November 2013 Home / Mitcham and Morden / Newsletters / November 2013 Dear friend, Hello, and welcome again to my latest email with updates on some of the latest news and events here in Mitcham and Morden. Once again, I’ll be focusing on how we can give people a better chance of getting ahead in the jobs market, and letting you have the latest news about my work experience scheme. I’ll also have some details of a great local charity, some help you might be able to get with your energy costs and information about how to have a tour of the Houses of Parliament. But without further ado.... Giving our young people real experience of work Around 800 young people in Mitcham and Morden have been out of work for more than a year. That’s a real worry, not just for the self-esteem of the young people themselves and their parents – but if we allow people to drift into adulthood without ever having got into the habit of going to work every day, we’re storing up big social problems for the future. When I knock on people’s doors each week, it’s clear that helping our young people find work is one of people’s biggest concerns all over Mitcham, Morden and Colliers Wood. So I’ve developed a programme for young people who are looking for that first opportunity to get on the jobs ladder. Even if you’re not looking for work yourself, you might know someone who is, so please pass this on to them. The scheme itself will start in January, but applications are being taken now. I’ve convinced around 60 local businesses and voluntary organisations to offer 80 placements of 8-12 weeks that will give young people a real opportunity to get good experience of a working environment. If you want to find out more please click here to view my latest Directory of Work Experience Opportunities, which contains the full list of what positions are available and how to apply. Employers include Paul Strank Roofing, Canizaro House Hotel, the Mayor of Merton and even the high end watchmakers Rolex. Most are local businesses and charities that want to give our young people a chance to get on. Hopefully, there is something for all tastes. I’m also sending out copies of the brochure to thousands of homes, thanks to the generosity of the engineering company C2HMHill and the trade union for postal workers, the CWU. But if you can forward details of the scheme to any young person you think might be interested, I’d really appreciate your help. At the end of the placement, the young person should be better equipped for the world of work – in the past many have found a new job straight away, or been offered a permanent role where they got work experience. I’ll also hold a special thank you Graduation Party at the end of the scheme, to which both employers and young people will be invited. If you can think of anyone who might be interested, it’s a really worthwhile scheme – I’m sure the applications will flood in, so be quick! You can read more details about the scheme on my website by clicking here. Help with writing cv’s and finding work For anyone of any age thinking about getting a new job, you could do a lot worse than click on my website. It contains several handy guides written by professional head hunters and HR experts for a training event I arranged for local residents to find out more about how to apply for jobs on the Internet and improve their chances of getting employment. Eight out of ten jobs are now advertised on the web, so it’s really important to have the skills to find and apply for these vacancies. You’ll also find top tips on CV writing, interview skills and how to complete application forms. Just click here to find the guides (they’re in bold at the bottom of the page). Help with your heating costs I know you’ve probably not been able to open your newspaper or turn on the TV without hearing a Labour MP bemoaning the cost of living crisis facing many of us at the moment. The rising cost of gas and electricity is a particular concern – and obviously you wouldn’t expect me to let the opportunity pass without saying that I support Ed Miliband’s plan to freeze energy prices once Labour is elected. However, in the mean time I wanted to direct you to the moneysavingexpert.com website, where there are lots of handy hints about how to bring down your costs now. For details of grants that are available for people on lower incomes to improve the efficiency of your boiler or install better insulation, click here. And for advice on whether to switch energy company, or move to a different tariff, click here. Local Diabetes charity needs your support This month, I wanted to highlight the work of one of the area’s best local health charities, the Wimbledon and District Diabetes UK Group. There are 3.8 million people with diabetes and nearly another one million undiagnosed, so it’s an issue that could easily affect you or your family. The group offers a great opportunity to meet other people with diabetes and get information or help with improving your health. Please contact Robert Carew-Hunt on 020 8947 3181 or Iris Hackers on 020 8543 8798 for further details. Visiting Parliament – Local Democracy Week and Merton Mencap One of the best things about being an MP, especially an MP for a constituency in London, is the chance to show local people around the Houses of Parliament. In the week of Guy Fawkes night, I’m always reminded what an amazing building it is, and that there’s so much history there. In the past few weeks, I’ve been delighted to show around over 100 pupils at local primary schools and members of the Merton Goan elderly group, and only a couple of days ago I gave a tour to a group from Merton Mencap. You can catch pictures of the tours here, here, here and here. And watch out for future events by following me on Twitter, where I’m known as @siobhainmp. If you belong to a local group, a charity or residents association, and you want me to organise a tour of Parliament for your members, all you have to do is get in touch by email to siobhain@mmlp.org.uk or by calling my Westminster office on 020 7219 4678. Anyhow, that’s my lot for another month. I hope you’ve found something of interest in this edition. As always, if you can think of anything you’d like me to include in future newsletters please do email me at siobhain@mmlp.org.uk.
