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Stephen McPartland MP met with Kath Graham from Stevenage, whose life was saved by a heart and double lung transplant last year. Kath was in Parliament representing Transplant 2020, a coalition of patient and clinical groups dedicated to raising the level of consent to organ donation in the UK.

Despite an increase in deceased organ donation in recent years, there are still around 7,000 people on the transplant waiting list – and on average 3 people die in need of a transplant every day because there are not enough organs available.

Stephen McPartland, Member of Parliament for Stevenage said, "It was a pleasure to meet Kath and listen to her experience. She is an incredibly warm and positive person. However, I was shocked when she explained that only 5,490 people would be eligible to donate organs out of 570,000 deaths in the UK last year. That is less than 1% of us who can and more than 4 out of 10 of those families will not consent to donate their loved one's organs.

"This is why I am backing Transplant 2020’s campaign to encourage people to sign the NHS Organ Donor Register and spell out their decision to their families, so that 80% of families say ‘yes’ to organ donation by 2020."

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Stephen McPartland, Member of Parliament for Stevenage, visited Broom Barns Community Primary School to see how much progress has been made with children's speaking and listening skills through the Talk of the Town project.

Stephen McPartland MP said, "This is an amazing project that is really helping our young people improve their communication skills and develop their learning. We all know that the best way to improve your chances in life is to work hard at school and the investment from the team at Talk of the Town, parents, governors, staff and pupils is already making a huge difference. It was fantastic to see the children in action and the benefits they are already gaining from the project."

Tina Jarman, Headteacher of Broom Barns Community Primary school, said, “Broom Barns became involved with the Talk of the Town project  because we recognised communication is fundamental to learning.   We are delighted with the progress we’ve been making as part of the project.  Our staff team are getting even better at knowing how to further support children’s speaking and listening skills in class, identifying those children who need some additional help and getting them that help when they need it.”

Anne Fox, Director of the Communication Trust which manages the Talk of the Town project, said, “We're delighted with how the project is going so far and the schools have been amazing to work with. When the project is finished we hope to have a model which every community can adopt. Having local champions, including Stephen McPartland MP, who have an understanding of the project, will be key to its success.”

Talk of the Town embeds a range of activities to support all children’s language development, and is already making huge difference.

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A local group for adults with learning disabilities recently hosted Hear My Voice to understand more about national and local government and the voting system.  The event was held at North Hertfordshire College's Stevenage campus and provided the opportunity to put questions to invited speakers, including Stephen McPartland, Member of Parliament for Stevenage, and the Mayor of Stevenage.

Stephen McPartland MP said, "I was impressed by the event which was developed and led by the members of the group and enjoyed the question and answer session. People with a learning disability and their families are an integral part of our local community, and I will continue to help make sure their voices are heard."

The Hear My Voice event in Stevenage was held as part of a monthly programme of activities for adults with learning disabilities, led by Hayley Goodwin, who works locally as an Occupational Therapist. Hear My Voice is a national campaign by Mencap to seek greater accessibility to government and involvement in the issues that matter to people with a learning disability.

Approximately 1.4m people with a learning disability are living in the UK.

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Stephen McPartland, Member of Parliament for Stevenage, has been leading a campaign for 3 hours free parking to help regenerate Stevenage town centre. Stephen raised the campaign in Parliament at the final Department of Communities and Local Government question time and received the backing of Secretary of State Eric Pickles.  

Stephen McPartland MP said, "Thousands of local people have signed my campaign to introduce three hours’ free parking to regenerate Stevenage town centre. Does the Secretary of State agree that in order to provide that regeneration it is time for Stevenage’s Labour borough council to stop ripping off local people by charging £3.5 million a year in parking charges?"

Rt Hon Eric Pickles MP, Secretary of State for Department of Communities and Local Government, replied, "I entirely agree with my hon. Friend. Planning guidance issued by the now noble Lord Prescott told councils to hike parking charges and to issue more fines to discourage motorists. A former Minister for local government in the previous Government called for councils to charge more for services, including parking.

"Town centres suffer a disadvantage because of free car parking in out-of-town car parking centres. If we are to encourage people to shop locally, they have to be able to get there, and the measures we are introducing are designed precisely to do that."

If you would like to help Stephen McPartland MP regenerate Stevenage town centre, then please click here to sign his petition for 3 hours free parking and stop Stevenage Borough Council ripping off local people.

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Award-winning local firm Easypack Limited invited Stephen McPartland, Member of Parliament for Stevenage, to see first hand the National Apprentice Scheme in action as part of National Apprenticeship Week with a visit to one of their design and manufacturing operations in Stevenage.

