Monthly Archives: Mar 2012

Fairer funding – hurrah!

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Great news at the beginning of this week for schools in Haringey. After years of our campaign to get fairer funding, the coalition government has agreed to adjust the funding formula.

For decades Haringey’s schools have had to pay Inner London costs without Inner London funding – leaving local pupils short-changed. For 13 years the Labour Government did nothing about this injustice and when I launched our campaign back in 2007 I was a lone voice. But thanks to the huge support from the thousands of local Haringey residents who responded to our leaflets and emails and signed our petitions this campaign snowballed.

The change brings us into line with other boroughs like Hackney and Islington in terms of the inner / outer inequality. As a result of this campaign, schools in Haringey will now receive more funding per pupil – a great campaign success story!

However the full details of the new funding formula have not been published yet, so I’ve written to the Education Secretary welcoming the promised changes but demanding the very best deal for Haringey. Rest assured the campaign will continue until our schools have got the fair funding they deserve.

Lynne Featherstone celebrates crucial funding victory for local schools

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Haringey’s schools are set to receive additional government funding after an announcement today by the Department for Education. The announcement set out the end to a long-standing funding anomaly which saw local schools receiving outer London funding but paying inner-London costs.

Lynne Featherstone, Liberal Democrat MP for Hornsey and Wood Green, launched a campaign for Fairer Funding for Haringey schools in 2007.

Local Liberal Democrats have welcomed the announcement saying that this proof that the campaign led by Lynne Featherstone, which was backed by all parties, is finally providing results. But, Liberal Democrats also say they will continue to fight for the fairest deal for Haringey’s pupils.

Welcoming the victory for her long-standing campaign, Lynne Featherstone MP said:

“This was a perverse funding rule that has deprived our schools of vital funding for decades and made it harder for our children to get the fair start they deserve.

“The parents, teachers and thousands of other local residents who have supported the campaign on this issue deserve massive credit. I want to say ‘thank you’ to them for their efforts.”

Councillor Katherine Reece, Liberal Democrat Education spokesperson added:

“This is great news and a hugely significant first step to resolving the school funding problem in Haringey. It is also a great victory for Lynne Featherstone whose personal commitment was the most important driver behind this successful campaign. Labour took no action to stop this unfair funding system. Now, thanks to Lynne and the Liberal Democrats we have a government that is prioritising education.

“We will continue our campaign to ensure Haringey gets the best deal in the emerging National Funding formula when details are published.”

MP meets outstanding early career researcher at SET For Britain event

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Crouch End resident Dr Arjun Ghosh was one of a group of researchers who had their work displayed in Parliament last week. Hornsey and Wood Green MP Lynne Featherstone met with Dr Ghosh to view the poster and to discuss his work.

Dr Ghosh, is a Cardiologist working at St Mary’s Hospital and a researcher at the International Centre for Circulatory Health at Imperial College and at Medical Research Council for Lifelong Health and Ageing. His research focuses on life course effects on cardiac structure and function as measured through echocardiography.

His work was displayed on a poster on the Terrace of the House of Commons as part of the SET for Britain campaign. The overall aim of SET for Britain is to support Britain’s early-stage and early-career research scientists, engineers and technologists. The competition is divided into three categories: engineering, biological and biomedical science and physical sciences. Dr Ghosh’s work was selected for presentation in the biological and biomedical science category from out of over 140 submissions.

Lynne Featherstone MP comments:

“Britain has a fantastic record for producing world-leading research. I was delighted to have the chance to talk to Dr Ghosh about his work. He, and many others like him, are carrying out vital work that will have a real impact on people’s lives.”

Haringey children can benefit as £50 million summer schools fund opens

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More than ten thousand Haringey school children could be helped to attend summer schools under a new government scheme.

A £50 million Summer Schools Fund was announced by Deputy Prime Minister and Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg last autumn. The scheme is now open for applications from local schools.

Head teachers will be able to design and run summer schools, targeting pupils who will benefit the most. The funding could be used for activities such as:

·         Transitional activities to help familiarise pupils with their new environment. Activities could include meeting teachers, having a tour of the school or learning more about their new curriculum.

·         Additional intensive support in English and mathematics to enable pupils who need it to make progress in these key areas before they start the secondary curriculum, both as catch up and preparation for the new term.

·         Wider enrichment activities such as arts, music and sports activities, trips to theatres and museums, visits to local higher education institutions and employers etc.

Liberal Democrat MP for Hornsey and Wood Green, Lynne Featherstone, commented:

“I have written to schools in my constituency urging them to apply for funding through the scheme.

“The Coalition Government is doing the right thing by helping heads and governors to build on their own plans and give children an extra hand.

“The Liberal Democrats’ commitment to the most disadvantaged children doesn’t stop there. As well as this £50m fund, we are making significant extra funding available through the Pupil Premium.

“This will help schools tackle the inequalities that have been a part of our schools system for far too long.”

'Don't hold back!' Minister tells Channing School students

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Emily Mills (right) and Naomi Lane (left) with Lynne Featherstone MP at Channing School. Emily and Naomi are both year 12 politics students.Hornsey and Wood Green MP Lynne Featherstone spoke to almost 100 students, aged 13 to 18, at the Channing School on Friday.

The girls’ school in Highgate has an active politics society and organisers Emily Mills and Naomi Lane invited their local MP to speak about life as a Member of Parliament and a minister in the coalition government.

