Felicity Gillespie

Crucial brain development in the first few years of life depends on the ‘serve and return’ interaction with parents and carers; baby talk, storytime and games. Sitting in front of a screen is one-way traffic: a child is only in receive mode. Maybe that’s why we are seeing the terrible impact of excessive screen time on pre-school children at the start of Reception. According to Kindred’s latest school readiness report, a third of children starting Reception can't dress themselves or communicate their needs to an adult; 45 per cent are reported to be unable to sit still for a short time. Up to a quarter of children who begin Reception are not properly toilet trained.

Over a third of UK universities are in financial trouble, according to Universities UK, the group that represents many of them and is currently lobbying the government for a lifeline. Ministers say they are ‘looking at all options’, but vice chancellors will find the task of convincing the cash-strapped Treasury a difficult task: new data reveals how disproportionately funded our education system is in favour of higher education. The latest OECD Education at a Glance data for 2024 makes painful reading for university chiefs. Comparing the education spending of 37 OECD countries, the UK has the third highest total per student spending on university and college education.