Last month I was very busy locally as well as nationally. In SW Surrey I have:
• Held surgeries in Godalming and Farnham Sainsburys as well as Hindhead office
• Signed up as a Dementia Champion in Farnham Town Hall
• Presented Shottermill Infant School with their Speaker's School Council Award (pictured)
• Met with local Councillors to discuss concerns about housing development in the area
• Attended the Waverley Homestart AGM as Guest Speaker (pictured)
• Chaired some very interesting meetings concerning mounting a Youth Disability sport event within Waverley in 2014 & the possible pedestrianisation for Farnham.
I was delighted to be invited to sign up as a Dementia Champion as part of Surrey County Council's Dementia Friendly Surrey initiative. It is one of my main priorities as Health Secretary as I really think attitudes to dementia do need to change – it feels a bit like where cancer was in the 1960s, something everyone is afraid of but no one likes to talk about. This particular initiative, conceived with the help of brilliant Farnham GP Dr Ed Wernick and his Dementia Local Implementation Team, is truly innovative as it raises awareness by encouraging businesses, organisations and individuals to become involved. Visit www.surreyinformationpoint.org.uk for more information on Dementia Friendly Surrey and how you might be able to become a champion.
Presenting the young children at Shottermill Infants School with their Speaker's School Council Award was great fun (pictured above). This small but vibrant and forward-looking school within the constituency had been singled out for their wonderful buddying initiative conceived by their school council. The initiative, run by Parliament’s Education Service encourages children, even as young as four years old, to become aware of how their voice being heard can encourage change. They may be too young to give me a run for my money...but then again perhaps not!
September saw party conference season, where we Conservatives set out new plans to support hard-working people. These included a new announcement on GP pilot sites where extending opening hours will be combined with 21st century care for all – including skype, email and telephone consultations. We also announced our commitment to extend the cancer Drugs Fund for a further two years. Introduced by this government, the CDF has helped more than 30,000 people access treatments which otherwise they would not get. It has been afforded by this government’s critical decision to protect the budget of the NHS.
We also made good progress in one of my priorities for the coming months – turning around failing hospitals. New support from successful trusts as part of a transparent and intensive special measures programme will at long last ensure these struggling hospitals are dealt with.