My Initial Thoughts: General Election 2019

It's been an absolute age since I've written a blog post but the events of recent days have reminded me of just how important it is to feel empowered to write down my thoughts about society, politics and the like. In short I've been quiet for too long (blog wise) and it's time to begin my re-exploration of key issues that I am interested in and which I feel need to be addressed by politicians in order to improve the lives of people living in neighbourhoods such as my own in Birchwood ward. Just in case you needed a reminder, in the General Election of 2017 former nurse, Carholme ward City of Lincoln Councillor and Mayor, Labour's Karen Lee took the Lincoln seat from the Conservative Brexiteer Karl McCartney in what was considered a surprising result despite the fact that Lincoln had voted 56.9% to Leave in the 2016 EU referendum (although I must remind everyone this was the lowest Leave percentage recorded in Lincolnshire). Both Karen Lee and Mr McCartney will be candidates in the 2019 General Election, alongside Caroline Kenyon for the Lib Dems, Charles Shaw for The Liberal Party, Sally Horscroft for the Green Party, lawyer Reece Wilkes for the Brexit Party and independent Robert Bradley. Nobody can say we're not spoilt for choice in this election that's for sure.

So Brexit:

As an ardent Remain in the EU and Reform supporter, the decision I face making at this election, living in a traditional Lab-Con marginal seat would seem crystal clear. Karl McCartney and the local Conservative Association wholeheartedly support Bojo's position on Brexit (“Get Brexit Done” blah blah blah) and will no doubt attract support from voters who voted for the Brexit Party at the European Elections back in May. The Brexit Party may attract Conservative (and Labour) leave voters who are frustrated at both parties' Brexit policies and want to achieve a World Trade Organisation (WTO) terms type Brexit aka “Clean Break Brexit”. Both parties do not appeal to me based on their Brexit policy because my feelings towards Brexit have hardened quite significantly since the June 2016 vote. I understand that Labour's official position going into this election is to offer voters a Final Say referendum 6 months from December 13^th which is framed as “a choice between a sensible deal and remain” according to Corbyn's own words (https://labour.org.uk/press/jeremy-corbyns-first-major-speech-of-the-general-election-campaign/ ). The problem I have with this is that I'm not entirely sure what a “sensible” Brexit deal looks like from a Labour perspective (apart from remaining in the Single Market and being part of a Customs Union) and naturally it would require the securing of another extension (https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-delay-extension-labour-corbyn-boris-johnson-article-50-latest-a9179371.html). I'm far from convinced that EU negotiators would be willing to re-open negotiations for a 3^rd time- after all, why would they choose to go through the same old arguments just for the sake of negotiating something that will pretty much look like we are still better off being members of the EU anyways? I have felt at times that the Labour leadership has let down voters like me who wanted the party to come out boldly and unequivocally for retaining membership of the EU. Then again I do understand that just deciding to Revoke Article 50 and denying voters the opportunity to have their say on a deal would be perceived by some as anti-democratic, particularly in constituencies that voted heavily to Leave in 2016. So yes I am very skeptical of Labour's Final Say referendum position (how it'll happen within 6 months is beyond me) but given the alternative (leaving the EU without having my Final Say), I am favourable to giving Labour the benefit of the doubt at least on Brexit and will wait to see further outlining of the Brexit policy in the manifesto. That being said, I can't say the policy of the Liberal Democrats to Stop Brexit by Revoking Article 50 isn't attractive...it would end the uncertainty even if it did anger the Brexiteers.

It's certainly not all Brexit:

Brexit isn't the only policy area that will be scrutinised by voters during the 2019 GE campaign. In fact, when I speak to neighbours here in Birchwood, discussions centre around a number of issues but include boosting the local economy to provide long-term job opportunities for young people living in the ward, tackling instances of Anti-Social Behaviour in the ward and Lincoln city centre, tackling levels of poverty and social inequality and addressing the level of traffic congestion faced by daily commuters into the city centre. I outline some of these issues below.

Poverty:

In the latest Indices of Multiple Deprivation (2019), Birchwood ward was identified as having 2 of the top 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in England and 1 (which I happen to live very close to) was ranked the 394^th most deprived neighborhood in England . Overall 18% of neighbourhoods in Lincoln were ranked amongst the top 10% most deprived (https://www.lincolnshirelive.co.uk/news/local-news/ten-most-deprived-neighbourhoods-lincolnshire-3369859). When people think of Lincoln (and Lincolnshire more widely), they often picture middle class suburban voters or older Brexit voting retirees but the county demographic is far more diverse than that. The City of Lincoln Council has done a lot at a local level to try and reduce levels of poverty through the Anti-Poverty Strategy, the second version of which was approved in July 2016. The Strategy focuses on a number of areas and objectives include empowering people to maximise their income, breaking the link between poor health and poverty and improving the condition of people's homes. The Strategy document can be viewed here: http://79.170.40.231/lincolnagainstpoverty.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Lincoln-Anti-Poverty-Strategy-2014-2020.pdf .

Comparison of the Indices of Multiple Deprivation figures for Lincoln from 2015 and 2019 shows that 42 out of the 56 neighborhoods measured in Lincoln have gone down in terms of rank, demonstrating there has been an improvement in poverty levels in the City. For example, my own neighborhood in Birchwood has gone from being the 2,397^th most deprived neighbourhood in 2015 to to the 2,742^nd in England in 2019.

However, I personally feel that policy decisions taken at a national level can help to compliment local policy such as the Anti-Poverty Strategy and reduce poverty levels more significantly. This should include more investment in our local authority support services as well as a re-examination of the effectiveness of the Universal Credit system. It's just not right that more families in Lincoln find themselves reliant on food banks because they have no income left by the end of the month to afford essentials and families with a parent or parents in low-paid work are particularly struggling. Earlier this year, the Welfare Team reported that they had “issued 505 food vouchers for local community larders and food banks in 2018-19”, up 306 from 2017-18 (https://thelincolnite.co.uk/2019/05/food-vouchers-surge-65-as-universal-credit-is-rolled-out/). Nationally the Trussell Trust issued 823,145 food parcels between April and September 2019, including 301,653 to families with children and their research found that 94% of food bank users are classed as destitute (https://www.politicshome.com/news/uk/social-affairs/welfare/news/107943/universal-credit-slammed-figures-show-sharpest-rise-food). If we are truly a society that cares for all citizens, we need to ensure that nobody is left in a state of destitution. Politicians must work further with charities, voluntary organisations, social enterprises and campaign groups such as The Joseph Rowntree Foundation and End Child Poverty campaign and listen to their policy ideas because they know what works and what doesn't work when it comes to addressing poverty.

Children and young people:

Since July I've been keeping a written record in my notebook of statistics relating to children and young people and the impact that growing up in poverty has on their life chances, whether they are living in Lincoln or England more generally. Did you know for example that nearly one in three reception children and almost half of children eligible for Free School Meals (FSM) were found to be not ready for engaging fully in lessons at primary school? (https://schoolsweek.co.uk/one-in-three-reception-children-arent-school-ready-warns-teach-first/).