Lynne Featherstone described how she ran her first campaign as a design student at Oxford Polytechnic and how she later rediscovered politics and decided that the way to bring about change was to run for office.

She told the students not to hold back from getting involved in politics.

“Often when I visit schools I ask the class who wants to be Prime Minister. Many of the boys will put their hands up but very few of the girls do – but that didn’t apply to the Channing School students. It was great to see so many of them there and so many keen to get involved. There are too few women active in politics and that is something that we have to change,” she said.

Equal Civil Marriage consultation

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It was a busy day yesterday – launching the Coalition’s consultation which outlines plans to enable same-sex couples to have a civil marriage ceremony. You can access a copy of the full consultation document on the Home Office website – here .

The Coaltion Government recognises that there are a wide range of views on this issue and wants to hear from all perspectives. So please send in your views by completing a simple, online survey available here .

You can follow this on twitter at #equalcivilmarriage.

If you have any queries, please email Holly.Riley@geo.gsi.gov.uk

Residents ignored on phone mast plans

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Local people should be consulted on plans put forward by a mobile phone operator to install a new mobile phone mast on a sheltered housing block in Muswell Hill, Liberal Democrats have demanded.

Since early February local councillors have battled with representatives acting on behalf of Vodafone and Haringey Council to get details on how they will engage with local residents on their plans to build a mobile phone base station on the top of The Priory on Priory Road.

However, this week the Council stated that the mast can be put up without the need for a planning application as it is ‘permitted development’.

Cllr Jim Jenks has written an urgent letter to the Council and Homes for Haringey urging them to say what they are doing about consultation.

Cllr Jim Jenks (Muswell Hill) comments:

“Residents living in this sheltered accommodation block not only will have no say on these plans but it seems they have no idea that a new mobile phone mast will be built. It is unacceptable.

“I have urgently written to the Council and Homes for Haringey to ask what they will do about consulting with residents”

Lynne Featherstone MP adds:

“I have fought many long battles alongside local residents about mobile phone masts and this is another example of the Council and distant mobile phone companies riding roughshod over local people and ignoring them.”

Lynne Featherstone visits Eating Disorders Unit at St Ann’s Hospital

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Lynne Featherstone MP recently met with patients and staff at the Eating Disorders Unit at St Ann’s Hospital.

The eating disorder service is a highly specialised branch of mental health which is focused on treating patients suffering severe weight loss through conditions such as anorexia and bulimia. It provides services to patients from across north London and Essex and also provides specialist in-patient services from across the country.

St Ann’s is located in Lynne Featherstone’s Hornsey and Wood Green constituency.

The Liberal Democrat MP discussed the service with Maria Kane, Chief Executive of Barnet, Enfield and Haringey Mental Health NHS Trust, and with Dr Eric Johnson-Sabine who is one of the UK’s leading experts on eating disorders. She also met with other staff from the service and with some of the patients.

Lynne Featherstone MP comments:

“I was truly inspired by the visit. It was fascinating to hear of the excellent and pioneering work that the team are doing at the service. I was also glad to hear directly from some of the patients about their experiences with the service.”

Local MP nominates media charity for special youth award

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To celebrate the work of youth media charity Exposure, Lynne Featherstone MP today nominated the organisation for a special MPs youth award.

The Muswell Hill based organisation that produces the Exposure Magazine by and for young people, was nominated by the Liberal Democrat MP for a Kids Count Inspiration Award for their commitment to young people in Haringey. The youth award that only MPs can send in nominations for, recognises individuals and organisations that have inspired young people in their communities.

Exposure magazine is written by and for young people and cover serious issues that affect young people, like dealing with divorce and mental health issues.

This year’s Inspiration Awards winner will be announced at the House of Commons on the 8th May.

Lynne Featherstone MP comments:

“Exposure is a really inspirational youth charity that does fantastic work with young people from across Haringey. They work with teenagers from socially disadvantaged backgrounds, boosting their media skills, their confidence and their CVs, and helping to pave the way for a brighter future.

“Every time I’ve visited Exposure, I have been struck by what an amazing job they do. That’s why I really jumped at the opportunity to nominate them for a Kids Count Award. They do inspirational work, and really deserve this recognition, so fingers crossed for the 8th May.”

Exposure manager Andreas Koumi adds:

“We’re honoured to be nominated for an Inspiration Award by our local MP. It’s a tremendous boost for our staff and young people during these challenging times, and a real endorsement of the hard work they all put in.”

MP gets assurances that worst bus in London will get better

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Lynne Featherstone MP has recently been provided with assurances from TfL that the W3 bus, which this winter has been the most complained about bus in London, will see significant improvements.

In a recent response from TfL, the Liberal Democrat MP has been given assurances that the issues that led to the vast number of complaints, to do to with an unreliable, overcrowded service, are now being resolved. The Hornsey and Wood Green MP is now planning to hold TfL to their word, by surveying bus users in a few weeks time, to see if commuters are seeing the improvements.

Lynne Featherstone MP comments:

“With many people locally being completely reliant on the W3 bus to get to work, school or out and about, an unreliable service and overcrowded buses can mean a very bad start or end to a day, and worst case scenario leave people stranded.

“It’s essential that TfL works with the bus operators to address any reliability and overcrowding problems, and I am glad to hear that recent steps have been taken by replace old buses and resolve engineering problems.

“In a few weeks time I will launch a W3 survey to see if the service has indeed improved, so watch this space. And in the meantime, if any residents have any issues with buses, tubes or trains, don’t hesitate to get in touch with me, I am here to help.”