Jodie Gosling
MP for Nuneaton · Labour · United Kingdom
“I welcome today’s decision, which brings an end to decades of destabilising indecision across Warwickshire, and I thank the Government for being decisive.”
“May I associate myself with the words about Sir George Howarth, and about the England men’s football team, and may I welcome the Minister for Veterans and People to his position?”
“An empty Debenhams has become luxury apartments, and an old nightclub has become Saints—thriving community assets. Footfall is rising again, up more than 24,000 in the final quarter, with 2 million visits to my town centre this year. Businesses are returning and confidence is growing.”
“For far too long, that question has gone unanswered. I welcome the Government’s new funding for trading standards, and the National Crime Agency’s new powers to strengthen enforcement between the Home Office, HMRC, trading standards and the police, but that funding and those powers must reach into towns such as mine.”
“Transformation plans were delayed again and again, while £1.25 million was cut from our trading standards between 2011 and 2015, creating a culture of looking the other way while dodgy shop after dodgy shop moved in. In the past two years, our Labour council has begun to turn things around.”
“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Dowd. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Halesowen (Alex Ballinger) for securing this very important debate. This weekend, Nuneaton celebrated the 800th anniversary of its royal market charter, first awarded by King Henry III.”
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“North Warwickshire and South Leicestershire college’s supported internships are breaking down barriers for disabled people to access good work, and it was a privilege to revisit four of those interns who are now in good work and thriving, their confidence booming. It was an honour to hold the first SEND Parliament earlier this year and to see how the Government can support the expansion of these schemes. This year, we held our first Nuneaton sports and activities festival, which was a great success, showcasing the role of sports in community cohesion and improving health and wellbeing. Clubs like Nuneaton rugby football club and Nuneaton Taekwon-Do are thriving, with Nuneaton’s George Wright winning bronze at the 2024 European championships.”
“Friend the Member for North Warwickshire and Bedworth (Rachel Taylor) in celebrating “Cheers to 60” with CEO Liz Hancock, who has selflessly turned over her 60th year to raising even more funds for those vital services. I am proud that Nuneaton and Bedworth elected its first Nepalese-Gurkha mayor, Councillor Bhim Saru, who is a strong advocate for St Mary’s ward and the Gurkha community as a whole. Around Nuneaton, we are making good progress on improving job prospects. This year I have visited many businesses, schools and training institutes. Hercules Construction Academy trained more than 1,000 apprentices last month.”
“It raised £46,000, which was presented by Mayor Bill Hancox and Alderwoman Sheila Hancox earlier this year. The breast cancer unit will now hopefully move into a new diagnostics centre to continue supporting health in our communities. I thank the dedicated staff at George Eliot hospital, especially Annette Tracey, who retired after 51 years in the NHS, including 45 years in the breast cancer unit. Their work has reduced waiting lists and improved care not only across Nuneaton but across our country. Mary Ann Evans hospice remains a pillar of our community. It is the proud legacy and final resting place of one of my predecessors, the honourable Bill Olner. I join my hon.”
“I join colleagues in paying tribute to Sir David Amess, a true champion of his constituency. With that inspiration in mind, and with the summer recess ahead, I want to celebrate just a few of the incredible people and the progress made in Nuneaton. Nuneaton has the proud legacy of hosting the first legal Lionesses game, so I will start with football. Just over a year ago, our football team, Nuneaton Town FC, had no home, no team and no committee, yet this year they have managed to top the league, achieving promotion with 121 goals. I thank the board, the fans, Ministers and the Football Foundation for their support. I look forward to bringing our club back home. This past year has shown me the enormous heart and talent of my town. I commend those who supported the George Eliot hospital through the mayor’s appeal.”
“I know other parents who have been required to attend school trips so that they can safeguard their children. I also know at first hand that school staff time is stretched and there are limits under the current system. The last 14 years have seen cuts in teachers’ expertise, teaching assistants and support staff, as well as larger class sizes and lower ratios. We are faced with a growing need.”
“Most of our schools do a brilliant job of trying to support and care for those children, but children’s allergies are routinely excluding and stigmatising them at school. They want to carry their own tray at lunchtime alongside their peers. They want to sit on the same tables with friends, not be segregated. They want to be able to eat puddings and take treats the teacher has brought in. The protections are simply not there to allow that to happen. School parties, discos, end-of-term treats and the dreaded cake day in schools present significant threats to children and exclude them from participation. When my eldest attended residential trips, he was sent with four days-worth of frozen meals packed up in an icebox because they could not guarantee safe food for his trip.”