Were you aware that disadvantaged young people are on average 19 months behind their peers by the time they come to do their GCSEs and that only 35% of students on FSM get 5 GCSE passes? In non-mainstream settings (Alternative Provision), only 1.5% of students achieve grade 5 GCSE passes in Maths and English (https://www.theguardian.com/education/2019/oct/17/pupils-with-behavioural-issues-failing-to-meet-exam-benchmark). Very concerning indeed. It still rings true that your start in life can have a significant bearing on your chances of academic achievement but there are policies that can be enacted which improve those chances. According to Impetus' comprehensive Youth Jobs Gap research (https://impetus.org.uk/policy/youth-unemployment), young people who are classified as “doubly disadvantaged”, described as being from disadvantaged backgrounds and having achieved less than 5 GCSE passes are being “left behind” in the jobs market. Even when young people from disadvantaged backgrounds have those 5 GCSE passes, they are still 50% more likely to not be in education or employment or training in early adulthood (NEET) (https://impetus.org.uk/policy/youth-unemployment).What's even more concerning is that 75% of NEET young people are NEET for a long-term period ( https://impetus.org.uk/policy/youth-unemployment).

It's natural to understand why younger voters and their parents are concerned about being able to access the long-term job opportunities which allow young people to have the financial stability needed to be able to lead an independent life. The latest employment statistics I have accessed (July 2018-June 2019) show that 6.1% of economically active people in Lincoln (i.e. people between the ages of 16-64) are unemployed which is higher than the overall East Midlands percentage of 4.6% (http://www.nomisweb.co.uk/reports/lmp/la/1946157150/printable.aspx). The statistics also show that the percentage of people in Lincoln with a qualification above NVQ Level 4 is lower than the East Midlands figure (24.2% compared with 33.2%). What's also interesting to note is that the majority of businesses based in Lincoln are micro businesses (85.0%) employing between 0 and 9 people. Most micro business employers are looking to employ young people who have advanced IT skills, are good communicators and who are willing to learn and can provide opportunities for stable, long-term employment. Yet one-third of English 16-19 year olds have low basic skills, there has been a dramatic decline in the number of Level 2 and 3 apprenticeships being offered and more worryingly, research uncovered by 2017-19 Education Select Committee Chair Robert Halfon suggests that 28% of jobs being done by 16-24 year olds could be at risk of automation by the 2030s and yet only 5% of young people work in the STEM sector (https://www.makeuk.org/insights/blogs/2018/03/06/robert-halfon-for-naw). Couple this with research by the IFS which has looked at the decline of adult learning programmes over the last 15 years which found that “overall spending on classroom-based courses has fallen by two-thirds, as have the number of adult learners” (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-50378666?ns_source=twitter&ocid=socialflow_twitter&ns_mchannel=social&ns_campaign=bbcnews) and it's clear that we need much more decisive action to change this situation. Upskilling is vital for those who want to thrive in a competitive, increasingly tech driven economy, particularly in an area such as Lincoln which already has a lower percentage of full-time jobs and higher number of part-time jobs than the East Midlands and Great Britain average (http://www.nomisweb.co.uk/reports/lmp/la/1946157150/printable.aspx). So for me and for other voters my age and younger living in Birchwood, policies which focus on investment in FE colleges and community outreach education, which focus on providing more access to Level 2, 3 and degree apprenticeships, especially for young people with disabilities and funding for projects which improve the social and technical skills of young people who come from disadvantaged backgrounds which are grassroots led, appeal greatly.

There is an increasing awareness in politics of the need to invest long-term in public services and community projects in order to address the impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) on young people's chances of improving their quality of life. ACEs include experiencing bereavement of close family members or close friends, surviving a traumatic life event, being a young carer, experiencing repeated discrimination based on a protected characteristic (e.g. race), being involved in a gang and being a survivor of domestic abuse and/or violence (https://youngminds.org.uk/media/2852/aa-slides.pdf).

Investment in schools, children and youth services, youth centres, mental health services and local amenities has been identified as important in helping to improve the life chances of young people who have experienced or are still experiencing ACEs. However, youth services across England for example have faced cuts as a result of the austerity measures imposed on local authorities by the Tories. £880m has been cut from spending on youth services in England since 2010 (70% of total spending) with 87% of councils slashing spending on youth services by 50% and 50% of councils slashing spending by over 75% (https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/tories-500m-youth-services-380m-20338813). In Lincoln we are fortunate to have third sector organisations such as YMCA Lincolnshire and The Lincolnshire Youth Association which are providing a diverse range of affordable activities for disadvantaged and vulnerable young people as well as the Lincolnshire Council for Voluntary Youth Services (LCVYS) commissioned by Lincolnshire County Council to provide small grants to grassroots youth clubs who are registered with them. However, I believe the next Government must do more than restore funding for youth services lost due to austerity cuts: it needs to work with third sector organisations to establish a long-term strategy for funding youth work. The National Youth Agency provides a number of excellent recommendations in their High 5 manifesto, with ideas including the establishment of a Government Youth Covenant and funding for the core provision of at least 2 qualified youth workers per school catchment area (https://nya.org.uk/2019/11/high-5-manifesto-investing-in-youth-work/ ).

Funding for schools has been high on the political policy agenda since the 2017 election. The School Cuts website reveals that 83% of schools across England will lose out on funding next year and recent research released by the National Education Union found that just 18 out of 533 constituencies analysed (3%) would receive real terms funding increases next April compared with 2015 and even when the £2.6bn of funding announced by Boris Johnson before the election is factored in. Lincoln is ranked 298^th in the table, with a £227 per pupil funding loss between 2015/16 and 2020/21. You can check out the funding table via the Schools Week website here: https://schoolsweek.co.uk/union-publishes-constituencies-league-table-for-school-funding-to-sway-voters/.

Further investigation of the Schools Cuts website demonstrates that levels of per pupil funding can vary from school to school: for example, the figure which signifies the difference between funding provided between 2015 and 2020 and the amount which is needed to protect per pupil funding in real terms for Birchwood Junior School is £462,637 and the loss per pupil is calculated at £252 (https://schoolcuts.org.uk/schools/?chosenSchool=9252245) whereas funding increases for Woodfield Infant and Nursery School mean that per pupil funding has increased by £138 (https://schoolcuts.org.uk/schools/?chosenSchool=9252135 ). This is interesting to say the least. 

SEND funding has been a central area of concern, with some families struggling to access support by securing a Education Health and Care Plan (ECHP). Layla Moran cites Freedom of Information reports which found that 40% of ECHPs were not being issued within the 20 week deadline required by law (https://www.politicshome.com/news/uk/education/house/house-magazine/107201/layla-moran-mp-children-special-educational-needs-or ). 

A report by the Royal National Institute for the Blind found that 44% of councils had cut or frozen funding for educational support for visually impaired children and 43% had seen a reduction in specialist staff even though there has been a 7% increase in the number of children needing support (https://www.theguardian.com/education/2019/oct/22/funding-cuts-visually-impaired-pupils-rnib). 

