Mark Isherwood: Well, reference was made to the Children, Young People and Education Committee and, of course, their 2017 report 'Perinatal mental health in Wales' noted that 'north Wales alone does not have the necessary birth rates to sustain a specialist MBU, we call on the Welsh Government to engage proactively with providers in England to discuss options for the creation of an MBU in north east Wales...
Mark Isherwood: ...needing to respond to the widening gap with England. She referred to emerging issues, such as county lines and online abuse, the need for a multi-agency approach in a number of areas, specifically schools and courts, and sustainable investment in preventative services to keep families together. Neil McEvoy raised a number of concerns, including the need for contact—or concern about...
Mark Isherwood: ...you talk about integration, you mean assimilation. We have to explain to people that integration is not assimilation. We have to respect the law and culture of the land.... What we need to do is educate people and say we are all human beings, we're friendly and we should try to understand each other's culture.... By talking to people and educating people—eventually by convincing them...
Mark Isherwood: ...in south Wales. Although the local government Minister states that the biggest impact on distribution of the settlement across authorities derives from the relative change of overall population and school-age populations across each local authority area, an analysis of the latest published official statistics for each does not paint a clear picture in this respect for either. The local...
Mark Isherwood: ...and, therefore, need the commission to support strategic legal cases that establish legal precedent. I therefore welcome the cases that were supported by the commission that resulted in the Special Educational Needs Tribunal for Wales ruling that a north Wales school unlawfully discriminated on the grounds of disability—it sounds identical to a case I was involved with, involving an...
Mark Isherwood: ...solve the problems—giving them somewhere to live and giving them help; they have to want to do it. You have to give them that chance. Dr Taylor also told us that many spoke of their experience in schools, which did not know how to deal with their conditions and behaviours. In accepting our first recommendation, the Welsh Government stated that it has 'established a Welsh Government...
Mark Isherwood: Well, it's now 17 years since secondary headteachers in Flintshire raised concern that they receive one of the lowest school budget settlements in Wales, and they told me about the constant pressures they face managing this while striving for educational excellence. They've continued to receive from Welsh Government every year since one of the lowest settlements—this current year, 2019-20,...
Mark Isherwood: ...and describes how the new model will differ in Wales. As this states: 'the Welsh Government has legislative competence in respect of devolved matters including health, housing, social welfare and education, and this presents a different delivery landscape for probation services in Wales. The justice devolution settlement allows for distinct arrangements for probation that meet the needs of...
Mark Isherwood: ...justice system in Wales where the Welsh Government has responsibility for a range of key services. The Thomas commission on justice report refers to the 'distinct and developing social, health and education policy and services' in Wales, and states that 'Whilst there are areas of good practice across the justice system which can be built on, serious failings must be addressed.' However,...
Mark Isherwood: ...in the Rhondda. I can confirm that, despite the integrated autism service, the situation in north Wales remains the same as in the Rhondda. I'm contacted, or my office is contacted, daily. The school exclusions and self-exclusions are still happening. I was contacted two weeks ago by a clinician in one of the child and adolescent mental health services in north Wales, desperately concerned...
Mark Isherwood: ...UK Government stated that as we enter negotiations with the EU on the future relationship, we want to ensure that UK and European students can continue to benefit from each other's world-leading education systems, and that it is wrong to say that the UK will quit the Erasmus scheme. The Welsh Labour Government and Plaid Cymru scaremonger that the UK will no longer accept unaccompanied...
Mark Isherwood: .... Last Friday, I spoke at the Holocaust Memorial Day event in Wrexham. It was great to see so many people there, particularly young people—young people from the local colleges and some from local schools, who did want to understand, to engage and to ensure that these dreadful things never happen again. As you have indicated, we were commemorating 75 years since the liberation of...
Mark Isherwood: ...considered and embedded in Welsh Government strategy and policy, including adult mental health and well-being and children's mental health and well-being. Thirdly, to embed bereavement support in schools. And, fourthly, to make the provision of bereavement care sustainable where the lack of strategic and policy prioritisation for bereavement support is evidenced in the very low levels of...
Mark Isherwood: ...Service have established a pathway as an alternative to prosecution for those affected by the changes to the law. This follows a recommendation to this effect in the Children, Young People and Education Committee's Stage 1 report on the Bill, which recognises that policing and justice in Wales is a non-devolved responsibility, hence the wording. In order to represent my constituents, I...
Mark Isherwood: ...charity established by Ally Elouise in Llandudno in 2015, which offers free loans of over 3,000 suits and prom dresses to hundreds of students who otherwise couldn't afford to celebrate finishing school. Ally has been awarded the Prime Minister's Points of Light award, and she e-mailed last week stating, 'I'd be grateful if you could share or promote this in order to help as many young...
Mark Isherwood: As the higher education admissions guide issued by Qualifications Wales states, the reformed GCSEs in Wales retain the grading scale A* to G. No precise comparison can be made between the current alphabetical grading scale and the revised numerical scale in England. Of course, Wales also has two maths GCSEs, mathematics and numeracy, and England only one, risking the creation of complications...
Mark Isherwood: ...by the UK Government that, as we enter negotiations with the EU on the future relationship, we want to ensure that UK and European students can continue to benefit from each other's world-leading education systems and that it is wrong to say that the vote by MPs last Wednesday means that the UK will quit the Erasmus scheme?
Mark Isherwood: .... Boris Johnson has been very clear about his priorities: getting Brexit done by 31 January to respect the result of the referendum; recruit more police; invest in our NHS; and put more money into schools. It's a positive vision to exploit the opportunities outside the European Union, to unlock investment in our economy and to unleash Wales's potential. You should be ashamed of yourselves.
Mark Isherwood: ...now down, Wales will benefit from £1.8 billion of extra investment under a majority UK Conservative Government, on top of the £2.7 billion already committed to increase spending on health and education here. In contrast, Mr Corbyn's plans would generate higher interest rates and bigger cuts down the road. Conservatives are delivering on record investment with £790 million into growth...
Mark Isherwood: Thank you. TCC—that's Trefnu Cymunedol Cymru/Together Creating Communities—is a coalition of over 30 schools, community and faith organisations, and groups across north-east Wales. Last week, I attended the official launch of their all-Wales school hunger campaign at Ysgol y Grango in Rhosllannerchrugog, near Wrexham. Their research had found that many of the most vulnerable pupils aren't...
