So given that it is so wet we have managed not to go and support the library workers strike, the spring walk has been cancelled and so has the star gazing evening. So that leaves me with  big kids to get to Newport for swimming, cinema and shopping, and a tired and tummy achey Jonathan [Continue]

I had a friend round to help with some plumbing recently and managed to get drawn into his latest scheme.  It’s a good one though, because it involves action to help save our libraries.  If you have missed all the local and national media coverage of Island library closures, the Isle of Wight Council are threatening to [Continue]

Well so much for the idea that the new legislation that comedy duo Balls and Badman want to introduce will only be good for home educators, it has done much harm even while it is only proposed legislation, not least in the amount of time it means that we home educated parents have wasted on [Continue]

I’ve just heard the latest on Kerry Robertson and the thought of social services virtually wrenching her baby from it’s mothers breast leads me feeling numb.  I’m not one for trial by newspaper, especially where the Daily Mail is concerned, but Fife council’s behaviour has all the hallmarks of our [Continue]

Over the last few days I have been posting a series of blog articles looking at the Badman review of home education, and proposals to introduce new legislation on the back of it.  If you don’t know about the review, or the  catastrophic effects it could have on educational freedoms and family rights in the [Continue]

I was once sat in a doctors surgery, rather bored, waiting for my turn to go and be poked and prodded. As I sat in the half empty room someone came in, picked up a chair and left. No-one batted an eyelid. No-one missed the chair. We were all still sitting comfortably. Then someone else [Continue]

“Eco Island is an ambitious change programme. It will turn the Isle of Wight into the ultimate Eco Island, with strong communities and the lowest carbon footprint in England by 2020.” (Eco Island website) So, what happened to Eco Island? I know some things are happening, but after all the flash, whizz and bang of [Continue]

In a bid to deal with the rising threat of terrorism, gun crime, grafitti, bunking off school and all the other evil things that would be rampant on our streets without our politicians keeping us safe, our Tone has hired storm troopers to patrol the capitals streets. You can see this one using his stop-and-search-for-no-flaming-reason-at-all [Continue]

So often we here statements along the lines of “but if one less child dies…” or “if we can stop one child being abused…”. Indeed the government cliche of the moment is “Every Child Matters”. The trouble is, in a simplistic way I guess most of tend to agree with these sorts of statements. There [Continue]

Just been reading on the Solent TV website about a new survey which says the Isle of Wight is one of the worst places to bring up children. This is based on a survey of the things parents rate most important in an area, and then using statistical information to score each of these, duly [Continue]