Welcome to this week’s constituency newsletter for residents in Reading West and Mid Berkshire. It has been another busy week in parliament and the constituency with an NHS public meeting, a busy constituency surgery and debates and events in parliament. It has also been a busy week for the government including Monday’s welcome announcement of significant increases to the National Minimum Wage and the National Living Wage from April.
To keep up to date with what I am doing in Parliament and in the constituency, you can follow me on Facebook, Instagram or Bluesky.
NHS ten-year plan consultation event
On Thursday evening, I held a consultation event on the NHS Ten-year Plan for residents of Reading West and Mid Berkshire. Thank you to everyone who came along and shared their experiences and ideas on the future of the NHS.
I was delighted to be joined by my colleague Laura Kyrke-Smith MP, the Government’s Health Mission Lead and we both appreciated the thoughtful conversation and the interesting insights that were shared by participants.
If you were not able to make it to the event on Thursday, you can still take part in the consultation online.
Maternal mental health
On Wednesday, I was pleased to take part in a debate in Parliament on maternal mental health.
It is so important that we support new mothers and new parents to look after their mental health. I was pleased to hear that the government is prioritising this and that perinatal mental health services are now available in every trust.
During the debate I raised the importance of supporting adoptive parents with their mental health. While adoptive parents do not have the same physical experience of birth, there is a lot of evidence to show that the experience of post adoption depression can be very similar.
I know there are fantastic adoption support charities like Parents And Children Together in Reading who support adoptive parents, but I will continue to press the importance of NHS services welcoming adoptive parents in my discussions with ministers.
Aerospace, defence, and space sector apprentices’ reception
I am proud to represent a constituency that is so integral to our national security, with many local people employed by the defence sector including young people taking up apprenticeships which will set them up for a varied and skilled career.
It was brilliant to see many of those firms at the ADS reception in Parliament earlier this week and to meet Paul and Heather, two constituents who have benefited from the fantastic apprenticeships offered at QinetiQ and NCC Group.
Making work pay
The Conservatives left the average worker £700 worse off than they were in 2010. What’s more they have described maternity pay as “excessive” and the minimum wage as a “burden”. They haven’t changed and would take Britain backwards.
Labour’s Plan for Change will improve living standards and make work pay. This week we’ve confirmed significant increases to the National Minimum Wage and the National Living Wage from April, set to boost pay packets by as much as £2,500 a year for people in Reading West and Mid Berkshire.
What’s more we are making work secure by cracking down on fire and rehire and ending exploitative zero-hour contracts. And we’re making work family-friendly with employment rights from day one, including parental leave, strengthened pregnancy rights and protection from unfair dismissal.
West Berkshire Council budget
I was pleased this week to see that the Lib Dem administration on West Berkshire Council have seen sense and backed down on a number of proposals that were floated in their 2025/26 budget consultation. Removing the Downlands Sports Centre from the leisure contract would have meant people in Compton and the surrounding villages having to travel miles to their nearest leisure facilities. And, ending the Adult Respite in the Community service would have been devastating to people across Reading West and Mid Berkshire who care for their loved ones day-in-day-out.
I am also pleased to see funding confirmed for classrooms at Brookfields School in Tilehurst, which is one of the schools that had been impacted by the funding clawback fiasco.
I look forward to working with West Berkshire Council to make sure that local people have access to the services that they deserve.
Date for your diary
Sunday 2nd March, Community Drop-in, Theale – If you live in Theale and would like to come along for a chat with tea and biscuits between 3.00pm and 4.00pm, please email and my team will confirm the venue a few days in advance of the event.
Best wishes for the week ahead
Olivia