to make efforts to attract people to learn Welsh to a high standard.' The Welsh Government's aim to have one million Welsh speakers by 2050 was first set out in 2017. Earlier this year, a new five-year plan was unveiled by the commissioner to help achieve the goal. And the Welsh Language and Education (Wales) Bill, which aims to close the gap in Welsh speaking ability among pupils from different schools, passed in the Senedd. Figures from the 2021 census showed a decline in the number of people who can speak Welsh compared with a decade earlier. Around 538,000 people in Wales – roughly 17% of the population – said they could speak Welsh, compared with 562,000 in 2011, around 19% of the population. Recent years have seen Welsh place names take prominence over English as the default, with Eryri replacing Snowdonia on official communications from the national park authority. In response to the decline in A-level entries, a Welsh Government spokesperson said: 'We would like more learners to take Welsh as a subject. 'A consultation is taking place to look at creating new Welsh AS and A-levels, making them engaging and attractive to learners. 'We see the Welsh Language and Education (Wales) Act 2025 as a means to provide more children and young people with access to the language within the education sector than ever before. 'We want all young people to leave school with better Welsh skills, regardless of whether they do A-level Welsh or not.'
BreakingNews.ie
22 minutes ago
- BreakingNews.ie
Justice Minister concerned over youth attacks on Indian community
A majority of recent attacks on the Indian community appear to have been carried out by young people, the Justice Minister has said. The Ireland India Council said there is an organised social media campaign against the Indian community in Ireland and the number of violent attacks has intensified since January. Advertisement In a statement on Thursday, Minister Jim O'Callaghan said he had met representatives of the council and the Federation of Indian Communities in Ireland. He said: 'Any attack against innocent members of the public such as those suffered by members of the Indian community are totally unacceptable and will not be tolerated. 'Attacks on individuals because of their inherent characteristics including race are abhorrent to the values of our republic and are condemned by any right-thinking people. 'What I find most concerning about these attacks is that the majority appear to have been carried out by young people. Advertisement 'I have been informed that Garda juvenile liaison officers are engaging with the respective communities and youth groups on the matter.' Mr O'Callaghan said he engaged extensively with the Garda commissioner on the matter and senior investigating officers had been assigned to investigate all reported incidents.
