Vault Times — Maths in the news

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Our pick of the day for numbers, data and context — the rest of the edition follows by section.

National (UK) · HuffPost UK

My Heart Breaks That, In 2026, Children Who Have Already Lost So Much Remain Invisible

If you needed to care for a family member or friend’s child because they could no longer do so, would you? Knowing that if you said no, they would go into care?Most of us would say yes without hesitation, without considering the practicalities, the financial implications, or the emotional toll on everyone involved.T…

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Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

The article asks whether you would care for a family member or friend's child to stop them going into care. If 3 out of 4 people asked said yes, what percentage is that?

Your answer

The article mentions considering the financial implications of caring for a child. If caring costs £120 per week, how much is that over 4 weeks?

Your answer

The article says most people would say yes 'without hesitation'. Write a short sentence explaining why a survey of 'most of us' might not give a reliable percentage.

Your answer

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National (UK)

Headlines from UK-wide outlets: general news and analysis.

National (UK) · YouGov

YouGov News Tracker: 8 - 9 November 2026

What is the one news story the British public have heard most about in the last week?

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

The News Tracker covers 8–9 November 2026. How many days does that period span?

Your answer

If the tracker surveyed people across a two-day period and 1,000 people were asked in total, how many would be asked per day on average?

Your answer

The tracker asks about the one news story heard most in the last week. If a respondent could choose from 5 stories and picked one at random, what is the probability of picking any particular story?

Your answer

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National (UK) · YouGov

One in three Britons have ever played a Grand Theft Auto game, with GTA 5, Vice City and San Andreas the most common

Most of them say they were underage the first time they did so

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

If one in three Britons have played a Grand Theft Auto game, what fraction of Britons is that, and what percentage is it?

Your answer

A survey of 600 Britons found that one in three had played a GTA game. How many people is that?

Your answer

Most players say they were underage the first time they played. If 240 players were surveyed and 75% were underage first time, how many is that?

Your answer

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Statistics

Polling, surveys, trackers and data-led public opinion pieces.

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Global

International and world news.

Global · BBC News — World

New York building collapse kills at least two, officials say

A dangerous search for survivors continues after a three-storey building collapsed in Brooklyn on Wednesday afternoon.

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

The collapsed building in Brooklyn had three storeys. If each storey is about 3 m high, estimate the total height of the building.

Your answer

Officials say at least two people died. If the final total were 3 more than this minimum, how many deaths would that be?

Your answer

The collapse happened on Wednesday afternoon. If the search continued for 36 hours from 2 pm Wednesday, at what time would that be?

Your answer

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Global · BBC News — World

Israeli strike on hospital kills at least five Palestinians, Gaza civil defence agency says

The strike hit the surgery department of the hospital in Khan Younis, injuring at least 20 people and causing extensive damage, a spokesperson says.

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

A strike on a hospital kills at least 5 people and injures at least 20. What is the ratio of deaths to injuries in simplest form?

Your answer

If at least 20 people were injured and at least 5 killed, what is the minimum total number of casualties mentioned?

Your answer

The strike hit the surgery department of a hospital in Khan Younis. If the hospital had 12 departments and 1 was hit, what fraction of departments was affected?

Your answer

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Global · BBC News — World

Famed ship SS United States sunk off coast of Florida

Activists unsuccessfully fought for the historic liner to be preserved and turned into a museum, but it will now become the world's largest artificial ocean reef.

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

The SS United States will become the world's largest artificial ocean reef. If the ship is 302 metres long and a football pitch is about 100 metres long, roughly how many football pitches long is the ship?

Your answer

Activists fought unsuccessfully to preserve the liner as a museum. If 2,000 people signed a petition and 1,250 of them supported the museum plan, what fraction supported it?

Your answer

The ship was sunk off the coast of Florida to become a reef. If the sinking took 4 minutes and the ship descended at 30 metres per minute, how far did it descend?

Your answer

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Politics

UK and Westminster politics, policy and elections.

Politics · The Guardian — Politics

The Guardian view on welfare reform: time to retire lazy myths and stereotypes | Editorial

A speech by the leader of the opposition exemplifies much that is wrong with the way British politics conventionally talks about benefit claimantsThere is a big difference between expenditure that is rising and a rise that is “out of control”. The amount Britain spends on social security is in the former category. T…

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

The editorial says there is a difference between spending that is rising and a rise that is 'out of control'. If spending rises from £100 billion to £105 billion, what is the percentage increase?

