How would you tackle child poverty and improve outcomes?

[Cindyyyy]

I would back:

• free basic school meals for all from 3 (extras can be paid for) of healthy, veg-based, minimally-processed meals
• investment into school-based pre-school, to be free for all from age 3
• increase school funding massively, pay rises for teachers and nursery staff, investment and subsidies into training
• increase number of SEN schools and in-school SEN provision, as well as PRUs
• subsidised holiday clubs for all parents working full time
• extend SureStart, increase reviews by health visitors. If a child isn’t meeting milestones, earlier intervention and increased checks
• expand apprenticeships

You?

I wasn't advocating for a return to the 70's, how did you get that from the point I was making? I was explaining the very worrying distribution of wealth of the 1% of richest people in the UK that was 22% in 1975 and is now 70% why wonder why everyone is poorer, the writing is on the wall!!

I could list my gripes with Le Cor Bloody Busier, but I’ll pick out 2 ways in which his misguided ideas have damaged society.

• huge windswept areas between the blocks instead of small individual gardens/ yards. These often became intimidating hang-outs for bored and disaffected youngsters with nothing to do. And what belongs to everyone belongs to no one, so they weren’t cared for properly either by the community or the council.
• if you’re a multi millionaire and choose to live in a luxurious serviced tower block - fine. If you’re almost anyone else (but particularly families (esp single parents) with young children, they must have been a nightmare. If you had a small terraced house and yard you could let the kids outside on a nice day and they’d be safe and under your supervision. If you live on the 10th floor you either have to decamp with the entire family to go down to the playground, tell the kids they can’t go out (cue frustration all round) or just turn them out to go down on their own, running the risk of them getting into all kinds of trouble. And that’s if the lifts are working.

I think these estates damaged families and communities and encouraged the development of gang culture.

I do actually agree with you. They killed interaction.

@CoffeeCantata I agree with everything you say about tower blocks. (Also, not sure how many of the architects who designed them actually lived in them).
Alice Coleman wrote a fascinating book about the effects of tower blocks on their inhabitants called ‘Utopia on Trial: Vision and Reality in Planned Housing’.

However they seem to work in some countries. For example in Korean cities the majority of people live in them and there isn’t the crime and antisocial behaviour that has often been the case in UK.
I don’t know why this is the case.

@38thparallel I lived in Korea for years, in the less fancy of the high rise apartments too. The answer is a lot of cctv evrrywhere and harsh consequences for crime.

HubbleBubble, that is interesting.
Would I also be right in saying that Koreans and Japanese feel the community is important and it makes for a nicer life for everyone if citizens don’t mug people, burgle houses, pee in lifts, chuck litter everywhere etc.?

That’s really interesting. I wonder if the Korean blocks are perhaps well-maintained and serviced? If this had been the case, with a caretaker and resident concierge for each block, things might have been different in this country. I still feel that high-rise should be an active choice though- people shouldn’t be forced into them. I know that personally it would be my idea of hell - I have vertigo and I’d be stressing that the people below me might fall asleep with a cigarette on their flammable sofa.

It could also be cultural. It’s a cliche, but the British do seem to think of their homes as their castle! I do think we are a very individualistic nation for better or worse. Other cultures such as some Scandinavian countries and maybe oriental people have a more collectivist character and can perhaps make tower block living work for them.

I’m interested in architecture and architects and believe me, I’ve read a few articles and interviews with Brutalist architects over the years and have a special grudge against those who live in Georgian rectories.

Personally I think they should be hunted down like dogs!😀

@38thparallel I didn't have much to do with my neighbours except a hello in the lift or if we were putting bins out at the same time. So i can't say it had much of a community feel. I think it's more that there really is zero tolerance for antisocial crimes of that sort. One sad example is that if we heard domestic violence (which I did) the police would come if you called and said it was a noise complaint distrupting your sleep (awful, antisocial behaviour), but not if you said it was domestic violence (private family matter)

There was a janitor and I often saw the communal places being swept and mopped. Part of our rent.

Oh and there was very little litter because the social security situation is so bad that elderly people are out picking up everything they can to exchange for money at recycling centers. Basically, it's expected that you look after your elderly, so the state pension isn't enough to support them, it's more like pocket money. Which means those without children, grandchildren, extended family end up on the streets collecting cardboard

There is so much packaging on stuff but we try to take it back to Tescos or Waitrose.

I dislike littering and fly tipping so much

I still feel that high-rise should be an active choice though- people shouldn’t be forced into them. I know that personally it would be my idea of hell.

@CoffeeCantata I agree.
I think brutalist architecture is ugly but I’ve read plenty of posts on forums praising Trellick Tower and the Barbican and so on so each to their own, I suppose. As you say, if people make the active choice to live in a high-rise building then great.

@Hubblebubble thank you for your interesting posts. That is sad about the childless elderly people.
People from law abiding East Asian countries must get a shock if they come to UK cities with phone snatching and so on.
Did you like living in Korea? Did you learn Korean?

I did like it. I lived there for nearly 3 years and learnt enough to get by, order from restaurants, ask for directions, small talk, that sort of thing.

Yeah! It must be a huge culture shock! People would leave their laptops on their tables in cafes, go to the toilet, and they'd still be there when they came back