This week, in schools across England, the same scene will have been repeated. All the paperwork and equipment that has been so vital for so much of the year will suddenly be competing for space in bins and skips as everyone clears out and strips down, ready for the new school year. The school where I’ve been working this year was no exception, and during the clearing out of one cupboard, two boxes full of Sylko sewing threads were unearthed, in all their jewel-bright coloured glory. Luckily, my reputation as one of those types that make stuff is such that someone saw fit to save them from the skip and pass them on to me.

Obviously I was delighted with the unexpected windfall, but it also made me sad all over again that handcraft often has little or no place in most mainstream primary schools in England anymore. I don’t…