“I fully appreciate that, in a world where we have acceptable levels of contaminants in food, there will never be 100% certainty, but I have been asked to sign waivers for pizzas and referred to companies’ policies, where pubs, clubs or outlets have refused to share ingredients that would allow me to make an informed choice. I have been insulted, ignored, condescended and asked to show my auto-injectors to prove that I am not just being fussy. I have difficulty navigating this world, and yet we expect children to do the same, without the same level of understanding or autonomy over their situation. The number of children with allergies has soared, with two children in every classroom diagnosed with allergies.”
“I have lived with allergies all my life, as has my son, and have worked alongside many parents and children’s professionals in my 20 years of teaching. Navigating the world of allergies is difficult. The advice I have been given has been inconsistent and sometimes outright dangerous. There is simply not enough training or education for people to understand the issues and mitigate the harm. Eating anywhere is difficult. Most businesses would rather lose my custom and exclude me with a blanket of “may contain” and “cannot guarantee” notices than provide the information needed to eat safely.”
“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Lewell. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Redditch (Chris Bloore) on securing this debate on an issue that has such a wide-ranging impact and is very close to my heart. I know that he works incredibly hard to champion people with allergies and the challenges they face. As the newly-elected chair of the APPG on allergy, I thank him dearly for his efforts. I have complex allergies that impact my everyday life. My first allergic reaction happened when I was two years old, when I took a bite out of a raw fish finger waiting to go in the oven. I scared the living daylights out of my mother, as my face and hands swelled up until it looked like, in her words, I had gone 10 rounds with Frank Bruno.”
“I would welcome the Minister joining us at our APPG to discuss further how we can best address the issues raised today; and how an allergy tsar could draw together those complex issues and provide proper support not just for our children, but for all allergy sufferers.”
“I call on the Minister to pay particular attention to the calls for auto-injectors in all education settings, for a national allergy strategy in response to this debate, and to recognise that this will require cross-departmental working. Allergies reach into all areas of our lives: schools, housing, health, business, sport, culture—everything a child wishes to do can be affected by their allergies. To achieve the cohesion we need in a national allergy strategy, it is essential that we work cross-departmentally. Adam Fox OBE, who chairs the National Allergy Strategy Group, has been instrumental in bringing a strategy forward.”
“The lack of national leadership and a cohesive strategy means that the experience of, and support for, children with allergies varies widely. Research by the Benedict Blythe Foundation showed that, in 2024, as we heard, one in three schools had no allergy policy in place, while a quarter had no training on allergies, anaphylaxis or a plan for emergencies. Data from the national child mortality database shows that between 1 April 2019 and 31 March 2023, two children died as a result of anaphylaxis in our schools. A 2015 report showed a 615% increase in hospital admissions. However, we do not routinely keep that data and have no idea of the true impact on our children’s lives in schools. It is essential that a database is created and maintained for an evidence-led approach.”
“A structured healthcare plan would not only reduce the incidence of accidental exposure, but provide a planned, effective response. Issues around the short shelf life of auto-injectors can cause challenges with ad hoc school policies—the Tupperware box at the back of the cupboard still needs checking frequently, as many EpiPens remain in date for six months or less. A plan and protocol built into schools’ existing first-aid responses would mean checking the date as a matter of course, alongside other equipment—not when things are needed quickly and urgently. As we await the publication of a national allergy strategy, which we hope to see later this year, questions remain about support for implementation. At present, the management of allergies is left to individual schools and trusts.”
“In these circumstances, no auto-injectors would be held by the setting, as they simply would not know that they needed to use them. A requirement to have auto-injectors as part of a standard first aid kit—with protocols and an anaphylaxis response team—would significantly reduce the risk of serious harm from those first reactions. The group Spare Pens in Schools highlighted that most children, like mine, will have been accidentally exposed every two or three years. Pancake day with my child who is allergic to meat, wheat and eggs was, as I am sure hon. Members can imagine, a yearly trial. I would wait for the call at work to be asked if they needed to use the AAIs, which realistically would already be too late.”
