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In this article, Paul Stephenson and Glynis Rumley describe the way in which educators in Kent have developed strong links with their colleagues and neighbours from Nord Pas de Calais in France. From a variety of projects undertaken, some of which were assisted by funding from European sources, children of all abilities and needs have been able to work and learn together. The PILOTE programme, developed in Kent by the local education authority's Modern Foreign Languages (MFL) team, has been used to overcome language barriers and, by making learning fun, has enabled both adults and children alike to communicate with each other during the project work which has been undertaken. From a strong emphasis upon enjoyment and within a natural context for learning, teachers with little previous foreign language experience have been empowered to enhance their children's language skills. The approaches used have been relevant both to children in the mainstream situation as well as those in specialist provisions. The "Above and Beyond Barriers" projects have enabled children to find out more about their European counterparts and communicate with them in a meaningful and enjoyable way.

The August 2003 heatwave resulted in an additional 15,000 deaths in France, mostly among the very old. In the aftermath of the disaster, an annual Solidarity Day (Journée de Solidarité) was introduced as part of the reform process. By cancelling a public holiday, the French government sought to raise 2 billion euros to finance healthcare for the elderly and disabled. The first such day in May 2005 led to confusion, with opposition from unions, demonstrations by public sector employees and considerable uncertainty among the workforce as to its legal status. This article seeks to analyse this public policy experiment through the lens of Marcel Mauss' theory of gift and reciprocity, exploring potential normative justifications for the French state's organisation of the day—and therein the constraints—while examining the moral and political obligations placed upon workers, the elderly and the Republic through the engineering of collective solidarity. It seeks to test the relevance and limits of the gift cycle as a tool for contemporary political and social analysis of the modern welfare state. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A heatwave in 2003 caused 15,000 deaths in France. This article examines the impact of the public health crisis on French public management, considering how government actors across various state institutions, including central and decentralized tiers of public administration, have been engaged in reform. It studies how these actors in the post-crisis reform process established responsibility and drew lessons. The paper shows that solidarity was used discursively in a game of political blameshifting and experimentation. It also points to the politics behind the framing of crisis enquiries. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Soon into his term as President, Nicolas Sarkozy commissioned Jacques Attali, former adviser to François Mitterrand, to investigate ways to ‘free up’ economic growth. Decision 260 of the report published in February 2008 recommended doing away with the French department completely. The report reignited a decades-long debate about streamlining the levels of France's public administration. Drawing on websites and internet blogs, including Attali's own, this article examines civil society reactions to the proposal, uncovering diverse and conflicting attitudes towards the department, while revealing it to be the most ‘accessible’ expression of the Republic, bound up with the self. In many senses, this artificial political construct, purposely created to bear no reference to history or belonging, has paradoxically become a significant carrier of French culture and territorial identity. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In the sweltering temperatures of August 2003 there were over 15,000 fatalities in France, the majority among the elderly. The heatwave (canicule) was the greatest natural catastrophe in Europe for 50 years. Political mismanagement contributed to the death toll and government initially sought to blame medical services. However, other politico-cultural, societal and psychological factors may have contributed to the failure to protect those citizens most vulnerable. This article identifies 20 obstacles ("pathogens") to ensuring effective response in the face of environmental or weather-related threats, distinguishing between state-institutional and individual-community barriers, most of which have a cultural dimension. These factors require greater consideration by policy-makers to improve preparedness for environmental threats in the EU. The case raises questions about crisis management and how best to reduce risk for elderly populations, illustrating the limits of the state in offering social protection through institutionalised solidarity mechanisms, and recognises calls to strengthen community capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]