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Lift the UK Study Visa Ban on Cameroonian Scholarship RecipientsWe are Cameroonians and proud members of the Chevening and Commonwealth alumni community — programmes that represent some of the United Kingdom’s most powerful commitments to global education, leadership, and partnership. For decades, the opportunity to study in the UK has transformed the lives of many Cameroonians. These opportunities do not only benefit individuals; they help build institutions, strengthen governance, and support development back in Cameroon. Above 95% of Cameroonians who studied in the UK returned to contribute meaningfully to their country and communities, with others moving on to become strategic thought leaders across the African continent. Today, we see the impact of that investment across different sectors. thought leaders in the non-profit sector, academics, engineers, and public servants who studied in the UK are helping shape Cameroon’s development. For example, Cameroon’s current Prime Minister, Chief Dr Dion Ngute, and respected academic Professor Nkeng Elambo are among those who benefited from UK scholarship programmes. Across the country, many of the Chevening and Commonwealth Alumni are leading initiatives that are directly impacting the socio-economic and political life of the country. This has been thanks to the quality education acquired in the UK. This is why the recent decision to place a temporary brake on study visas for Cameroon is deeply concerning. It risks shutting the door on a new generation of talented young Cameroonians who aspire to gain quality education and return home to contribute to their country. Most Cameroonian students applying to study in the UK are genuine students. They invest years preparing for these opportunities. Punishing an entire nation because of isolated cases is unfair and risks damaging a long-standing relationship built on education, partnership, and mutual respect. If this decision remains in place, many talented young people will lose the opportunity to access world-class education. Cameroon could lose future leaders, innovators, and professionals who would otherwise contribute to development at home and strengthen ties between the UK and Africa. As a group of Chevening and Commonwealth Alumni who have seen firsthand the transformative power of UK education, we believe strongly that access to education should not be restricted in ways that undermine fairness, opportunity, and global development. That is why we are asking the UK Government to reconsider this decision and restore fair access to study opportunities for Cameroonian students.11 of 100 SignaturesCreated by Gilly Mickey
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After school detentionFollowing the recent email from Launceston College about automatic after-school detention for students triaged in the last period, I am starting this petition because this decision is simply not acceptable. This policy doesn’t just affect students — it disrupts whole families. Many children rely on school buses. Many parents work fixed hours. Detaining a child after school without properly considering how they get home is not a small issue — it creates real problems. This change appears to have been introduced without asking parents. Decisions that affect transport and end-of-day arrangements should not be imposed without proper consultation. For neurodivergent children especially, sudden changes to routine can cause genuine distress. Discipline should not create unnecessary anxiety or chaos for families. We are asking the College to pause this decision and work with parents to find a fair and workable alternative. Families deserve to be heard.146 of 200 SignaturesCreated by Natasha Wenden
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Include Hinduism also in Religious Education curriculum in all schools in the UKHinduism is the oldest religion in the planet. Hindu children feel highly demoralized and feel inferior to others when their religion is dropped out. Other religion kids bully them due to this discriminatory drop out. Many unique features like reincarnation, conciousness etc which are topics of research will come into light if Hindu religion basics is introduced, as these are present only in this religion2 of 100 SignaturesCreated by Amarnath Annathur
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Scrap Interest on Student Plan 2 LoansOver 5 million people have been affected by the misselling of Plan 2 Student Loans, and should be treated as victims of a massive scandal. Many are accepting loans which the government acknowledges are unlikely to be paid off in full - primarily impacting the working and middle classes. Not only is this a scandalous issue of misselling, but it is also deeply rooted in class-divide and elitist concentrations of power.7 of 100 SignaturesCreated by Alex Malin
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SAVE NC CLASSES AT COGCNational Certificate classes help establish a strong educational base for many students at City of Glasgow College. These classes provide a great opportunity for students to progress and help students who may have faced hardship whilst at school for example, students that are care experienced or could not complete standard education due to family hardship or disability to go into further education e.g HNC, HND, And university. If City Of Glasgow College continues, and removes all NC academic courses they will be contributing to the socio-economic gap in education in Scotland, we as students must use our voices and stand up for equal opportunity in education. Please sign to save NC courses at COGC.326 of 400 SignaturesCreated by Orlaith Traynor
