Milton Keynes Labour Party

Milton Keynes Council voted to oppose the creation of 12 Secondary modern schools in Milton Keynes at a Council meeting on the 14 September 2016. Now Council Leader Peter Marland has given his support to the national Labour Party campaign, to be launched across the Country next Saturday, to oppose the segregation of children at age 11.

MK Council Leader, Cllr Pete Marland said, “The idea of re-introducing segregation into Milton Keynes schools is a dangerous ‘politically driven’ step backwards for a modern city that needs a highly skilled workforce.”

He added, “Milton Keynes needs a modern workforce that will help it become a modern city built on new industries and cutting edge technology. Dividing school children up, creating winners and losers at age 11 misses the point of what a modern city needs to be successful. Namely a highly skilled workforce.”

Cllr Marland continued “ We will not let Theresa May get away with segregating children by creating a city of Secondary Moderns. Labour is united against her plans to provide a privileged education for the few, and a second-class education for the rest.

He added, “Over the coming months we will work with all people of goodwill right across the new city to stop this Tory segregation in its tracks.”

Labour will build on the strong Council majority against segregation and will seek to bring together business, schools and other key partners in a joint campaign against segregation.

Cllr Marland concluded, “The Governments plans for segregation will undermine the new city’s future and the need to grow the local economy. We need all schools to be great schools. We need all those in school to do well and contribute to the success of Milton Keynes and share in that success. There can be no going back to the segregation of the 1950s.”

ACTION

Labour will be out across Milton Keynes next Saturday with leaflets and petitions. The local party will also operate an on line petition.

After building more affordable homes; preventing homelessness is the key to reducing the number of homeless families in temporary accommodation.

So far in the current financial year from April 2016 to August 2016 there have been 549 families who have made homelessness applications in Milton Keynes. Of those 524 or 95% are in temporary accommodation at the beginning of September. This is not great for the families and expensive for them and the wider Council Tax payer. The main sources of homelessness during this period were:

Cllr Nigel Long, Cabinet lead on housing said, “It is shocking that 41% of homeless families have become homeless from the family home or friend's homes. We need to find a way of offering families routes into permanent housing before they become homeless. We also need to deal with the private sector who make 31% of families homeless and the 16% of families homeless due to violence.”

He concluded, “We have to offer families hope so that they hold off evicting their sons and daughters. Without a major expansion in decent, affordable housing and a fair allocations system we will struggle to do that.”

There is something very wrong when hundreds of the most Disabled pensioners do not claim the benefits they are entitled to. Benefits they paid for throughout their working lives.

Forty per cent (40%) of Adult Social Care service users, who live in the community do not receive the Disability related benefits they are legally entitled to.

Around 1500 disabled adults receive community based care support (known as packages). Of these around 600 are not receiving the full benefits they are entitled to. The main benefits people are not claiming are:

* Attendance Allowance. (Aged 65 and over)

* Personal Independence Payment (PIP) (Covering people aged 16 to 64)

* Pension Credit

* Council Tax rebate.

Cllr Nigel Long, Cabinet Member for Health and Adult Social Care said, “There is a very large number of disabled older people, many of whom are over retirement age, who are entitled to benefits, that they paid for during their working lives, who are not receiving them. We aim to improve the take up of these benefits.”

Cllr Long has agreed that the Council will employ a Welfare Benefits Officer to specialise in helping disabled and older people claim the benefits they are entitled to.

According to a report on BBC Money Box (July 2016)

“Billions of pounds go unclaimed every year by millions of people. So what can be done to improve benefit take-up so that the money reaches those who need it?” http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07hwmcl

Cllr Long concluded, “We are establishing a welfare benefits team within the Adult Social Care service to help maximise benefits for all disabled people. This is a good step that will be self funding for the Council and increase income for some of the most vulnerable residents of Milton Keynes.”