Liberal Democrat Warwickshire County Council Group are calling for greater entitlement of free scool meals.Cllr Jerry Roodhouse said that
Support the campaign to expand free school meals
“The Liberal Democrat group on Warwickshire County Council are calling for greater Free School Meal access. We are calling for WCC to bring forward proposals that aim to significantly increase the take-up of Free School Meals, including considering the option of automatic opt-in and how this can lawfully be done and that the Government funds local authorities accordingly”
Cllr Roodhouse went on to say,
“With the increased costs on families the Government can quickly ensure that children get a meal and also the school gets extra pupil premium into its budget, it is a no brainer which can be implemented now”
We support Living Streets and they are doing some really good stuff. This past year and a half our street space has come under more scrutiny than ever before. This is due largely to the pandemic and our changing habits. And then there’s the small matter of an unfolding climate emergency.
Meanwhile at Living Streets we are listening. This is what we’ve heard.
First our Space For Walking and then this year’s Cut the Clutter campaigns revealed the value of street space when it’s provided and then taken away.
And our own research told us that more than a fifth of our supporters are disabled and that inaccessible streets affect their pleasure, safety and independence.
The release of the joint inspection carried out on SEND services is clear Warwickshire could be doing a lot better. To those who know the services the report has no surprise. The question that needs to asked now is how the County Council will react to the findings. Read the report findings here Send Report on Inspection
The Liberal Democrats will measure the progress on the findings in the report and will check it against the coproduction of service provision with honest genuine working together, shining a light on decisions enabling greater transparency on every decision with added greater democratic accountability.
The County Council Cabinet have announced that Marle Hall in Wales will close. The Liberal Democrat Group on the County Council did call in the decision, as the Cabinet had ignored the 7,000 strong petition to keep Marle Hall open and examine the business case put by those who wanted Marle Hall to continue. Sadly, the decision remained to close Marle Hall.
The Liberal Democrats were hoping that the much loved venue in North Wales, that has welcomed generations of Warwickshire students to explore the Welsh countryside, experience courses from biology, art, climbing and much more, could find a way forward. It is indeed regrettable that Marle Hall did not get the necessary maintenance and investment by the County Council over recent years.
Councillor Jenny Fradgley said, “The Liberal Democrats will try and ensure that the County Council keeps to its promise that arrangements will be made to accommodate parties booked in other venues, and we hope that in future the County Council will help schools to find new providers for similar residential courses that are so important for personal development.”
Outdoor Learning is important. The definition that we use is that Outdoor Learning is a broad term that includes discovery, experimentation, learning about and connecting to the natural world, and engaging in environmental and adventure activities.
The debate in Warwickshire about this subject is alive and politically active. The Liberal Democrats recognise this debate and the proposed actions that the Conservative administration want to take in regard to this important matter. Cllr Jerry Roodhouse who leads the Liberal Democrats is calling for action to be taken in the development of an “Outdoor Learning Strategy” he stated that “It needs to have resources and any strategy should be funded the liberal Democrats also want to see a bursary scheme to enable individuals to go on outdoor learning experiences”
Jerry Roodhouse asked a question of the Portfolio Holder Cllr Morgan at Children’s Overview & scrutiny Committee 20th July on this matter, Cllr Morgan responded in a positive manner, let us hope words can turn into action.
The Outdoor Institute explains in more detail the type of experience that Warwickshire needs to be able offer its young people https://www.outdoor-learning.org/ it is the next generation we need to be investing in.
Liberal Democrats will be supporting the the Children’s Society to speak up for children and young people. A manifesto created by the Children’s Society that supports the reverse to the damaging decline in children’s well-being in Warwickshire: https://www.childrenssociety.org.uk/local-government-manifesto.
During this pandemic – rising poverty, increasing mental-health problems, exploitation, abuse and neglect occurring behind closed doors, and much more.
However, we know that there were already massive challenges facing children before the pandemic. Children’s happiness with their lives has been declining for the last ten years, as reported in The Children’s Society’s annual Good Childhood Report. We need to consider how we narrow the existing divides that the pandemic has exposed and widened.
We believe that Local government has tremendous power to improve children’s lives and strengthen communities.
The Liberal Democrats have passed a motion at their Spring party conference that would see changes made to the Equalities Act and Autism Act to allow those with autism to achieve their full potential. The Motion also calls on the Government to support individuals who are diagnosed with autism.
The motion calls on the Government to provide support to those who are diagnosed with autism with sweeping reform including:
Education about neurodivergence to be included on the curriculum in the same way mental health is currently. With increased teacher training.