“I have talked to school leaders, teachers, nurseries and, most importantly, students in my constituency, and they echo the need for clarity and consistency in training and access to emergency EpiPens. The Human Medicines (Amendment) Regulations 2017 allow schools to obtain auto-injectors for emergency use, but they are not required to, and this provision does not extend to early years. Our early years settings are key to children’s development, providing new experiences and a place for exploring sensory development, and widening horizons and diets. Nurseries have cultures of trying new things, but they are also where many children have their first experience of allergens and allergic reactions. As we have heard today from first-hand experience, this can be quite terrifying for those involved.”
“Absolutely. With my eldest son, we had Sure Start centres available, and I had access to support from health visiting teams. With my daughter, who has a less impactful allergy, there has been little support, and we are still waiting, at 12 years of age, for referrals to dietitians. We need to ensure that children with allergies stay safe in education, and to do so, we need clarity of training, access to EpiPens at all times, and clear procedures to make sure they are accessible for an effective response. We need a planned response, a whole-school risk assessment, individual healthcare, and clear pathways to make sure that staff are not only aware of the children but confident and able to respond quickly and effectively, not just going to the Tupperware box in the back of the dusty office cupboard.”
“If we intend to move care to the community, and move from crisis to prevention, continence care has to be a central focus of that mission.”
“The message is not getting through, and parents simply do not know where to turn for the right support, especially in places like Warwickshire where continence care was simply unavailable. Hospital admissions for childhood continence issues and constipation have increased by 60% in over a decade, with 44,000 children admitted this year alone. The decimation of health visitor numbers and school nurses, and the demolition of institutions such as Sure Start, leave carers and families without the infrastructure and support needed to train children to toilet independently, and for constipation to be recognised before it becomes life-threatening. Increased data collection is essential, and the NICE guidelines need to be heavily reviewed and mandated in healthcare so that we can make savings in crisis teams.”
“Getting it right from the start is hugely important. Children with continence issues are often excluded from school activities and parents are required to take time off work. Consequently, ERIC, a charity that specialises in supporting children with continence issues, whose representatives are, coincidentally, here today to celebrate and draw attention to World Continence Week, note that in the 1980s, 83% of babies were out of nappies by 18 months. New research identifies the benefits of children who start potty training earlier and are out of nappies by 30 months, but the health visiting team numbers are at a disgraceful all-time low. That is a national shame, as are the outdated NICE guidelines.”
“Out of all the deaths of people with learning difficulties, more than a quarter were also suffering from constipation and bowel issues that would be worthy of note. Unsurprisingly, we do not even hold the data for the wider population on these issues. Continence and constipation issues are increasing in our younger population at a worrying rate, with a strong correlation between constipation, continence issues and neurodiversity. One in four of our children who start school is not yet ready to use a toilet independently, and on average, 2.4 hours of learning time is lost every day in supporting children going to the toilet. Toileting issues, even in nursery, cause embarrassment and anxiety, which often leads to functional constipation, damaging the bowel and causing lifelong continence issues.”
“When Ivan arrived at A&E, he was screaming and in pain. His stomach was distended and he was severely underweight for his age. He had spent months in pain, attending A&E around four times a week. He was discharged without treatment, but Elissa did not leave. She did not accept the shocking assessment from consultants that disabled children just scream. She pushed back and, with sheer luck, one of Ivan’s other consultants happened to see them and gave instructions for an X-ray. On the final day, they evacuated nearly 2 kg of stool from a 10 kg three-year-old child. Elissa believes that that day saved Ivan’s life. Others have not been so lucky. In 2019, 19 people with learning difficulties died from constipation when under continence care.”
“I have been made aware for many years of the woeful lack of help for those with continence issues, the poverty caused by buying continence products, and the rationing of four pads a day. I have faced the frustration of parents who had no continence service in Warwickshire at all until May 2024. I have been aware of the trauma faced by parents, especially those whose children have special educational needs and disabilities, attending A&E with their child’s constipation, which had reached agonising and dangerous levels. It was, however, Elissa and Ivan’s story that motivated me to take on my role, and campaign for more humane, systemic changes to prevent the worst impact of continence issues. So many simple things can be done to protect the dignity and independence, and improve the quality of life, of these 14 million people.”
“The NICE guidelines have not been reviewed, and the findings of the 2017 report “Excellence in Continence Care” have not been fully implemented. We need a stronger mandate and a greater focus on training for incontinence needs across midwifery, dementia, cancer care and health visiting teams—literally from cradle to grave—and we need to provide that care in our communities to avoid the need for crisis interventions in A&E. Today, I will highlight just a couple of the complications from failing to provide a robust continence service. Despite spending a large amount of my time surrounded by, and occasionally covered in, poo and wee, I did not arrive in Parliament intending to take on this role.”
