Guardian investigation finds pupils at England’s wealthiest schools have much greater access to land, with implications for mental health
Analysis: Green space better for young brains than we realised
How England’s top private schools came to own 38,000 acres of land
Beagling, golf and jolly hockey sticks: outdoor life at England’s largest private schools
Children at the top 250 English private schools have more than 10 times as much outdoor space as those who go to state schools, an exclusive Guardian analysis can reveal.
A schoolboy at fee-charging Eton has access to 140 times more green space than the average English state school pupil, the analysis found. Experts condemned the “staggering” and “gross” inequalities.
The average student at one of England’s top private schools has access to approximately 322 sq metres of green space, whereas the average state school student has access to about 32 sq metres of green space: a ratio of 10:1.
Eton students enjoy the largest area of land of all the schools in the country, with its schoolboys having access to 4,445 sq metres per pupil an area, 140 times larger than that available to the average state school student. Some of that land is also accessible to the public.
The private school campuses include tennis courts, golf courses, rowing lakes, swimming pools, equestrian centres, wilderness areas, and remote camping lodges.
In contrast, some state schools have little or no green space at all for their students.
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Breaking Waves: Ocean News
06/16/2024 - 07:00
06/16/2024 - 05:00
Scottish Highlands campaign has raised two-thirds of £300,000 target for footpaths on An Teallach. But more is needed to protect people and environment
One of Scotland’s most impressive and recognisable mountains will have its walking paths restored after hillwalkers and charities clubbed together to raise hundreds of thousands of pounds.
Mountaineering Scotland and the Outdoor Access Trust for Scotland (Oats) launched a campaign last May to raise £300,000 for essential path repairs on An Teallach in Wester Ross, in the north-west Highlands, asking walkers and climbers to “give the hill a few quid”. The It’s Up to Us campaign has announced that £218,000 has already been donated.
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06/16/2024 - 05:00
With half a dozen US rail projects in the works, Andy Byford thinks Americans will soon clamor for 200mph train lines
After years of dashed hopes, delays and the all-consuming dominance of the car and airplane, high-speed trains may finally be about to have their breakthrough moment in the United States, according to one of the country’s top rail executives.
Half a dozen high-speed rail projects across the US are currently planned or have already started construction, with a gush of federal infrastructure dollars, a supportive White House, and rising angst over snarled highways and the climate crisis all helping bring the prospect of bullet trains, belatedly, closer than ever before to the American public.
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06/16/2024 - 02:04
Wang Wang and Fu Ni have lived at the city’s zoo for 15 years but are due to head home by the end of 2024
‘Twists and turns’ in Australia-China ties are over, Li Qiang says – but Penny Wong highlights tensions
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Li Qiang has announced a panda swap for Adelaide zoo, a diplomatic move long anticipated but timed to coincide with the first visit of a Chinese premier to Australia since 2017.
Making the announcement at the zoo, Li said two new giant pandas would replace Wang Wang and Fu Ni, who have lived at the zoo for 15 years as the only specimens of their kind in the southern hemisphere.
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06/15/2024 - 23:40
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Labor ‘continuing to consult’ on Makarrata commission, Albanese says
Anthony Albanese says he will attend Arnhem Land’s Garma festival in August to “talk about a way forward” on Indigenous policy after the defeat of the voice referendum, keeping open the prospect of setting up a Makarrata commission to advance truth and treaty processes.
Treaty process is undergoing at the various states and that’s appropriate. With regard to Makarrata, we’re continuing to consult on those issues. said.
Indigenous leaders, of course, were very disappointed by the referendum result. I’ll attend Garma once again this year and sit down with people and talk about a way forward.
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06/15/2024 - 05:59
Campaigners find PFAS, which can contaminate the soil and water supply, in more than 80% of 27 companies’ products
Hikers may be inadvertently damaging the environment and risking their own health by wearing clothes made waterproof with “forever chemicals”, according to research by Ethical Consumer.
The campaigning magazine examined 27 companies that make outdoor clothing such as fleeces, waterproof jackets, walking boots and rucksacks, and found 82% were still using per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS.
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06/15/2024 - 05:00
GOP-controlled committee thwarting distribution of $125m budgeted by legislature until polluter immunity approved
Wisconsin Republicans are withholding $125m designated for cleanup of widespread PFAS contamination in drinking water and have said they will only release the funds in exchange for immunity for polluters.
The move is part of a broader effort by Republicans in the state to steal power from the Democratic governor, Tony Evers, the funding’s supporters say, alleging such “political games” are putting residents’ health at risk.
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06/15/2024 - 02:00
Juneau agrees deal with industry body to curtail visits but critics say it does not go far enough to protect quality of life
Alaska’s capital city is to limit the numbers of cruise ship passengers arriving at the port amid concerns over tourism’s growing impact, but a leading critic of the industry has said further measures to protect Alaskans’ quality of life are needed.
Located on the Gastineau Channel in southern Alaska, Juneau has a population of 32,000 and last year received a record 1.65 million cruise ship passengers – a 23% increase from the previous high.
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06/14/2024 - 20:31
Zone will be 20km off the coast and exclude areas significant for little penguin and for southern right whale migration
The federal government has given the green light to an offshore windfarm zone south of Sydney, making it Australia’s fourth such zone to be declared.
Announcing the project in the Illawarra on Saturday, the climate change and energy minister, Chris Bowen, said the move would bring thousands of new jobs and help “power Australia’s clean energy future”.
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06/14/2024 - 12:11
Scorching temperatures have already swept south-east where Florida is now grappling with severe flooding
The scorching heatwave that has swept the US south-east in recent weeks will soon spread to the country’s midwest and north-east regions, affecting nearly 250 million Americans.
Temperatures are stuck at 90F (32C) or above for at least the next week in much of the US, the National Weather Service (NWS) predicted. The NWS defines a heatwave as a period of temperatures exceeding 90F for two or more days, and this one could last until 26 June.
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