5 h. ago The radical 1960s schools experiment that created a whole new alphabet – and left thousands of children unable to spell

Decades ago, a generation of UK schoolchildren unwittingly took part in an initiative aimed at boosting reading skills – with lasting consequencesThroughout my life, my mum has always been a big reader. She was in three or four book clubs at the same time. She’d devour whatever texts my siblings and I were studying in school, handwrite notes for our lunchboxes and write in her diary every night. Our fridge door was a revolving display of word-of-the-day flashcards. Despite this, she also was and remains, by some margin, the worst speller I have met.By the time I was in primary school, she was already asking me to proofread her work emails, often littered with mistakes that were glaringly obvious to me even at such a young age. It used to baffle me – how could this person, who races through multiple books a week and can quote Shakespeare faultlessly, possibly think “me” is spelt with two Es? Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago Three dead after crowd surge at Hindu festival in Odisha sparks stampede

People were left 'breathless' when thousands of devotees had gathered for the festival, with reports of up to 50 people injured, six of whom are in a critical condition.

Events

8 d. ago ‘He left us with nothing’: the British investors swindled by a German property firm

Investors in the Dolphin/GPG ponzi scheme run by Charles Smethurst are angry that more is not being done to recover the €1bn owed to them “He took everything, left us with absolutely nothing,” says David Middleton, one of thousands of British and Irish investors who racked up huge losses from the collapse of a German property ponzi scheme.The 72-year-old pensioner from Northern Ireland is referring to Charles Smethurst, the German-British businessman who set up Dolphin Capital in 2008, later renamed Dolphin Trust, then German Property Group (GPG), with 200 affiliated companies. In July 2020, the business filed for insolvency, owing more than €1bn to up to 25,000 investors around the world. Continue reading...

Economics

9 d. ago Steam down as Summer Sale kicks off with thousands of fans left fuming

The Steam Summer Sale is now live with thousands of games reduced to great low prices. But unfortunately the store is now down - meaning you can't even access the sale

Politics

2 w. ago Moment thousands of furious tourists are left stranded outside the Louvre after rogue staff storm out in flash strike blaming 'untenable' crowding in the famous Paris museum

Footage circulating on social platform X shows swarms of frustrated and confused visitors, tickets in hand, lingering outside the Parisian museum, after its staff called strikes on Monday.

Events

2 w. ago Timothy West's will shows he left thousands to list of charities

The star also left money to his wife, Prunella Scales, his son and his sister

Politics

2 w. ago Iconic tourist destination closes unexpectedly, with thousands left waiting outside

Tourists are warned it is not clear when they will be granted entry

Politics

3 w. ago 'This is great news, but once again thousands of people are being left behind'

Calls are growing to make major changes

Politics

3 w. ago Thames Water LIVE: Thousands of east London homes without water supply

Thames Water has apologised to customers after thousands of households across east London have been left without water including those in Whitechapel, Shoreditch, Spitalfields and Bethnal Green

Society

3 w. ago The misogyny of the metaverse: is Mark Zuckerberg’s dream world a no

Graphic sexual content, bullying, abuse and threats of violence are rife in the metaverse - and the NSPCC says a huge proportion of online grooming offences take place on Meta-owned products. Is it too late to change course?Everybody knows that young women are not safe. They are not safe in the street, where 86% of those aged 18 to 24 have experienced sexual harassment. They are not safe at school, where 79% of young people told Ofsted that sexual assault was common in their friendship groups and almost a third of 16- to 18-year-old girls report experiencing “unwanted sexual touching”. They are not safe in swimming pools or parks, or at the beach. They are not even safe online, with the children’s safety charity the NSPCC reporting that social media sites are “failing to protect girls from harm at every stage”.This will come as no surprise to any woman who has ever used social media. But it is particularly relevant as Meta, the operator of some of the biggest soc...

Politics

3 w. ago Misogyny in the metaverse: is Mark Zuckerberg’s dream world a no

Graphic sexual content, bullying, abuse and threats of violence are rife in the metaverse - and the NSPCC says a huge proportion of online grooming offences take place on Meta-owned products. Is it too late to change course?Everybody knows that young women are not safe. They are not safe in the street, where 86% of those aged 18 to 24 have experienced sexual harassment. They are not safe at school, where 79% of young people told Ofsted that sexual assault was common in their friendship groups and almost a third of 16- to 18-year-old girls report experiencing “unwanted sexual touching”. They are not safe in swimming pools or parks, or at the beach. They are not even safe online, with the children’s safety charity the NSPCC reporting that social media sites are “failing to protect girls from harm at every stage”.This will come as no surprise to any woman who has ever used social media. But it is particularly relevant as Meta, the operator of some of the biggest soc...

Politics

3 w. ago Appleby Horse Fair aftermath as travellers abandon caravans and desert their rubbish

A quaint town has been left in a state of 'carnage' after thousands of travellers and visitors descended for the Appleby Horse Fair – abandoned caravans and fields strewn with rubbish are what's left

Transport

4 w. ago Ayrshire school earns prestigious gold award for 'flexible learning experiences'

The school offers a wide range of flexible learning experiences.

Events