The PM Resigns, Career and Education Matters and SEN Provision

Councillor Ron Mushiso of Chiswick Gunnersbury ward reports back on his week

Cllr Mushiso with an officer from London Borough Hounslow at a Careers Fair for young people

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PM Resignation

With events at Westminster dominating all the media platforms, you could be forgiven for thinking there is nothing else happening. I am just relieved that we now have some clarity nationally since the Prime Minister did what we had all hoped he would do and announced his resignation. The process for selecting a new Conservative leader can now begin and I am excited about the new leadership contest which has already started.

In the meantime, the country must keep on functioning. It is right therefore that the interim Government continues to focus on tackling the most important challenges that we face – the cost of living, the post-Covid19 recovery in Education, the NHS backlog and of course our continued support for Ukraine.

Career options in Local Government

All these are important at a national level, but the show must go on locally as well. Last week I held a marketing stall at my place of work to highlight the job opportunities in Local Government for school leavers. To have a good functioning local authority we must attract the best and brightest from within our community. The council in my view, has not been as proactive in reaching out to our school leavers and university graduates to talk about the career paths on local government. I would love to see the next Chief Executive of the Council emerging out of our community. That is why I have started to have these conversations with the HR department at Hounslow House to set up a Work Shadowing Scheme with the council and local businesses. Watch this space.

Chiswick School Trust Governor

This week I attended, via zoom, our final Trust Governors meeting for the year. Chiswick School has continued to be a success story in action. In Laura Ellener, the school has attracted one of the most proactive Headmistresses in the country.

It is no coincidence that Chiswick School has grown year on year in excellence and academic attainment since her appointment. Moreover, Chiswick School pupils are visible now more than ever playing an active role in the community. I am honoured to be associated with the school as one of its Trust Governors.

Special Educational Needs

Of course, my background in education is the reason why I am particularly invested in the success of all our schools in the Borough. I have held on to my brief as the Shadow Spokesperson for Education because I understand the challenges that our schools, parents and teachers face day to day. As a result of the pandemic, we know of a number of children who are entering secondary education with undiagnosed Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) support. Nationally there has been a 13% increase in pupils requiring special educational support compared to the previous academic year. There has only been a 4% increase in assessments.

Schools simply do not have enough resources to deal with the backlogs of outstanding Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP) assessments. These assessments serve to unlock the additional support that can help pupils in their learning. There is a massive delay of undiagnosed pupils struggling to adapt to the new Key Stages in the curriculum as well as the catch up. There are pupils falling behind in phonics, writing, maths, and social skills.

I have discussed these with Peter Thompson, the leader of our Conservative group and a fellow teacher to make this issue a priority of for the Council. It is certainly our priority in our working programme in opposition. We will be pushing the new administration on this so that it is brought to the forefront of their agenda as well. We believe that the Council can do more to support school leaders on SEND provisions.

Cllr Ron Mushiso

ron.mushiso@hounslow.gov.uk
07976 702887

SURGERIES IN CHISWICK AND GUNNERSBURY

We are back to our usual routine of holding face-to-face surgeries in Chiswick and in Gunnersbury.

Chiswick: Every Saturday from 9.30am to 10.30am at Chiswick Library (the eight Conservative councillors take this surgery in turn).

Gunnersbury: First Saturday of the month from 10am to 11am at The Gunnersbury Triangle Club, Triangle Way, off The Ridgeway, W3 8LU (at least one of the Chiswick Gunnersbury ward councillors take this surgery). 

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

Thursday, 14th July at 7pm: Planning committee

Tuesday, 19th July at 7pm: Borough Council

Tuesday, 1st September at 7pm: Overview and scrutiny committee

Tuesday, 13th September at 7pm: Chiswick Area Forum

CONSERVATIVE COUNCILLORS

Chiswick Homefields ward

Cllr Jack Emsley jack.emsley@hounslow.gov.uk 07977 396017

Cllr Gerald McGregor gerald.mcgregor@hounslow.gov.uk 07866 784821

Cllr John Todd john.todd@hounslow.gov.uk 07866 784651

Chiswick Riverside ward

Cllr Peter Thompson peter.thompson@hounslow.gov.uk 07977 395810

Cllr Gabriella Giles gabriella.giles@hounslow.gov.uk 07966 270823

Chiswick Gunnersbury (was Turnham Green) ward

Cllr Joanna Biddolph joanna.biddolph@hounslow.gov.uk 07976 703446

Cllr Ranjit Gill ranjit.gill@hounslow.gov.uk 07976 702956

Cllr Ron Mushiso ron.mushiso@hounslow.gov.uk 07976 702887

July 13, 2022