Three times in the last hour I have walked into my son David’s bedroom where he was supposed to be deeply engrossed in his studies only to find him feverishly excited about a computer game. This is not an isolated incident, it is a very common occurrence. He needs to study and get good A’level passes for his university admission next year.
With this in mind, I send my hearty congratulations to Sammy Gitau, 35, described as a Kenyan slum child who from the age of 13 was the family breadwinner after his father’s murder. He sold drugs and battled addiction before turning his life around.

However, a chance discovery on a rubbish tip of a Manchester University prospectus transformed his life and, against all odds, he has just graduated from there with an MSc degree in international development project management.

It makes me wonder if our kids have the same hunger and passion to succeed, if it is all too easy for them, that they take education for granted and whether they value the importance of a good education.

David’s brother James is just as nonchalant, telling me on a Friday night that his homework for the weekend has been competed during snatched breaks in school – and he goes to an excellent school.

I do despair, remembering how I loved studying at their age. Is it just a boy thing? Or does a background of hardship give a child extra grit and determination to succeed? I think it does.