New England Online > Daily Life
Daily Life in New England
From the cradle to the grave, New England has a unique sense of living (and dying) in a way that it's people see as being in touch with their own values and norms. Whilst what is written below is a good guide to the ways and customs of the people, many people, especially those from other parts of the world, continue to carry on with the customs that they were born into. New Englanders respect tolerance of others and expect the same in return.
Birth & Childhood · Schooling · Community Service · Work · Marriage · Retirement · Death
Birth & Childhood
Almost all New English children are born in hospital. Most mothers believe that the benifits of modern medicine make the risks of childbirth more manageable, and therefore are happy to enter hospital for week for the duration of the birth and recovery. Provision is made by the Ministry of Health for those that wish to give birth at home or other more natural settings, with midwives and doctors being made available if the mother makes prior arrangements with the Regional Health Board. All health care is free under the Health Provisions Act (2013) and is managed by the Heath and Welfare Fund.
After seven days, it is usally expected that the child, if he or she is in good health will be given a name. The Ministry of Home Affairs records all births, and notes the mother, the father and their occupations. By law, both parents must be noted on the document, which the child has the full and legal right to see at any time. Neither parent can prevent this information being made available.
The state provides free health care for all citizens, and children are given regular check ups through Community Health Centres in their first year. This is start of a child's medical records, which are freely available to the child once they reach eighteen.
Depending on the faith of the parents, a naming ceremony or similar ritual may be carried out at this time. Generally a preist or other religious figure is present, and the baby is blessed and officially named in the eyes of the families religion.
Children are ususally raised by their families, with grandparents helping when a parent wishes to go back to work. Either parent can expect Parental Leave for five years from their job, and can recieve a parenting subsidy for the childs first year. It is always hoped that a child can spend their first years of life in a loving environment where they can develop a number of basic social skills that they need in later life. Parents can elect to send children from ages three to five to social awareness classes, which also acts a sort of day care, however, a child can only attend these once a month.
For more, see Health System of New England and Religion in New England.
Schooling
New Englands education system is comprehensive and compulsory for all children to attend between the ages of six and eighteen. Once the child is old enough, they are sent to Kindergartens, usually at age five. After a year, a child is enrolled in a Primary School where they spend the next six years learning basic reading, writing and athritmatic. By the time a child is twelve they are expected to be able to perform simple mathematic tasks, be able write basic stories and letters with correct spelling and grammer and read short novels and other writings. Most schools have also introduced langauges, and a child is often expected to have basic skills in at least one other langauge (usually German, French, Italian, Spanish, Arabic, Japanese, Manadrin, Indonesian or Korean).
The following year, a child is sent to Secondary School where they must attend classes for the next seven years. In that time, they are taught advanced English, Mathematics, Science, Government and Langauges (known as Basic Skills) as well as other skills of their choice. At the age of fifteen, a student is asked if they wish to pursue an academic or vocational career. Once they choose, they are offered a series of courses to choose from. The teaching of Basic Skills is modified to suit.
Students must graduate with an acceptable pass (50%) in all of the Basic Skills before they can leave school.
For more, see Education System of New England.
Community Service
Once they leave, a student is required to complete a year of Community Service for the government. There are three choices a student can take. The default option is to perform National Service in the Defence Force, where they recieve basic training, and can be called up for service in an emergency. Around 65% of school leavers take this option.
Another option is join the Community Assistance Corps. Students are expected to aid professionals in their jobs with basic tasks, such as helping care for the elderly in Nursing Homes. Students can also be expected to take part in environmental rehabilitation schemes such as clearing areas of rubbish or planting trees. 30% of students take this option.
Finally, a student can elect to join the Civic Service Corps. This is where students can knowledge of goverment and office environments. Students act as assistants to elected MP's and aid the MP's staff in the running of a consitituncey office. Only about 5% students choose this option, as it requires the student to have recieveed a High Distinction (85% or above) in Government and be active in the political party of the MP they wish to serve.