Children with SEND are also more likely to be excluded from mainstream schools: a new report by the charity JUSTICE highlights statistics which found that although only 15% of pupils in England are pupils with SEND, 45% of permanent exclusions and 43% of fixed exclusions of pupils in 2017/18 were of pupils with SEND (https://justice.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Challenging-Report.pdf ). 

Being permanently excluded can have a detrimental effect on mental health and emotional wellbeing, academic performance and future job prospects. 

The 2019/20 Lincolnshire County Council Budget did not see an increase in the SEND grant award amount from 2018/19 (£259m) and the testimonials from families who are struggling to secure an ECHP or to keep their child in mainstream education demonstrate that support must be readily available.

The next Government must ensure that funding provided for schools in Birchwood ward and across Lincoln is fair and sufficient to allow for the provision of a comprehensive, inclusive education for ALL students.

Mental health service access for children and young people who have experienced ACEs is mixed at best across England. The latest NHS statistics available finds that at the end of July 2019, there were 234,458 people in contact with children and young people's mental health services (https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/mental-health-services-monthly-statistics/final-july-provisional-august-2019). We are very fortunate in Lincolnshire to have a pioneering, inclusive mental health services trust (Lincolnshire Partnership Foundation Trust) and it was recently announced that they would receive £6m over 2 years to “test new models of care for young, working age and older adults who have moderate to severe, long term mental health problems” through a community service approach (https://www.lpft.nhs.uk/news-and-events/news/significant-funding-lincolnshire). Yet many children and young people do not access CAMHS yet experience anxiety and stress which impacts their everyday lives. The Children's Society Good Childhood Report found that almost a quarter of a million 10-15 year olds are unhappy with their lives and that any experience of financial strain or poverty in childhood is linked to lower well-being by the age of 14 (https://www.childrenssociety.org.uk/good-childhood-report).

Overall, 1 in 8 children and young people experience mental health problems: in fact there has been a 48% increase in levels of anxiety and depression among British children since 2004. Such statistics are incredibly concerning to read about and it highlights the urgent need for more early intervention strategies to support children and young people to cope with challenges which go beyond reliance on community mental health services. This includes delivering self-care strategies and mental wellbeing lessons through a wide-ranging Relationships and Sex Education programme of study, starting in primary school, ensuring every school has qualified Mental Health First Aiders as well as providing access to youth clubs and counselling services. 

Law and Order:

Law and order is a policy area which I know from conversations I have that Lincolnites take very seriously. We are proud of our police force and our emergency service personnel more generally and our emergency services have led the way on modernisation and diversification of the emergency services. Funding for front-line police officers has increased recently thanks to grassroots campaigning and campaigning by Marc Jones, our Police and Crime Commissioner and this has already led to the announcement of the recruitment target of 50 new police officers by March 2021 (https://www.lincolnshirelive.co.uk/news/boris-johnson-police-lincolnshire-3409759). However, Lincolnshire police do face a deficit of £6.7m next year despite this announcement and I continue to support the fight for fairer funding.

One of the law and order issues that concerns Lincoln residents in particular is Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB). ASB consists of a variety of different behaviours but the ones that are most noticed and reported in Lincoln happen to be harassment of customers in shops and restaurants, loud noise levels mostly as a result of night parties and public urination. According to statistics recorded by local news site The Lincolnite, 3,181 requests for assistance with ASB were made to the City of Lincoln Council between April 2018 and March 2019 and 595 fines were handed out (https://thelincolnite.co.uk/2019/09/harassment-and-public-urination-lincolns-anti-social-behaviour-hotspots/ ). 36 ASB incidents were recorded in Birchwood but despite this low number, there is regular talk about the perception of the level of noise coming from houses in areas of Birchwood. Over the past few months I've been looking at research focusing on how community social action projects can reduce instances of ASB amongst young people whilst also challenging perceptions of what constitutes ASB to avoid stereotyping...for example, I have heard one or two residents in Birchwood label gatherings of young adults at local shops as ASB but usually such gatherings of young adults happen because they feel they have nowhere else to go to socialise and they are courteous whilst in the shopping centre anyways. Yes we need the next Government to continue to commit to tackling ASB at a local and national level but we need more provision and promotion of social action projects and localised services for young adults.

Whilst mentioning law and order I can't forget to mention the prison service. A report released earlier this year found that whilst prison officers and support staff were doing their best to help look after the welfare of prisoners, there was a 49% rise in incidents of prisoner self-harm between 2017 and 2019 and issues were identified with the infrastructure of the prison (https://thelincolnite.co.uk/2019/07/lincoln-prison-falling-apart-as-staff-do-top-job/). In addition, the number of prison staff who took sick days increased by 28% between 2017/18 and 2018/19 (https://www.lincolnshirelive.co.uk/news/number-sick-days-taken-prison-3351794). I hope the next Government will ensure that prisons do receive the funding and support needed to address these issues to ensure that prisons are truly fit for purpose for the 21^st century and I hope that the mental and physical health of prison staff improves as a result.

Community Services and Amenities:

There's much discussion around the perceived and actual reduction of community services and amenities in Lincoln. It's true to say that some services have been reduced or lost altogether. Birchwood library is now open for only 2 days a week and the nearby Skellingthorpe Library has been closed down. Over the past year there has been discussions as the future of Lincolnshire's heritage attractions after Lincolnshire County Council voted to cut £750,000 a year from its heritage budget (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lincolnshire-49569564).

The Usher Gallery had been earmarked for closure, with plans to turn it into a wedding venue and for artworks from the likes of L S Lowry and Henry Moore removed, something which I am personally opposed to but recent news looks promising (https://www.lincolnshirelive.co.uk/news/lincoln-news/row-over-lincolns-usher-gallery-3279735).

Amenities wise in Birchwood we do have a recently renovated Leisure Centre, a number of pubs including my family's local Green Barrel and a thriving Shopping Centre with a diverse range of shops, including a chippy, a Co-op and a Greggs (yes there is a Greggs out here in the suburbs). The next Government must ensure they enact policies which create the economic environment which will protect these vital amenities from closure as well as looking at ways of restoring some of the library and information services lost.

Transport:

There is so much discussion about traffic congestion into Lincoln City Centre. My parents for example have regularly sat through traffic delays of up to 45 minutes in the mornings travelling in and they complain about the number of times the barriers go down for the trains. Even the bypass from the Skellingthorpe roundabout down to the Riseholme roundabout can be gridlocked for 30 minutes when congestion is made worse by accidents or bad weather. It's alright for Mr McCartney to talk about transport infrastructure improvements that have been made since 2010 but the volume of traffic on the roads continues to increase and the perception of transport infrastructure remains mixed at best. It's all fine and dandy having a shiny new public transport hub to travel to and from but if more people are not being convinced to use the buses to get into Lincoln, what's the point? Dawn Hinsley, a Lincoln resident, recently wrote a column for Lincolnshire Live discussing the haphazard nature of the bus services in the city, not least the phenomenon of waiting ages for the bus to come but two follow in quick succession (https://www.lincolnshirelive.co.uk/news/lincoln-news/bus-services-lincoln-farce-deserve-3442835). I must say I also agree with Dawn when she states that Stagecoach needs to improve its service provision and perhaps the next Government needs to do far more to ensure local councils have the funding they need to commission bus services which run efficiently and when they are needed. It's just ridiculous that buses services to Bracebridge Heath stop at 6:15pm.

