Cambridge Training Site 1

(Click picture to play video)

It is shameful that, despite all the promise on a four or five year old’s first day at school, or the passion of their teachers, you can all too often plot that child’s path just by asking how much their parents earn.

The £2.5billion Pupil Premium was one of the four pledges on the front page of our manifesto.  And now, with Liberal Democrats in government, schools are using the money for things like breakfast clubs; homework clubs; or to provide one-to-one-tuition. These are the sort of experiences many middle class children take for granted but a poorer child might rarely enjoy.

Yesterday I visited a fantastic primary school to see how they are spending their Pupil Premium, highlight our new Summer Schools to ease the transition from primary to secondary, and to set out our plans to reward teachers and hold schools to account.

The Pupil Premium shows that, in tough times, we are implementing Liberal Democrat values and prioritising help for those pupils who need it most.

Best wishes,

Nick Clegg MP

Leader of the Liberal Democrats and Deputy Prime Minister

PS Click here to find out how much money your local school will receive from the Liberal Democrats’ Pupil Premium.

works on east road

Utility companies could be charged a daily fee for road closures while they carry out work across Cambridgeshire.

The idea has been put forward by Liberal Democrat Councillor Sarah Whitebread and would apply to companies laying new gas or water mains or carrying out similar work in the county.

Cllr Whitebread, who represents Cambridge’s Market Ward on Cambridgeshire County Council, claims the move could prevent lengthy closures such as the one which brought the city’s East Road to a virtual halt for weeks while new gas mains were laid.

She made her suggestion during Question Time at the county council meeting today (Tuesday, May 15) and it was agreed to look into such a scheme.

A similar idea, approved by the Department of Transport, will allow Transport for London to charge companies in the capital up to £2,500 a day for closing major roads. Companies will face lower charges if they carry out work outside of peak times.

“The county system at the moment has no incentive for speedy work, or to encourage work outside peak times” said Cllr Whitebread. “Given the frequency with which utilities companies need to carry out road works in Cambridge, I think a charging scheme of this type needs serious consideration.

“I also pushed the council to look at ways to encourage utility companies, when carrying out works, to keep roads open for cyclists. Often there is road space around the works that could be made available, but instead cyclists told to wait with cars or dismount and walk. In a city where so many people travel to school and work by bike, this clearly needs addressing.”

The county council’s Cabinet Member for Community Infrastructure, Tony Orgee, agreed to look into such a scheme.

This week, Paul Burstow (Liberal Democrat minister at the Department of Health) has launched a national £4 million lung cancer awareness campaign. The campaign, the first of its kind, will use TV, radio and press adverts, and advertising on pharmacist bags and inside GP surgeries, to raise awareness of the disease.

One of its aims is to persuade anyone who has had a cough for more than three weeks to see their doctor.

You can find more information about coughing and lung cancer at the Department of Health website, here: http://www.dh.gov.uk/health/2012/05/coughing-could-be-a-sign-of-lung-cancer-2/

With 33,000 new cases diagnosed each year, lung cancer is a blight on the lives of far too many of our families and an early diagnosis can make all the difference. Please take the opportunity of the Be Clear on Cancer campaign to find out more about prevention and diagnosis, and to visit your local doctor if you’ve had a persistent cough – it is always better to be safe than sorry!

http://www.dh.gov.uk/health/tag/be-clear-on-cancer/

Strawberry Fair is to launch a poetry slam competition for young people age 13 – 25 from across Cambridgeshire. The competition will be free to enter and prizes include a prime performance slot at the Fair and opportunities to be mentored by critically acclaimed poets.

If you write poetry, love poetry and want to share your poetry, then they would love to hear from you. You can use beatbox, rap, mc-ing, polyvocal or acapella, as well as poetry and spoken word.

All you need to do to enter is:

1. Go to www.strawberry-slam.org.uk
2. Follow the instructions to post a clip of yourself reading or reciting your poem.
3. Wait to hear whether you have been selected as one of 12 finalists to go through to compete in the Strawberry Slam final on Saturday 2 June.

Deadline for entries: Saturday 26 May 2012

The entries will be judged by five professional poets from London’s Point Blank Poets Collective and the 12 finalists will be announced on Tuesday 29 May. The final will be held in the brand new Strawberry Slam stage at the Fair on Saturday 2 June, 7 – 10pm. The Slam will be hosted by the formidable Hollie McNish (a former UK Slam Poetry Champion) and emcee Inja, with guest performances from renowned spoken word artists Bridget Minamore, Sabrina Mahfouz, Dean Atta and Deanna Rodger.

To find out more visit www.strawberry-slam.org.uk or get in touch with amy@strawberry-fair.org.uk

Developers have come forward with new proposals for Lion Yard which retain a redesigned walkway to Fisher Square.

The plans will be discussed in depth at a meeting of the Lion Yard Toilets Working Party in May. In the meantime, work will start on reconfiguring some of the shops in Lion Yard, while allowing walkway and the toilets to remain unaffected.

The new proposals have been welcomed by Cambridge City Council Leader, Sian Reid who said: “The city council’s working party and I have expressed real concern about closing the walkway and I am very encouraged that developers are responding to this.

“The working party will be discussing these new plans in depth and will discuss how best to consult again with residents.

