Dear friends, I'm amazed by the number of tests which are carried out these days in the UK and the amount of money which is spent on them. Therefore, I'd like to attract attention to this issue, as I find absurd that private companies cash on tests, while money is so much needed in hospitals and surgeries to keep up with the waiting lists.

North Yorkshire Police have recently reported that 42% of their emergency calls are directly linked to mental health issues and a number of Ambulance Trusts are on record as stating that it could take upto six hours before an ambulance is dispatched. These statistics are extremely worrying and concerning and immediate action is required. Aspire2 believe that a new emergency phone number such as 555 for example would allow the emergency operators to know that (1) a mental health crisis exists, (2) what appropriate emergency response is required and (3) calls can be linked into local mental health professional services. For those people experiencing a mental health crisis or those witnessing a mental health crisis require urgent and immediate help & support which can be life saving. Whilst Aspire2 accepts that there would be financial start up costs the overall and long term benefits would provide an immediate response to those people in a crisis or those members of the public who seek urgent advice. For those who are suffering from mental health & well-being issues this time of year brings added stresses and pressures such as debt, relationships, family, employment, anxiety, depression, thoughts of self harm or suicide. As the UK enters even more uncertainty in relation to Covid - 19 and new variants these issues undoubtedly will become worrying and troublesome adding increased stress, tension and pressure on individuals and families. 'Tracy' a 28 year old was threatening to jump off a bridge into her local river as she wanted to be successful in taking her own life. She was in debt, suffered from anxiety and had relationship issues. Tracy could not see anyway out but end her life. Fortunately, Passers by realised the danger she was in and took appropriate action spending 45 minutes with her until emergency services arrived'. You can support Aspire2 Mental Health Media & Events https://www.aspire2.org.uk/ by signing this petition, 100,000 signatures creates a debate on this vital and life saving issue in the House of Commons. You can also support Aspire2 by joining their social media sites Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Linkedin. Become part of a growing movement that supports mental health awareness and signposting of services. Please also visit www.aspire2.org.uk and if you can please donate & campaign on our behalf. Your help, understanding and support is truly vital to our long term ambitions. You can also find valuable information on National Mental Health Charities & their contact details through our website and on the 2nd page of our online digital newspapers.

The Penn Hill Road crossing at the Bowls Club is not fit for purpose. It needs upgrading to a highly visible zebra crossing. It has be the site of several 'near miss' incidents, most recently when it was completely driven over by a vehicle, the centre light column being flattened. Every school day hundreds of people cross here for St Mary's School, WASPS, the RUH, the 103 Club nursery and wrap around care, and Oldfield School. It is the route of the 'walking bus' for primary school children, and children under 11 make up own average 40% of users at peak times on school days. The specific problem: - Poorly located at pavement pinch points - Poorly designed with a tiny central island where people end up trapped with children and pushchairs - Confusing to drivers and crossing users - Heavily used by children - Not conspicuous enough - Clearly damaged from vehicle collisions - It is an accident black spot - It has been hit at least twice in recent years and there was another miss when two vehicles nearly collided. Everyone and especially children need a safe environment in which to walk (or cycle or scoot). The current poor crossing arrangements do not support council policies to enable healthy and active lifestyles, such as the ‘5 Minute Walking Bubble’. The recent collision demonstrates why this matter is so pressing.

We welcome the government's commitment made two years ago to build a new hospital at Whipps Cross. The July flooding that closed the A&E, evacuated nearly 100 patients, and prevented hundreds of essential operations showed once again the dire condition the hospital is in. The staff that have performed heroically throughout the pandemic, and the people of north east London and beyond deserve and need a new hospital now. The government is deciding which hospitals receive money first and that needs to be Whipps Cross. Sign the petition to secure our new hospital now. #WhippsWontWait

West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS) wishes to remove the last ambulance station in Rugby. Rugby is a rapidly expanding town and my family has direct experience of long waiting times in an emergency for the ambulance to arrive. With the removal of that ambulance the waiting times for people in this town will get worse and the risk is someone will needlessly lose their life while waiting for an ambulance. In addition Rugby is close to the M6 M1 A14 and A45 - all known for a high number of RTCs. We want the WMAS to stop this plan and think again. We want to be consulted on changes because we, the residents of the town, pay for this service through our taxes. We want to ensure there is adequate healthcare for the residents of our town. Our public services are being relentlessly degraded at a time the population is growing. Enough is enough.