Notwithstanding this, Bojo is apparently interested in funding the completion of the Lincoln bypass after being asked about it by Dr Caroline Johnson at the last PMQs before the General Election (https://www.lincolnshirelive.co.uk/news/lincoln-news/lincoln-eastern-bypass-set-108-3488665). It remains to be seen whether the investment is forthcoming post the General Election.

Social Care:

One final General Election issue in this very long blog post that I want to outline is that of Social Care. My Mum (who happens to be a Norwegian citizen) worked in the care sector for 20 years and she saw the difficulties that people needing care and their families experienced particularly in relation to affording care services. In 2019, there are around 1.4m older people who are not getting the care and support they need to thrive. There are around 122,000 vacancies in the care sector in England (https://www.kingsfund.org.uk/publications/articles/brexit-implications-health-social-care) and more than 50% of home care workers employed on zero-hours contracts. Staff feel undervalued and do not always receive the training they deserve. Even when staff do gain experience, they do not necessarily see an improvement in pay and conditions: care workers with 5 or more years' work experience are only paid on average £0.15 an hour more than new entrants (https://www.kingsfund.org.uk/publications/whats-your-problem-social-care#meanstesting?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_term=thekingsfund). 

The Social Care system needs an overhaul to become more sustainable and retain experienced and dedicated staff. The next Government must do far more than promise to release a Green Paper and then not release it: they must look at implementing policies that can cope with future increased demand. Population estimates provided by the ONS state that the number of 85 year olds is set to double to 3m by 2043 and Age UK warns that care services will become overstretched as demand for carers experienced in supporting older people with dementia care increases (https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/10/21/number-85s-uk-double-25-years-amid-fears-social-care-crisis/). 

The challenge posed by Brexit to an already stretched care sector cannot be underestimated either: whilst there are more non EEA nationals working in the care sector than EEA nationals, the proportion of non-EEA workers fell by 3% between 2012/13 and 2018/19 whereas the proportion of EEA workers rose by 3% over the same period (https://www.skillsforcare.org.uk/adult-social-care-workforce-data/Workforce-intelligence/publications/Topics/Workforce-nationality.aspx) and this comes before the implementation of a points system that is more likely to favour applicants with higher qualifications. 

This blog is just the start of my examination of core issues over the General Election period and only gives an overview of some of the key issues that I will be thinking about. I look forward to finding out more about the policies which parties propose to try and address social inequality and funding concerns. If you'd ask me to make a prediction about what will happen come December 13^th, I would say that we should all “expect the unexpected” but we have to prepare ourselves unfortunately for a dysfunctional Hung Parliament that is even more divided on Brexit than before. Some traditional Labour voters do feel alienated from supporting the party because of factional infighting, confusion over previous official Brexit positions and what some perceive as radical far-left policies. If Labour wants to have a chance of broad appeal amongst voters and win them back, the party needs to focus on talking about the “bread and butter” issues that so many care about, from improving community service provision and encouraging small businesses to strong law and order policies and improving public transport infrastructure. 2019 will not be like 1997 but it can still be fruitful. However, if Labour is unable to make gains against a Conservative party that has lurched further to the right and in fact loses Lincoln to them, then serious questions will need to be asked about Labour's place as a major player in UK politics and as the party of choice for centre left progressives going forwards.

Confidence(ish), Progress and Hope

Gosh it seems like an age since I wrote my last blogpost! Time flies by when your diary and/or reading list is full to the brim. I can't really complain: I've met with many interesting and intelligent people who share my passion for creating a more equal, inclusive society through delivery of progressive policies and social action projects. One thing I can say for definite is that our young people in Lincolnshire have a plethora of genuinely game-changing ideas to share with the world and it's important, now more than ever, to do what we can to help cultivate platforms for them to share such ideas. It shouldn't matter what a young person's socio-economic circumstances happen to be- if they have something engaging and thought-provoking to say, they should have a space where they can express themselves openly and frankly and a space where they can listen to others doing the same thing, in the hope they collaborate and bring transformative ideas to life.

I wish I had had more opportunities to build the self confidence I needed to express my thoughts and share my ideas out of the school environment. I think my teachers and peers appreciated the contributions I did make in lessons like PSHE and Religious Studies but I never felt comfortable with the mechanics of it all. I guess I felt partly judged but also that I didn't want to be seen to be hogging the limelight or wasting my peers' time. When you are seen as a bit of a social outcast or the “weird one”, it can make you feel like you have to be quieter, so that you don't draw more attention to yourself than the attention sought of you by the teacher. The reality of the situation may be completely different to your perception of it- peers may be feeling nervous themselves and would love to hear someone being bold and being prepared to share thoughts with them to help spark conversations, especially when challenging conversations need to be had in the classroom. The Heads Together Mentally Healthy Schools page states that anxiety can become an issue for students when “their fear or worry seems out of proportion to the problem, it leads to unhelpful and unrealistic thoughts about themselves and others and/or when it interferes with their ability to take part in activities” (https://www.mentallyhealthyschools.org.uk/mental-health-needs/the-anxious-or-worried-child/). I certainly felt overwhelmed by social situations at school and whilst I was never without friends, it wasn't easy to engage in ordinary school activities. There were times when I found it difficult to concentrate, especially as exams neared and there was many a time when I'd come back from secondary school in floods of tears having received a module report, parent's report or exam grade and feeling like I'd not done well enough, even though the majority of my effort grades over the 7 year period I was there were in the A-C range. My parents or teachers never felt that I ever needed specialist pastoral support and some of my teachers thought as long as I was doing reasonably well in their subject “I would pull myself together” before the exams and pass them and then be less anxious as a result. Perhaps they didn't fully understand how emotionally draining it was for me, to cope with expectations, to over challenges I faced as a result of dyspraxia and my body confidence issues. As for my gender, they just had no real clue or at least they didn't want to be vocal about it. Maybe I should have spoken up more and said how I was feeling. I got through school life but it was hard at times.

So you see some young people will never feel like they can be completely themselves at school and that's why fostering spaces for discussion outside the school environment can be vitally important.

