Success for Summer Born and Premature Children
In the early hours of Tuesday 8th September I held an adjournment debate in the House of Commons on allowing 'summer born' and premature children to defer their start to school. I wanted to raise this issue with the Minister as it is a real problem that local parents of premature and 'summer born' children have spoken to me about.
A summer born child is one born between 1st April and 31st August. A child born at the end of August will be in the same class as a child born at the start of September the year before, so as you can imagine, there can be a large difference in development and ability between these children. Because of this, it is well documented that summer born children can lag in their educational attainment as a result of their date of birth compared to their older peers. Some summer born children are even labelled as needing special educational needs, when all they need is more time to develop.
With premature children, their date of birth is used, rather than their due date to determine when they start school, meaning a child may have to start school before they are ready. A child born prematurely does catch up over time, but they do need time to do so.
Therefore, it is understandable that parents of some summer born and premature children want to defer their start to school, to give them an extra year to develop and catch up.
The Government has set out a Code of Practice and guidelines, but unfortunately there is no consistent application of the rules. Initially, there is the issue that some councils refuse to defer with no parental right of appeal. Thereafter, the two most common issues after a refusal to defer are firstly, that parents are told that a child can defer entering Reception but must join Year 1 as per that child’s normal cohort. Secondly, parents are told that they can defer Reception, proceed with primary education with the new cohort but must reapply at Year 5 or Year 6 to defer secondary education or face going from Year 6 to Year 8 missing Year 7. These are both highly unsatisfactory and worrying to both the child and the parents.
I was delighted that the Minister for Schools, Nick Gibb MP agreed to amend the admissions code to ensure these children can be admitted to reception at the age of five, instead of having to go straight into Year 1. He also said he would ensure those children are able to remain with that cohort as they progress through school. Encouragingly, the Minister also agreed to look into using a premature child's due date, rather than their birth date, to determine when they should start school.
The Department for Education will conduct a full public consultation on these changes in due course, and I will post the details of it when they become available. I have also written to Merton Council to ask them to give parents a right to defer their child’s start to school before the Government legislates.
I want to thank the Minister and the Department for Education for their positive response on this issue, and everyone who has got in touch with me about their experiences.
Assisted Dying Bill
On Friday 11th September the House of Commons debated the Assisted Dying Bill. There were eloquent, moving and well argued contributions from both sides of this important issue.
Many colleagues made the point that for an individual being diagnosed with a terminal illness, the need for the best end of life care is paramount and we need to improve the quality of this care. Coping with a terminal illness is distressing and difficult for both the patient and their families. These cases are truly moving and evoke the highest degree of compassion and emotion.
However, after careful consideration over a long period of time and having read the many letters sent by constituents, I was not convinced that this Bill was the right way to deal with this most difficult problem. Therefore, with over 300 colleagues, I voted against this Bill. I would like to thank everyone who got in touch with me about this, on both sides of the issue.
Baitul Futuh Mosque Fire
On Saturday 70 firefighters attended a fire at the Baitul Futuh Mosque in Morden. I am pleased to say they managed to contain the fire to the administration block, leaving the Mosque itself mostly unaffected.
My thoughts are with the Mosque’s community, who have always been very welcoming on my visits, and I am glad there were no serious injuries. I would also like to thank the London Fire Brigade for their quick and brave actions which helped save this amazing building.
Wimbledon Dog Track
Many of you will know that the consultation period for the revised planning application to redevelop the Wimbledon Greyhound Stadium site has begun.
I wrote to the Director of Regeneration at the Council to ensure that the period of consultation was lengthened, so I am pleased to say that you now have until Thursday 8th October to give your views on the updated plans.
To do this, simply email [email protected] including the application number 14/P4361. You can find out about the revised plans on Merton Council’s website here.
Your Conservative Candidate for the London Assembly
A massive congratulations to Wimbledon’s Councillor David Dean, who has been selected to be the Conservative’s candidate for the London Assembly in Wandsworth and Merton next May. David is a tireless campaigner and always puts residents first and I know he will make a fantastic Assembly Member. You can find out more about David on his website www.daviddean.co.uk and follow him on twitter here.
I would also like to thank our current Assembly Member Richard Tracey AM for his years of service to the two Boroughs and to Wimbledon, particularly in improving local transport links.
Wimbledon Brewery
I recently visited the Wimbledon Brewery, the newest in our area. It was fantastic to see all the hard work that had been put in by the team to set up the brewery, and of course to try out some of their beers. Small businesses like this are key to the continuing economic recovery and I hope to see more being set up locally.
Amongst the beers produced by the Wimbledon Brewery is ‘Common’ – since it has an appropriate name and green colour scheme, I have written to the House of Commons authorities to see if they will stock it.
The brewery will also be screening 14 games during the Rugby World Cup with a BBQ – visit their website to find out more.
Save Merton Adult Education
Despite my campaign to Save Merton Adult Education, which has been backed by residents, students, and your Conservative Councillors, Labour-run Merton Council seems set on closing the adult education college on Whatley Avenue.
I will keep fighting Merton Council to ensure Whatley Avenue remains open so it can continue to provide a fantastic service to its students.
If you want to help this campaign, you can email the leader of Merton Council Cllr Stephen Alambritis on[email protected] to tell him you back my campaign to keep Whatley Avenue open and why you value the service.
St Helier Hospital
This month I visited St Helier Hospital to discuss a number of issues, including the Chief Executive’s plan for the future.
I was delighted to hear that the hospital had recently recruited many new doctors and nurses on a permanent basis, which was significantly increased care and cut agency bills.
Nonetheless the challenges of providing a high quality care on a dilapidated hospital estate remain. Therefore, I am pleased St Helier is undertaking a public consultation on the state of its buildings and possible improvements. You can read more, and let the NHS know your views, here.
And finally…
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