Pelsall Library is less than five years old - it is in a state of the art multi purpose building £5.2m. Closing the facility now would be retrograde and a complete and utter waste of taxpayer money. Pelsall Library is enjoyed by all young and old - a lifeline to many and a hub of the Pelsall community

Put frankly, finances in our West Sussex Schools are at breaking point. If nothing is done there will be severe consequences for our children. Currently headmasters across our county are having to consider and actively plan to take any of the following measures to make ends meet: • Modified opening hours/days • Increasing class sizes even further • Reductions in cleaning • Non-replacement of staff when they leave/retire • A halt in all investment in books and IT ________________________ Did you know: • West Sussex is one of the lowest funded council in the country • West Sussex currently gets between £40m - £200m less than other regions for Education • In nearby Brighton & Hove each school receives £300 per pupil premium if they don't speak english as a first language. West Sussex schools get no extra funding for this. ________________________ Nick Gibb MP (for Bognor Regis & Littlehampton, West Sussex) The response from Nick Gibb has been very disappointing to both the headmasters and his constituents so far. In a letter to a local Head Teacher, dated 2 November 2016, West Sussex MP Nick Gibb (Minister for Schools) wrote: “In 2015- 16 we made a step towards fairer funding by adding £390m to the schools budget, targeted at the least fairly funded authorities, including West Sussex. The additional funding for West Sussex was included in their baseline in 2016-17 and is protected for 2017-18.” In this reply Mr Gibb MP doesn’t appear to be acknowledging the funding crisis in this reply. Especially since the £390m mentioned, West Sussex schools received less than £1m (£930k). This represents an increase of less than £10 per child across West Sussex. ________________________ The Worthless? West Sussex Campaign Head Teachers in West Sussex are currently running to campaign to gain additional interim funding of £20million beginning in the financial year, April 2017 with the Worthless? West Sussex Campaign for fairer funding. They need to do this because of long years of under funding by West Sussex County Council, which has now been compounded by the low level being carried over to the funding now allocated directly from Westminster. In their latest letter they said that despite the assistance of some West Sussex MPs and an debate in parliament (Nick Gibb was not in attendance). You can watch here: http://www.parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/9b387b6d-28f4-4e0b-9d87-ffd64d3ed678?utm_source=petition&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=167761&utm_content=Parliament%20TV You can find out more about the WorthLess? West Sussex Campaign on facebook: www.facebook.com/WorthLessWestSussex

Many families struggle feeding their children at school. Weather this is through pack lunch or canteen money.

I am a disabled stepmother to a beautiful and bright 4 year old who started school this September. As September drew closer, I became excited by the idea of being able to have an active part in his school life, meeting other parents, and even helping out in school. But as I am also a disabled person, this dream has not been so straightforward. Whilst my appeal was upheld by the independent schools' admission appeals panel, this is not the case for all disabled parents who are allocated inaccessible school placement for their child(ren) under Birmingham City Council’s schools admissions policy. Many disabled parents are being given school places at schools that are both inaccessible to travel to and to get around. Had I not been successful with my appeal my stepson would have either had to have been home-schooled (which is not a decision I feel is right for him) or we would have had to pay out for before and after school care that we wouldn't actually need, purely because of being given a school place at a school that wasn't accessible for me to get to. Our case is not isolated. Across the country there are 2.1 million disabled parents, many of whom are either having to fit the bill of expensive childcare that they wouldn't need if they were non-disabled, or travel costs, which are frequently not covered by the local authority. Some disabled parents have even chosen to home school simply because the childcare costs are not sustainable. I believe that Birmingham City Council schools admission policy is both discriminatory and illegal as the city council does not often make reasonable adjustments for disabled parents and carers as is required under the equality act (2010). If Birmingham City Council changed their admissions policy it would be a step towards making disabled parents far more included in their children's education. It would be helpful for the Department for Education’s Schools Admissions Code to include guidance on how councils’ schools admissions policies should comply with their Equality Act 2010 duties around disabled parents request for an accessible school for themselves. This has been recommended on a national level by various charities - including the Alliance for inclusive Education

Nursery Schools in Tower Hamlets and across the country are under threat of closure due to government plans for the future funding of childcare. State nursery schools have very good outcomes with regard to closing the achievement gap and supporting children with special needs. State nursery schools are legally required to employ highly-qualified teaching staff, who are proven to give young children the best opportunities for academic achievement and enabling social mobility.

