Visiting Burnt Mill School and Catch 22 - a remarkable place

Today I spent two hours visiting Burnt Mill School in Harlow, meeting students and Catch 22 staff. I was also able to talk with some of the children about books and their love of reading

I met three classes of students and spoke with one group about their favourite books and talked to them about his favourite children’s book, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

Ialso met nine Year 10 students who will be spending a month in Kenya next year.

I spoke to them about my work in Rwanda teaching English and have offered to help the pupils raise funds for their trip.

Burnt Mill School is an incredible school with some fantastic results. I felt really inspired meeting the students, some of them who are being helped by Catch 22 and others who are acting as mentors to younger students.

Catch 22 is one of the best organisations there is that helps young people. I’ve seen this not just during my visit to Burnt Mill School but when I visited the charity at Shield House on a previous occasion.

Their work has had a huge impact on me and is one of the reasons why, as an MP, I focus much of my work on supporting apprenticeships and skills for young people.

I think it is brilliant that Catch 22 and Burnt Mill have teamed up in this way and congratulate all those involved.

I also visited the school’s Chinese garden which has been created by the students.

Catch 22 provides mentoring for children with difficulties to help them read and gain confidence.

Apprenticeships, apprenticeships, apprenticeships

Often, people ask me: What will Conservatives will do for youngsters, in particular regarding education and skills? I have always thought the answer must be to increase vocational training and the number of apprenticeships.

Last Friday, when I visited the remarkable Catch 22, in Shield House, by the Pinnacles, I came face to face with this question. I sat down with a group of youngsters, who had faced a number of serious difficulties in their lives, and had been referred to this organisation, to get the right education they needed. Having dropped out of school, they were now successfully completing a range of eighteen-week educational courses. They were also being given the right kind of support and mentoring, that made a huge difference.

Many of these young people told me that they were very worried about what would happen when they finished their time with Catch 22. Despite getting the right education and qualifications, apprenticeships were few and far between. They told me that the Government apprenticeship website, had very few opportunities available - and, the few that were on offer, were miles away from their home town, such as in the North of England and the like. So we have a situation in which young people are 'rescued' and put back on the ladder of opportunity, yet have very little chance of getting that opportunity when they get to the top.

For this reason - and others - I strongly support Tory proposals to increase the number of apprenticeships by 200,000 over two years, add 100,000 work pairings and 100,000 extra places at Further Education Colleges. (Essex County Council have pledged to increase the number of apprenticeships by 1,000 which is also good news). I hope that these policies, if implemented, mean that the young people I met - and countless others - will never again have to worry whether they will be offered the opportunities they deserve.

P.S. It is well worth looking at the Catch 22 Website. You can click HERE.

by Robert Halfon - www.roberthalfon.blogspot.com