“Wee and poo is the funniest topic in nursery classrooms up and down the country—and it is funny, right up until the point that it is not. When wee and poo stop being funny, it is devastating. It impacts on people’s mental and physical health, their dignity and their very independence. In some cases, it can prove fatal. It is also entirely preventable. Sadly, poo and wee is not funny for around 14 million people who have continence and incontinence issues. That figure alone hides some of the issues of dealing with the enormous range of health conditions in the field of continence. The figure of 14 million is based on data gathered in 2018, and no recent data is available. Continence status data is not recorded as standard on entering the NHS. The scale of the problem is simply unquantifiable.”
“I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Dudley (Sonia Kumar) on securing today’s important debate. I have recently become the chair of the APPG for bladder and bowel continence care, and there is much to be done. As someone with a background in early years, I am sure that any parent of a young child will confirm that we are probably the people who talk about wee and poo the most in this world. They tell us vital health information—from the earliest days of having a baby, it is crucial. Bladder function is one of the signs of good health, and maintaining that through adulthood leads to the prevention of incontinence. The importance of talking about wee and poo cannot be overstated. As any three-year-old will tell you, that is because it is funny.”
“Q8. On 1 July, Warwickshire county council will permanently remove one of Nuneaton’s two fire engines. Its decision, based on dubious data that does not account for local factors such as high deprivation, does not accurately represent the current risk to residents. The cuts will put lives in Nuneaton in danger. Will the Deputy Prime Minister please look into this matter to confirm that there has been sufficient scrutiny and a thorough risk analysis to ensure safety for the good residents of Nuneaton?”
“Yesterday I hosted an event for 70 leading experts ahead of World Continence Week. This included campaigners for the Bins for Boys campaign, which aims to ensure that everybody has the dignity of being able to dispose of items like stoma bags, catheters and pads. One of my guests was Pete Reed OBE, a three-time gold medallist and retired lieutenant commander who is now a patient advocate. He highlighted the fact that we do not have suitable bins in our male toilets. Could the Leader of the House please support the campaign to ensure that bins are available for the dignity of our guests?”
“It is not usual for me to quote the right hon. Member for Chingford and Woodford Green (Sir Iain Duncan Smith), but those comments are particularly pertinent. In 2013, when the report was written, poverty in Nuneaton stood at around 18%, but it is now 33%—almost double—and in some communities it is over 50%.”
“It is a pleasure to serve with your Chair, Sir Roger. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton North East (Mrs Brackenridge) on securing the debate. Poverty has affected the work that I have done over the last decade, and I probably would not be in the House today had it not been for some of the things I have witnessed over the past 10 to 15 years. While I was researching for the debate, I found a report on child poverty dating back over a decade. The foreword reads: “In the UK today, millions of children” and “adults are daily experiencing the crushing disadvantage that poverty brings. They are living at the margins of society, unable to achieve their aspirations and trapped”. The report goes on to say that that is unacceptable in “today’s” society—obviously, it was written over a decade ago.”
“Despite that, the vast majority of Nuneaton households in poverty still work, with over 60% of affected households having at least one working adult. Poverty is also wasteful. It is expensive; it costs more to live in poverty because people cannot access cheaper supermarkets and might not have the data to order online—”
“The physiological and psychological impacts are profound. As poverty has soared, we have seen healthy life expectancy fall by over four years, with cardiopulmonary conditions, diabetes and preventable death statistics among those affected by poverty well above the national average. Poverty strips people of their dignity and their power to shape their lives and livelihoods and those of the people they love. Living in poverty is a full-time job, as people juggle making sure that they can pay their debts, get their kids out, do the daily shopping—which involves having to look for the yellow stickers in the aisles—and deal with the chaos of managing arrears, evictions and sleepless nights, as they worry about how to just get through tomorrow.”
“I thank my hon. Friend for her valuable intervention, and I absolutely agree. One challenge is under-skilled children who have left school without the right qualifications. As a result, they experience a lag in getting qualified and being able to access opportunities. In one of my wards, Chilvers Coton, over 65% of households—two out of three—live with one marker of deprivation. The majority of them are defined as living in deep poverty and destitution, and they are not able to meet basic needs. That is not my understanding of the word “eradicate”, and it appears that the strategy that was laid out over a decade ago actually perpetuated significant poverty, rather than eradicating it. Poverty eats into every corner of people’s lives. It drains people and grinds them down, and it makes every aspect of life harder.”