The tentativeness approach to life that took hold at school seemed to ebb away at the University of York. I felt freer to be more myself...maybe it was because I met more folks who seemed like me – dyspraxic, gender stereotype breakers, feminists, shopaholics (I do love a charity shop vintage clothing or jewellery bargain and still frequent them today) but even when at my most uninhibited, I still felt I couldn't be entirely expressive of my opinions in Philosophy seminars. It was really strange that I could quite easy lead a seminar on discussions of gender identity and stereotyping and breaking Regency social mores in Jane Austen's work but didn't feel confident to discuss the differences between dualism and monism in the philosophy of mind (Descartes vs Spinoza....worth looking up if you have the time and inclination: https://psychologenie.com/dualism-vs-monism-in-philosophy). It was partly a fear of being seen as lazy if I got some element of the theory argument wrong (in English Literature it was more about remembering historical dates where my long-term memory doesn't seen to desert me) and partly because I never saw myself as a capable debater or philosopher...unsurprisingly this is still pretty much the case today. I enjoyed more listening to the views of my peers in philosophy seminars so would only contribute when required/prompted by the tutor and then came the slipping up of words, the tentativeness, the uneasiness and the patronising/sympathetic looks and nitpicky comments, usually from the ex public schoolboys who chose Philosophy because they thought it was a “liberal conservative chic” subject to take and they'd probably have a cushy job or internship to look forward to. Alright for some I guess. I'd smile back but it was a front to mask my anxiety, my fear of having to bear being subject to the charge of being inane. Being arcane has it's advantages but fear of being inane is one cross you seem to have to bear, especially if you're a dyspraxic student. Thank God I could escape to the local Cat's Protection charity shop for a natter with the local manager who literally gave the best and most frank life advice ever: “Wear your craziest 80's leggings to the next seminar and show you don't give a f**k about their patronising tone” she said once. I did....and I said what I thought to the bitchy ex public schoolboys and yes, it made me feel a million times better. Self-care is so important. Sometimes you just have to rebel. Suffice to say my tutor for the course was quite taken aback by it all. But then she was a social conservative and I don't think she or any of the liberal Tories in that group had met someone like me. Learning experiences are good for all concerned, regardless of background so I hope it helped them in some way....well they may know what 80's leggings look like. That's a start...

After uni, I became more withdrawn and felt more and more my views and the ideas I espoused didn't really matter. This week the Social Housing Green paper was released and in it there was a chapter dedicated to talking about social stigma faced by social housing tenants. All of the engagement events conducted with residents as part of putting the paper together included discussions about social stigma. The paper highlights research conducted by Shelter earlier this year which found that “24% of families in social housing feel looked down on because of where they live, compared with only 8% of families who are private renters or homeowners” (https://england.shelter.org.uk/media/press_releases/articles/shelter_launches_new_social_housing_commission). It's interesting how the Tory Government now seem more willing to state they need to recognise the contributions made by social housing tenants towards improving community cohesion. They need to do far more to “value the diversity of residents in social housing-from the most vulnerable who need support, to the majority of adult residents working and those supporting vital services like the NHS” (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/733605/A_new_deal_for_social_housing_web_accessible.pdf). That means changing perceptions with social housing tenants leading the way by telling their stories and sharing their ideas for such change.

I can tell you from personal experience there are folks who are in HR and Recruitment roles in Lincolnshire who can have an bias against applicants from certain areas where social housing is prevalent. This bias is often not expressed in words but is noticeable through changes in vocal tone and body language. You can have all the qualifications you need to enter a career sector but if they take one look at your address and make an assumption, that's it.....they'll exchange pleasantries, ask the questions they need to ask to fill in their sheets but come selection process time, you just know they'll find the excuse not to hire you. It's the quiet tut, the glancing of eyes or avoidance of eye contact that gives such people away. It's disheartening, it can make you less willing to be open and it can put young people off from applying for jobs in certain sectors.

I've met numerous young jobseekers who have been long-term unemployed who are engaging, passionate about particular issues (e.g. reducing homelessness and improving the housing sector) but who feel like they never get a chance to air their views and showcase their ideas and even when they do get a rare chance, they never feel like they've not been listened to by those they perceive to be in positions of power. I believe we need to do far more as a society to provide meaningful engagement opportunities and provide funding to encourage those who share their ideas to test them through the creation of social action projects. Grassroots self-improvement projects will help participants to build their self-confidence, improve communication and interpersonal skills and give them a chance to shape their own future path. Some of the people deemed “hardest to reach” by professionals have the most interesting ideas and rather than taking a restrictive, punitive approach with them or mollycoddling them, let them take charge of their destinies through creating their own volunteering social action projects and for goodness sake ensure they have money to be able to follow through with it.

I'm very lucky to now be in a position where I can begin to work with young people from low-income backgrounds, young people with low-level mental health conditions like social anxiety, young people who are experiencing long-term unemployment (NEETs) as well as young people who feel like they are social outcasts from urban and rural areas of Lincolnshire. All have the potential to come up with transformative, progressive ideas and I want to work with them to co-curate a platform they can access and contribute to to share those ideas. This will be done in a multitude of ways and I, for one, am excited at what progress could be achieved. My own passion for writing has been continually renewed and inspired by daily conversations, long and short. I'm beginning to feel more confident once again about speaking in public too, which is a positive development and who knows, I may be speaking at events across the country one day, sharing my own thoughts and those of others who have a progressive, hopeful vision for their communities and for the UK as a whole. I may still be tentative Matti at heart, but I'm growing in knowledge, experience and awareness every day and I'm really grateful for that.

National LGBT Survey Analysis: Education

Schools, colleges, universities, training centres and other educational establishments should be places where everyone feels safe and supported by staff, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Yet report after report has shown that LGBTQIA+ staff and students do not always feel comfortable being in such settings. The much quoted Stonewall School Report 2017, conducted in partnership with the Centre for Family Research based at Cambridge University highlighted that despite noticeable decreases in overall levels of homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying in schools, there is still a worrying prevalence of transphobic language and bullying and lack of awareness of differing gender identities in general. There are a number of shocking statistics that stood out: 9% of trans students surveyed for the Stonewall School Report 2017 stated they had been subjected to death threats, 84% had said they had self-harmed at some point and 45% had considered taking their own lives (https://www.stonewall.org.uk/sites/default/files/the_school_report_2017.pdf).

A survey conducted by Dr Catherine Lee, head of education and social care at Anglia Ruskin University earlier this year which had 105 responses found that 46% of LGBT+ teachers working at village based schools had taken time off from work because of anxiety or depression brought on as a result of lack of acceptance of their sexual orientation; the figure for teachers based in urban areas was only 5%. Also 40% of rurally based teachers felt their sexual or gender identities had been a direct barrier to accessing promotional opportunities. 30% of teachers had left a role at a village school because they had experienced homophobia, whereas the figure for teachers based in towns and cities was 17%. (https://schoolsweek.co.uk/rural-lgbt-teachers-have-worse-mental-health/). Another survey, conducted for the NASWUT found that 50% of teachers who are LGBT+ felt their school wasn't a safe place to be open about their sexual orientation or gender identity.

The National LGBT Survey asked a number of questions relating to educational experiences, with responses coming from 16 and 17 year olds still in secondary school/sixth form as well as teachers currently based in schools and colleges. 36% of respondents to the survey had been in education in 2016/17, including 98% of respondents aged 16-17 and 64% of those aged 18-24 (p.109).

