British children lose interest in the arts

Interest in the arts is dying out amongst British schoolchildren due to a lack of accessibility, according to a three-year study which involved thousands of GCSE students across Britain.

The recently released film Billy Elliot tells the heart-warming story of a young boy from a mining community, who, against the odds, discovers the joy of expressing himself through dance when he gives up boxing for ballet. Billy's experience learning ballet is in stark contrast to the norm experienced by most students, according to the Royal Society of Arts (RSA) report. RSA director Stephen Daldry criticised the available artistic pursuits in most schools: "We should show our children that they can express themselves better through creativity." Learning to paint, play music, stage a play or learn ballet are activities which are on the margins of timetables or simply not available at all. The report calls for changes to the curriculum to represent major art forms.