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MPs
in the North West to be asked to take action on child poverty
THE Campaign
to End Child Poverty is asking voters in the North West to contact
their MPs to discuss child poverty levels in their constituencies
and find out how they plan to help reduce the numbers.
Friday, 2 November 2007, kicked off “Visit Your MP Day,” part
of the Campaign’s Month of Action designed to give voters the chance
to meet MPs to talk about specific concerns in their area. The
Campaign recently released new information showing high levels of
child poverty throughout the UK. This information, broken down by
constituency, illustrates the need for MPs to become more involved,
particularly at the local level.
Hilary Fisher, Director of the Campaign to End Child Poverty, said:-
“We’re encouraging everyone to contact their MPs to talk about
child poverty, both in their constituencies and in the UK. There are
20 constituencies that have rates of children in benefits of more
than 40% or higher. This shouldn’t be happening in a country as rich
as the UK. We’re encouraging all levels of Government to get
involved and do something to end child poverty and voters can play
an important part in making that happen.”
The Campaign has compiled a list of the 20 constituencies with the
highest rates of children in poverty in the UK. Labour MP Tony
Lloyd’s Manchester, Central constituency tops the list with 52% of
children living in benefits, but many others are not far behind,
with a spread including the East Midlands, the North West, West
Midlands, London, Scotland and Yorkshire and Humberside.
In the North West, Manchester, Central (Tony Lloyd MP, Lab) has the
highest percentage of children in families on out of work benefits
at 52%. Next is Liverpool, Riverside (Louise Ellman MP, Lab/Co-op)
with 48%, Liverpool, Walton (Peter Kilfoyle MP, Lab) and Manchester,
Blackley (Graham Stringer MP, Lab) each with 43% and Knowsley North
and Sefton East (George Howarth MP, Lab) with 41%. The national
average is 20%.
To see the Top 20 list, go to this
link.
To find out the rates for the rest of the North West, go
to this
link.
Toxteth
Library gets lotto cash
AN HISTORIC
Liverpool library is to get a £1.3 million makeover - thanks to the
Big Lottery Fund. The city council has successfully bid for
the cash to transform Toxteth Library so that it can offer a broader
range of activities to the local community.
The library, on Windsor Street, was opened in 1902 and attracts over
1,000 people a week - but its facilities badly need updating.
The money will be spent on creating study areas, meeting rooms,
exhibition space, community space, toilets, baby changing
facilities, a refreshment area and a performance space.
Councillor Colin Eldridge, executive member for leisure at Liverpool
City Council, said:- “This is fantastic news for the community
in Toxteth. We will be able to completely refurbish the
building and involve local people in creating a centre all
communities will be proud of - whether for meeting, reading,
relaxing, studying or learning. We will have displays of best
selling books as well as study material, and the latest computer
technology to access the internet, email and word processing.
We will be working closely with local groups to provide space for
community activities to ensure that the library really is at the
heart of Toxteth life and available to everyone.”
A new learning programme will also be established including reading
groups, homework sessions, IT training, skills for life and English
for speakers of other languages.
Helen Bullough, Big Lottery Fund Head of Region for the North West,
said:- ''The creation of new library spaces in the North West
will provide invaluable centres of learning and information.
The new facilities will also act as focal points for community life
at a time when more and more people are using libraries.” |
Minister goes back to school to sample the new Society, Health and
Development (SHD) Diploma
SCHOOLS
Minister, Jim Knight, sat in on an interactive classroom session led
by a Primary Care Trust last week. He watched as youngsters
participated in activities involving first aid, hygiene and testing
pulse rates - experiencing 1st-hand what a new SHD Diploma lesson
might entail and meeting students considering it as an option.
Developed by employers, schools, colleges and universities, the
Diploma aims to help young people aged 14 to 19 to realise their
potential and gain knowledge and skills in a 'real world'
environment. It can be taken alongside GCSEs, A-levels and
vocational subjects, but it differs from these traditional
qualifications as it combines theoretical study with practical
learning - aiming to equip students with skills they can apply to
the next stage of their development; be that at university, in
college or at work.
The Diploma in Society, Health and Development brings together the
workforces of health; adult social care; community justice; and
children and young people's services; within 1 qualification.
Covering a range of topics across these sectors, key themes include:
examining how different organisations work together; exploring
patterns of offending behaviour; and assessing the differences that
lifestyle choices can make to an individual's health and well-being.
To encourage
independent thinking, the Diploma will focus on project work, whilst
retaining a strong emphasis on core skills in English, maths and ICT.
It will also offer students the chance to apply the knowledge and
skills they have gained in the classroom within a work-relevant
environment and through work-experience placements.
Speaking at Smestow School in Wolverhampton, which hosted the visit,
Jim Knight said:- "It's great to hear about the employer
support for the Diploma in Society, Health and Development. This
Diploma covers areas that are of great importance to people in the
UK so it's important that the young people coming through our
education system have the skills that employers are looking for. We
believe the Diploma will help to meet this need."
Jim Knight was joined by representatives from some of the schools
and colleges that will be delivering the SHD Diploma from September
2008 and a range of employers who have been closely involved in its
design. Included in this group was Stephanie Harris, Director of
Workforce at Wolverhampton PCT, who also ran the day's practical
session. She said:- "The SHD Diploma offers a number of
opportunities for Wolverhampton PCT: it enables us to showcase the
vast array of jobs available across health and social care; it
allows young people to make properly informed choices about whether
they want to pursue a career in the sector; it opens up potential
recruitment opportunities; and it dovetails into our strategic
responsibility for the health and well-being of the local
population."
Diploma expert, Sharon Ensor, from Skills for Health - the lead
sector skills council heading up the development of the SHD Diploma
added:- "The way healthcare sector employers have involved
themselves in this new qualification has been fantastic - from the
curriculum design through to long-term planning for sustainable
partnerships locally. They have helped bring the Diploma to life;
creating relevant and engaging content that gives students the
in-depth knowledge, practical skills and real-life experience that
both employers and universities need."
Plans for a total of 17 Diplomas are underway and will be available
to students across the country by 2013. Last week, Secretary of
State for Children, Schools and Families, Ed Balls, announced three
new Diplomas in Science, Humanities and Languages, to be introduced
in 2011 and said he believed that "Diplomas could emerge as
the jewel of our education system".
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