Daily roundup 19 October: Fitness, universal credit, and adoption support

The status of physical education in schools needs a "radical shake-up" and it should be valued in the same way as core academic subjects, a report has said. The BBC reports that a study by the all-party parliamentary group on a fit and healthy childhood said that PE has for too long been the "Cinderella subject" in UK schools. The group recommends a personalised PE programme for each individual child.


The government intends to press ahead with the rollout of the universal credit welfare system, Work and Pensions Secretary David Gauke has said. The Guardian reports that Gauke told members of the work and pensions select committee that there are no plans to "pause and fix" the reform, despite calls to do so from Labour.


There has been a steep rise in reports of self-harm among girls aged 13 to 16, according to a study of data from GP practices across the UK. The BBC reports that a BMJ study, which looked at figures from 2011 to 2014, said GPs could be getting better at picking up self-harm, but it was likely that rising stress and psychological problems in young people were also behind the trend.


Adoption charity Parents And Children Together (Pact) has launched a new online support service for adoptive families. Initially being piloted with a cohort of Pact families, the new service features an online adopters' forum, one-to-one peer support via webchat, an e-learning course on attachment issues and a programme of webinars. The pilot is due for completion at the end of March 2018, when it is planned to be rolled out more widely.


A 16-year-old boy has been charged with murder over a stabbing outside Parsons Green Tube station. The Daily Mail reports that the boy, who also faces a charge of possession of a bladed article over the fatal attack, is due to appear at Wimbledon Magistrates' Court tomorrow. Omid Saidy, 20, was killed outside the London station on Monday, where 30 people were injured in a terror attack last month.