Philippa Rousell

My proposal for NHS reform: requirement for staff calling patients' names to speak above a whisper.

Especially when your name is consistently mispronounced so you're trying to listen out for anything remotely resembling your name!

Throwback to my poor husband being dragged to a specific house in Pompeii so I could see that Caecilius was not in fact in horto (iykyk)

Northern academics condemn axing of state sector Latin funding Teachers and academics in the shadow of Hadrian's Wall hit back against the axing of Latin funding.

As someone forced to study Latin at school while my friends read plays and made masks (yes I'm still bitter), I'm sure it's interesting to some but hardly a 'tragedy' to see funding cut. I'd much prefer to see more done to encourage a love of modern languages!

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Speculation this morning that the government will use welfare cuts to help make its sums add up on 26th March. A thread on why tax options are really the "politically difficult" choice the Chancellor should consider.

Independent Sentencing Review: History and trends in sentencing The Independent Sentencing Review, chaired by David Gauke, has published Part 1 of the report.

Part 1 of the Sentencing Review is both a stressful and reassuring read.

Stressful because there are big problems to unpick, but reassuring because the analysis of how we got here seems spot on which makes me cautiously optimistic about the upcoming recommendations.

www.gov.uk/government/p...

I made the mistake of reading the comments section on a Telegraph article about people in prison getting an extra £1 a week in their basic pay (don't spend it too quick guys!)

Shows just how hard significant prison reform will always be when the public has such a poor understanding of what goes on.

Our Chief Executive Stephen Bell OBE sat down with Politics North to discuss the huge financial impact of the upcoming NIC changes on charities.

The NIC change alone adds over £600K to Changing Lives' budget, threatening our essential support services for vulnerable people across the UK.

London headteacher criticises Labour proposals to limit logos on uniform Katharine Birbalsingh says school-branded trousers and skirts can help prevent pupils from sexual exploitation

Am I reading this wrong or is she suggesting that girls wearing short skirts or tight trousers puts them at increased risk of sexual exploitation? I feel like there's a missing link here because SURELY we've moved on from this sort of victim blaming?

www.theguardian.com/education/20...

Usual caveats:

Not everyone in the sex industry is being exploited

Not every migrant sex worker has been trafficked

But unfortunately many have

Our Netreach model allows trained analysts to use cutting edge tools to sift through adverts to identify those with indicators of exploitation and safeguard victims. An increasing number have been trafficked from overseas and it's great to hear stories of people reunited with their families.

One of the really concerning trends is the rising use of adult service websites by OCGs.

For independent sex workers, these websites allow a safer way of advertising and vetting clients. But they are also being used by those subjecting women to horrendous abuse.

Many children who have experienced sexual exploitation continue to be exploited in adulthood (not to be confused with consensual sex work).

Changing Lives has supported these women for many years and this blog shares a bit about how that work has developed and what we have been seeing recently.

Child sex abuse and grooming gangs: What we know, and what we don't, from the data Recent debates over grooming gangs have been marked by accusations of lies and disinformation - this is what the data actually tells us about the victims and perpetrators of child sexual abuse.

Excellent article from @news.sky.com dispelling misinformation with some actual data on child grooming gangs.

Working primarily in the field of exploitation of adults this was fascinating and informative reading for me.

www.news.sky.com/story/amp/ch...

The suggestion that @jessphillipsmp.bsky.social does not care about victims of grooming and exploitation could be called laughable, except it's not a laughing matter.

We have and will continue to work with government on this important topic, keeping the focus on victims/survivors.

Largest ever cash boost to turn the tide on homelessness Councils across England will receive almost £1 billion of new funding next year to tackle, reduce and prevent homelessness.

This is a vital step forward, but lasting change requires sustained focus on prevention, support services, and tackling root causes like poverty, addiction, and mental health challenges.

Together, we can work towards a future where everyone has a safe place to call home.

We welcome the government’s £1 billion investment to tackle homelessness. Alongside other @homelesslink.bsky.social members, we’ve campaigned for increased funding to prevent and address homelessness.

British energy firms told to offer ‘zero’ standing charge tariff by next winter Ofgem aims to provide choice as Martin Lewis describes daily fees as a ‘poll tax’ on gas and electricity bills

This could make a huge difference to people supported by Changing Lives, many of whom keep their energy use to an absolute minimum.

The average annual standing charge before you've even used any energy is more than one month's UC allowance if you're under 25.

www.theguardian.com/money/2024/d...

County Durham's Teesdale House will help homeless women 'heal' Up to five women will be able to live in Teesdale House for up to two years, the council says.

Great news from @changinglivesuk.bsky.social! New housing support for women with medium or complex support needs opened in County Durham.

This kind of support for women is much needed throughout the country.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Tractor decoration hung on Christmas tree

So far Christmas with a 2 year old looks like pure childlike joy when we turned on the Christmas tree lights immediately followed by utter indignation when we hung the tractor decoration we got for him on the tree rather than letting him play with it.

Our Response to the Get Britain Working White Paper Our Policy Manager Philippa Rousell responds to the Get Britain Working white paper recently presented to Parliament.

A short piece responding to last week's Get Britain Working White Paper:

www.changing-lives.org.uk/insights/get...

Final thoughts for now: I'm only halfway through but so far only seen IPS mentioned for severe mental health conditions when it's also being trialled for addiction and homelessness. It would be good to see it rolled out to more groups. But maybe that's what the Connect to Work programme will do?

The details part of the me wants all the plans now but I'm actually cautiously optimistic about the plan to let local areas test different ways of working, rather than it all being imposed centrally. What I hope we'll avoid is yet another bunch of short-term pilots which go nowhere.

The general principle that those who can work should work is not a bad one, but very much depends on how we're defining 'can work'. There is rightly a lot of focus on health but I would like to see more about things like housing situation, domestic abuse etc. as other barriers to work.

If we can genuinely switch from punishment to support that could make a massive difference. So far I haven't seen any details about how they would actually change the sanctions regime but seems like that would be tested locally to see what works best.

I'm midway through reading the Get Britain Working Again White Paper and need a break so here's some thoughts so far.

Good to see that the rhetoric in the press around welfare being a 'blight' does not really feature in the White Paper.

Keir Starmer declares war on benefits Britain The Prime Minister uses an article in today's Mail on Sunday to promise changes to try to tame the £137 billion bill for welfare benefits - including a blitz on cheats and those who 'game the system'.

Here’s my take on the government’s rhetoric & the reality of their plans on work, disability & benefits: 🧵
1. This kind of rhetoric is damaging, even though the reality is rather different. The benefit system is a source of fear & shame for many…1/6 www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article...

I know there's a very real concern of how we continue to pay for our welfare bill (most significantly including pensions!) but I really hoped to see less demonising messaging coming from the Labour government. We should be proud to support those in financial difficulty!

Things like the ability to pay rent contributes to several of the commitments made by the government. If they are serious about tackling homelessness and child poverty, unfreezing LHA is a great place to start.

New private rent stats out today for Oct 24 show an annual increase of 8.7% in GB and 10.5% in London, equating to £105 more per month on average in GB and £204 in London, compared to Oct 23.

These are big rises, and come on the back of the decision taken to keep LHA frozen at the Budget. 🧵 1/x

I find it both fascinating and immensely concerning how much our sentencing policy is influenced by public opinion, yet how little the public knows about prisons.

New report from Sentencing Academy sheds more light on the public understanding:

www.sentencingacademy.org.uk/whos-in-pris...