YEP Letters: March 31

Television tribute to the Queen

Edna Levi, Leeds 17

I very much enjoyed the TV programme about the Queen recently as I do admire her and it was nice to listen to the affection of her children and grandchildren.

However I wonder why not included in the latter were Edward and Anne? Granted we do not see Edward doing much but Anne undergoes many tasks and all she was portrayed doing was helping cut a cake!

She also has children Peter and Zara, but no tributes were forthcoming from them either for their esteemed granny!

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Schools: co-operation, not competition

Victoria Jaquiss, by email

Nobody is buying this stuff, this lie that schools are under local authority “control”.

For a start schools have been setting their own budgets since 1991 and making all staff appointments. Do all schools have the same uniforms or timing of school days?

And yet, if they were “under control” how would this be worse than than under the control of central government or academy chief executive control?

LAs offer schools support eg with special/additional needs, in hospitals, to those with mental health, looked after children, travellers and families, refugees; they are well-placed to work with children’s homes, hospitals, hospices. They have an overview of a whole town’s needs, and can plan appropriately.

On another note, the money that schools contribute towards local services (and don’t just keep for themselves as do academies), this money also pays towards quite a few other local services. One is union facility time, where the unions can help to sort out disputes between management and staff before they escalate. And you don’t read about these disputes in the media because they don’t escalate!

Another wonderful service that most local authorities still provide is a peripatetic music service, which includes running several high quality central ensembles. In Leeds this includes Leeds Youth Orchestra and Leeds Jazz Rock Orchestra. You can catch one regularly at Leeds Town Hall, and one also in Durban, South Africa. And it would be disingenuous not to mention my own award-winning steelband, the Leeds Silver Steel Sparrows, who, besides at many venues in Leeds, have graced the boards at the Royal Hall Harrogate, London Festival Hall and the Royal Albert Hall London.

Every single academy that opens, takes the money that has traditionally funded mental health, and music in education, and keeps it for itself, but of course it is not enough in itself to fund a children’s ward or a central choir. Schools working together under the reasonably democratic oversight of a local authority can benefit all our children. Co-operation, not competition. Makes sense to me.

Potholes and speed bumps

Rob Brooks, Farsley

I had the misfortune to suffer an unavoidable breakdown today due to a broken front spring that had projected itself into my front tyre.

The breakdown guy mentioned broken springs are “going through the roof” with pot holes and speed bumps to blame. It’s not just older cars that suffer. It’s one of the scourges of modern times with councils under monetary pressure and not spending money on repairing roads. However, if like Leeds City Council, matters are made worse by installing cycle super-highways that are smooth and wide for the six cyclists that use it on a daily basis!

The breakdown guy mentioned that he’d been to five breakdowns on the Stanningley Road caused by motorists driving into the wiggly kerbs they have constructed – in some case they protrude into the carriageway with no warnings! Accidents and broken springs waiting to happen if you ask me.

Care was very satisfactory

Malcolm Shedlow, Moortown

In reply to the article about bad care homes (YEP March 29), my wife Lena was in Donisthorpe Hall care home for two years and my own observations of the care given to her was very satisfactory.