Many of the responses to the questions reflect concerns already expressed but I feel it's important to explore a number of them in depth to bring home the importance of ensuring educational settings are a place of safety and which nurture a feeling in students and staff alike for celebrating the diversity of human relationships and experiences:

• Respondents who had expressed at the start of the survey that they had a “minority gender identity” (i.e. trans, non-binary, genderqueer, agender etc) were asked a question about how understanding their teachers had been of issues facing trans, gender fluid and non-binary students. Only 13% reported that their teachers and staff had been very understanding or somewhat understanding, and 68% said they had been not very, or not at all, understanding. (p.103) 50% of respondents aged 16-17 and 67% aged 18-24 said that their teachers and other school staff had been not very, or not all, understanding of gender issues (p.103)
• 918 respondents to the National LGBT Survey talked about Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) - “the broader concept of better education in schools regarding sexual orientation, gender identity and being LGBT was the most discussed topic” and when respondents talked about sex education, a number stated that “it is, or was, in their own experience heteronormative, with little-to-no information on any LGBT-specific education about sex and related topics” (p.105). This demonstrates the need for RSE guidance to be LGBTQIA+ inclusive and written by experts who have experience of discussing and researching (and being in) LGBTQIA+ sex and relationships. Knowledge is power, after all!
• 50 respondents to the National LGBT survey talked about the need to discuss LGBT+ history in schools, especially the fight for rights (p.106): this could include lessons on Section 28, the Lesbian and Gays Support the Miners group and the passing of legislation in Parliament.
• Respondents who had reported they were in education stated more often than not that they had not been open with teachers and support staff- 53% of all respondents had not been open with teachers and 61% had not been open with non-teaching staff (p.110).
• 41% of trans respondents had not been open with teaching staff – non-binary respondents were more likely not to be open than trans women and men (p.116). 57% of asexual trans respondents were not open with their teaching staff.
• 18% of respondents who reported they were asexual had not disclosed their sexual orientation to their classmates.
• Only 1.3% of respondents had experienced only negative reactions from others when they disclosed their sexual orientation or gender identity but 31.2% had experienced both positive and negative reactions from others when disclosed
• 21% of respondents who had had experienced mixed reactions to disclosure at school, college or university during the 2016/17 academic year said disclosure had happened without their explicit consent and 19% “received verbal harassment, insults or other hurtful comments” (p.118)
• Over 1,200 respondents had mentioned bullying within education in their survey responses: “There was a consensus that the bullying of LGBT people is still common in schools, and that more could be done by government and schools to tackle it” (p.119).
• 88% of incidents perpetrated against respondents who were in education during the 2016/17 year were perpetrated by fellow students but 9% were perpetrated by teachers or other teaching staff (p.120)
• 11% of incidents of sexual harassment or violence against trans students were perpetrated by teachers and other teaching staff (p.120)
• 83% of the most serious incidents that respondents had indicated had taken place had not been reported by themselves or anyone else (p.121)
• 56% of respondents who had not reported the most serious incident said it wouldn't have been worth it and 37% said it would not have been taken seriously by staff or police (p.122)
• 77% of those whose incident was reported to an LGBT organisation or charity said that they had found them very or somewhat helpful, and 66% of those whose incident was reported to parents/guardians had found them very or somewhat helpful (p.124)
• After incidents had been reported, only 13% of respondents who had reported incidents said that the “negative comments or conduct in question had stopped completely (p.124)
• Catholic schools were particularly cited as being places which are “unsupportive” and respondents noted the lack of appropriate LGBTQIA+ RSE in those schools
• 16 responses were received in relation to being LGBTQIA+ and having special educational needs: “respondents noted that the intersectionality of having special educational needs and being LGBT could be a very difficult experience, in that people may conflate the two, or may not sufficiently understand either” (p.127). This indicates a need for more comprehensive guidance and support for staff supporting LGBTQIA+ students with special needs so they do not conflate and resort to use of stereotypes.
• 170 responses were from LGBTQIA+ teachers: more than 1 in 5 have been outed, a third have had a negative reaction from others towards them after disclosing their sexual orientation and/or gender identity, 6% have been excluded from events held in their educational establishments and more worryingly, 9% of the most serious incidents in school/college were perpetrated by their colleagues (read more here: https://www.tes.com/news/one-five-lgbt-teachers-outed-school)

The statistics outlined above paint a mixed picture of educational establishments across the country. It's important to make it clear that there are schools out there who have taken on board measures to improve LGBTQIA+ equality. Getting the basics right makes the biggest difference to the emotional wellbeing of trans, non-binary, gender-fluid, genderqueer and agender students:

• Ensuring anti-bullying policy and procedures include references to stamping out transphobic language and bullying by ensuring staff know what their responsibilities are in reporting and disciplining students who have perpetrated such acts
• Ensuring disciplinary and grievance procedures include reference to homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying, harassment and discrimination (with reference to the Equality Act 2010)
• Ensuring administrative procedures for updating the name and title marker for students and staff are made clear to teaching and support staff
• Ensuring ALL staff have received basic gender and sexual orientation awareness training from qualified and experienced professionals
• Marking awareness days, weeks and months in school, including LGBT Awareness Month (February), School Diversity Week (July) and Transgender Day of Remembrance (20^th November)
• Scheduling time in PSHE and RSE lessons to talk about LGBTQIA+ equality, relationships (sexual and otherwise) with students in a clear and non-patronising manner
• Embedding lessons on LGBT+ role models and issues across the National Curriculum
• Providing information to students about access to facilities, including toilets and changing rooms
• Engaging with educational organisations including Educate & Celebrate and Just Like Us
• Signposting students to local, regional and national LGBTQIA+ organisations, including Mermaids, Gendered Intelligence and Stonewall.

The situation for trans, non-binary, gender-fluid, genderqueer and agender students in a school will only improve when there is supportive leadership in place to garner the support from staff, parents, guardians, cares and governors needed to enact the measures. This is particularly the case for faith schools in more conservative, rural parts of England where there may not yet be any openly trans, gender-fluid, genderqueer and agender students or staff. Guidance documents such as the Church of England's Valuing All God's Children can help to further the argument towards celebrating diversity which goes beyond mere tolerance (https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2017-11/Valuing%20All%20God%27s%20Children%27s%20Report_0.pdf). The guidance includes Anti-Bullying and Equality and Diversity policy templates which can be adapted for use. Books such as How to Transform Your School into an LGBT+ Friendly Place written by Dr Elly Barnes MBE and Dr Anna Carlile of Goldsmiths University of London, Department of Educational Studies can also help to provide the practical information and guidance needed for headteachers, teachers and pastoral care teams to implement positive change (there's a great section on awareness days, weeks and months for example). Department for Education guidance, issued on an ongoing basis are must-read documents: for example, they just updated the guidance for schools by creating a document on gender separation in mixed schools (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/719398/Gender-separation-guidance.pdf). One has to acknowledge that there will always be a small but vocal minority of Christians and people of other faiths who advocate denying the existence of different sexual orientations and gender identities but through increasing awareness and training, their potency which they use to control the overall conversation on gender and sexuality for others will begin to evaporate and LGBTQIA+ equality will advance further.