Reduced wait lists for diagnosis by increasing funding and making diagnosis more accessible, by stopping gatekeeping and reducing steps required for diagnosis to be official in NHS terms.
A change to ensure Autism is not represented as decreasing quality of life, and equal access to support and diagnosis for autistic women, girls, non-binary individuals and ethnic minorities.
Guidance on employment to be updated to ensure the Equality Act 2010 is fulfilled and employers can support autistic individuals in their employment. Further improvements to the Autism Act 2009, to create obligations on employers and local authorities to support autistic people with their care assessments.
Autistic offenders to be met with support and not punishment when the crime is non-violent. The creation of sensory spaces to be provided for autistic individuals engaging with the justice system.
Commenting, Councillor Jerry Roodhouse (Paddox and Eastlands), said:
“Every individual should be able to achieve their potential and Liberal Democrats want to see more support for autistic people in Rugby, Warwickshire and across the country. By including lessons on neurodivergence in schools curriculums, putting in place funding to speed up the diagnosis process and ensuring that autistic people can be supported by their employers, we can begin to create a society that works for people with autism.”
Autism is a part of daily life for 2.8 million people in the UK (Child’s Quarter).
Only 8% of autistic people and 5% of family members felt that health and care services had improved since the Autism Act (Pears Foundation).
Only 16% of diagnosed autistic individuals are in full time employment and 32% in part time employment, but many adults remain undiagnosed due to unnecessary hurdles in the assessment system.
Misdiagnosis of autistic individuals is far too common – especially in ethnic minorities, women, girls and non-binary individuals.
Autistic people are up to seven times more likely than the general population to be involved in the criminal justice system (Economic and Social Research Council).
Liberal Democrats have have campaigned for a greener Warwickshire. Today the Leader of the Liberal Democrat group Cllr Jerry Roodhouse on released the “The Little Green Book” which he has developed as a practical guide to helping the local environment. Cllr Jerry Roodhouse said in releasing this booklet “that by only by working together can we start improving our biodiversity and local environment. Warwickshire does not perform well against its own indicators for biodiversity so we need to do more, I hope residents find this booklet helpful and a practical; way that they can help our environment and planet”.
Child exploitation is happening in Warwickshire. Don’t ignore it.
Hundreds of children in Warwickshire are victims of exploitation every year and only by working together can we make an impact and improve the lives of the young people affected.
To increase the awareness of child exploitation (CE) in Warwickshire, Warwickshire County Council, in partnership with Warwickshire Police, Barnardo’s, Warwickshire Safeguarding and the Police and Crime Commissioner, is re-launching the Something’s Not Right campaign with a new partnership website https://www.somethingsnotright.co.uk/
The website is being launched to the public on Monday 15th March 2021, to time in with Child Exploitation Awareness Day on Thursday 18th March. Partners are encouraged to use the resources included in this toolkit throughout this week and beyond. It is important that these messages are shared regularly by all partners to continuously raise awareness of child exploitation in Warwickshire.
Warwickshire Liberal Democrats voted today in support of a county council motion expressing concern that the Government’s intention to introduce more Grammar Schools could undermine the quality of the existing schools network and reduce social mobility. Together with Labour and Green members, they defeated the Conservatives by 28 to 25 on a recorded vote.
Lib Dem Education spokesperson Cllr John Whitehouse (Kenilworth Abbey) said that the Conservatives had no mandate from the electorate to open new grammar schools, and that such a policy would fail to address the agreed key educational priority for Warwickshire, which was to close the educational attainment gap between pupils from disadvantaged families and their peers. While overall attainment levels for Warwickshire, were higher than the national average, the attainment gap ranked as one of the worst in England.
Stratford Lib Dem councillor Jenny Fradgeley (Stratford South) spoke eloquently about her experience of teaching and motivating pupils in a so-called “creamed comprehensive”, in an area where the highest academically achieving youngsters were separated out at age 11. She called for government and councils to focus attention and further investment into early year’s education, as the best way of closing the educational attainment gap in the long term.
Cllr Whitehouse said:
“As Liberal Democrats we are proud of all of our secondary schools in Warwickshire, as the wording of the motion stated which the Conservatives tried to defeat. However, Theresa May’s reported ambition to see ‘a grammar school in every town’ could undermine many of our currently outstanding and good comprehensive schools across the county, and there is no evidence that such a policy would help to address the real educational priority, of ensuring that every child gets the best possible chances in life.”
Lib Dem group leader Cllr Jerry Roodhouse (Rugby Eastlands & Hillmorton) said:
“Following this vote, we expect the Conservative administration to relay the concerns of this council back to the Government, and to demand that national education policies focus on supporting all of our schools, enabling all Warwickshire children to achieve their full potential”
