As Autumn arrives, the warmest summer on record has been replaced with more unsettled weather – raising the prospect of flash flooding in the months ahead. Unlike other parts of the country, water and flood rescue capability is not a statutory function for fire services in England, so they do not receive government funding. I have urged Ministers to change this so local communities receive the support they need to respond to and recover from these events.
8th September was Armed Forces Pension Awareness Week, which is organised by the Forces Pension Society Charitable Fund. I want South Shropshire to become the best place to be a veteran. Every year, 2,000 deferred Armed Forces pensions go unclaimed. The latest figures show that at least 14,800 pension benefits remain unclaimed. While this is down from 17,100 in 2023, much more needs to be done. That is why I am pleased to support this campaign.
This month also marked Back British Farming Day. Farmer confidence has dropped to its lowest-ever level and more than 6,000 farms have already closed since the last General Election. The agricultural sector is the single biggest industry in South Shropshire and it is home to some of the best farms in the country. My constituents can be assured that I will continue to do all I can to stand up for our farmers in Parliament.
In Parliament, I was pleased to attend an event that focused on the future of the Post Office. Since my election, I have successfully opposed the planned closure of post offices across South Shropshire, including in Clunton and Clunbury. I have also campaigned for the resumption of services in Cleobury Mortimer, which I am still working on and hope to have a further update soon. With services like accessing cash and paying bills seemingly becoming more difficult every day with the closure of high street banks and other community assets, it is vital that we protect our rural post offices which allow South Shropshire residents to still access these important services. Rest assured, I will always support our postmasters and their customers.
Community pharmacies provide essential services for residents in rural areas like ours, helping people to access medicines and healthcare advice on their doorstep. I was delighted to meet Community Pharmacy England to find out about their four-point plan to secure a sustainable future for community pharmacies which collectively prescribe over a billion items each year. I welcome their efforts to ensure that community pharmacies remain embedded in our community.
As a parent, I want to ensure that every child gets the very best start in life. The last government provided funding for every local authority to deliver highly impactful school holiday provision, providing hundreds of thousands of children from low-income families with heathy meals and enriching activities. In Parliament, I called for an extension of this funding. I am pleased that Ministers have accepted this as well as my request to extend the provision of free breakfast clubs to schools across South Shropshire. I am also delighted that Beckbury CofE Primary School has been awarded a £5,000 golden grant from Tesco's Stronger Starts Scheme.
As Shropshire Rural Housing Association celebrates 40 years of providing affordable housing, I was thrilled to attend the official opening of their latest housing development in Chirbury called “The Orchard”. I met with residents who have recently taken up tenancy there and with organisations that have been involved with the development of this fantastic project.
It was also excellent to visit Imperial Bricks new headquarters at Crowgreaves Farm in Bridgnorth. The developers have sympathetically modernised the site to enable the expansion of businesses like Imperial Bricks, with more than fifty people now working on the site. Hailed as a great rural employment opportunity, it will help to unlock economic growth and rural prosperity in South Shropshire, supporting new jobs and training opportunities.
