Condemning poor children to a life without culture is a form of cruelty | Barbara Ellen

From music to sport, too many kids are losing out on vital life-enhancing activities Disadvantaged children in England are being priced out of a cultural hinterland. A Social Mobility Commission study , from the University of Bath, reports that children aged 10-15 from low-income families are three times less likely than wealthier peers to engage in out-of-school musical activities, such as learning an instrument or joining a choir or orchestra. There were also differences according to race – 4% of British Pakistani children took part in music classes, compared with 28% of Indian children and 20% of white children – and regional divides: 9% of children in north-east England played a musical instrument, compared with 22% in the south-east. Continue reading...