-
Please select facebook feed.
Category Archives: Children and young people
Ulster Unionists urge Executive to provide young children free school meals
Roy Beggs MLA who earlier this week in a debate on free school meals urged that every child should be given a free school meal, has welcomed the decision of the Westminster Government to provide free school meals to primary school infants. He has urged the NI Executive to do likewise with the funding that will be made available locally. Roy Beggs MLA, the Ulster Unionist Health Spokesman said, “A nutritional diet is vital for a child’s development and to improve concentration in the classroom. The current Free School Meals system is not fully taken up and 20,000 children were estimated by the NI Audit Office to be failing to taking up their entitlement. Fear of stigmatisation is thought to be a factor. The earnings limits also creates a cliff for the working poor. If a family earns a little more they can be worst off as they could lose … Continue reading
Posted in Children and young people, Press Releases
Tagged education, Free School Meals
Leave a comment
Need for Two Separate Schools for Islandmagee and Ballycarry Highlighted
Ulster Unionist MLA for East Antrim Roy Beggs Jnr has written to Minister for Education pointing out an historic underspend on new school buildings in East Antrim, and the continuing need for separate primary schools in Islandmagee and Ballycarry. In his correspondence the UUP MLA states: “Since 1999, my constituency has been very badly neglected at primary school level in terms of new/ replacement school buildings, with only 1 project built (St MacNissis Maintained Primary School, Larne) at a cost of £1.21M. This contrasts very unfavourably with the neighbouring constituency of North Antrim which has had 11 new build Primary Schools at a cost of £24.85M (AQW19810/11-15). The spend in East Antrim has been the lowest in the whole of Northern Ireland.” Mr Beggs said healthy birthrate in both the Ballycarry ward and Islandmagee wards support the case that two schools are sustainable in the area. “The figures for live … Continue reading
Posted in Children and young people, Press Releases
Tagged Ballycarry, Beggs, education, Islandmagee, Ulster Unionist Party
Leave a comment
Still Greater Awareness of the Dangers of Smoking during Pregnancy needed: Beggs
On highlighting some local areas with over a third of all expectant mothers smoking, Ulster Unionist Health spokesperson, Roy Beggs MLA has said that a concentrated effort is needed to further increase awareness of the dangers of mothers smoking during pregnancy and during their children’s early years. Roy Beggs MLA said: “Protecting your baby from tobacco smoke is vital to ensuring they have a healthy start in life. The statistics available on the Children & Young People’s Strategic Partnership (CYPSP) website make for shocking reading. They reveal that in some wards in Northern Ireland the percentage of mums who smoke is as high as 55% in the Old Warren ward, Lisburn, despite the health risks to their children. Locally in my constituency of East Antrim, 41% of mothers in the Clipperstown ward smoke, and 39% of mothers in Sunnylands and Blackcave still smoke.” The Ulster Unionist member of the Health … Continue reading
Roy Proposes Assembly Motion on Multiagency Support Teams
Full Hansard text of Speech in the NI Assembly, Monday 23rd April 2012 Mr Beggs: I beg to move That this Assembly notes the success of the multiagency support teams and equivalent bodies in detecting and addressing problems which children may experience in the early stages of their education; recognises the effective partnerships that are in place between the health service, schools and parents to address the needs of children; and calls on the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to work closely with the Minister of Education to review the model of service provision and expand the service to the schools and nurseries which are not currently part of the scheme. I am very pleased to move the motion. I declare an interest as a founding member of the Carrickfergus Children and Young People’s Partnership, now perhaps known as a locality group, and also of Horizon Sure … Continue reading