“The positive impact of youth services transforms lives and maps out a pathway to embracing passions and nurturing talent, supporting young people to learn the skills that they need to live successful lives in the future. In Nuneaton, more than 20% of our young people are economically inactive. Youth crime, antisocial behaviour and youth violence are enormous issues that have resulted in tragic outcomes in recent weeks. Aspire has been holding the frontline, supporting these young people through unmet mental health and SEND needs and providing alternative provision when the barriers to attending school are just too great.”
“It adds value to our young people’s lives with art, games, cooking and health provision and education. The music provision is incredible and is about to get even better, as performance spaces and a recording studio are established. The organisation is building the capital culture and creative industry talent that we need for the future, while truly enhancing lives and broadening horizons. Crucially, Aspire in Arts provides a safety net, an open door and a safe place for young people who have nowhere else to go; those who need support and those at risk of bullying, harassment and exploitation. It also gives a positive choice to those at risk of entering into criminality. Indeed, we already know that youth provision reduces the rate of youth reoffending by 13% and reduces the severity of the crimes.”
“I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Croydon East (Natasha Irons) on securing this important debate. I also want to take this opportunity to congratulate a leading youth provider; I congratulate Aspire in Arts in Nuneaton on its 10-year anniversary. From numerous conversations with the leader of the youth group, Amina, I know about the organisation’s struggle over the past 10 years. The success of its projects is truly a testament to the dedication of the staff; it is a true labour of love. Given that the YMCA has estimated that Warwickshire county council has cut a staggering 84% from our youth budget since 2010, it is amazing that Aspire in Arts has developed a fantastic local asset that provides support for hundreds of young people.”
“Aspire in Arts works collaboratively with other youth groups to provide services across the north of Warwickshire and to establish ambitious, inspiring plans to support our young people. It would like to do more, and with secure funding instead of piecemeal, day-to-day, hand-to-mouth funding, it would be able to secure a place for young people across Nuneaton and to support everyone.”
“Absolutely. It is clear from interactions with young carers and parents of children who are not in school that the gratitude for youth services and the value they add is immense. The casework stories from youth provision in Nuneaton are often harrowing: young people in crisis and on the edge of suicide, self-harm and mental health episodes, and victims of violence and abuse. The open-door policy means that we have a safety net to catch and support them. The net that the organisation provides saves lives, helps them rebuild and offers support for a brighter future. Evidence suggests that £1 invested in youth provision results in £3.40 to £6 for the taxpayer, but I think the value it adds is incalculable, especially when we consider the impact on other services, such as health, education, policing and justice.”
“I could not be more pleased to welcome today’s news. As a former nursery manager, I understand the need to ensure that all children have the very best start. I remember the sense of abandonment when Sure Start, health visitors and school nurses were retracted from our community provision. Like many others, I had to face salary cuts and salary sacrifices to keep our nursery doors open over the last eight years under the previous Government. On Friday, I visited Stockingford academy, one of the schools benefiting from the today’s announcement, and heard from its dedicated team about the challenges they face. This year, only 7% of the 75 children are on track. Does the Secretary of State agree that the new provision will transform high-deprivation places, where 46% of the population already have high levels of debt?”
“When the Home Secretary visited Nuneaton to speak to local business owners, she heard from them directly about the problem of retail crime. There was a glimmer of hope, because our town centre officer was having a big impact, but that role is now vacant. Shops and other businesses say that retail crime is at an all-time high, with a 58% increase since January. Now that Labour is putting more money into people’s pockets, what more can be done to ensure that it is safe for it to be spent in town centres?”
“We know that as many as 86% of those with learning difficulties who are not in work would like to be, but workplaces need to make the adjustments that our young people need, and they need to be ready for work. We must break down the barriers, and supported internships are a way to do that, both for those wishing to enter the workforce and for businesses wishing to provide a more inclusive employment offer. Previously, the Department for Education has recognised the value of supported internships. It provided grants for local authorities and partner organisations to double the number of internships between 2020 and 2025 under the Internships Work consortium.”
