Children need a champion. But will Anne Longfield really fit the bill?

http://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2015/mar/29/anne-longfield-childrens-champion-or-not

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The political savviness required of a “consummate political strategist” is certainly evident in Anne Longfield’s chosen allegiances in your interview with the new children’s commissioner for England (“My mission: to help us nurture the true joys of childhood”, News), with her emphasis on our need to “compete globally”, her arguing that “we can do more for less”, that children need “proper monitoring to track progress” (really?), and that we need “early intervention with the under-fives” (repeat: really?).

The true test of whether Ms Longfield is genuinely independent of her political masters will be shown by whether she takes them to task for policies whereby their cuts are hitting the poorest children hardest, and whether she has the courage to challenge England’s unconscionably early school starting age and the toxic drive to “schoolify” early childhood, which is doing more harm to our children’s wellbeing than any other factor.

Judging by the priorities outlined in this interview, campaigners working to halt and reverse the relentless erosion of childhood in modern culture won’t be holding their breath.

Dr Richard House

Educational consultant

Stroud

The Viking management model

I enjoyed the letter from Dr Harris comparing administration in universities to the “supervision” in Roman galleys, but the latter example reflects the influence of Ben-Hur rather than the reality. Before the first century BC, the Roman navy had realised that fighting efficiency wasn’t served by carrying round slaves who were chained to their oars, redundant when the wind blew and who couldn’t join in hand-to-hand combat, and that the use of both chains and whips represented self-defeating over-investment in control. Far more efficient was a crew of multiskilled sailor/rower/fighters who would be motivated (if only by self-preservation) to contribute fully to the vessel’s performance – a model brought to perfection in the Viking longships, with the addition of booty-sharing incentives. It’s a pity that so much of modern management seems to prefer the Ben-Hur myth to history.

John Old

Nuneaton

Rebirth of Broadwater Farm

In an otherwise excellent article (“After the 2011 riots in Tottenham, the regeneration of one of London’s most deprived areas is finally happening”, New Review), Rowan Moore’s opening paragraphs about Broadwater Farm contain a number of misconceptions. The “modernist architecture” did not take the blame for the 1985 riot. It was triggered by the death of a black woman in a police raid, and took place in the context of nationwide tensions between black youths and the police. The community-driven regeneration of the estate involved a lot more than “removing walkways, adding postmodern porches and applying pastel paint”. It included a thriving community centre, a busy health centre, a superbly designed children’s centre, concierge schemes on all the blocks, new heating systems and windows, insulative cladding, landscaping and much more, including greatly improved relations with the police.

Paul Dennehy

Broadwater Farm manager, 1995-2013

Enfield

Don’t blame the Greeks

The view from Germany about Greece’s financial predicament as expressed by Alan Posener is breathtaking in its sanctimonious arrogance (Focus). Apparently the Germans blame the Greeks for the fact that they, the Greeks, entered the euro at its inception without being economically prepared. It was up to the clever clogs who invented the euro – including the Germans – to check out the credibility of the Greek application.

Nicholas Stansfeld

Bideford

Devon

Sort out the second chamber

The special investigation into payment to political parties in exchange for peerages (“Revealed: the link between life peerages and party donations”, News) omits one salient fact: it is not a bad investment. Fifteen of the peers whose donations were highlighted gave less than £1.2m. If one was to assume the average life expectancy after receiving a peerage was 25 years, then the £300 a day, five days a week for say 40 weeks a year that one receives for attendance pays easily over £1.2m back. Not bad considering you only have to sign in and then are free to leave. They are hardly buying anything; it is more a savings account. This highlights why we really must have a democratic second chamber, elected by proportional representation, from the great and the good.

Nicholas Hales

Bath

Who has a ‘right’ to a child?

Barbara Ellen considers that Domenico Dolce’s views on gay parenthood are “sad dated voodoo tripe” (“Hey Elton, you’re not the Gay King”, Comment, last week). But whether those involved are straight or gay, surrogacy raises a question about the commodification of children. This is not just about gay rights – it is about the “right” anyone has to a child. It invites discussion about what limits there should be to obtaining a child.

Christopher Abbott

Manchester