Rufus Norris, Director of the National Theatre made great arguments for keeping arts teaching in state schools in his recent Guardian opinion piece, here it is if you didn’t see it. Arts are VITAL for children’s development, improving observational skills, lateral thinking/problem solving, fine motor skills, to name only a few benefits. All private schools in the UK include the arts in their curriculum (Eton has three theatres for the use of its students), and even they have stated clearly that they do not understand the government’s attitude towards the arts in state schools. Let’s hope the new Education Secretary sees the light.