Sixties children grew up in a more permissive and commercial age. They
enjoyed a childhood in which new vaccines gave children protection from
life threatening diseases while the contraceptive pill meant smaller
family groups. A controversial programme of comprehensive education
began to be rolled out while primary schools would become less rigid and
more centred on the needs of the child. This was also the first young
generation not to be conscripted into the armed forces. Rising
prosperity and rapid technological advances meant more children lived in
homes with refrigerators, washing machines and science-inspired toys.
Parents had more leisure time to spend with their children and
television became the norm. Sixties children routinely travelled in cars
and went on family holidays, increasingly abroad. Sweets and toys were
plentiful in this first full decade without rationing. Teenagers had
money to spend on fashion, pop music and, worryingly, drugs. The Beatles
began to dominate the vinyl record market. This book is part of the
Britain's Heritage series, which provides definitive introductions to
the riches of Britain's past, and is the perfect way to get acquainted
with a 1960s childhood in all its variety.
