Jeremy Hunt said three children in every classroom in the country have a mental health condition but only a quarter of them receive help, stressing early intervention can give patients a much better chance of a full cure.

He said measures being announced by the prime minister will also help those with eating disorders or who are “behaving in a strange way” and sometimes have to wait six months for treatment.

Under the plans, mental health training for teachers and staff will be rolled out to a third of secondary schools in England next year, with the remaining two-thirds of secondary schools offered the support in the following two years.

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Early years organisations delivering high quality, evidence-based interventions can apply for a slice of funding worth £80m, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and Cabinet Office have announced.

The Life Chances Fund aims to tackle social problems by contributing around 20 per cent of costs to locally developed projects led by social investors.

Contracts will be funded through payment-by-results models, such as Social Impact Bonds (SIBs). The government expects local commissioners to pay the remainder of outcomes payments.

The fund will support projects working across six themes, of which early years and young people are the latest to be announced.

It is currently seeking expressions of interest from projects focused on early years that address attainment and behaviour, health and wellbeing and prenatal care and infant health.

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Mencap says that 29.2% of people who responded to a survey had suffered abuse from members of the public.

The charity is calling for music venues and fans to tackle bullying and ensure people with learning disabilities are made to feel welcome.

The founder of a small music venue association has called the findings of the research "worrying".

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“I was fascinated to read the most recent outcomes of the Dunedin Longitudinal Study, which has studied over 1,000 babies born in New Zealand in 1972/73. The Study has considered education, health, employment, welfare, criminal justice, and, right from the start of the Study, parenting. The findings are stark, and provide clear evidence for several types of early intervention."

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Can financial incentives prompt donors to give more, or more often? In their second article on crowdfunding in the arts, Peter Baeck and Sam Mitchell discuss the findings of a new match-funding scheme.

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Nine projects designed to tackle specific forms of abuse affecting children have been awarded a share of £2m in government grants.

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Early Bird offer extended until 31st January

New year, new you, or an enhanced version at least - get a head-start on your professional development and book a place on one of our 2017 training courses - designed specifically for arts and cultural professionals working with children and young people.

Our 2017 courses cover a wide-range of topics, including behaviour management, project evaluation and the use of emerging digital technologies in learning projects. As well as these, our in-depth Child Protection & Safeguarding course takes place in six cities across the country, to provide you with essential information and updates on child protection legislation.

Find out more and book your discounted place today!

Creating Digital Change

Manchester

Thursday 16th February 2017

Book your place

Child Protection & Safeguarding in the

Arts & Cultural Sectors

Birmingham

Tuesday 28th February 2017

Book your place

Understanding Further Education

Reading

Tuesday 28th February 2017

Book your place

Behaviour Management and Youth Arts

York

Thursday 2nd March 2017

Book your place

See our full course listings here

Take a look here...

Research commissioned by The Princes Trust as part of its annual Youth Index found that 28 per cent of more than 2,200 16- to 25-year-olds questioned said they feel "trapped by their circumstances" and "out of control" of their lives.

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"I started my career at Brouhaha International in 1993, working with Executive Director Polly Thomas and Jan Hinde, who worked for Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. They gave me the opportunity to develop my skills in implementing strategies for outreach, diversity and participation for both arts organisations. Polly and Jan enabled me to promote and develop the idea that diversity is linked to creativity."

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Entries for this year's competition need to be submitted by Monday 13th March - on any subject you like.

Prizes include tickets to the London production of WICKED, book tokens, books for the winners' school library, a self-publishing package and a work experience placement. 

The 3 schools that submit the most entries will also receive creative writing workshops and all finalists’ entries get printed in the anthology.

Find out more here...

Anne Longfield (Children's Commissioner for England) has said that young people who are spending increasing amounts of time online are not getting the level of support required, and called on the government to take action.

A year-long study into children and the internet, titled Growing Up Digital and published by the commissioner, claims that "much more needs to be done to create a supportive digital environment for children and young people".

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Researchers believe theatre and museum visits could also have an impact on pupils' confidence and creativity.

The aim of the new grant, set up jointly by the Education Endowment Fund and the Royal Society of Arts, is to test the impact of cultural education on pupils’ attainment, as well as their creativity and confidence.

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This year, Artswork is looking forward to celebrating its 30th birthday, culminating with a conference on Creativity & Life Chances in November. 

We want to start the year off the way we know best, with children and young people at the centre of all we do. Follow the links to watch our new film, Everyone is an Artist & Everything is Art, performed by Chukie.

Watch it here...

Watch this space for more details of our conference later in the year...

Being UK City of Culture is a once in a lifetime opportunity. By introducing new audiences to cultural activity at affordable prices and in accessible places that are local to them, our ambition is to increase their desire to participate in future activities and embolden them to try new experiences, helping to build a legacy for culture in the city.

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A consultation on the future of children’s centres will still take place, despite news that the life chances strategy that it was due to be part of has been ditched, the Department for Education has said.

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Role: Operations & Programme Assistant

Deadline for applications: 16th January 2017

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After a new kind of challenge? Why not check out our ENYAN jobs page and see if anything catches your eye? 

Remember, you can also post your own job adverts here - just sign up for a free ENYAN membership and submit your content today.