Blogs
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17Aug2011
Rebuilding communities after the riots
Posted by Jonathan Douglas
In recent days David Cameron has talked extensively about the causes of the riots: rights without responsibilities; communities without control. More than alliterative slogans, the Prime Minister has highlighted that the cause of the riots is not deprivation but is due to a “moral collapse” and a lack of accountability among young people.
The Prime Minister is keen to attack the social causes of the riots. If he is going to be successful then low literacy and low aspirations must be considered. Research, local experience and common sense tell us aspirations are lowest when people are dealing with multiple issues of deprivation. Do we believe that the rioters were made up of young people who participate in their community and who feel they have choices in terms of education and employment?
Responsible individuals, strong communities and a Big Society are built on young people with social capital and self-esteem. Low literacy continues to be a significant factor in social exclusion but yet it remains largely forgotten in child poverty planning. This must be addressed.
Frank Field MP leads a debate into the role of aspirations, literacy and poverty at our event on 11 October. The conference, “Breaking the Cycle: Aspirations, literacy and the home” will include examples of local areas tackling these issues, providing inspiration to anyone wanting to rebuild our “broken society".
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