Your answer

A benefit claimant receives £80 per week. If this rises by 3%, what is the new weekly amount?

Your answer

Write a brief sentence explaining the editorial's main point about benefit spending.

Your answer

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Politics · Politics.co.uk

‘You have a home with us’: Lib Dems launch COP 31 bid to court Green members

The Liberal Democrats have written an open letter to Green members, telling those who feel nature and climate have slipped down the party’s priorities that “you have a home with us”. In the letter, published as COP31 gets underway in Antalya, Türkiye, Liberal Democrat energy security and net zero spokesperson Pippa …

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

The Lib Dems wrote an open letter to Green members as COP31 gets underway in Antalya. If the letter was sent to 4,500 Green members and 8% replied, how many replies is that?

Your answer

The Lib Dems say Green members who feel climate has slipped down the party's priorities 'have a home with us'. Write a short sentence explaining what this offer means in your own words.

Your answer

COP31 is being held in Antalya, Türkiye. If a delegate travels 3,200 km to attend and the flight emits 0.15 kg of CO₂ per km per passenger, what is the one-way emissions estimate?

Your answer

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Politics · Politics.co.uk

Morgan McSweeney: failure to deliver can threaten democracy as much as abuse of power

Morgan McSweeney has told peers that a failure by elected governments to deliver can undermine their legitimacy “as much as” abuses of power. McSweeney, the former chief of staff to Keir Starmer, gave evidence to the House of Lords constitution committee on Wednesday afternoon as part of its inquiry into the UK’s co…

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

McSweeney told peers that failure to deliver can undermine legitimacy 'as much as' abuses of power. If a government kept 60% of its promises, what percentage did it fail to deliver?

Your answer

McSweeney gave evidence to the House of Lords constitution committee on Wednesday afternoon. If the session started at 14:15 and lasted 1 hour 45 minutes, what time did it end?

Your answer

The article says failure to deliver can threaten democracy 'as much as' abuse of power. Write a short sentence explaining what 'as much as' means in this comparison.

Your answer

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Environment & science

Climate, nature, energy and science stories.

Environment & science · BBC — Science & environment

'Summer was a wake-up call, winter could be dire' warning over food supplies

Wales needs to grow more fruit and veg or it will be at the mercy of wars and climate change, says expert.

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

An expert warns Wales needs to grow more fruit and veg. If Wales currently grows 40% of its fruit and veg and aims to grow 55%, what is the percentage point increase?

Your answer

If a shop sells 200 kg of vegetables and 25% is grown in Wales, how many kilograms are Welsh-grown?

Your answer

The warning says summer was a 'wake-up call' and winter 'could be dire'. Write a short sentence explaining why growing more food locally might help.

Your answer

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Environment & science · The Guardian — Environment

KKR and RWE are rich firms. Why do they need a UK state loan for their windfarms? | Nils Pratley

National wealth fund is to lend £1bn towards the Vanguard projects – but whether the private equity giant needed help is debatable“This major investment in UK renewables is a vote of confidence for building in Britain,” declared the prime minister.Andy Burnham is obviously correct that the two Vanguard windfarms off…

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

The national wealth fund is to lend £1bn towards the Vanguard windfarm projects. Write £1bn in figures.

Your answer

If the £1bn loan is repaid over 20 years in equal yearly amounts, how much is repaid each year?

Your answer

The article questions whether the private equity firm KKR 'needed help'. Write one sentence explaining why a journalist might ask this.

Your answer

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Environment & science · The Guardian — Environment

Cop31 as it happened: ‘Fossil fuels must go the way of the dinosaurs’ - UN chief hits out at industry lobbying

Third day of UN talks begin but leaders of many big polluting nations absentAfter a couple of hosts provide us a bit of background on Antalya (founded in 200BC, apparently) it is time to hear from António Guterres, the outgoing secretary-general of the UN, who will probably not be dancing.Guterres starts by praising…

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

Cop31 talks were on their third day. If each day has 8 hours of scheduled talks, how many hours of talks have there been by the end of day 3?

Your answer

The UN chief said fossil fuels must go 'the way of the dinosaurs'. If a conference has 200 delegates and 45% are from big polluting nations, how many delegates is that?

Your answer

Antalya was founded in 200BC. Roughly how many years ago was that, using 2026 as the current year?

