'Life is real, life is earnest!' So wrote poet Henry Longfellow. He went on to remind us that the 'lives of great men all remind us (that) we can make our lives sublime and, departing, leave behind us footprints on the sands of time'.
After a depressing week in terms of poverty and statistics, I do begin to wonder whether we have lost our way in education. The so-called 'great men'
seem to be valuing the wrong goals and, therefore, achieving inappropriate outcomes, which do little or nothing to right previous wrongs.
The encouraging signs of improvement are small and can be overlooked, but for each child they are having a massive impact. A mother who was at the end of her tether and resorted to shouting and abuse has accessed 'Picking Up the Pieces' training. This course concentrates on her well-being and offers simple strategies to improve life at home. She learns more about her needs and as a result relaxes and begins to enjoy her children.
A father who has seen two children through the school and is currently supporting his third into the juniors has finally plucked up the courage to attend basic maths courses on site and is gaining some paper qualifications, 25 years after leaving school. Instead of low-paid work on the black economy, he will now be able to access a range of employment with some level of permanence.
Neither of these scenarios are recorded as outcomes towards any quantifiable Government statistics. The figures for our children's centre are meant to relate to children under four years old. Figures for adult education are based on 19-year-olds and those returning to the workplace - none of the scaffolding in-between for adults aged 25 to 45 who will contribute to their family's well-being and economic prosperity for decades to come.
It little matters where our children's centre begins and ends and where our role as an extended school overlaps. The impact that both initiatives are having upon the lives of families should not be understated. Several decades of child poverty and poor decisions impacting upon family lives will not disappear quickly. The quiet revolution is continuing and this current generation of families will have the opportunity to leave behind their own footprints in the sand.
Pat Wills is headteacher at Claremont Community Primary School and Centre of Excellence in Blackpool