A lot of Health Care Professions are short of staff. They require a degree level of education, and all the professions are greatly enhanced by having a mix of school leavers and mature students undertaking the training. Since 2017/18, mature students have been encouraged to apply, by offering those that already have a degree, a 2nd student loan. I emphasise this is a loan, involving the student taking on a debt of £27,750 over the 3 year course. Since January 2020 there has been further encouragement to attract people into the Health Care Professions, including those undertaking their 1st degree and those undertaking their 2nd degree. This encouragement is in the form of a non-repayable ‘Learning Support Fund (LSF)’ to the tune of £5,000 p/a. Both the 2nd student loan and the LSF are available to those undertaking training in Nursing, Midwifery and many of the Allied Health Professions (AHP’s), including Radiography, Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy, Dietetics, Podiatry and Speech and Language therapists. The one glaring omission are the Paramedics in England. The group that during the height of the Pandemic has been described by UCAS as the ‘Firefighters of Healthcare’. To be clear, a 1st degree application onto a Paramedical Science degree is entitled to both a student loan and the LSF. But unlike Nursing, Midwifery and most AHP’s, a 2nd degree application to study Paramedical Science is not entitled to either a 2nd student loan or the support of the LSF. In other words, if a mature student with a previous degree wishes to undertake training to become a Paramedic, they have to fund everything themselves. Therefore, this petition is not asking for special treatment, it is simply asking for Parity with those professions already mentioned. From this September 2021 the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) have made it mandatory that all new Paramedics have to have a BSc qualification. This is a Profession that we all rely on, it is a Profession that has staff shortages. It does not pay huge salaries and relies on attracting the right calibre of person that genuinely cares and wants to make a difference. The type of person that this petition concerns has been in the workplace, has built up some life skills and experiences and has decided that they want to contribute to society. They should be encouraged, not dissuaded by the huge financial burden. For the future well being of both the service and society, please sign this petition and please share this petition.

Did you know that your female employees who lose a baby under 24 weeks are not entitled to paid leave? Well. You might argue that they are entitled to SSP. Is that really comparable to their wages? How many employees could afford to be off work with the first 3 days unpaid and then live off £96.35 per week? Not many I bet. This is what is happening across the U.K. - employees are grieving, they are suffering physically, mentally & financially. I lost my daughter at 23 weeks And whilst 2 weeks was not enough, it is better than the nothing being offered currently.

Canvey Island X-ray unit is a lifeline to residents of canvey Island and is urgently needed.not only for our elderly population but but is widely used for all residents

Despite popular belief, mental health issues don't just impact 1 in 4. Mental health distress affects 1 in 1, either directly or indirectly. We all have to consider our mental wellbeing. If we are fortunate enough never to need professional help for our mental health, nearly all of us know at least 1 person that does need support. With current world events & inequalities in the UK ever widening, you'd have to be 'mad' to be 'sane' some might argue. So having world-class mental health services will help all of us in the UK, not just a perceived 'unwell' minority. Spending money today on early intervention is much, much cheaper than dealing with the consequences of neglect tomorrow. Most people that have ever used mental health services or those that provide these services, knows the system is failing many people & has been since services began. For decades those with the power & responsibility to improve mental health services have proven unwilling or unable to make the radical changes that need to happen. People are suffering unnecessary distress. People are dying avoidable deaths. This is the epidemic within the pandemic. We are not anti-the-professional or the politicians or any of the decision makers. We are not anti-anything. We are simply pro-human. We want to avoid unnecessary suffering. Even better than just signing this petition would be to also email us with your experiences of mental health services in the UK. The good, the bad, the ugly. Having acknowledged what isn't being done, our hope is to keep this movement with a focus on what could be done. Rather than create a laundry list of resentments we hope to highlight positive potential & creative ideas for mental health services. Less about problems, more about solutions. So if you could also include ideas for how to improve mental health services that would be brilliant. The email address to use is: [email protected] A website is under construction & it is our hope to publish your emails on this site anonymously (unless you don't want us to) to help us all to fully understand the challenges and use our collective wisdom for how we might improve our mental health services across our nation. We will not stop our efforts until we genuinely actualise world-class mental health for everyone in the UK. Please forward this petition to as many friends & family & colleagues as you can. Via email & all your social media accounts. We understand that most of us are 'time-poor' but spending just a few minutes forwarding this petition has the potential to start a mental health revolution in the UK. Please sign this petition now & join this movement to stop the epidemic within the pandemic. It is time for change. It is time for action. Please show your support now.

The Government wants to move the age people can get free prescriptions up from 60 to 66 years old. This is directed to anyone in England. The devolved governments have chosen to offer free prescriptions for all. Raising the age at which free prescriptions are offered would further increase this disparity. Many women have been hit twice by the increases to state retirement age, please do not add a third. As this only applies to England, it makes such a change even more burdensome as less than 10% of prescriptions are actually paid for. The over 60s suffer increasing health problems, that could be exacerbated if prescriptions needed to be paid for. People could choose not to pay, which then puts a greater burden on the NHS. This is a shortsighted idea that needs to be nipped in the bud now.

To keep Belper and surrounding areas safe.

I feel this is hugely important and could save many lives just as the Christian Eriksen incident of 2021 Euros has proven.