Daily roundup 15 February: Ofsted chief, tasers, and mental health

Education Secretary Nicky Morgan wants to hire an American with a track record of taking on unions to become the next chief inspector of schools. The Sunday Times reports that the head of New York City's education watchdog and three bosses of US charter schools are expected to be considered for the role.


Police in England and Wales have been told to stop using tasers on children, after figures reveal a 38 per cent increase in one year. The Daily Mail reports that the United Nations plans to publicly shame UK authorities after 431 children were targeted with a taser gun in 2011, some as young as 11.


There has been a 75 per cent increase in the number of children admitted to adult psychiatric wards in the previous year. Despite attempts to stop the practice there was a shortage of beds lasting 52 days in the southwest for children urgently needing treatment. Norman Lamb, former mental health minister, told The Times the figures should “set alarm bells ringing” for the Department of Health.


Mothers in Darlington have set up a not-for-profit group in an attempt to protect children’s services affected by public spending cuts. Five children’s centres in the area are at risk of closure after the council announced £12.5m cuts. Co-founder Tanya Webster told The Northern Echo that the group hope to gain charity status.


New guidelines for police and school leaders that state young people should not be prosecuted for ‘sexting’ are being developed. Currently, it is a criminal offence for a young person to send others intimate images of themselves. The Telegraph reports that new guidelines could be sent out within weeks.


An initiative aimed at ensuring more classic literature is being taught in schools has been launched by schools minister Nick Gibb and publishing company Penguin. The “100 titles” initiative comes following a call for action by Gibb and will see book titles including Gulliver’s Travels and Twelve Years A Slave offered to schools.


The number of teenage girls deliberately poisoning themselves as a type of self-harm has risen, doctors have warned. BBC Newsbeat reports there were 18,500 emergency department admissions across England and Wales in 2014/15 up from 14,000 in 2009/10.