The new Labour Government is getting on with the job, and has brought forward plans to break down barriers for young people undertaking an apprenticeship.

I was an apprentice, and I’m proud of it. I left school at 16 and after an initial summer job and training placement in the NHS, I was lucky enough to secure an apprenticeship as a technician. It opened doors for me with a day training each week at Oldham College and then real hands on experience in the workplace.

I know the importance of practical skills and I want to boost opportunities for young people in the same way. And the country needs it!

The national skills gap is a critical issue affecting economic growth and productivity, and I believe a key way to address this gap is through implementing greater skills training for young people that meet the demands of the evolving job market.

Now, apprentices over 19 will no longer need Level 2 English and maths qualifications to complete their course which will enable 10,000 more people to qualify every year.

Throughout my time as an MP, I have repeatedly called for the Government to reflect on the support, resource, and funding we provide to boosting apprenticeships and breaking down barriers for young people.

As early as 2017, I addressed educational attainment in Oldham in Parliament, emphasising the importance of incorporating vocational skills, such as mechanics and joinery, into the curriculum. I believe that young people should be taught practical skills to prepare for various vocations and shouldn’t be restricted narrowly to academic routes. Every young person is different, and pathways into work should reflect this. Apprenticeships widen opportunities through the development of practical skills, hands-on experience, and learning on the job.

They offer a path to a decent life, rewarded with jobs that make the country tick and which offer career progression with good pay.

I believe that employer-led training is the most effective way of meeting our growing skills gap as well as widening participation for young people into the job market. They can be an effective way of readying young people for the world of work, while also offering a meaningful alternative to higher education. I, therefore, welcome the Government’s announcement and will continue to champion vocational pathways.

Each month I will be publishing a community newsletter on the work we have been doing over the last month for local people in Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton.

In this way constituents can track the progress of the local priorities we put forward at the election in July, and keep up-to-date with our ongoing campaigns.

Head to the link below to sign-up for the first one coming this Saturday!

https://mailchi.mp/dceee952c38f/sign-up-to-my-monthly-community-newsletter

Last week, I met with Oldham Council, MUSE, and Homes England to discuss the ambitious plans for regenerating Oldham Town Centre. The focus is clear: breathing new life into our high streets, revitalising key landmarks like Spindles and the Old Town Hall, and delivering quality, affordable homes that will bring people back into the heart of our town.

We’ve already seen major investment transforming the town centre—first with the restoration of the Old Town Hall, then the reopening of the Egyptian Room, and now the near-completion of the new market and events space on the old TJ Hughes site. The refurbishment of the Old Library is also well underway, with the new civic centre set to be based there.

And the progress doesn’t stop there. Over 2,000 new homes are planned, stretching from where the Civic Centre currently stands down to Princes Gate at Mumps. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reshape Oldham for the better.

I know that some people, myself included, will feel a sense of loss with the original Queen Elizabeth Hall and Tommyfield Market making way for these changes, they both hold great memories and are such an important feature of the town. But their legacy will live on, with a new events hall and a fresh, modern market space set to take their place, adding up to boost traders and retailers and restaurants and cafes in and around Parliament Square.

With these developments moving forward—and the much-anticipated return of the Coliseum—Oldham is on the brink of a real transformation. There’s plenty still to do, but the future of our town centre is looking brighter than ever!

I responded to an excellent debate on Coalfield communities in Parliament this week.

Many industrial communities have links to coal including Oldham where over 150 colliery’s are reported to have been in operation to power the mills and factories which made the town an industrial giant through the 19th and 20th century. Without the work of the colliers there wouldn’t have been the energy to power the Industrial Revolution, and Oldham and large parts of the industrial North would not exist in its current form, our own town taking it’s place as King of Cotton.

You’ll likely know the most local to you, they were fairly plentiful across Chadderton, Royton and Oldham in Hollinwood and Bardsley.

Clearly the use of coal for power and home heating diminished, but I still have memories having it delivered and going to the coal yard at Hunt Lane in Chadderton in the 1990’s.

The debate was focused on the communities where mining was the foundation industry in the main and huge impact once they closed from the mid 1980’s onwards.

𝙒𝙤𝙧𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙨 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙙𝙤𝙣’𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙖 𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙤𝙪𝙩, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙬𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙚𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖 𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙪𝙥 𝙖𝙛𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙤 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙛 𝙗𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙤𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙘𝙝 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙖𝙡.

Today the social and economic scars are still visible and MPs are rightly demanding better planned long term investment.

In the end it should go hand in hand with devolution where power, investment and impact is felt locally, ending the wasteful bidding wars for limited pots of money and false promises of levelling up.

Today the Department for Energy, Security and Net Zero have committed to cut energy bills in private rented homes, tackle fuel poverty and keep money in working people’s pockets.

The Government has pushed for landlords to meet energy efficiency standards rather than make renters fit the bill. This initiative will save renters £240 a year on average on their energy bills, and lift up to half a million households out of fuel poverty, as they will not have to spend so much heating cold, draughty homes.

High energy costs contribute to a situation where lower income households can’t afford to heat their homes. This can have huge knock on health effects, with cold homes presenting health risks particularly to those most vulnerable in society. Being able to heat your home in the winter should not be a luxury reserved for the richest in our society – everyone deserves a warm, decent home.

In Oldham, 15% of households currently present as living in fuel poverty, and this is a figure I am committed to driving down to ensure decent homes and fair renters rights across our borough. I will continue to work with the Government and local businesses to tackle fuel poverty head on, and ensure everyone in Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton has a decent home.