We've talked in this Chamber about education being an equaliser; with a great education, no matter your background, in theory, you can and will achieve whatever you set your mind to. Now, there's a lot to say on this statement, not least on the specific topic that we're debating today.

Schools are assumed to be places of equity, where the potential of all is nurtured equally. And I don't think anyone would argue that this isn't the intention of schools, but barriers still exist, especially for children from low-income families. We've already heard of the issues surrounding access to entitlements; it's one of the reasons I believe in the principle of universality. We've heard about the importance of free schools meals—something I can attest to as being a lifeline for many families. But there are other factors to consider. 

One of which is the provision of EMA—again, a provision that I know from personal experience is a lifeline for many, and something that I've campaigned on since my election to this place. It is time the Government reviewed EMA, specifically the amount that's paid to students and the process of applying. Currently, the amount paid to learners is the same amount now as it was when I was in receipt of it. It's the same amount now as it was when it was first introduced in 2004: £30 a week. This means that we haven't seen an increase in just shy of 20 years, so it hasn't accounted for inflation at all. And the Bevan Foundation estimates that we would need to increase the payment to £45 for it to be the same value as it was in the mid-2000s.

On the process of applying, as we know, EMA is means tested and, as my colleague Sioned Williams has already established, entitlement take-up problems persist, caused by complex forms and the difficulties of understanding the process of applying. In Bridgend College, for example, on average, there are between 700 and 800 full-time further education learners who claim EMA, but there are very clear concerns expressed by staff at Bridgend College that, in reality, there are many more students who need access. EMA is a lifeline for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. We generally accept that education is the best route out of poverty, and retaining students post 16 will have that desired effect of giving further opportunities and skills to those from disadvantaged backgrounds, but they need that support to keep going. 

Another area that I'd like to touch upon in this debate is the issue of transport, and how parents are often confronted with a choice of cost over their child's safety. This choice is crystallised for me by the amount of correspondence I get on a regular basis from parents in the Llynfi valley. In Caerau, a community that has consistency ranked highly on the index of deprivation, and often is in the top five in Wales, there are pupils who face a walk of 45 minutes to an hour to get to school along busy roads and in all weathers. The reality for many working parents is that often they don't have the luxury of being able to prioritise lifts, especially if they're commuting and especially if money is tight. This leaves no choice: either rely on public transport, which can set households back £15 a week per child, or rely on that child to walk if public transport isn't affordable, or it may even be unavailable in some places. With fuel costs going up, this cost is likely to increase, which demonstrates how things like reviewing EMA would make all the difference. And finally, if I may, Dirprwy Lywydd, speaking from my own personal experiences of growing up, this support is vital.

The reality is, if you'd have told me when I was primary school that I would be in the Senedd giving speeches like this, my first reaction would have probably been, 'Why on earth would I be doing that? Politics is boring.' But, I would not have believed it either way. When I came into comp, when I was in chweched Llanhari, although I was interested in politics, I still wouldn't have believed that I'd be here now. But that support that had been given to me from a young age through free school meals, through EMA, I maintain is one of the reasons why I'm here right now.

But today, that support, although improving through universal free school meals, for example, is still lacking. That is something that sits at the forefront of my mind, not since being elected, but since I left school. Rather than pull the ladder up or ignore the fact it's becoming tattered with a couple of those steps snapped here and there, I want to strengthen it. I want to make it easier for those students from similar backgrounds to mine, those who are me when I was their age, to make it in life. But it starts with all of us here. And I hope that all of us can look back one day on our time here and say that we prioritised the right things—this being one of them.

So, to end, Dirprwy Lywydd, from Luke in the mid-2000s, who was a couple of stone lighter and didn't have a beard: thank you, wholeheartedly, for that support. But from me, now, in the present, we must prioritise tackling the cost of the school day. It will change the lives of children from low-income families for the better.