Campaigns

CAMPAIGN FOR EDUCATION

The Manifesto Club has launched a petition on the Downing Street website, calling for the UK government to put the word 'education' in the names of departments dealing with schools, colleges and universities. The campaign is led by the Manifesto Club member Professor Dennis Hayes:

'Every generation has a crisis of education. This usually takes the form of worries about what should be the content of education for future generations. But a unique crisis seems to have afflicted the government which has set up a Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) and a Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS). Spot the missing word? It’s education!

For more details and to sign the petition, see the Campaign for education page

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FREE SPEECH

We believe that free minds and free tongues are the lifeblood of a healthy public culture, and the pursuit of enlightenment. We believe that people should be free to explore ideas that others find distasteful or wrong. Above all, we believe that censorship is a cowardly tactic, a replacement for argument and persuasion.

For more details and to get involved, see the Free speech campaign page

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THE CASE AGAINST VETTING

The vetting of adults in the name of child protection is out of control. Those now being vetted include 16-year-olds teaching younger kids to read, parents volunteering at school, and foster carers’ friends. Running an after-school club is now subject to more stringent security tests than selling explosives.

The Manifesto Club is campaigning against UK legislation like the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Bill, which institutionalises distrust. We have produced a number of reports on this issue, arguing for a commonsense approach to child protection that recognises that value of informal interaction between the generations.

For full details and to get involved, see the Case Against Vetting page.

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CELEBRATE THE FREEDOM OF FLIGHT

As Heathrow protesters caused delays for families setting off on summer holidays, the Manifesto Club celebrated the freedom of flight.

‘The vast expansion of flight over the past few years – particularly cheap flight – has been experienced as a liberation for millions of people. It is no longer only the well-to-do who can glimpse the canals of Venice or the pyramids of Egypt, or relax on the beaches of Greece. The option of a weekend away in Prague or New York means foreign travel can now easily be fitted into the working week....'

For more details and to get involved, see the Celebrate the Freedom of Flight page.

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BOXED IN: CHALLENGING TWO-TRACK ARTS FUNDING

A Manifesto Club provocation essay, by artist Sonya Dyer, argues that diversity schemes and targets are pigeonholing black and Asian artists. She calls for an honest debate within the sector, and for artistic quality to be placed at the centre of arts funding.

For full details and to get involved, see the Boxed In page.

The Manifesto Club's Artistic Autonomy hub campaigns for greater freedom in the arts, and against restrictive policies and practices such as those highlighted in the report.