Northern Ireland Parents Think Exam System Needs Updating
About 75% of Northern Ireland parents think exams are outdated and need to be modernised following last week’s A-Level results.
And ahead of this Thursday’s GCSE Results 43% of mums and dads in the region believe removing exams would improve the current system although Minister for School Standards Will Quince, who expects exam grades to fall this year, said young people and universities and employers believe “exams are the best and fairest method for assessment”.
Education expert Rob Leitch, Executive Headteacher at My Online Schooling, says he agrees with Northern Ireland parents.
According to the latest research conducted by Opinion Matters, two in five of parents are unsure or do not believe their child’s school has taken any learnings from the pandemic, with more than a fifth saying hybrid lessons should be integrated into their children’s education and a quarter in favour of flexible hours while 54% want to see better mental health services available with 77% saying their children were anxious and 74% stressed during the exam season.
A Feast For The City This September
Following a two year absence, Belfast Restaurant Week is returning to restaurants across the city centre this September with a menu to tempt every taste bud.
Promising to be the biggest event of its kind in the city, Belfast Restaurant Week is being supported by all the Business Improvement Districts with Belfast One and Cathedral Quarter coming together again and being joined by Linen Quarter for the first time, to create a feast of activities between 19th and 25th September.
The week-long event will give restaurant goers a great opportunity to socialise and restaurants a platform for showcasing and shining a spotlight on chefs and menus that make dining out in Belfast an unrivalled experience.
As well as dishes priced from as little as £10 for lunch and £15 for dinner, there will be special offers throughout the week and the Big Belfast Brunch at the weekend. And also on Saturday and Sunday, St George’s Market will be the place to visit for cookery demonstrations by local chefs where visitors will be offered the opportunity to taste dishes directly from the demo oven.
For participating restaurants and menus, please visit
Weather outlook for the week ahead
The temperatures are beginning to drop in Belfast but the summer holidays look set to finish with some warm weather this Bank Holiday weekend. The Met Office forecasters have given their predictions for the week ahead, saying that a wet start to the week is likely to quickly change into dryer weather as the week progresses.
Tuesday, will see a dryer day with sunny spells in the morning and evening with temperatures reaching highs of 20 degrees. Wednesday is likely to be the best day of the week with sunshine throughout the day and temperatures reaching 19 degrees.
This good weather will continue into Thursday and Friday which both have similar forecasts with sunny spells throughout the day and no rain predicted. The Bank Holiday weekend is likely to be cloudier than during the week, although the weather is due to remain dry and bright with temperatures of between 14 and 18 degrees throughout the day.
And in Entertainment….
Barry Devlin to receive Legend Award at the Northern Ireland Music Prize 2022
The Oh Yeah Music Centre is delighted to announce that this year’s Legend Award recipient is Barry Devlin from Horslips. The presentation will be made at the Northern Ireland Music Prize on Wednesday 16th November at Belfast’s Ulster Hall.
Following the presentation to Barry Devlin, fellow musicians and Horslips friends Jim Lockhart, Ray Fean and Fiach Moriarty will join Barry on stage for a few of the band’s best known songs. The NI Music Prize is an annual awards night for music from the North and will include sets from shortlisted acts including Album, Single, Live and Newcomer as well as this very special Legend performance.
A very limited number of tickets for the event went on sale this morning from the Ulster Hall and Waterfront website.
Line Of Duty Update from Adrian Dunbar
Line Of Duty star Adrian Dunbar has said the hit police drama could return for a seventh series of “three or four episodes” or “two 90-minutes” specials.
The 64-year-old actor, who plays Superintendent Ted Hastings in the BBC show, told The Times the final decision on the storyline is “entirely down” to creator Jed Mercurio.
He is set to reunite with Mercurio and co-stars Martin Compston and Vicky McClure on Monday August 29th for a curry, and suggested they “might hear something” about more episodes then.
The sixth series of the police drama, which aired from March to May in 2021, was a ratings success, with its dramatic finale revealing the identity of the mysterious corrupt officer H.
Despite bringing a long-running storyline to an end, it also left the door open for another series.
Hear Tina Calder’s daily news bulletins on Belfast 247 – belfast247onair.com