'TAKING KIDS SERIOUSLY'

24 OCTOBER 2001

When I was a child, one of my passing ambitions was to be a fireman (after a bus conductor and a footballer). I am not sure whether it was the heroism or the excitement that attracted me, but the memory came to mind when I talked with some of South Shields' real firefighters at the opening of the new fire station.

The shiny new headquarters include a community hall and the staff are committed to take fire-fighting into the community, helping to prevent tragedy as well as react to it, through campaigns like the one about the danger of chip-pan fires. But amidst the gleaming engines and impressive embodiment of the public service ethos, I heard a chilling story.

The firefighters told me that one of the most dangerous and depressing aspects of their job is being called out on hoaxes by young kids, and then being attacked by them. It's a tiny minority, but they give young people a bad name. It's the same story in schools. When I met head teachers to discuss how things are going, their biggest worry was about the small number of children who make life miserable for the others.

These deep problems can't be solved by schools or by firemen alone. They reflect a culture of rootlessness, alienation and amorality built up over generations. They are not the norm. The vast majority of young people would no more throw stones at firefighters than volunteer for extra homework. But the problems are 'normal' enough for them to become accepted as the way of the world.

Society is not perfectible, but it is still worth searching for answers. The most precious part of the answer must be hope - hope of a job, hope of a secure future, hope of a decent income, hope of a stake in society. These are the stock in trade of government policy.

But there is also another aspect, more difficult to get hold of, more cultural in nature. It concerns the hope of being taken seriously, the hope of being noticed and feeling you count. This takes government into much less certain terrain. It involves, for example, trying to teach children about the rights and responsibilities of citizenship when they are at school.

I'll be honest. I have always been pretty sceptical about teaching citizenship. It can easily be preachy and patronising. But after an afternoon at Ashley Primary School, I think I am going to have to revise by views.

The introduction to citizenship at Ashley involved the whole school electing house captains. From five year olds up to 11, I watched the older pupils giving campaign speeches, and then the rest of their classmates voting for their leaders. For the first time I believed that teaching civic studies could actually mean something.

The brave boys and girls giving speeches stood at the front and set out in a few sentences their platform. And the audience watched with rapt attention, clapping every candidate, and taking seriously the choice of who to vote for. They all realised that their vote mattered - that they counted, and that they had an equal voice in determining something important.

I bet every one of the children went home and talked about their introduction to democracy - it sounds dull but they were all excited. And you never, some of those speech-makers may be challenging me for my job in a few years' time.