BRITAIN’S cult of individualism, greed and selfishness has so blighted children’s lives that families and pupils need basic training in love and moral responsibility, according to a landmark report on the state of childhood.

More than 35,000 people contributed to the inquiry, which recommends measures including emotional report cards for children to give a snapshot of their mental and moral state at the ages of 5, 11 and 14.

The report, endorsed by Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, is likely to be used as a weapon by the Conservatives to attack Labour for what David Cameron has called “broken Britain”.

A Good Childhood states emphatically that society has been damaged by rampant individualism, that Britain is one of the countries worst affected and that this ethos needs to be replaced by a greater sense of personal responsibility and the common good.

It calls for “a radical shift away from the excessively individualistic ethos which now prevails, to an ethos where the constant question is, ‘What would we do if our aim was a world based on love?’ ” The report’s lead authors are Lord Layard, emeritus professor at the London School of Economics and former adviser to Tony Blair on wellbeing; and Judy Dunn, professor of developmental psychology at the Institute of Psychiatry in London.

The inquiry is independent, but commissioned by the Church of England-affiliated Children’s Society.

It paints a stark picture of social breakdown. The report cites evidence that this country has some of the worst rates of child unhappiness, poverty, family breakdown and child violence in the western world.

Two-thirds of respondents say the moral values of children have declined; other polls show people’s trust in one another has crumbled.

One of the most controversial areas covered by the report is the effect of women working. It claims female economic independence as well as feckless fathers have contributed to family break-up while also reducing the amount of time a child spends with its parents. In a poll for the inquiry, 60% of respondents said parents did not spend enough time with their children.

The inquiry warns that parents should not rely excessively on nurseries but should turn more to relatives to help with childcare. It also deplores the acquisitiveness promoted by advertising targeted at children.

It criticises the way social networking websites such as Facebook encourage users to brag about the number of online friends they have, without consideration of the importance of the quality of those friendships.

The solution, according to the experts who wrote the report, is to emphasise love and mutual respect in education, public policy and personal life. The recommendations include “civil birth” ceremonies to foster a sense of commitment for atheist parents who do not want their children christened; more prenatal classes to educate parents about child-rearing responsibilities; promotion of team sports; and the development of a sense of wonder and inner peace.

Carol Craig, head of the Centre for Confidence and Wellbeing in Glasgow, cautioned: “It is taking us into mass psychological experimentation.”

Childhood in trouble

43% of British children say they find their peers “kind and helpful”, the lowest in 29 countries in a United Nations study. In Switzerland the figure is 91%

In 1959, 56% of Britons said most people could be trusted. This has fallen to 29%

44% of British children who use the internet say they have made friends online, compared with 32% in France

One third of British 11 to 15-year-olds say they have been drunk at least twice, almost three times the proportion in the United States

22% of British boys are overweight, 8% more than Germany but 9% fewer than Spain

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