Commentary .sx Insoluble housing problem .sx THE trouble with long standing problems is that most people get used to them .sx The housing problem has been with us as a serious social difficulty for 16 years- since the close of World War =2 .sx In the immediate post war years it led to a public outcry .sx The political parties vied with each other in their claims as to how many houses could be built under their own programmes .sx In a way the problem was simpler then .sx The need was gigantic .sx The task was solely to see how speedily it could be met with the materials and labour available .sx In 1961 the public sympathy is still with those who need housing , but attention is often focussed more on the young home-seekers , the newly-married couples wishing to set up a home , but faced with mortgages .sx There is a tendency for some of us to overlook the still urgent need for adequate housing for established families .sx Chislehurst-Sidcup Council have a housing list of more than 1,300 .sx With the exception of the North Cray Place Estate , they have built all the major estates they can .sx There is little land left in the urban district , with its Green Belt setting , for either Council or private developer .sx In what straits those 1,300 live only the Council's Housing Committee and its officers know .sx Their work is confidential , as it should be .sx What we do know is that the newcomers on the list outstrip the Council's ability to provide accommodation .sx At least , that is what is happening at the present time .sx We also know that even in this pleasant district , some families are still living in overcrowded conditions .sx The view has been expressed in Council that the housing problem will be with us for many years to come .sx The word " always " has been used .sx If that is to be the case , then we need some shrewd thinking on what to do about it .sx What hope is there for the 1,300 and the hundreds more who will no doubt go to the Council offices in the years to come ?sx The Council are urged to concentrate on slum clearance- there are a few slums in Chislehurst-Sidcup- and at the same time they are reminded to provide dwellings specially suitable for the elderly .sx How can they fulfil all their commitments ?sx The decision to sell the houses at North Cray to tenants on special terms has its merits .sx It is generally recognised to be good for people to own their own houses .sx By this means the Council should encourage people who would never have envisaged buying their own homes to take on that responsibility .sx At the same time , it will check the trend for the Council to become the landlords of an ever-increasing number of tenants .sx But it can have only a minor effect on this resurgent housing problem as a whole .sx Must that remain with us as a social cancer until the day that the talk of a move of population away from the London octopus turns into action , forced on us by sheer desperate necessity ?sx Commentary .sx Is our education worth the price ?sx .sx LAST week marked the end of the school year .sx It means relaxation after a long period of intense activity , which , for many children , has indicated prospects for the future .sx Some have said farewell to schools that have guided and encouraged them , and next month they will be going on to one of the forms of secondary education now bestowed .sx Others have left school to make their way in a highly competitive technical and scientific world .sx How well they fare will depend on how much they have assimilated in the years before and after the 11-plus- that mystic phrase that has brought quite unnecessary worry to parents and children .sx As one head master said recently , there is no such thing as failing the 11-plus .sx It merely provides a means of deciding the best form of education for each child , and from what we have seen it certainly works in the vast majority of cases .sx During the last two or three weeks of the summer term Kentish Times reporters visited school open days and spoke to head teachers and members of their staffs .sx They have visited classrooms and have seen how modern trends in education are helping to prepare the children for the years ahead .sx They have been impressed by light , airy schools , equipped with the most modern aids .sx The facilities are provided , and it is up to the children to make the best use of them .sx They have only themselves to blame if they do not .sx Those about to start work will continue to learn and they will be given every assistance to pursue their studies , not only by the education authorities , but also by the firms who will employ them .sx Vast sums are spent on education every year ; in fact the Kent bill accounts for the majority of county spending .sx It has risen over the years and will continue to rise .sx The poor ratepayer has to pay , and it is therefore right that he should ask , " Is it worth it ?sx " Indeed is it ?sx The future of the country is with the children at present being taught in our schools .sx We must see they have every chance of playing their part .sx There are black sheep in every fold , but the great majority fulfil our hopes .sx The price is high , but so is the objective .sx Consider all aspects of the question before giving a verdict .sx That done , there can be only one answer- it is worth it !sx Commentary .sx Thefts from cars .sx DURING this year so far there appears to have been a marked decline in the incidence of crime from last autumn's peak , which led Sidcup and District Chamber of Commerce to appeal for more police protection and to seek information as to how best their trader members could protect their property .sx The traders and public at large can , in the main , thank the Sidcup police for that improvement .sx They have shown a remarkable vigilance and alertness in past months .sx But there is one form of petty theft which has not abated but