Author Archives: Daniel Singleton

Have you ever found yourself opening a gift from a friend or relative and thinking, “That’s nice—what do I do with it?” This Christmas, I opened a large box to discover a strange metal object within. My family—my wife in particular—looked on with bated breath […]

It is often true that the real, heroic, life-changing stuff happens behind the scenes, usually without fanfare or even recognition. Over the years, there has been work done here at FaithAction, work that has been important to me, that was done because I believed it […]

I am perched on the edge of a cream leather sofa which has been rapidly cleared of freshly-ironed clothing. There is a bustle of activity going on as my wife and I relent and agree to a cup of tea. I don’t really want a […]

Have you ever had a song that you can’t get out of your head, a brainworm that will not go away? All Together Now by The Farm has been that song for me. It was a Christmas hit about solidarity in the First World War—the […]

The Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced that from 19th July 2021 most of the remaining COVID-19 restrictions will be lifted. Once we get past the predictable political back and forth, which forms the theatre of any government announcement, we see that the mismatch of […]

The arrival of Sajid Javid as the new Health and Social Care Secretary could signal a new opportunity for the government’s approach to health inequalities. At a Parliamentary event celebrating Creative English, Mr. Javid recalled attending doctor’s appointments as a child to interpret for his […]

The New York Times reports on a new term being coined by psychologists – Languishing. This is the real and developing mental health complaint caused by the COVID lockdowns.  “It wasn’t burnout — we still had energy. It wasn’t depression — we didn’t feel hopeless. […]

It could also be said that the English are whatever you make them. Anyone studying the history of these Isles will swiftly realise there really is no such thing genetically as an English ethnicity. We are made up of many different peoples. Recently, the Labour […]

As the mob of school children bustled towards me down a cramped alleyway near where we live, my wife held me back to observe social distancing. It was good to see the normality of young people, in that classic teenage way, seemingly unaware of any […]

I have to confess: I love the census. This is partly because, as a historian, it is such a useful source of information. The census gives us a snapshot of the United Kingdom, which is then used to help organise government programmes and assign funding, […]