The world’s a better place thanks to the Be Kind generation

One of the mottos of my son’s primary school is Be Kind. The children are taught about the importance of accepting others, respecting – not fearing – difference.

I don’t remember any of this talk when I was at school. Bullying was just a fact of life, and it wasn’t just in the playground – the staff were at it too. I recall a French teacher who would throw a duster at your head if you stepped out of line.

When I left school and joined the workplace, things weren’t much better. It wasn’t unusual to be shouted at by your boss or hear colleagues crying in the communal toilets after a dressing down. It still goes on, of course.You only have to look at the goings-on at Westminster to see that.The difference is, the old-school macho management style seen in politics and business is now being called out.

For campaigner and broadcaster Mary Portas, the rise of the Be Kind generation is a sign that the dog-eat-dog mentality is being swept away and replaced by values of inclusion and equality. She tells us on pages 6&7: “We need to bring back into society something very beautiful, very deep, and very kind and change the way we are living.”

It would be easy to dismiss this as idealistic but she points to evidence that things are changing for the better. Recent years have seen the #MeToo movement and Greta Thunberg’s rise from one-girl protest to global climate leader.

Portas describes those who challenge the status quo as “beautiful misfits”. Hopefully by the time my son reaches adulthood, they’ll be the norm.