The findings of the National LGBT Survey with regards to education do not shock me. I had little exposure to LGBTQIA+ issues and did not learn about the fight to gain LGBTQIA+ rights at primary or secondary school. I knew a few openly LGBT classmates at secondary school and noticed the homophobic, biphobic and transphobic language most of us were subjected to whilst feeling that such language was unwarranted and affected our self-confidence. I think only one of us was out to teachers and they didn't really know how to support us other than to encourage our academic talents. My secondary school wasn't a bastion of hate but I certainly wouldn't exactly call it a haven of LGBTQIA+ awareness and tolerance either.

I hope that as the years progress and the push for improved rights for trans, non-binary, gender-fluid, genderqueer and agender people gathers steam, whilst LGBTQIA+ inclusive RSE is introduced as part of the PSHE curriculum, that more students and staff feel they can be authentically themselves whilst at school.

The UK Government's LGBT+ Action Plan....It's a start?

This week the UK Government released the findings of their National LGBT+ survey, conducted last year. There were 108,110 valid respondents from people living in the UK aged 16 and over. 61% of respondents were gay or lesbian and 26% were bisexual. 13% of respondents were trans, with 6.9% of respondents (7,800) being non-binary, 3.5% being trans women and 2.9% trans men. Interestingly, 2,970 responses were rejected because they were deemed "offensive, abusive, explicitly vulgar or otherwise unreliable"....I'm guessing some of those responses came from Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminists (TERFs) spouting discourse against trans people so I'm glad there were robust checking procedures as part of the research collation and analysis. I'm going to be examining the report in depth and doing a number of blog posts over the month on the results of the National LGBT+ Survey but you can read the entire 304 page research report for yourself if you wish to here:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/721704/LGBT-survey-research-report.pdf.

There are a number of statistics that have come out from the analysis of the LGBT+ survey that I feel need to be communicated widely:

• Trans respondents were much more likely to say that they had a disability (33%) than cisgender respondents (14%)
• Trans people had lower scores for life satisfaction in the UK: trans men scored on average 5.1/10, trans women and non-binary people scored on average 5.5/10 (the average for the UK population at large is 7.7/10)
• Only 37% of trans women, 34% of trans men and 38% of non-binary people said they felt comfortable being LGBT in the UK
• 72% of non-binary respondents had not disclosed their gender identity to their neighbours
• 68% of all respondents (who were lesbian, gay, bisexual, asexual or pansexual) said they had avoided holding hands with a same-sex partner in public
• 70% had avoided being open about their sexual orientation because they feared they would face a negative reaction
• 59% of trans women, 56% of trans men and 76% of non-binary people who responded to the survey have avoided expressing their gender identity openly but younger cisgender people were more likely to be open
• 24% of all respondents were not open in any way about their gender identity or sexual orientation with family members they lived with (excluding their partners)
• 40% of all respondents had experienced a negative incident in the 12 months prior to filling in the survey when the perpetrator was someone they did not live with on the basis of gender identity and/or sexual orientation or being perceived as LGBT
• 26% of all respondents had been subjected to verbal harassment in the last 12 months prior to filling in the survey
• 14% of respondents had their LGBT status disclosed to others without their express permission in the past 12 months prior to filling in the survey
• 6% of all respondents had been subjected to threats of physical or sexual harassment or violence in the 12 months prior to filling in the survey
• 2% of all respondents had experienced physical violence in the 12 months prior to filling in the survey
• 2% of respondents had experienced sexual violence in the 12 months prior to filling in the survey
• 11% of respondents had had private sexual images and/or videos shared without their explicit consent in the 12 months prior to filling in the survey
• 94% of respondents did not report the most serious incident they had been subjected to when the perpetrator or observers were people they lived with
• 45% of respondents who reported incidents to the police were unsatisfied with how reports were handled
• 5% of respondents had been offered conversion therapy and 2% had undergone such therapy
• 51% of conversion therapies were carried out by faith organisations and groups and 19% were carried out by a healthcare professional/provider
• 77% of overall respondents said that neither gender identity nor sexual orientation was discussed in their school lessons but this dropped to 54% amongst 16 and 17 year olds
• Only 9% of those respondents who had lessons on gender identity or sexual orientation said their lessons had prepared them for later life as an LGBT+ person
• 88% of the most serious incidents reported by respondents in education were perpetrated by a fellow pupil but 9% were perpetrated by a member of teaching staff
• Only 36% of respondents who were transitioning at school said their school was very or somewhat supportive of their needs
• 21% of respondents who stated they were trans who accessed healthcare services said their needs had been ignored: 18% said they had been subjected to "inappropriate curiosity" and 18% also disclosed that they had avoided treatment because of fear of discrimination
• 87% of respondents who had accessed sexual health services in the 12 months prior to filling in the survey said they had a positive experience
• 80% of trans respondents who accessed or tried to access gender identity clinics said it wasn't easy, with the waiting time being seen as the greatest barrier 
• Only 7% of non-binary people had accessed gender identity services with another 6% trying to access services.
• 23% of respondents had experienced a mixed or negative reaction whilst at work due to being LGBT or being perceived as being LGBT, with 9% being subjected to verbal harassment
• 57% of the most serious incidents reported by respondents as happening in the workplace have been perpetrated by a colleague (junior or at same level).

This short list of statistics will come as no surprise to those of us who have spent our lives trying to navigate challenges that originate as a result of ignorance, fear or blatant discrimination by those in positions of power and influence. My blog posts and those of many other LGBTQIA+ people are testament to that. The question is: how can the Government enact policies and legislation to improve the lives of people like me and the lives of those who may not yet have come out as LGBTQIA+?

The Government LGBT+ Action Plan, announced alongside the results of the National LGBT+ survey today aims to address the concerns of LGBT+ people expressed in the survey and by campaigners aiming to improve LGBT+ equality. There are 75 points to the plan and £4.5m announced to specifically support the enacting of the Action Plan which will be available till March 2020, with an LGBT+ Advisory Panel set up to help deliver it.You can read the full document here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/721367/GEO-LGBT-Action-Plan.pdf.

One of the headline policy statements from this Action Plan is that conversion therapy will be banned, whether through passing new legislation or exploring non-legislation (i.e. regulatory) options. Conversion therapy is dangerous whereas affirmative therapy helps to improve the mental and physical health of LGBTQIA+ people who struggle initially with accepting their sexual orientation or gender identity. I hope conversion therapy of any kind on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity will be banned, so that we can particularly protect vulnerable trans, gender-diverse and gender-questioning children and young people from being forced to accept gender identities to "fit in" with parental, religious or other expectations. I'd rather see it banned via the introduction of legislation but will wait to see what is recommended by the Government in the next few months.

