Browsing Tag education

On Monday 19th July, the teaching Unions NASUWT and NUT brought a lobby to the Houses of Parliament to talk to MPs on the cuts to school funding and the Coalition Government’s policies on Academies.

Pictured with Lisa is David White, the Wigan rep for NASUWT who came to raise his concerns about the enormous cuts to Building Schools for the Future funding that will be hitting Wigan over the coming months and years.

The unions are also concerned about the Academies Bill, which Lisa has spoken against in the House and which is designed to create a two-tier education system, denying funding and therefore a decent education to the most deprived areas in the UK.

Lisa said:

I feel very strongly about the Tories’ education proposals as I believe they are a blatant attempt to bring the free market into the school system – benefitting the rich and harming the poor.

I will be working closely with NASUWT and the NUT to make sure the schools in Wigan are protected but I was devestated when a nummber of our local schools had had their funding cut. This will be a real blow to young people in Wigan and I will continue to put pressure on the Government to reconsider their decision.

Lisa pledged this week that if she is elected to Parliament on May 6th, she will ‘Stand for Children’ by backing the NSPCC campaign. People from across Wigan have written to Lisa asking her to sign up to the campaign, which can be found here.

The NSPCC asks candidates to sign up to:
ensure that vital child protection reforms are fully implemented and resourced, following the death of Baby Peter and other child deaths since
continue to fund helpline services for children, and for adults concerned about a child’s safety or welfare
tackle domestic violence from a child’s point of view
make the internet safer for children
strengthen the role of the Children’s Commissioner in England
provide resources for therapeutic services for children who have experienced abuse

Having worked at a children’s charity for 5 years, Lisa knows about the range of issues that affect children across the country, she said:

‘It is crucial that we do everything we can to protect children in their homes and those in care. We must make sure that all children have the chances in life they deserve. I have gladly signed up to the NSPCC pledges.’

Lisa met with students at Winstanley College this week to talk about the upcoming election and the issues that concern them. The students asked a number of thought-out questions. Tuition fees were an issue with a number of people keen to enter higher education.

Lisa told students she had signed the National Union of Students’ pledge to oppose any increase in tuition fees in the next parliament. ‘I will continue to oppose any measure that makes it harder for young people in Wigan to go to university. Students are rightly concerned about coming out of university with debt hanging over them – we have to make sure that ability and the desire to go to university determine what a person does in life, not how much money their family has.’

Other issues that came up were giving young people the vote at 16, abolishing the civil list and giving young people free bus passes. Elderly people and and eligible disabled people already have access to free off-peak bus travel and students at the college thought young people in education should be given the same concession. Lisa supported the idea of making travel to and from college cheaper.

‘Education Maintenance Allowance was introduced by the Labour government to help young people from low income backgrounds stay in education for longer – and it has made a real difference – but I talk to a lot of young people who still struggle to balance their studies with part-time jobs and the costs associated with doing A-Levels, a diploma or other qualifications. Free bus travel would be a significant help to many young people in Wigan in completing their studies’

Lisa also wants to make sure that there are reliable and frequent transport links to get to school and college. If you would like to know more about the NUS pledge, click here.