The University of Portsmouth informed its students via email on 7/11/2016 that both new and continuing students will be forced to pay £9,250 for the next academic year. Every year seems to hold another increase to our ever-growing piles of debt. Scrapping the maintenance grant in exchange for a bigger loan. Increasing the interest rate at which we pay them back. At the current rate tuition fees will surpass £10,000 within the next few years and I've had enough. I didn't sign up expecting my fees to increase during my time here and regardless of the fine print the University didn't communicate this information to me before starting my degree, nor did they before I started this academic year. Current students should not see a fee increase. As Faculty Representative for Technology I feel it is my duty to speak out against the Universities decision to raise fees and urge my colleagues to do the same. I've been a proud student at Portsmouth since 2014. It's ignited my passion for learning, helping others and you won't find somebody with more love for this city. It's hard to believe as somebody who left college with a BTEC in music and no sense of direction years ago I now stand to graduate at the end of my course with an integrated Masters in Mechanical Engineering. By letting these fees increase all we do is discourage people from making that leap. I've directed this petition to Paul Hayes, who spoke last year at the course rep conference, who assured me that our voice matters. This affects every student current and future and if we do not take a stand now, the problem will only grow.

Smaller schools are already experiencing redundancies and staffing restructures. Ultimately we will all suffer as this will have a direct impact on the education of those students - those who will govern us in our dotage. We want the government to recognise and protect the smaller schools and stop discriminating against their staff and students based largely on size and location. The already beleaguered rural economy cannot absorb any more financial hits nor does it need higher unemployment.

Because access to books matters. Reading changes lives!

It has been decided without consulting local people, to rename our Academy, "The Waid", when a new building opens next year. Local people are outraged. A former Deputy Rector, now aged 96, who help to educate three generations of students is deeply saddened. Whilst the future is important, we should always learn from the past. The Waid Academy has set and produced the highest standards of education. It has served the East Neuk for 130 years. It opened on 6th December1886 and was financed using a bequest left by Lt Andrew RN. It's purpose was to to provide secondary education for the East Neuk of Fife. Most of the people who still live in the area, plus other who left for pastures new were students there and received a top class education. "The Waid Academy" is their's, In these uncertain times,we all need something to cherish, our "Academy", fits the bill perfectly.

We the undersigned call on the Mayor of London to support us in the creation of a UK HIV/AIDS Memorial. HIV/AIDS disproportionally affected gay men but also new African communities; people with haemophilia; prisoners and injecting drug users. It influenced the whole nation by forcing us to confront deep rooted prejudices and ask questions about equality, difference, religion, morality and identity which hit at the very core of our values as a people and as a nation. There is currently no memorial to those who died in London in contrast to most other major cities affected including Amsterdam, Auckland, Barcelona, Berlin, Brighton, Buenos Aires, Cape Town, Dublin, Edinburgh, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Kiev, LA, Madrid, Manchester, Melbourne, Montreal, Moscow, Munich, NYC, Paris, San Francisco, San Salvador, Sydney, Toronto, Vienna and Zurich. We want the Mayor of London to support our campaign for a national memorial in the city, by meeting with campaigners and helping in practical ways to find a location, funding and wider support. Why Now? 1) 2017 is the 50th Anniversary of the passing of the Sexual Offences Act 1967 which partly decriminalised sexual acts between two men in private and aged over 21. 2) 2016 is the 20th anniversary since the widespread use of the life-saving anti-retroviral therapy that arrested the number of deaths and literally, allowed for a new awakening. 3) New communities are examining and documenting their unique histories for future generations to make more sense of their own lives and to make secure as well as more grounded, their identities and narratives. The National AIDS Memorial in London aims: • To pay tribute to the men, women and children who died in the UK • To remember the struggles of those living with HIV as well as those who took on the challenge to treat, support and campaign for those who were affected by AIDS. • To acknowledge an almost forgotten period in British history • To form a linear historical path between the past, the present and the future for all the communities in the UK who bore the brunt of the epidemic. • To remember those worldwide who perished and who continue to live with HIV, the majority of whom still cannot access treatment This campaign is being led by GMFA (Gay Men Fighting AIDS), in conjunction with the UK HIV sector. @AidsMemoryUK; #AidsMemoryUK

It is important to empower young people who are at risk of developing mental health problems by providing knowledge, support, advice and guidance for them to seek help from the right services. It is important to remove inequality of opportunity and seek to enable sufferers to participate fully in society without fear of rejection.

Because this is a life skill which would enable them to live full lives post hearing loss. It could help to prevent social isolation and the onset of dementia.