Making links for young people
With so many young people not in education, employment or training there is a great need to understand how the education and employment system supports young people. I want to understand what more can be done to build aspiration and provide the opportunities that are going to be meaningful to young people.
That's why I've put in place a programme of visits to schools and youth clubs to understand the issues in the area. As part of this programme I've already been able to visit about half of the 60 schools in the constituency.
By visiting our schools I am seeing where the stress points are in the education system from the teachers' and from the students' perspectives and also from the point of view of the state of the physical environment in our schools.
Some of our schools, notably in Henley and in Chinnor, have significant problems with their buildings. Pressure needs to be put on Government to give Oxfordshire a fair share of the money available so that I can work with our local county councillors to get the best deal for our schools
There is a big agenda here in which our councils play a key role. But it's also one where making links to Westminster are crucial both in relation to Government policy and in engaging young people with the political process.
Parliament has a first class education service which allows young people, schools and organisations such as The Henley Youth Council not only to visit Parliament and tour the building but also have the opportunity of raising issues directly with me. The links to found out more about this are: http://www.parliament.uk/education/index.htm and http://www.parliament.uk/education/visiting-parliament/booking-your-visit.htm
I was very pleased to able to take part in the dedication of the Remembrance Garden in Thame dedicated to young people from the area who have died. It gave me the chance to put on the record that I do not subscribe to the view that young people today are falling short of the standards previous generations are said to have set them. Each generation has its challenges and needs to find its own ways of dealing with them. But when I look around my constituency I am continually impressed by the range of contributions young people are making and the high standards they are setting for themselves and for us.
I know this because I am always congratulating young people in this area who have excelled nationally and internationally in sport, academic studies, music and the other arts. Excelling in any of these cannot be done without dedication and discipline which they possess in huge measures.
