Skip to main content

The North London School Preparing Students for the Cost of Living.

"It's just really sad, isn't it? What's happening in the world?" asks Melissa Perera, 33, an autism specialist tutor. 


"I have heard some students at primary schools are no longer getting hot meals, which could be the only hot meal they have that day," she explains. 


The cost of living crisis has, according to the NASUWT teaching union, had a profound negative impact on the education of school children. The union claims 6 in 10 teachers said pupils were arriving to school hungry, and almost 70% said their pupils "were lacking in energy and concentration." 


However, The Holmewood School, where Melissa tutors at, aims to help its students prepare for independent living. 


Like all students at Holmewood, Melissa's pupils receive "life skills lessons" to broaden their understanding of areas including home economics, budgeting and personal finances. 


"In our lessons, we've been looking at different types of bills, looking at ranking them in terms of the priority of what needs to be paid, so obviously heating comes first," she explains. 


"We looked how we can save money on our heating bills; buying a higher tog duvet, wearing more layers in the house, looking at double glazing, then we took a trip to IKEA to look at the difference between a higher tog duvet and a lower tog duvet."  


Unfortunately, rising prices have impacted some of Melissa's lessons, particularly the home cooking classes: "We've had to ask for more budget as the cost of food prices have gone up." 


"A pack of halal beef mince used to be £2.95 to [now] £5.95. And that's only for 500g. Ketchup used to be £1, now it's £3.19. And that's only for 300g. Each term, we have a theme. Last time it was just basic cooking; this term, it's Italian cooking. The price of pasta has increased; we used to get three packets, now we only get two." 


Despite these challenges, Melissa is glad that Holmewood provides its students with these valuable lessons: "I think we should have learned this sort of stuff when we were at school." 


"For example, mortgages, finances and savings, this would have set us up for these crises."


Andy Lamb, 52, Holmewood's deputy headteacher, says: "We have a strong focus on the academic progress of our students, but also their future independence once they leave us."


"Many of our students are more able to look after themselves in terms of cooking, ironing, budgeting. They're significantly more able to fend for themselves than me or most of my peers when I went off to university." 


"There's always a lot of pressure on the timetable, and mainstream schools struggle to find the time to give to teaching these important skills, but certainly, for us, it's a key part of what makes our school unique."

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

London Met UCU Chair Speaks Out on Issues of Working Conditions and Pay

The Chair of London Met UCU has spoken out on the working conditions and pay of University staff, disputes which have caused strike action across the country in the past few months.  Christina Paine said:   “What we have now is a system where business runs the day, and the demands of business are the things that have led to a lot of the crises that we have.”  “To take strike action for a lecturer is a really, really difficult thing.”  Another contentious issue in the ongoing dispute is the use of zero hours contracts, something which Chirstina believes hinders professional development: "you’re not actually allowed to do research, you’re not allowed to contribute to the rep."  "All of these things that are progressions in career, we’re just not allowed to do." Christina explained:  "We wouldn’t have to take this action unless we absolutely had to, because we’re fighting for a future for you [university students] and for higher education in general.”...
Post a Comment
Read more

Arsenal Representative Speaks of Importance of Community Work.

A representative of Arsenal in the Community has spoken about the positive impact the project has had on people in Islington and the local area.   When asked about the significance of Arsenal's contributions to the local public,  Samir Singh, who has been with the organisation since 2007, said: " We’re a massive disruption to the local community on a match day, so we need to be a good neighbour." Samir continued: " “I’ll give you a good example: men’s health projects, I say this as a man. Stupid men won’t listen to their doctors or their wives but they’ll listen to Arsenal.  "If through our men’s health programme we can help men to lose weight or, to you know, check for prostate cancer, whatever it might be, that’s powerful.” Other forms of support offered by the project include providing children with numeracy and literacy tutoring, visiting hospital patients with players and promoting the inclusion of females in sport.
Post a Comment
Read more

Cost of Living Crisis: Young Person's Concern Over Lack of Attainable University Opportunities

A recent college leaver has discussed their concerns at the lack of attainable university opportunities in light of the cost of living crisis.   Micheal Phillips, 20, explained: "For most, even moving from their family home can be a risky gamble, not just about future money trouble but future physical and mental health risks."  "Many low-income university students eat cheap and instant foods for long periods of time while studying or working." "This more often than not doesn't promote a (sic) healthy habits or mindset." He continued: "With the current state of inflation and the cost of living rising for the average person, it seems like a gamble to whether or not they will be able to make a comfortable living even after they [university graduates] get the job they're working towards." Micheal is hoping to find an apprenticeship but says they are currently difficult to acquire.  
Post a Comment
Read more