Once trained, the staff are bound to feel underpaid and undervalued and move on to "proper" jobs. The Children Act 1989 requires staff to be adequately trained, a minimum being a 200-hour course. Most pre-schools exist solely on the income from fees and fundraising, receiving no financial assistance from local authorities.Second, staff are very poorly paid (under pounds 9 per session is an average wage for three-and-a-half hours of mentally and physically demanding work) This is a situation which cannot continue. They have always had to be cheap (in my area an average fee is around pounds 2 per session) - how else can one guarantee that all parents in the community can afford the fees? Sadly there are low-income families who cannot afford even these low fees and their children suffer the further deprivation of no pre-school education.
Yes, they are, and artificially so, for two reasons. First, community groups were created by parents who felt that their children needed pre-school education and were unable to find nursery provision. From Ms Viv Robson Sir: Wendy Berliner writes that costs are low in pre-schools ("Playgroups threaten to quit nursery voucher plan", 14 July). Surely the surplus of hospital buildings offers a golden opportunity to provide ready-made hostels for the homeless?Yours faithfully,Stephanie RybakMilton Keynes, Buckinghamshire15 July. From Dr Stephanie Rybak Sir: So more than 120 historic hospital buildings are to be sold off and the owners are worried about the sluggishness of the property market ("For sale: 120 historic hospitals, hundreds of rooms, large gardens", 15 July). At the same time, we are facing the national shame of having the weakest members of our society sleeping in doorways and under bridges.
The exhibition allows visitors to make up their own minds about Turner Prize artists and leaves them less dependent on the views of commentators like Mr Lister.Yours sincerely,Waldemar JanusczcakCommissioning EditorArts and MusicChannel FourLondon, SW114 July. Some of this goes on the dinner, some on the prize money, but by far the largest amount is spent on the Turner Prize exhibition of shortlisted artists - catalogues, brochures and educational programmes. This valuable exhibition is the reason why Channel 4 suggested to the Tate Gallery that the Turner Prize be revived after its temporary demise in 1990. I wish enlightenment came that cheaply! In fact, Channel 4 puts pounds 120,000 into the Turner Prize. From Mr Waldemar Janusczcak Sir: In his article on the Turner Prize (14 July) your arts correspondent, David Lister, asserts that Channel 4 "puts up the pounds 20,000 prize money and can thus broadcast the Prize dinner". Yet as soon as they get a result they don't like, this is tossed to the wind. If the Labour Party is to attract more women voters, it needs candidates of Liz Davies's calibre, and if it is to retain any semblance of democracy, her selection must be confirmed.Yours faithfully,Jacqui BrownLondon, NW1015 July. From Ms Jacqui Brown Sir: I was outraged to read that Tony Blair may be trying to overturn Liz Davies's selection as candidate for Leeds North-East ("Blair moves to block hard-left candidate", 15 July).
Ms Davies is an ideal candidate - straight-talking, genuine and a good socialist. I worked for lslington Council for more than 10 years and remember her as one of the few councillors to retain her principles and not be afraid to stand up for the things she believed in, although her truths are no doubt unpalatable in today's Labour Party. The Labour leadership talks of the need for more women in Parliament and claims to have fought hard for all-women shortlists. It is to be hoped that President Chirac's actions will match his words and that the West will rally to his leadership.For there is no longer any doubt about the morality of the current situation The world faces a crusade of evil. The Bosnian Serb regime is not just the enemy of the legitimate Bosnian government: it is the enemy of humanity.There is now an overwhelming moral case for: (1) allowing the Bosnian government to have the means of self-defence; (2) using air power to hinder the Serb advance; and (3) using troops on the ground to enforce the safety of supply routes.If we fail to act now, history will condemn us with that terrifying accusation: you knew, but you did nothing.Yours,Francis BownKingston-upon-Hull,Yorkshire14 July.
Bown Sir: The misery of the refugees driven from the "safe areas" designated by the United Nations is the direct consequence of the failure of nerve by Western political leaders. They have shown themselves to be incapable of decisive action in the face of repeated opportunities to stand up to Bosnian Serb aggression. The new President of France has now spoken words which will lift the spirits of those of us who are ashamed of the appeasement which has come from Downing Street and the Foreign Office. From The Rev Francis A C S. What do I mean by "effective"? I mean that, for however long it might take, we should no longer see scenes such as that on your front page today.For some 40 years we maintained forces to meet the supposed threat from the Soviet Union at a fraction of the cost of effective intervention in the former Yugoslavia.I am sickened beyond belief by what is now happening in Bosnia and by the indifference of the politicians of Western Europe to the fate of their fellow Europeans.Yours sincerely,J G MighellLondon, NW115 July.