The Joy of Six 1279

"The UK now has the outline of a modern welfare state, but it is increasingly failing to fill in the gaps. Those gaps let far too many people fall through, and the consequences are both individual misery and collective decline." The state should be there when things go wrong in our lives, argues Andrew Sissons.

The most senior former judges in England and Wales have called on the government to reverse the trend of imposing ever longer sentences, giving warning that radical solutions are needed to address the acute crisis in prisons. A briefing from the Howard League for Penal Reform looks at what can be done#.

Robert Saunders reminds us that David Cameron rose without trace: "No prime minister of modern times has been so deeply rooted in the Establishment. None has been so routinely tipped for greatness. And yet few retain such an enduring air of mystery."

Andrés Rodríguez-Pose and Rosalie Henry de Frahan assess the effects of private schooling and school composition on student performance. "Our findings contribute to the growing body of research questioning the comparative advantage of private schools, demonstrating that their perceived superiority often arises from the socio-economic advantages of the students they enroll, rather than the quality of education provided." 

Christina Bollen presents five surprising ways that trees help prevent flooding.

"For Maynard, the old lesson 'be kind to people on the way up, because you'll meet them again on the way down', was, belatedly, about to hit home hard." Graham McGrath on a great stage feud: Bill Maynard vs Derek Nimmo.