I welcome and approve of the announcement of a national LGBT+ health adviser and hope I and many others will have an opportunity to meet them to discuss my concerns about the lack of awareness of trans and non-binary people's specific needs, so that we can improve standards of patient care and make our hospitals, GP surgeries, care homes and other spaces a more inclusive and welcoming place.

I'm happy to see the announcement on addressing body image pressures that LGBTQIA+ young people in particular face and hope there will be funding made available for specific body positivity campaigns at grassroots level so that young people themselves working within third-sector and public organisations can help challenge pervasive cultural body norms.

There is a need to help improve the lives of LGBTQIA+ people who have a learning disability so they have the confidence and freedom to engage in activism, in education and in loving relationships. Training for care professionals and carers is vital and that means updating advice and guidance documents in collaboration with charities and other third sector organisations who work on a day-to-day basis with people with learning disabilities.

The approach towards reporting and responses to reports of LGBT+ hate crime needs to be improved so that LGBT+ people have more confidence in the police and the overall system. I appreciate the announcement of a refreshed Hate Crime Action Plan and look forward to reading the recommendations regarding training of police officers and raising awareness of hate crime reporting routes in the local community. It's good to hear that "The Home Office and Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government will... fund a bespoke training package available to all police call handlers to help ensure victims are correctly identified and supported at this critical first point of contact" (p.17) and that the Crown Prosecution Service will work with their partners to improve reporting procedures for LGBTQIA+ victims of domestic abuse, rape, sexual assault and hate crime. However I'd like to see the Government adopt Labour's proposal for making LGBT+ hate crimes aggravated offences to deter perpetrators and send a clear signal that such crimes will not be tolerated.

I'm cautiously optimistic at the recommendations in the Action Plan to increase support for LGBTQIA+ survivors of domestic abuse. Police forces need to ensure that LGBTQIA+ people are aware of the support services they can access and that the review of domestic abuse services will highlight gaps in provision and provide recommendations to improve support packages. The non-legislative package of support which is being created to align with the Domestic Abuse Bill needs to fully consider the needs of LGBTQIA+ survivors. Increasing awareness of Sexual Assault Referral Centres for LGBTQIA+ survivors is also extremely important and I hope that any resulting marketing campaign will be created in full consultation with LGBTQIA+ organisations and the participation of survivors. 

LGBTQIA+ teachers, support staff and pupils all deserve to feel safe and secure whilst attending school or college. More school and college leaders should be encouraged to create or update their policy and procedures and ensure that all staff attend appropriate training which improves awareness of LGBTQIA+ issues but also provides practical, sustainable techniques and measures that can be used to improve LGBTQIA+ equality. Relationships and Sex Education, (when it is eventually introduced) must include LGBTQIA+ awareness and equality and guidance needs to be issued to schools and colleges which is fact-based, comprehensive and easy-to-understand. I'm also pleased to see a commitment from the Crown Prosecution Service to update their LGBT Hate Crime Schools Pack and will do so with the input of LGBTQIA+ young people and the Government's Equalities Office will work with the Equality and Human Rights Commission to produce comprehensive guidance to support trans, gender-diverse and gender-questioning children and young people.

It's good to see a commitment by the Government's Equalities Office to provide employers with free training materials to help them create a more inclusive working environment as well as creating an employers' working group to discuss key issues. I hope a range of organisations, large and small from across the UK can contribute to this working group and help with the creation of training materials.

I appreciate that non-binary people will have the opportunity to contribute towards a specific Call for Evidence so that ministers and decision makers alike can hopefully improve their awareness of issues that affect us but I hope they will continue to or begin consulting with experts who have extensive experience of working with non-binary people. The Gender Recognition Act needs radical reform to improve access to legal recognition for non-binary, agender and gender-fluid people and there needs to be appropriate and safe opportunities provided for non-binary, agender and gender-fluid people to contribute to the Gender Recognition Act (2004) consultation, without fear of being subjected to verbal abuse and harassment from opponents. I also welcome the attempts that will be made to make it easier to make changes to gender markers (which I hope will soon include non-binary ones) legally through a "Tell Us Once" type service. It could reduce the bureaucratic cost and ensure all documents are kept up-to-date as per current General Data Protection Regulation and Gender Recognition Act requirements.

Intersex people deserve to have their right to be protected from direct and indirect discrimination, victimisation and harassment enshrined within our legislative framework. The Equality Act (2010) should therefore be amended to include intersex as a protected characteristic. The National LGBT+ Survey had 1,980 responses from intersex people living in the UK and one important statistic that came out was that 16% respondents said their GP didn't know where to refer an intersex patient for further advice and guidance. It's important therefore that healthcare professionals receive appropriate training as part of their Continuing Professional Development (CPD) requirement so they have more awareness of intersex advice organisations and provide the right advice and guidance to support patients. Equally there needs to be a bill brought before Parliament to ban unnecessary cosmetic sex assignment surgery on intersex infants and young people and procedures brought in so that intersex people have the undeniable right of access to their medical records to find out what surgical interventions they had been subjected to.

I must say I am disappointed to see a firm commitment to bringing marriage equality to Northern Ireland, but given the current political situation with Brexit, and PM May's reliance on the votes of DUP minsters, I am not surprised. LGBT+ people in Northern Ireland deserve to enjoy the same rights as those living in London or Lincoln and I hope that the next Labour Government will push more fervently for reform if this current Tory Government fails to do so. That being said, the Government has now committed itself to putting on an international conference on LGBT+ issues so I hope that will provide an opportunity to address LGBT+ discrimination in Commonwealth countries (there are still 37 countries where homosexuality is still criminalised). There is also the idea of the UK bidding to co-chair the Equal Rights Commission in 2019 so we shall what happens with that in the next few months.

I'm also disappointed at the lack of detailed policy reform to support LGBTQIA+ asylum seekers who come to the UK to escape persecution on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity. We need to end the hostile approach (which has led to what has been dubbed the "Rainbow Rush scandal") and do this by bringing to an end the detention and deportation of LGBTQIA+ asylum seekers and speed up the application process for all asylum seekers so that they can all begin to rebuild their lives knowing they have a safe place in which to do so. It is good nonetheless to see a commitment to reviewing guidance for caseworkers and reviewing the training of professionals dealing with asylum claims across the board. Let's demonstrate our compassion and fight for and protect the rights of all LGBTQIA+ people living in the UK, whether they are British citizens or not.

There are policies to be commended in the LGBT+ Action Plan and if implemented in full, it will lead to improvements to the lives of LGBTQIA+ people across the UK, through the dissemination of knowledge, increased participation opportunities for engagement on policy and a systematic shift in the way key societal institutions view LGBTQIA+ equality. As Dawn Butler, Shadow Secretary of State for Women and Equalities highlighted in her response to the LGBT+ Action Plan, there is a need for sustainable funding so that policy actions and consultations can take place. It's a reasonable start, but no campaigners would deny there is still much to do.