We face austerity from the government, privatisation via academies, a toxic influence on our students online, the attacks of the populist right in Trump and Farage — but we are growing, in number, in militancy — and we have shown we cannot be beaten, says NEU general secretary DANIEL KEBEDE
From industrial revolution's lifelines to spaces of leisure
JOHN GREEN looks at the Britain’s canal network, its historical arteries

ENGLAND has one of the largest canal networks in the world. Wales and Scotland also have canals but only a few. Today, our 2,000 miles of canals and rivers flow through cities, past homes, alongside offices and into the countryside, bringing leisure opportunities to millions.
From boating, fishing, walking and cycling, they offer a range of activities. Their history, however, reveals a very different function.
Most of our canals were built 200 years ago, but their history dates back to the Romans who built our oldest canal, the Fossdyke Navigation.
More from this author

Mountains of research show that online hardcore material harms children by direct exposure and often indirectly - by those men porn inspires. Yet there are still no simple measures like age and content regulation in place, writes JOHN GREEN

JOHN GREEN relishes photography that unfolds a longstanding and poetic relationship with Leeds

Odysseus’s homecoming myth is treated as a factual story, with strong resonances for our contemporary world. This is an implicit anti-war film that has an urgent relevance, writes JOHN GREEN

JOHN GREEN recommends an entertaining, if harsh and instructive, study of bullying, discipline and power dynamics in schools and at work