ISC Daily News Summary

Daily Telegraph
Inner-city state schools are preparing to open a new generation of boarding houses for pupils, it emerged yesterday. A series of semi-independent academy schools, most in poor urban areas, are considering providing on-site accommodation as part of the first major expansion of state boarding for decades. The facilities would be aimed at children from service families, young people with parents working abroad and pupils from broken homes. These include the new Wellington Academy, being opened in Wiltshire in 2010. About 100 pupils are set to board at the school, which is government-funded but run in a partnership with nearby Wellington College, a fee-paying boarding school. Hilary Moriarty, National Director of the BSA, is quoted.
Boarding schools for broken home pupils (Daily Telegraph)

Scotsman
The Scotsman today includes a supplement on independent schools. The supplement profiles a number of ISC schools. The supplement is not online, but if you would like further information please contact press@isc.co.uk.

Independent, BBC, Daily Telegraph, Daily Express
Gordon Brown stepped into the teachers' dispute yesterday, expressing his disappointment over the National Union of Teachers' decision to stage the first one-day national stoppage for more than 20 years. The Association of Directors of Children's Services and the department of Ed Balls, the Schools Secretary, had sent a joint letter to education authorities telling them they should do all in their power to keep schools open during the strike tomorrow, the Prime Minister said. It looked last night as if the intervention was unlikely to have much effect, with one in four schools saying they were likely to be fully or partly closed for the day.
The Daily Express today includes a comment piece by columnist Peter Inson on the effect of the strike action on pupils.
PM calls on schools to stay open, despite teachers' strike (Independent)
Strike to disrupt 6,000 schools (BBC News online)
Parents could sue over ‘right to education' as teachers strike (Daily Telegraph not online)
Cost of school strike (Daily Express not online)
Teachers have to learn that the interests of pupils must come first (Daily Express not online)

Guardian
The World Food Programme said yesterday that it has begun to cut the provision of school meals to some of the world's poorest children as the global crisis over food prices worsens. Josette Sheeran, the WFP's executive director, said that the price of basic foods was rising so rapidly that a shortfall in financing for its food relief programmes had grown from $500m (about £250m) to $755m in less than two months.
WFP cuts school meals as food crisis grows (Guardian)

Times
Breakfasting on Shredded Wheat or cornflakes has been found to increase dramatically a woman's chances of having sons instead of daughters. Up to 59 per cent of women who get pregnant after eating high-energy breakfasts end up giving birth to a son. Fiona Mathews, of the University of Exeter, said eating high-calorie breakfasts seemed to be the best guarantee of influencing the gender of a baby in favour of boys before conception. Getting into the routine of eating breakfast cereals seemed to be more influential than which brand was consumed, she has said.
Recipe for a son starts with daily bowl of cereal (Times)

Times
Power to schools (Times)

Daily Telegraph
Companies should pay for immigrant workers to learn English, Hazel Blears said yesterday. The Communities Secretary told MPs that legislation may be considered if negotiations with organisations benefiting from overseas labour failed to reach agreement on voluntary contributions toward lessons.
Firms 'must pay for migrants' English lessons' (Daily Telegraph)

Daily Telegraph, Daily Express
An extending shoe that grows with your feet has been invented. This clever little invention could be the answer for every parent who spends a fortune on children's shoes.
The shoes that grow with your feet (Daily Telegraph)
Shoe that grows with your child (Daily Express not online)