appears rather to be on the increase- the theft of property from cars .sx Every week there are instances of car spares and accessories , and quite frequently transistor radio sets , being stolen from parked cars , according to police reports .sx In most cases the thefts occur in the unattended public car parks in the urban district , easy and rich hunting grounds for the prowling car thief at night .sx The high incidence of these thefts has caused the Sidcup police to issue yet another warning to the public this week .sx It is simply to ask car owners to make sure their cars are properly locked before they are left , with no property of value left visibly enticing on the back seat .sx A locked door is at least a deterrent- a thief will move on to easier prey .sx Bank holiday tragedy .sx IN the last year or so road safety officials have acclaimed Chislehurst-Sidcup as an area free of accidents during the Bank Holiday weekends .sx Technically , the record has not really been broken .sx The only major accident of the week-end occurred a few yards outside the urban district boundaries , but the victim was a Chislehurst boy , and the horror of it touches us all .sx The cause of that disaster may be revealed at the adjourned inquest .sx It took place on a part of the A20 that has a dual carriageway- which the people of Sidcup are still hoping will be extended into this urban district- so the need for a road improvement of that nature cannot be argued in this case .sx What is alarming is not only that this sort of accident can still happen with dual carriageways , but that there could so easily have been other fatal accidents within the urban district over the week-end .sx A number of brushes between traffic was reported to the police , several of them causing minor injury .sx The people concerned were lucky .sx The truth of the matter is that unless there is marked improvement in driving standards on our over-congested roads other drivers may find themselves less lucky in the days ahead .sx Commentary .sx Vandalism .sx LESS than a year ago we drew attention in this column to the price being paid by the ratepayers of Chislehurst-Sidcup for the acts of vandalism committed by small gangs of hooligans .sx It is lamentable that we should so soon have to record our disgust and dismay at the amount of damage still being caused to public and private property , not only in this district , but also in neighbouring areas .sx Wanton damage caused to a pavilion at Mottingham has cost Chislehurst-Sidcup and Orpington Divisional Education Committee more than +400 .sx We record this week that a cricket pitch at Penhill was badly damaged on Friday night by hooligans , who uprooted the stakes protecting the square and ripped the turf .sx Time , money and energy has thus been wasted because of the anti-social behaviour of a group of irresponsible youths .sx Quite often Scout huts are the targets of those bent on wrecking .sx Unoccupied buildings have been damaged and fittings have been removed from parked cars .sx Farmers at North Cray have for a long time been the victims of vandals and considerable damage has been caused to buildings , equipment and crops .sx Those responsible obviously have too much time on their hands , but we cannot accept as valid the excuse now put forward that " there is nothing to do .sx " There are many outlets for those who wish to lead constructive lives- and the majority do .sx Many young people belong to organisations which provide interesting pastimes and hobbies ; and many engage in pursuits that will bring them benefits in the future .sx We do not pretend that everything in the garden is rosy .sx There is always room for more and improved facilities for young people to make the best use of their leisure time .sx It is often said that more is being done for youth to-day than at any other time .sx That may be true , but we must deal with the situation as it exists to-day .sx There is the problem of this minority of young people who seem unable to fit themselves into the modern scheme of things .sx We must help them , but we must also take a firm line .sx Their actions may be the result of frustration , but there can be no more frustrated people than those who have suffered at their hands .sx Hooliganism in any shape or form must be stamped out , and the public can help by reporting anything suspicious to the police .sx Commentary .sx Forty years of achievement .sx IT is now 40 years since four ex-Service organisations amalgamated to form the British Legion to call with one voice for justice for the men and women who had served their country and , being demobilised , were in distress and need .sx In those 40 years the Legion has achieved much and deserves the salute and congratulations of the rest of the country .sx Financed by the money collected on Poppy Day , the Legion's only general appeal to the public , it has given immediate and long term aid to hundreds of thousands of ex-Service men and women , their families and dependents .sx It maintains four convalescent and four country homes , the latter giving permanent homes to 230 elderly or permanently incapacitated ex-Service men .sx It provides employment for war disabled in its factories and industries and , through the Disabled Men's Industries , to home-bound disabled .sx It also provides work and homes for tubercular ex-Service men at Preston Hall , near Maidstone , where the Legion pioneered the treatment , training and rehabilitation of these men .sx The Legion has contributed largely to the solution of an urgent post World War =2 problem with its house purchase scheme .sx In 13 years it has helped 19,000 families to buy their own homes .sx Through the 5,000 services committees throughout the country temporary and immediate relief is given ; aid in sickness and in finding jobs ; old and lonely people visited and holidays arranged for severely disabled .sx