The Empire on a Plate: How school dinners were influenced by Britains dominance on the global stage First published in the Jersey Evening Post 2026-01-08 There are moments when memory arrives not in fully formed stories but in tastes and textures – or, more precisely, in the strange, wobbling consistency of foods that have almost vanished from British dinner tables.…
We honour our shared history when we tell the whole story First published in the Jersey Evening Post 2025-11-27 Ben Shenton’s recent JEP column on trust in the public sector drew on the world of Jersey’s docks to make a wider moral point. It is a story worth hearing – but also worth examining carefully, because the history it invokes…
I carry Mr Doughty’s influence every day. It’s there in the risks I’ve taken, the things I have achieved First published in the Jersey Evening Post 2025-11-06 The teachers we never leave behind Reading the Teacher of the Year entries for the Pride of Jersey Awards reminded me that the most powerful voices in our lives are rarely the loudest…
Pilgrimage: A superb way to meet strangers and yourself First published in the Jersey Evening Post 2025-10-04 The flagstones in front of St Peter’s Basilica are cool underfoot in the half-light. Sleepy baristas wipe down tables outside cafes on the road out of Rome. I shift my 7kg pack into place, feel the tug on my shoulders, and take the…
Looking Back, Moving Forward: Rethinking Decline in Jersey’s Story First published in the Jersey Evening Post 2025-09-26 I often find myself in conversation with Islanders who say, quite simply, that things used to be better. There’s usually no anger in the statement – just a sense of sadness, or quiet resignation. People speak of a time when houses were more…
Having children shouldn’t be just a viable choice – but a confident one knowing there is support First published in the Jersey Evening Post 2025-09-11 Introduction It’s not just a worry for Jersey. Across Europe, falling birth rates have become a source of growing concern – not only for policymakers, but for societies questioning how to sustain economic vitality, care…
Why birth rates may be falling – and what It costs to raise a bean First published in the Jersey Evening Post 2025-08-29 In Jersey, we often speak of children born on the Island as “beans” – with pride, affection, and a deep sense of place. But in recent years, fewer beans are being born. The birth rate in 2024…
Belonging, birth and the balance sheet: Why Jersey’s demographic future matters First published in the Jersey Evening Post 2025-08-18 When a child is born on Jersey, something more than biology takes place. The birth is registered, the baby is weighed, and the name written into official records. But for many Islanders, this act has deeper resonance. A child born on…
What kind of rituals does Jersey need now, and what do we gain – or lose – by letting old ones go? First published in the Jersey Evening Post 2025-08-07 A photograph in the Temps Passé section of the JEP recently prompted me to think differently about a fixture of Island life. It showed King Street in 1979, dense with…
Voices of Memory: How Storytelling Sustains Culture in Jersey First published in the Jersey Evening Post 2025-05-16 I recently had the privilege of listening to local historian Sue Hardy at the Société Jersiaise share her memories of life after the war. It was a demonstration of the important role of memory and the power of storytelling. As Jersey marks the…