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We care for patients. Please care for us. We are NHS students training to save lives.We train to save lives. But childcare cuts push us out. Thousands of NHS student nurses are leaving because they can’t afford childcare. This isn’t just unfair—it’s a threat to the future of the NHS. 👉 Sign & Share to demand change: To Whom It May Concern, I am writing to urgently request a review and substantial increase in childcare support available to nursing students. The current system is not only inadequate but is actively contributing to the ongoing workforce crisis by forcing capable, committed students out of training due to financial and practical childcare barriers. Childcare has been repeatedly identified as a major cause of withdrawal from nursing programmes. Recent reporting from The Independent highlights that “thousands of student nurses and midwives drop out or don’t train due to exclusion from free childcare schemes”. This is one of the clearest indicators to date that childcare inaccessibility is directly driving attrition within the profession. The Royal College of Nursing’s 2025 attrition research reinforces this, identifying several structural factors that disproportionately affect mature students — who make up a significant proportion of nursing cohorts. These include: • Long, inflexible placement hours • Lack of access to funded childcare • High childcare costs compared to student income • Unpredictable shift patterns • Limited family support, particularly for lone parents National attrition rates for nursing students currently sit between 21–25%, and childcare is consistently cited as one of the top financial and practical reasons for leaving. The scale of the issue is undeniable: thousands of potential nurses are lost each year because the system fails to accommodate the realities of student parents. The inequity within current childcare policy is stark. For example: • Children aged nine months and older receive 30 funded hours only if both parents are in paid employment. Student nurses — despite working full-time hours on unpaid clinical placement — are excluded from this entitlement, even when they have a working partner. • Many students are deemed ineligible for the childcare grant due to household income thresholds that fail to reflect the true cost of nursery and wraparound care. • Students claiming Universal Credit cannot access the 85% childcare support available to working parents, as they are categorised as “non-working” despite undertaking mandatory full-time placements. • Even those who do receive the childcare grant often receive as little as £400 per year, an amount that does not cover even a single month of childcare for one child. • Previously, student parents could combine tax-free childcare (20% government contribution) with funded hours, but this support has been removed, leaving families significantly worse off. These policies create an impossible situation. Nursing students are expected to complete long, unpaid placement hours, often leaving full-time employment to do so, while simultaneously being denied the childcare support afforded to working parents. Many attempt to work part-time alongside their degree out of sheer necessity, but this is neither sustainable nor safe — academically, financially, or in terms of wellbeing. In many cases, it is simply not feasible, particularly when employers cannot accommodate the unpredictable and inflexible nature of placement scheduling. The result is predictable and deeply damaging: students with children are being pushed out of training, not because they lack ability or commitment, but because the system is structurally incompatible with parenthood. This loss of future nurses directly undermines efforts to address national staffing shortages and compromises the long-term stability of the NHS workforce. I am therefore requesting that childcare support for nursing students be urgently reviewed and expanded. This should include, but not be limited to: • Eligibility for funded childcare hours equivalent to those available to working parents • A realistic and meaningful childcare grant that reflects actual childcare costs • Access to Universal Credit childcare support for students undertaking mandatory placements • Restoration of tax-free childcare eligibility • A national commitment to ensuring that no student is forced to withdraw from training due to childcare barriers Supporting student parents is not an optional enhancement — it is an essential investment in the future of the nursing profession. Without decisive action, the current system will continue to exclude those who are already balancing extraordinary responsibilities in order to serve the public. I urge you to address this issue with the seriousness it demands. Respectfully, Matthew Jewitt Class Representative Speaking on behalf of the Practice‑Based Nursing Students University of Central Lancashire #CareForCarers #ChildcareForNHSStudents #SupportFutureNHS13 of 100 SignaturesCreated by Matthew Jewitt
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Improve education around girls safety and catcallingFrom our research and surveys, we have noticed that many girls feel unsafe walking alone, especially in the dark, and also many have been catcalled. we want awareness to be raised on the impacts of catcalling and what we can do to tackle this universal problem.36 of 100 SignaturesCreated by Maisie Hermitage
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Stop Kings Academy Binfield’s Proposed Admissions Policy ChangeWe believe this proposal is unfair and discriminatory. It goes against the principles of fairness set out in the School Admissions Code (2021), which requires admissions to be reasonable, clear, objective, and procedurally fair. It may also breach the Equality Act 2010, as it disadvantages certain groups within the Binfield and Warfield communities. Every child deserves a fair chance to attend their local secondary school. Take Action Please sign and share this petition to help protect fair access to Kings Academy Binfield for all local families. If you haven’t already, send your consultation response by 24 November 2025 to: [email protected] Together, we can make sure local schools remain for local children.884 of 1,000 SignaturesCreated by Carla Aitchison