Teritary Education
Depending on the choice they made at fifteen, a student who completes sixth form and community service is either considered to have fully graduated or is ready for teritary education. Students are then issued with a Advanced Certificate of Education and can either apply for a job (and enter the workforce), or they choose an area of study, and assuming the marks are sufficent, they can enroll at University or a Polytechnic.
Students that wish to enter teritary education, assuming they have recieved an acceptable mark, make a choice as to what course and where they would like to study. If they are accepted (99% of qualifying students are), students are then enrolled at either the New England National University or one of the three Polytechnic Colleges - Hastings Polytechnic, Fitzroyshire Polytechnic or Earle Page Polytechnic. During their time at study, students are not expected to work, and welfare provisions are made to ensure that they do not undertake work which would only serve to distract a student and delay the time in which they can enter the workforce.
For more, see Education System of New England.
Work
When they graduate, usually at the age of twenty-one, a student is now ready to enter the workforce, and can apply for a job at any place of their choosing. Once employed, many will stay within the same organisation for a number of years, and very few need to ever change careers altogether unless they wish to.
The working week in restricted to thirty hours per week, and it is illegal to work in excess of forty hours a week, although small busniesses and emergency services staff can apply for exemptions to this. Very few people work longer than the legal limit. The weekend consist of three consecutive days, which are usually rostered on a six or twleve month basis. All New Englanders are entitled to a minimum of twenty eight days paid sick leave.
New Englanders are well rewarded with holidays, and get six weeks annual leave, and almost all have time off between the Summer Soltice and New Years Day. Many choose to travel away from home at this and spend their holidays at the beach, in the mountains or overseas.
For more, see Working Life in New England.
Marriage
Marriage as an institution does not exist in New England in same way it did before independence. As a matter of course, couples can enter into a legal Contract of Union (commonly known as a Civil Union). This can be signed in the presence of a magistrate or justice of the peace. In the eyes of the state, this contract is the only legally recognised document. 'Pre Nupitals' and other binding contracts are not recognised by law and are illegal.
Under New England law, any couple may seek a Contract of Union and assuming that there are sufficent witnesses (two) and no objections, the magistrate must carry out the will of the couple. A union is not restricted by the gender of the couple, as long as both are considered of sound mind and are over the age of eighteen. On the whole, the matter of Union is considered very important to New Englanders and most only enter into such an agreement when there is a genuine belief it will be a permanent agreement. As a result, only 5% of Unions end in Dissolution (divorce), compared to 55% in Australia.
The act of marriage is an ceremony that is carried out only by those churches willing to consercrate the union of the couple involved. This allows a church to follow its own teachings and rules about who it believes can and cannot be married. Church marriages carry no extra legal force or privledge and are generally not seen as such by most people, except those particularly devoted to their religion.
A Union can be disolved by court order, and is usually issued by the Civil Disputes Tribunal. Churches may set their own rules with dissolution and can forbid such an act occuring, although this carries no legal weight and can only stop a divorced person remarrying in that church.
Retirement
Most people are expected to work until they are seventy, when they can choose to retire and have their superannuation paid out. Superannuation contributions are compulsory and is set to 25% of an employees fortnightly income. Those without adequate superannuation are cared for by the state with a pension. Many retirees choose to move into smaller housing, allowing them to spend more time helping their children and grandchildren.
Many people also take this time to travel extensivly and see as much as they can before they become too infirm to travel.
As they get older, some New Englanders can elect to enter a nursing home. These are not hospital like places waiting for death, but comfortable units with common eating space and sense of community.
Death
New Englanders face the ineviditability of death like most westerners. Improvements in the standard of life has meant that most people can expect to live to bewteen 100 and 120 years. When they become sick, New Englanders can elect to have assisted sucide performed, as long as they are considered to be fully in control and have made legal provisions for the execution of their estate.
Funerals are considered a celebration of the life of the deceased, and depending on the faith of the person, this can be celebrated in a number of different ways. Most people elect to be cremated and have their remains placed in a columbarium, thus saving space that would normally be taken up by a cemetary.
