Daily roundup 16 June: Smoking, youth zone and green leaders

The reduction in smoking rates among pregnant women in England has slowed down in the past year, prompting concern from health charities. The BBC reports that NHS figures show 10.5 per cent of women currently smoke at the time of delivery - a drop of only 0.1 per cent on last year. Over the same period, smoking rates among adults in the UK fell from 17.2 per cent to 15.8 per cent. The Smoking in Pregnancy Challenge Group said smoking was the cause of too many babies born with health problems.


A youth zone in Croydon has met its fundraising target thanks to an anonymous million-pound donation. The Croydon Guardian reports that, overall, £6m has now been found for the project which is being developed by youth charity OnSide.


A community charity has launched a recruitment drive to encourage young people to sign up to a national initiative to develop the nation's next generation of environmental leaders. The charity, Groundwork, describe its Groundwork Youth initiative as a package of support for 16- to 24-year-olds to develop their leadership potential.


There is a stark North-South divide in whether young people in England are learning modern languages, an annual survey has found. The BBC reports that the British Council found that in some London boroughs, 75 per cent of pupils take a language GCSE, while in authorities such as Middlesbrough and Blackpool it is below 30 per cent. The survey suggests that the "languages gap" is getting even wider.


A former coach of a junior football club in the Newcastle area in the 1980s has appeared in court charged with sexual abuse of young boys. The Guardian reports that John Marshall, 69, from Longbenton, North Tyneside, has been charged with eight offences of indecent assault against three complainants. The offences are alleged to have been carried out between 1980 and 1985 on victims who were aged 14 or under.