My letter to Chris Nelson, Gloucestershire's new PCC, on work to decarbonise the police force and the importance of leading by example.

Schools in Gloucestershire are set to lose more than £1.4million in funding for the most disadvantaged pupils following the government's decision to alter the method of calculating Pupil Premium funding.

On Thursday 6 May Cheltenham people will have a vote that determines the future of our town. It’s a vote in a really important set of local elections - the biggest for years.

Our town’s response to the pandemic is something we can all be proud of.  Our NHS staff, teachers, key workers and volunteers have put in so much effort and helped so many.  It’s right that Cheltenham remembers this – so much compassion deserves a lasting legacy.

510 EU citizens in Cheltenham are stuck in limbo as ‘Settled Status’ backlog soars.

At last Tuesday’s Cheltenham Borough Council meeting, Conservative councillors proposed to abolish the Cabinet Position responsible for tackling the Climate Emergency.

At a troubling time for us all, one positive note seems to have been the increased importance people are placing on caring for our environment.

The Liberal Democrats have condemned the Chancellor for failing to introduce a comprehensive plan to save jobs after it was revealed that 3450 people in Cheltenham are currently on Universal Credit.

 
Liberal Democrat Treasury Spokesperson Christine Jardine criticised Rishi Sunak's "constant chop-and-change approach", urging him to put in place a proper plan to protect jobs as the Government still struggles to get a grip over rising cases of coronavirus.
 
The figures revealed that 5.2% of people of working age in Cheltenham are on Universal Credit.

Following this, Liberal Democrats urged local Conservative MP Alex Chalk to join their calls for the Chancellor to ensure the furlough scheme remains in place until at least June 2021, as well as overturning their decision to ignore the 3 million individuals still locked out of any Government coronavirus support schemes.

This follows the Liberal Democrats' call for the Prime Minister to negotiate a 6 month Adjustment Period for businesses, giving them crucial breathing space once the UK leaves the transition period.

The Cheltenham Liberal Democrat-run Borough council is working with local schools to involve young people in the town in taking positive climate action by planting trees on school land.

The borough council declared a climate emergency earlier this year and has an ambitious target of becoming a carbon-neutral town by 2030.

As part of this, a huge effort is underway to plant more trees, and the council is urging schools to gain support from The Woodland Trust’s Trees for Schools scheme and help children to get involved.