Your answer

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Sport

Sport news (including football).

Sport · The Guardian — Sport

Svitolina stays in WTA Finals hunt after remarkable fightback sees off Muchova

Ukrainian wins 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 after eight-minute timeoutAndreeva beats Sabalenka 6-4, 6-0 to top Group BElina Svitolina staged a remarkable comeback to beat Karolina Muchova and remain in the hunt for the WTA Finals title.The Ukrainian looked to be on her way out of Indian Wells when she was a set down and required a…

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

Svitolina won 3-6, 6-2, 6-2. How many games did she win in total across the three sets?

Your answer

Muchova won 6 games in the first set and 2 in each of the next two. How many games did she win in total?

Your answer

Svitolina took an eight-minute timeout. As a fraction of an hour, what is 8 minutes in simplest form?

Your answer

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Sport · The Guardian — Football

League One clubs aim for further curbs on spending as budgets continue to spiral

Wage bills in third tier have increased by 15% this season‘Luxury tax’ and three-year limits on losses consideredLeague One clubs want to introduce new spending restrictions to reduce losses by limiting investment from owners.Clubs in the division voted to tighten the rules last summer by reducing spending limits fr…

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

League One wage bills have increased by 15% this season. If a club's wage bill was £8 million last season, what is it this season?

Your answer

A club's wage bill rises from £6 million to £6.9 million. What is the percentage increase?

Your answer

Clubs want a 'luxury tax' and three-year limits on losses. If a club may lose at most £39 million over three years, what is the average maximum loss per year?

Your answer

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Sport · The Guardian — Sport

Pat Cummins can end sandpaper saga with full disclosure of what players knew – not what they didn’t | Geoff Lemon

Australia captain can confront ball tampering scandal with transparency about former team environment and how its members made their choicesIn March 2018, Steve Smith was handed a shit sandwich by Cricket Australia. Smith had helped in its preparation, as captain of an Australia team whose ball tampering experiments…

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

The ball tampering scandal happened in March 2018. If the article is written in 2026, how many years later is that?

Your answer

Steve Smith was captain of the Australia team during the scandal. If a cricket team has 11 players and 3 were directly involved, what fraction of the team was that?

Your answer

The article says Cummins can end the saga with 'full disclosure'. Write a short sentence explaining what full disclosure would mean in this context.

Your answer

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Local & regional

City and regional papers across the UK.

Local & regional · Manchester Evening News

The Mauricio Pochettino fitness test that could make or break some Manchester United careers

Mauricio Pochettino is set to be the next Man Utd head coach and the Argentine demands notoriously high levels of fitness from his players.

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

Pochettino is known for demanding high fitness. If a player must complete a shuttle run 12 times and each run takes 15 seconds, how long does the test take?

Your answer

If a squad of 25 players each does 8 sprints, how many sprints are completed in total?

Your answer

A player's heart rate rises from 70 bpm to 140 bpm during a fitness test. What is the percentage increase?

Your answer

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Local & regional · Manchester Evening News

Man City winners and losers under Maresca as Haaland stars but question marks emerge over key duo

Manchester City have had a mixed start to life under Enzo Maresca, with a perfect beginning way giving way to worries in recent weeks

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

Manchester City had a 'perfect beginning' under Maresca before worries emerged. If they won their first 5 matches, how many points did they earn (3 points per win)?

Your answer

If City won 5 and then lost 3 of their next 8 games, what fraction of those 8 games were wins? Give it in simplest form.

Your answer

The article says there are 'winners and losers' and 'question marks' over a key duo. Write one sentence explaining what 'question marks emerge over key duo' suggests.

Your answer

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Local & regional · WalesOnline

Man and woman brandishing terrifying weapons trashed young family's home

Chelsea Lyddon, 29, and Benjamin Sicolo, 37, carried out frightening acts of vandalism at the homes of their victim and her mother

Classroom maths questions Tailored prompts

Chelsea Lyddon is 29 and Benjamin Sicolo is 37. What is the difference in their ages?

Your answer

The pair carried out vandalism at the homes of the victim and her mother — that is 2 homes. If damage at each home cost £1,500 to repair, what was the total repair cost?

Your answer

The article describes 'frightening acts of vandalism'. Write a short sentence explaining why the number of homes affected matters when describing the impact on the family.

Your answer

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