Stephen McPartland, Member of Parliament for Stevenage, said, "It was a pleasure to meet Chris Paine and learn about the work he is undertaking as an apprentice design engineer for Easypack. Chris has already made a massive impact with some innovative solutions to problems that is saving money. Stevenage has hundreds of young people starting real apprenticeships, leading to real jobs every single year and we are amongst the highest in the country. I am proud that our local businesses are giving our local young people a chance and that is why we continue to help lead the economic recovery here in Stevenage."

Andrew Grundy of Easypack said, "We are continually looking for ways in which we can support our growing business in the short and long term. We see the National Apprenticeship Scheme as a way in which we can simultaneously invest in our future and offer opportunity to young people. Easypack Limited have made the strategic decision to keep our operations in Stevenage backed by the opening of an additional site which more than doubles our production capacity. Good communication routes, infrastructure improvements and the proximity of the North Herts College are all part of this decision making process.

"Our apprentice Chris is working for a company that is a proud British manufacturer with over 70% of our business being export. This is recognised by winning the Queen’s Award for Enterprise - International Trade three times in recent years."

Easypack started in Hertfordshire in 1992, when a gap in the market was identified supplying quality, high performance cushion void fill for industrial consumption.

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Five years ago, Britain was spending and borrowing too much, too many people were out of work and our economy was on its knees. That is why there is a critical choice facing us in May: return to the chaos of the past or stick with a plan that is working and choose a more prosperous future.

This Budget is another step on the road from austerity to prosperity - with support for savers, lower taxes for people in work and a clear plan to make sure Britain pays its way in the world.

I was delighted the Chancellor confirmed that the Personal Tax Free Allowance will continue to rise and local families will be almost £900 a year better off since 2010. This tax cut is excellent news for hardworking local people who are keeping more of the money they have worked hard to earn, giving them and their families more financial security for the future. The Chancellor's ambition is to raise it to £12,500 in the next parliament, but I would like him to go further and raise it to £15,000 per year.

I am passionate about giving a helping hand to people at every stage of their life and the new Help to Buy ISA to help people save for their first deposit, is an amazing result locally. This new ISA will mean for every £200 a first time buyer saves, the government will give a bonus of £50 – up to £3,000. If you save up to £12,000 for the deposit on your first home, then you will get up to £3,000. A great deal for families that will really help make owning your first home a reality.

The new freedoms for existing pensioners who own annuities, freezing fuel duty and cutting beer duty will all help local people enjoy more of the money they have worked hard to earn.

I am proud that this budget helps families and builds on the massive £300 million infrastructure investment I have secured from the Government for our local schools, hospital, housing and jobs. More people are in work than ever before in the UK and with unemployment having halved locally since the last election, it is clear we are continuing to lead the UK economic recovery.

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Local mum, Hayley Sherwood, has launched 1decision - a programme to help children understand the power of choice when encountering life's challenges for the first time. Hayley has been working over the past 4 years with schools to develop the unique platform for children aged 5 - 8 offered by 1decision, focusing on prevention not cure. The core of the programme is a series of videos with alternative endings which allow the children to choose the characters’ progression and stay safe.

Stephen McPartland MP commented, “Hayley has done a fantastic job and I have been happy to support her initiative from day one. The 1decision programme is a fantastic platform which provides children with essential information to encourage positive choices. I look forward to seeing the resources produced from this partnership."

1decision is currently working in partnership with Hertfordshire Fire Service to raise awareness to some of the issues our fire service face daily and to reduce incidents. 1decision have applied for funding from the Herts Crime Commissioner to develop and complete the project which kicked off with a visit to Stevenage Fire Station by Stephen McPartland MP and students from Almond Hill Primary School.

Station Commander Peter Hatherley commented, “Stevenage Firefighters look forward to working in partnership with the 1decision team, this is a great opportunity to educate and make our children safer.”

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More than 200 staff, pupils and parents at Giles Nursery and Infants School, Stevenage celebrated the official opening of their new buildings and classrooms.

Stephen McPartland MP said, "I was delighted to be given the honour of officially opening these fantastic new classrooms.  It is incredibly exciting to see teachers and children already using them, which makes it so worthwhile. I am passionate about the opportunities education gives our young people and the benefits to our whole local community."

Members of the school community were eager for the opportunity to enter the newly expanded school and see the new classrooms for the first time.

Head teacher at Giles Nursery and Infants School, Mrs Rouane Mendel, said, "The new classroom spaces are exactly what we were looking for. They are spacious, very light, energy-saving and well-designed. Children will learn very well in this environment.  We are  prepared for an increase in our pupil numbers and are all looking forward to it."

The school is increasing to three-form entry and has benefited from a new expansion building including  a dining hall, classrooms, special needs room and staff room as well as a new playground. For the opening celebration, the school’s PTA kindly provided refreshments and balloons for all attendees and the event was enjoyed by all.

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