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Stop the restructure at Drumbeat Outreach!Drumbeat Outreach is a highly-valued local service working with autistic young people, families and schools across Lewisham. Earlier this year, over 1,800 people raised their voices to object to an attempt to cut back the small Drumbeat Outreach team. The proposed cuts were paused as a result. However, the plans have not gone away, and a devastating “restructure” is now underway. Staff are being forced through a consultation that will lead to a third of the team being lost. The reduction in this small team’s capacity will have a major impact on the service they can provide. The crucial changes have not been consulted with the expert Drumbeat Outreach team or the families, young people and schools who will be affected by them. Short-term cuts are being pursued at the expense of our children’s mental health and educational futures - this is neither ethically nor fiscally sound decision-making. If you ask any parent or carer of an autistic child or young person in Lewisham, or school staff or other frontline professionals working with them, which service helps to understand and support their needs you are likely to hear one service singled out: Drumbeat Outreach. Drumbeat Outreach work under Service Level Agreements with mainstream schools in Lewisham. In addition, they work to a Service Level Agreement with the Local Authority that ensures free-at-the-point-of-use groups and services are also delivered. Funding from Lewisham to Drumbeat Outreach has been maintained at the same level since 2012 despite massive increases in costs since this date. Current funding cannot sustain the same level of services. Despite assurances that a 5% increase is being put forward as part of the current consultation, this is entirely inadequate to address the increased costs that have accumulated over the years. Drumbeat Outreach sits under the management of Drumbeat School but have a distinct role and largely autonomous working model. Financial management of the Drumbeat Outreach budget has exposed the problems of this specialised team sitting within a school that has no involvement in its work. Yet instead of putting effort into developing a more appropriate structure and home for the Drumbeat Outreach service to flourish, preserving its expertise and reputation, current efforts are incomprehensibly focussed on cutting it back. Behind the scenes in Drumbeat Outreach is a highly experienced team with decades of professional and personal experience supporting neurodivergent young people and working with schools. Those who work with them understand that their deep, transformative impact across schools, wider systems and services, is achieved by being constantly on hand for advice and expertise, tuned into professional forums and community networks. They are known for always being one step ahead, identifying new areas and issues where families, young people, schools and others need support and adapting to meet emerging needs. Cutting this service back to the bone will have a deep impact. There are countless forums for strategising, information-sharing, consultation and co-production around SEND and autism in Lewisham, yet the plans to cut back Drumbeat Outreach’s capacity were never discussed at these before they were put to the team as a formal consultation for job losses. These forums include: the All-Age Autism Strategy and its Partnership Board, the Parent and Carer Forum, the Lewisham Local Area Partnership for Children and Young People’s SEND Strategy “Have Your Say” events. Similarly, despite 1800+ parents, carers and supporters raising their concerns earlier this year, no efforts were made subsequently to consult on, share information about, or even allay fears around the revised restructure. We believe this is because there can in fact be no evidence to justify this cost-saving process. We remind Councillors that while the government makes increasingly clear that the future direction is to ensure children with SEND (of whom around 70% in Lewisham are or come to be diagnosed as autistic) are educated in inclusive mainstream settings, Lewisham Council will be making devastating and irreparable cuts to the one team that know how to make this a reality. Rather than cutting Drumbeat Outreach, Lewisham Council should be proudly proposing it as a model service to be adopted nationally.607 of 800 SignaturesCreated by Parents and Carers Against Drumbeat Cuts
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Start the Conversation on Children's Wellbeing: Stop the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill.If the Childrens Wellbeing and Schools Bill is not stopped or significantly and substantially amended, it will cause harm, it erodes the role of a parent and reduces children's rights and educational opportunities.139 of 200 SignaturesCreated by Michelle Louise
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Stop Rezoning Pupils from Whitehills Primary SchoolWhitehills Primary is a well-established and vital part of our rural community. The proposed changes would increase travel times for young children, disrupt settled friendships, and place unnecessary strain on families. No alternative school has been clearly identified, and no adequate consultation has taken place with affected parents and guardians. We call on Aberdeenshire Council to immediately halt any rezoning plans and commit to a meaningful consultation with the community. Protect rural education. Keep our children at Whitehills Primary School.265 of 300 SignaturesCreated by Jacqueline Blanchard
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6% is a cut too far - Protect Adult LearningIt’s no secret that after decades of cuts, adult learning remains woefully underfunded whilst continuing to deliver impressive outcomes not just in skills but for health and wellbeing, work progression and community building amongst others. However, unless the government reverses the trend of cuts to adult education, learning will be shut off from those who need it most. Ahead of the Government's Spending Review, the Department for Education has announced that next year's Adult Skills Fund will be cut. The Fund is split between the Mayoral Combined Authorities and the central agency, the ESFA. The ESFA’s budget will be reduced by 6%, whilst the Mayors’ skills budgets can expect a reduction of 2-3%. This cut will affect thousands of learners across the whole country. We still have no guarantees that it won’t be cut further in the Spending Review. “"The WEA has 100% impacted positively on my life. My friend said just come along and see the cookery class, so I went and absolutely loved it. It was amazing, and through that I ended up volunteering at the school's breakfast club. Now I've moved on to teaching assistant training at the local community centre and I'm doing the placement at the children's school. Honestly, I was stuck at home, down in the dumps and absolutely doing nothing. But now I'm out four days a week working and at classes. it's like a career the WEA has created for me." Joanne, a WEA learner”3,586 of 4,000 SignaturesCreated by Katie Shaw
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