• Labour's manifesto promises include: 1,000 coasting or failing schools able to join federations; constructive childcare activities available between 8am and 6pm during school terms; a decision on universal school meals by 2012; an extension of one-to-one tuition for secondary school pupils approaching GCSEs. Paternity leave will be doubled from two to four weeks. Guardian


• The Telegraph outlines key pillars of Labour's election manifesto in education/family. Telegraph


• Independent school fees are, in many cases, to rise above inflation rates this autumn. This is put down to the teacher's pay award, higher utility bills and next year's rise in National Insurance contributions; some cite lower admissions. Times

• The Guardian explores the phenomenon of some of the best A Level students choosing not to go into Higher Education. Instead, FE-based, employer-led programmes, vocational courses and apprenticeships see them living independently, earning, learning skills and with employment prospects that HE cannot not provide. Guardian


• Since tuition fees were introduced in the UK in 1998, participation in HE in the UK has slipped from 7th in the OECD ratings to 15th. A Guardian comment piece sets out the investment returns of higher education - £2.60 for the government's pound; £1.30 of it in tax revenue. It argues that cuts prevent the necessary expansion and productivity of the sector. Guardian


• Visits to universities, struggling with a 20% average increase in applicants this year, find many have closed courses early and are micromanaging admissions, fearful of the £3,700 fine per extra student recruited above their set limit. Applicants from lower socio-economic backgrounds will suffer as defensible decisions about admission often come to rest on using grades alone. Guardian

• New research on UK families shows that adults live on average 66 miles away from their ageing parents, but often only get to see them three times a year. Despite a third saying they were concerned about their elderly parents, the same number (of over 40s) blame their hectic lifestyles for getting in the way. Telegraph


• Maternal deaths in the UK have not improved in twenty years, despite huge inroads made into death rates in childbirth in the developing world. The UK stands 23rd in the global league tables. The stagnation of UK rates has been attributed to women giving birth later, more Caesarean sections and immigrant mothers who are less likely to seek antenatal care. Guardian


• Two of the most senior family court judges have criticised the willingness of social workers to take children into care. This may be read as a signal to family court judges to challenge legal orders to take children into care; the number of children placed in care has reached a record high since the publication of the Baby P case. Times


• A single mother has gained a £100,000 court payout after a ruling that it was within her rights to miss army training when she could not find anyone to look after her child. She won her race and sex discrimination case, as the tribunal ruled the army had treated her less favourably than her male counterparts. Telegraph


• Alder Hey in Liverpool is the biggest children's hospital in Europe. It is finding that preventable diseases in children are reaching epidemic proportions and staff are spending more time than ever tackling conditions such as tooth decay, obesity, alcohol abuse and those caused by passive smoking. BBC

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