Good News on Apprenticeships and Local Housing Investment

Report back from Andy Slaughter, MP for Hammersmith and Chiswick

Andy Slaughter at the Hospitality Apprenticeship Showcase with George who works at the Blue Boat and Hannah from the Bell and Crown

February 13, 2026

Last weekend I had a great time at the Chiswick Horticultural & Allotments Society quiz at St Michael’s. It was a fantastic evening - I was in the Abundance London team and we came joint 2nd of 8 teams.

The Justice Committee held another session on access to justice this week to inform our new inquiry. We had two separate sessions, firstly with Professor Linda Mulcahy who talked to us about sources of funding for the justice system, and then afterward we heard from providers of legal advice including Liz Bayram, Chief Executive of Advice UK, Dr Philip Drake, Director of Manchester Justice Hub, Dr Lisa Wintersteiger, Chief Executive of Advicenow and Nimrod Ben-Cnaan, Head of Policy and Profile at Law Centres Network.

In other justice news, I chaired a meeting of the Society of Labour Lawyers on reform of the criminal justice system, I spoke in the Urgent Question on the demise of a court reporting service, and met with MPs and Sir Brian Leveson to hear more on the government’s plans for jury reforms.

There was a fantastic news from TfL this week with an announcement of 157 apprenticeship roles launched across Transport for London this year. The apprenticeships include tram engineering, track engineering and construction site supervision and will provide qualifications ranging from Level 2 up to Level 6 which is equivalent to a degree. These apprenticeships bring very exciting opportunities for young people in Hammersmith and Chiswick and you can see the available roles on the TfL website.

On the subject of apprenticeships, I attended the Hospitality Apprenticeship Showcase event in Parliament this week. I met with George who works at the Blue Boat and Hannah from the Bell and Crown – both undertaking an apprenticeship with Fuller, Smith and Turner.

This week I also went to the Hammersmith Society AGM. There were awards presented including Wooden Spoon for good and bad local developments and a talk from local sculptor Hywel Pratley who has cast the first public statue of the late Queen and wants to make one of William Morris for the riverside.

Finally, I met with L&Q and Guinness Partnership housing associations to discuss the condition of social homes and their plans for new affordable housing. It was a positive meeting with good news on the home refurbishment and house building front. The government announced in the Comprehensive Spending Review that they will be funding around 90% of the Building Safety Fund money housing associations need, meaning that they do not need to take from their own funds for these essential remedial works. This means that the money left over can now be re-invested into existing stock and new homes. This is great news for my constituents who have been waiting for years for proper repairs to their homes.

Best wishes,

Andy

andy@andyslaughter.com

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