One of the biggest Lib Dem wins of this Coalition Government has been the Pupil Premium. The Pupil Premium was designed as extra support for kids in our schools who need a little extra help to get the best start in life.
I don’t need to tell you about it; you’ve supported it from an idea in our manifesto to its implementation. I’m preaching to the converted. It’s not just a great idea—it works too in practice.
But many members, including myself, are worried that we are missing out a group of children who really need it. Young carers.
Young carers do a vital, selfless job, often at their own expense. The statistics speak for themselves – 27% of Young Carers of secondary school age experience educational difficulties or miss school, 68% experience bullying and as a group, young carers have a significantly lower attainment level at GCSE. It’s no wonder then, that a young carer between the age of 16-18 is twice as likely to be ‘Not in Employment, Education or Training (NEET).
That’s why I was so excited and proud recently to see my colleagues in Stockport who have shared a motion on the ALDC website, which calls on the government to include ‘Young Carers’ in the groups eligible for pupil premium funding.
You can find their motion here, and I’d encourage all of you to use it in your own council groups.
The work that David Laws and countless other colleagues have undertaken to make the pupil premium a reality is something we should all be proud of. This motion simply seeks to extend an already great idea, to another group who would hugely benefit. All part of our work to create a stronger economy, through a fairer society.
Onto the ever nearing elections on May 22nd. It’s now only around 6 weeks until polling day, and I can see from my visits around the country that we are really pulling together, taking part in the kind of community politics and campaigning that makes us proud to be Lib Dems.
Our local Councillors on the ground around the country really are local champions, and it’s been an honour to travel up and down the country, campaigning for their right to stay and continue their amazing work. I’ll be in Manchester Withington and Eastleigh doing that just after the Easter recess.
I’ll be knocking on doors letting locals know about the amazing work the Lib Dem run Eastleigh Council are doing on council tax – they’ve just frozen it for the third year running (a cut in real terms for the 11th year running! ) and what a difference the Lib Dem team in Manchester, led by John Leech, have made with their successful campaign that has seen local wartime hero Alan Turing gain a Royal Pardon quashing his conviction for homosexuality in 1952.
The next six weeks will be tough, but this is the kind of grass roots, community based politics that we are based on from the core. I know we can pull it out of the bag and have a well deserved and successful polling day on May 22nd.
says
That is an excellent idea. Young Carers are often in a low income household and receive inadequate support for their wider family and especially from their local council. The carer and the person/people cared for often do not want to promote their difficulties within the wider family and it is vital that we do all that we can to support and encourage the young person to have as much attention paid to them as possible.
I am concerned that the targeted Pupil Premium monies are not being properly targeted to the pupils that it is intended to support. Instead it is being swallowed up in the school budget for the benefit, it must be said, of all at the school. In that way there is benefit to all but less than intended for those most in need. Having said that to do better might prove divisive and be rejected by those singled out.
barry holliday says
National impact of a local idea. Engaging the populace in national decision making. The true liberal mentality