“I beg to move, That this House has considered supported internship provision. It is an honour to serve under your chairship, Mr Turner. Yesterday, we heard some dreadful statistics about the stifling of the ambition of people with additional needs who would choose to work but face too many barriers and limited opportunities. The most striking statistic that I heard yesterday was that only 1% of people with health issues who have claimed limited capability to work benefits actually return to work. I know people with significant disabilities who have thrived in truly exceptional and inclusive businesses, such as the King’s Award-winning Nuneaton Signs, which is not only one of the biggest manufacturers of road signs in the country but boasts a workforce of whom an incredible 70% are disabled, including those with learning difficulties.”
“They support the young person to access training in line with the national occupational standard for supported employment, and provide crucial support for the employer to make necessary adjustments and reflect on their inclusivity practices.”
“I thank the hon. Gentleman for his intervention and note that only 23% of businesses have applied for adjustments to accommodate disabled people to enter the workforce. These internships are crucial, and they are a really good, supported way into work. There are four key principles to the supported internship programme. First, the majority of the intern’s time is spent at the employer’s premises in a work placement, allowing a structured introduction to the work environment. Secondly, alongside their time at the employer, the intern follows a personalised study curriculum, including in key skills such as maths and English, which creates a bespoke package to support young people and enable them to progress into paid employment. Thirdly, a job coach is central to the study programme.”
“I thank my hon. Friend for her intervention, and absolutely—the crucial aspect is enabling people into good, well-paid jobs. The final principle of supported internships is for young people to gain paid employment that fits not only their passions but their long-term career goals, while providing the flexibility to overcome barriers. Supported internships have demonstrated evidence that, with a compassionate scaffolding, the proportion of young people with an education, health and care plan who enter the workforce, which is currently a woeful 5%, can be vastly improved to 60%, through the delivery of the four key principles that I have just stated.”
“Absolutely. I will come to this later, but we were inspired by a visit to Asda and its supported interns. The supported internship scheme builds on the applicant’s interests and passions, and it provides them with flexibility to try different types of employment opportunities and build skills in a range of sectors with organisations such as the NHS, Asda, Amazon and Goldman Sachs.”
“If we are to achieve such clear ambitions, then work, and support for young people, especially those with SEND, needs to adapt rapidly.”
“I absolutely agree that we need to remove the backlog and get more people into good, paid employment with the skills that they need to become independent. Paragraph 59 of the “Pathways to Work” Green Paper clearly demonstrates an ambition to change working practices to support employers to make workplaces accessible and inclusive. The Green Paper discusses the “‘scarring effects’ from youth employment and inactivity.” Not only is delayed entry into the workforce costly, but it has a negative impact on the individual, damaging their long-term mental and physical health. The youth guarantee scheme—a commitment to offer every young person a guaranteed place of employment, continued education, an apprenticeship or a training scheme within four months of leaving formal education—is also set to bring about monumental change.”
“Finally, it is my honour to host the first parliament of young people with SEND on Monday, as part of National Supported Internship Day, when 70 young people who have taken part in the supported internship project will come to Westminster to discuss what matters to them. I hope it will mark a historic step towards greater inclusion, representation and advocacy for some of the most marginalised voices in our society. All interested colleagues are welcome to attend the parliament to promote inclusive policymaking. I thank the Minister for her time and all those who came to listen and contribute.”
“As an early years SEND specialist, I have first-hand experience of the importance of early intervention, but I recognise that we cannot write off those the system has already failed. We need to support young disabled people as they leave school. For too many people with SEND, the support runs out after they graduate the classroom. We cannot prioritise educational provision without considering the educational and employment outcomes. Is the Department for Education working closely with the Department for Work and Pensions to ensure that those outcomes are considered when addressing the SEND crisis? After seeing the success of the supported internships during my Asda visit, I will meet more supported interns at our local NHS hospital, to hear their experiences. I invite the Minister to join us—I believe the email is in her inbox.”
“Will the Department for Education commit to continuing to invest in supported internship programmes and getting people back to work? Will the Minister give an update on the decision to extend the Internships Work consortium? The profound success of supported internships is reason enough to extend the criteria to young people without an EHCP, those with mental health conditions and those struggling with persistent absenteeism from school. Will the Minister commit to boosting supported internships further and widening the criteria for interns? We talk regularly and passionately about the damage done and the inherited SEND crisis, but a key issue is the lack of focus on outcomes and transitions to adulthood.”