Latest news with #ChrisBloore
BBC News
15-05-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Worcestershire parents demand more from SEND provisions
Parents and campaigners have visited Parliament to call for improvements to be made to special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) services in Winchester, a mother of two children with learning difficulties from Bromsgrove and chair of the North Worcestershire Parents with Autism Group, said a different approach needed to be applied to ensure a better outcome for children."SEND provisions have got way worse since failing inspections back in 2018 and nothing changes, we only get changes of faces at Worcestershire County Council," she BBC has approached the county council for comment. Ms Winchester said: "Children are out of school, and people aren't getting their children's needs met, and there's going to be a lost generation."Five of the county's six MPs met with parents and campaigners on Bloore, MP for Redditch, said he sympathised with those who came down to demand more for children across the county. "Today shows you the importance that all MPs in the county show towards this matter, we're recognising the institutional and strategic failures that we have in SEND provision in Worcestershire."Let's remind ourselves that parents shouldn't have to be traveling down to London to get the attention of MPs, to get the attention of Worcestershire County Council, to improve the reports and the quality of provision," Mr Bloore Collins, the MP for Worcester, said parents had brutally described the issues they faced."I think the biggest issue is a lack of trust, that trust has been lost in the system, and people don't feel that their children are being cared for the way they need to be." Parent Susan Tracey said she left the meeting feeling heard and somewhat optimistic."I felt they all listened to us so whatever the outcome will be we will have to wait and see," Ms Tracey Style, whose 21-year-old daughter has relied on SEND services since she was three, said she had not received the full support needed."She is behind functioning by 13 years so she can't independently read and write, which has a massive impact. "How can she move into adult life without those basic skills?"We are taking our children out of education, not because we want to but we're doing it because we are keeping trying to keep our children alive," Ms Style said. Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
20-03-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Worcestershire MP backs proposal to cut county in two
A Worcestershire MP has backed a proposal to split the county in two to form northern and southern council run Labour MP, Chris Bloore, said a new North Worcestershire authority – made up of Redditch, Bromsgrove and Wyre Forest district councils - would best fit the government's devolution Worcestershire's political leaders appear deadlocked over which option is a separate proposal, Worcestershire County Council has argued replacing the county's seven existing authorities with a single one could save more than £20m a year. "For towns like Redditch… I don't think we should be going straight to a Worcestershire-wide solution," said Bloore."We're at a time where, if we're honest, Worcestershire County Council is going through a very difficult time. Its delivery of services in certain areas, like children's services, hasn't been the best."And I think we've already seen in Redditch and Bromsgrove that those councils have worked well in shared partnership and delivery of services. So, I'm pretty confident that we could do it again," he current population figures, a North Worcestershire authority would be home to just under 288,000 criteria set in Labour's English Devolution White Paper stipulate that new unitary councils must serve at least 500,000 people, Bloore said he believed the government would show flexibility. At the moment, Worcestershire's political leaders appear deadlocked over which option is Worcestershire County Council and Wyre Forest District Council have argued a single unitary authority is the only option to meet the government's criteria, both Worcester City Council and Malvern Hills District Council have said they would prefer the county be split in other districts, Bromsgrove, Redditch and Wychavon, said both options needed further exploration."One Worcestershire council would be more effective and efficient," said Simon Geraghty, the Conservative leader of the county council, at a scrutiny meeting on Tuesday. Life on a new border A new border would follow existing district council boundaries, cutting right through the village of Astwood Bank, where residents currently live under different district councils – either Redditch or Wychavon – with different rates of council tax and different bin in future, the creation of two new unitary councils could see neighbours receiving different provision for services, such as roads, public transport, social care and libraries."We want the best bang for our buck," said Roy Stanley, who currently lives on the Wychavon side of the said he favoured a single council."At the end of the day we just want decent services for the amount of money that we pay out. I think that's the main thing," he said. "Actually making an area bigger in terms of local government doesn't always necessarily make it better," said resident Karen Arnold, who said she preferred the idea of splitting the county in two."There's a huge variety in population… and what populations need in this area."And I think if you've got a very large area to cover, it gets very difficult to tailor services to what the actual population needs," she Astwood Bank just a few minutes' drive from the neighbouring county of Warwickshire, resident Katie Taylor-Jones said county boundaries had made local public transport less joined up."We're ten minutes' drive away… we can't get buses very easily between those places. It doesn't encourage us to be able to use public transport," she said."If they kind of stop on a particular road and say, well, that's as far as we're going, because here's the boundary, that makes it complex, I think."While councillors in Worcestershire have until November to submit a business case for proposals to the government, any negotiations are likely to be interrupted by county council elections on 1 May. Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X, and Instagram.
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Town's MP urges Post Office not to close branch
The MP for Redditch has urged the Post Office not to close its "lifeline" central branch in the town. Chris Bloore, Labour, said 1,100 people had signed a petition calling on the taxpayer-owned business to explore all options to keep its services in the constituency. He started the petition after the branch was identified in November as being at risk. While the Post Office denied a decision had been made over the fate of Redditch, it confirmed it was assessing the future of its 108 loss-making directly-managed branches. The company said it had invited expressions of interest from retail partners and independent postmasters. Bloore said: "This is an integral part of the high street. A lot of people, a lot of elderly and vulnerable people, rely on this Crown Post Office and so they're really worried about the future." In a meeting with Post Office bosses last week, the Labour MP said he had urged managers to think of "imaginative" ways to keep the branch going, including potentially moving it to a better location. Customers at the branch said closure would have a direct impact on them. Jane Ellison, 57, from Studley, said she used the branch as a "last resort", after having already lost her village Post Office. "Generally I use it for stamps. I use it for parcel packaging, sending parcels," she said. "I don't drive so I have to rely on the bus... there's nothing like it in our little village at all. Everything's gone." Redditch resident Anne Mould, 75, said: "It would be a great shame if the Post Office closed because it's well used." A customer for more than 50 years, she said the next nearest branch was in a hilly part of the town and more difficult to reach. "I use the Post Office a lot," said Redditch resident Andrew Twigg, 62. He said his visits had become more frequent since the closure of his bank's branch in the town. "This is where you have to put your money in... hopefully it will stay open," he said. "It'll be used more soon, because [Redditch Outdoor Market is] going to be coming back." A Post Office spokesperson said the company had not proposed the branch's closure, but said it was reviewing its future. "Last November, we launched a new, five-year Transformation Plan that will deliver a New Deal for Postmasters, putting them at the heart of the business," they said. "As part of this process, we are considering the future of our Directly Managed Branches (DMBs), which are loss making. However, no decisions have been made on any DMBs. "Since inviting expressions of interest for 108 Post Offices that we currently operate across the UK, we have received interest from retail partners and independent postmasters in the hundreds." Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X, and Instagram. Post Office could close 115 branches with jobs at risk WH Smith says post offices to stay if sale goes ahead Post Office closures 'threat to residents' Post Office Transformation Plan