“I am very pleased that the developers, who planned to close the walkway, have listened to residents’ views and the concerns of Cambridge City Council and Cambridgeshire County Council and proposed to retain it.

“I believe that it is vitally important to connect the central market area and Fisher Square with other parts of the city; and retaining the walkway makes it easier and quicker for people can get from the Lion Yard to the toilets

“The county council has given informal advice reflecting this too.”

Cambridge City Council refused permission in 2011 for the developers to move the toilets to the first floor; their future on the ground floor is assured.

Liberal Democrats will tonight (Thursday, April 19) call on their city council colleagues to reject a Labour move to restrict the number of shared houses in Cambridge.

They will also ask for rejection of Labour’s demands to look at options for regulating houses in multiple occupation.

And they will advise the council that smaller shared houses, where three or more people live in two or more unrelated households, cannot be licensed because conditions required to meet the legislation are not present in Cambridge at the moment; the situation will continue to be monitored.

The Lib Dems have raised an amendment to a Labour motion calling for the restriction and will ask the city council to “recognise the vital contribution that well-run houses make in providing homes for family, students, professionals and migrant workers”.

Catherine Smart, Romsey Councillor and Deputy Leader of Cambridge City Councillor said: “Without shared housing many people living and working in our city would not be able to do so. Property prices make home ownership unaffordable for many in Cambridge but they can live in the city by sharing the cost of renting.

“We are fortunate that we have a diverse mix of people in our city and we don’t want to discourage that. This could be bad for our economy and our community in general.

“It is vital, therefore, that we make sure we support the contribution made by these properties and the people who live there. But at the same time, we do acknowledge that not all of them are run as well as they could be and sometimes there are problems as there are with all types of housing. We have procedures in place to deal with this.”

Lib Dems will ask for an annual report to be brought to the council’s Community Services Committee detailing the number and type of complaints received by the Environmental Health Department in all types of housing in the city and how they have been dealt with, including the number of prosecutions.

Official reports have confirmed that no Liberal Democrat-run council in England has increased council tax for their residents. This is unlike both other major parties, many of which are increasing council tax by up to 3.5% this year.

Commenting on Labour and Conservative councils’ record on Council Tax, Liberal Democrat Party President, Tim Farron said:

“While Labour and the Tories fight over how many of their councils raised Council Tax, it’s clear that with the Liberal Democrats your money is safest: no Liberal Democrat-run council in England has raised Council Tax.

“Ordinary working families are struggling already with paying bills, without their councils increasing the burden.

“The choice in next month’s elections is clear: vote Liberal Democrat for financially responsible councils that create jobs. Vote Labour and the Tories for waste, mismanagement and tax rises.”

As well as freezing council tax across the country, Liberal Democrat councils are protecting front-line services, fighting to keep libraries and Sure Start centres open. This is in addition to the achievements of the Liberal Democrats in government, which after the Budget include a £130 income tax cut for all working families, the largest-ever rise in the basic state pension, an increase in child tax credits for the poorest families, and an increase in the Lib Dem Pupil Premium to £600 for every pupil receiving Free School Meals.

At every level of government, the Liberal Democrats are cutting taxes for low- and middle-earners and better targeting help to those that need it the most. It is a record of financial responsibility of which we can be proud.

A first look at part of this week’s Liberal Democrat Local Election Broadcast. This clip looks at our key pledge to cut taxes for working families, and celebrates the fact that Liberal Democrats in government have achieved:

• The biggest-ever single uplift in the tax-free personal allowance
• A £3.5 billion tax cut for working men and women
• 840,000 of the lowest earners in the country lifted completely out of paying Income Tax

Next year, the allowance increases again (to £9,205) – within touching distance of our manifesto promise to increase the Income Tax threshold to £10,000.

These are all significant achievements that are already making a difference for millions of hard-working men and women across Britain. Real change for real families in tough times – promised and delivered by the Liberal Democrats.

Cambridge Liberal Democrats launched their election manifesto today (Saturday, March 31) and promised to continue to ensure the success of the city by investing in its people and its future.

They reiterated their vision for Cambridge to meet housing needs, support the city’s economy, care for the environment, tackle anti-social behaviour and meet the needs of the vulnerable.

And looking forward, they said they would continue to do things better for lower costs, with a focus on working more smartly behind the scenes.

Leader Sian Reid said: “We have worked hard over many years to find better ways for the city council to deliver services. This has meant we have preserved investment and protected frontline services during tough times.

“We take our lead from our residents and make decisions as closely as possible to the people affected by those decisions.”

The manifesto sets out clear priorities for new spending in the future:

• Supporting vulnerable individuals and communities including a new job club, installing welfare advice points and rehabilitating street drinkers;

• Investing in streets and open spaces including piloting street champions to tackle litter, a 20mph scheme, dual use litter bins and promoting Mill Road;

• Getting Cambridge’s future right by cutting energy use and investing in renewable and making the case for sustainable transport.

Cllr Reid added: “We are never complacent about the city’s economy and the outlook for its vulnerable.

“Our approach and our work with so many organisations is paying off for Cambridge. The city has weathered the storm better than any other city in the UK which was acknowledged by the Centre for Cities.”