On my return from Madrid, where I was regularly questioned about the “riots” in England, I was relieved to find that Geoff Barton can still see the wood for the trees (“There’s not much wrong with our moral compass”, 26 August).

We know that “if you give all the attention to the miscreants in a class, you generate the very kudos they crave”, so why aren’t we shining the spotlight on those who show the values we are hoping for?

The vast majority of those who attended World Youth Day in Madrid were young. If ever I have experienced proof of “a younger generation who are hungry to improve the world”, this was it.

Anna Back, Assistant headteacher, De La Salle School, St Helens.