It's still only a suggestion scribbled on a piece of paper but news that primary schools could open from eight in the morning until six at night is already being hailed as a great move - and a done deal. But hang on a minute. Before we start telling ourselves all our childcare worries are over - and for parents, coping with schooldays is far more problematic than pre-school arrangements - there are big issues to be addressed. Who is going to supervise the children in the mornings and after school? Not the teachers, that's for sure. And I'm sure registered childminders won't be all that happy about a large part of their livelihood being snatched away as parents pick school as the easier - or cheaper - option. How will the youngsters spend their extra time in school? Watching television? After all, that's what they'd do at home. And wouldn't they have to eat something since it's a long time from 12 noon until six without something decent to eat. And what about the young people themselves? Think about them for a change rather than the parents. If you're only five years old then it's a hell of a long day to leave the house before 8am and get home after six. Yes, of course there is room for improvement in the current system. A 3pm finish is not particularly suitable for anyone, especially part-timers who work from 10 until 3 every day. The problem is that even if schools were open until six there would still be those parents who abused the system and turned up after six on the premise that a few minutes wouldn't matter. Indeed, wasn't there news this week of more and more nurseries and crèches offering overnight stays to babies and toddlers so that parents could juggle their working lives to suit them? As my childless friends continually ask me: why bother having children if you never want to be with them? What would be more helpful perhaps would be a childcare plan for the holidays. I know there are moves afoot to give us five terms a year instead of three with a fortnight's holiday between them all - but that doesn't help anyone with just 20 days annual leave. It has always seemed ludicrous to me that school playing fields, for example, are behind locked gates in the holidays, and that while there are some wonderful summer play schemes around, the cost prohibits most parents from letting their children have some real - and competitive - fun. Surely the £3 billion a year that the new long school day could cost to implement would be better spent on year-round quality care for children that could improve their fitness, build up their self esteem, challenge their brains, enhance their social skills and encourage interaction with children outside their peer group. Oh, and they could teach them how to cook, change a plug and sew on a button too
even to move like Justin Timberlake. And if you think I'm being facetious, I met a young woman the other day who did her university dissertation on the dancing of Michael Jackson. She got a First too. But that, as they say, is quite another story. ********** Kerry worthy winner of an amazing contest I'll bet you didn't know that Peter Andre, canny Peter Andre, visited Ashington High School in the mid-90s when he was at the height of his fame. I was talking to one of the teachers the other night, asking what she remembered about the day he arrived at the school. She thought about it for ages, then was forced to admit "absolutely nothing" which was not what I wanted to hear, especially since I voted three times for him on Monday night during the final. My best friend wasn't impressed either. She had only watched a few minutes of the whole of I'm a Celebrity and looked at me with raised eyebrows as I told her the finale was the best 90 minutes of television there has been for years. It had everything
and Ant and Dec. It was funny and emotional, scary and tummy turning, heart- warming and courageous, eye opening and eye closing (the sight of posh Jennie Bond eating insects with her hair in those silly bunches was simply horrible). I cried when Kerry's husband Bryan arrived to kiss her and though I still can't quite forgive her for missing her baby's first birthday, I thought she was a worthy winner of the contest that defies description and beggars belief. Meanwhile, if Mr Andre wants to visit Ashington High School again on his trip to Britain, I'd like to confirm that I'm available to help
********** My friend, recovering in hospital from a cancer operation, was visited the other night by her four-year-old granddaughter who marched into the ward dressed from top to toe in her little nurse's uniform. Immediately everyone in the ward was cheered up - though she was quick to point out that her large plastic stethoscope wasn't a real one. More important, though, it meant she was not frightened in the least about seeing her beloved nana sick in a hospital bed. Sometimes, laughter really is the best medicine. ********** Tragedy of speed on the road Even though we hate them, speed cameras do work - especially once you've been caught by them. But we wouldn't need cameras at all if we had a poster of Heather Thompson by the side of every road in Britain. Mrs Thompson was jailed this week for two years for killing her 12-year-old daughter Abbey and her daughter's friend Lauren Wheeler by driving so fast along a country road that she lost control of her car. The last thing she heard was her daughter screaming for her to slow down. The sight of Heather Thompson handcuffed and weeping as she was led from court to prison was pitiful. Though the sentence was no more than she deserved, it might as well have been a life sentence. Two families have been ripped apart by her single deed. Going fast over the bumps - and we can all remember the days we begged our dads to do it - must never be an option again. ********** At the end of the month he becomes a Freeman of the City of Newcastle. He's had a brilliant £50,000 waxwork unveiled at London's Madame Tussauds and visitors are being shown how to "do the Jonny" -a reference to the precision of his drop kick routine. Meanwhile, there are daily bulletins on his progress as he recovers from the operation which has kept him out of the Six Nations championship this time round. To tell you the truth, it was a relief to find out that he's human after all! ********** Give veterans cash Talk about waiting till the last minute. The decision to set aside £10m in lottery grants to enable Second World War veterans to visit the battlefields 60 years after the end of the war may be seen as the grand gesture but is actually long overdue and quite impractical. Do 80-year-old veterans really think their lives would be enriched by a gruelling journey to the Far East or North Africa to remind them of comrades they lost? Do they have the opportunity to apply "online" as Arts Minister Estelle Morris proposed? Probably not. So would it have been so wrong to give every Second World War veteran a £1,000 gift to say "thank you" for the service they gave to their country? Of course not. Then they could have gone if they wanted to - or chosen to spend the money on improving their lives here. | 
