“Secure Future For England”

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31755, 12 August 1968, Page 2

“Secure Future For England”

(From Our Own Reporter) TIMARU, August 11. Because of a tremendous upsurge of youth and a rise in the number of professionallyequipped persons, the future of England was secure, the headmistress of St Felix School for Girls, in Sussex (Miss M. Oakeley), said in an address to the Royal Overseas League in Timaru.

Miss Oakeley, a former headmistress of Craighead Diocesan School, Timaru, said that England was in a state of turmoil and unrest.

It was a period of selfanalysis, when the economic situation, the educational system and the great traffic problems were subject to scrutiny. England, however, was not a poor country. It was as strong and as virile as ever, and

there was a determination to correct what was wrong. Many Changes

There were changes in attitudes (that towards the Royal Family being more one of respect than adoration), a tremendous effort was being made to create new export markets, and great changes were taking place in education, said Miss Oakeley. One of the greatest problems was the influx of coloured immigrants. “Frankly, we could not do without these people,” she said.

They performed the menial, ill-paid jobs, but they were arriving at a rate too great to be assimilated adequately. There were not enough schools or housing and because the coloured people frequently had a poor understanding of the English language, special reception schools had to be provided to bring the children to the stage educationally when they could be taken into the usual schools, “There is much soul searching going on now that the Race Relations Bill is before Parliament To show the slightest discrimination in choosing staff by colour could result in serious trouble,” Miss Oakeley said. “Little Poverty” Wages and salaries had risen tremendously in recent years, and there was little poverty. One of the problems was the number of mental breakdowns which occurred, especially among girls, because they were working so hard to get to university, said Miss Oakeley.

She referred to a “restlessness" among young people who wanted to have more say in the running of their schools, and students who wanted a greater share in the government of the universities.

Student riots were of great concern, she said. There had been violence and some appalling scenes which the police had handled with restraint There had been protests that the eountiy should not be spending millions on methods of chemical and biological warfare which were becoming the country’s chief exports. Miss Oakeley said there was a spirit of adventure evident in the young people, many of whom were prepared to give part of their lives to social service and helping more backward people through Volunteer Service Abroad.

Not the least of the many problems which beset the young were the drug peddlers, said Miss Oakeley.