Sir David Amess Summer Adjournment

Sarah Hall Excerpts

Tuesday 22nd July 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sarah Hall (Warrington South) (Lab/Co-op)]

As we rise for the summer recess, I want to take a moment to reflect on the real work happening back home in Warrington South in our schools, our community spaces, our hospitals and our homes. Parliament may not be sitting much longer, but that does not stop the work at home to deliver the change that our communities voted for last year. In recent weeks, I have visited schools and education programmes for children and young people, including Evelyn Street and Willow Green, and I have had the pleasure of welcoming pupils from St Philip and Barrow Hall to Parliament. Every conversation I have had with teachers, parents and education staff comes back to the same message: we need to get inclusive education right from the start. That means making sure that children with additional needs can access the right support early, and that specialist child and adolescent mental health services are not a postcode lottery.

As chair of the all-party parliamentary group on inclusion and nurture in education, and as an officer of the APPG on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, I see the national picture. In Warrington, I see the issues every day in the families I speak to, the schools I visit, and the casework that comes through my inbox. I hear from families who are doing everything they can, and teachers who are going the extra mile, but too often they do not have the right support or specialist provision for their young people.

At the heart of everything I do is the simple belief that every child, every family and every constituent should feel safe, seen and supported. That is why I have backed the Government’s plan to expand free school meals to every child whose family receives universal credit—a change that will support thousands of families across Warrington South. With new, free breakfast clubs on the way for every primary school, we are taking real steps to ensure that no child starts the day hungry. That is practical, compassionate and reflects something I hear time and again from parents and teachers alike: children learn best when they are fed, focused and ready to learn. While I am glad to see the Government moving in the right direction, there is still a way to go. I will keep fighting for a system that works for every child, not just the lucky few.

Inclusion does not end at the school gate; it extends to places where communities come together, such as our local leisure centres. Broomfields in Appleton is a much-loved facility that plays a vital role in keeping people active, connected and healthy, but it is ageing and needs serious investment. If we are serious about public health, we must invest in the everyday spaces that make it possible, and repair and refurbish leisure centres like Broomfields. We have seen what is possible when local facilities get the investment they need. In Bewsey and Dallam, we now have a proper community hub—a space that I was proud to help bring forward. Let me be clear: places like Broomfields deserve that same level of care, investment and attention.

When it comes to services and infrastructure, our local hospital matters, but after 14 years of under-investment, my constituents are being let down by a system that is struggling to keep up with demand. In the past, false promises were made. I refuse to do that; I want to be honest with my constituents about the situation we find ourselves in. Securing a brand-new hospital is a complex, long-term challenge. Many of the hospitals in the Government’s new hospital programme that are ahead of us in the queue are not expected to be completed until well into the next decade, so it is clear that this problem will not be solved overnight. Warrington deserves a new hospital; that is why my hon. Friend the Member for Warrington North (Charlotte Nichols) and I will keep campaigning to make that a reality.

At the same time, we have a duty to act now to tackle the immediate pressures facing our local health services, and to make a difference where we can. That is why, a few months ago, at Prime Minister’s questions, I made the case for a new urgent treatment centre in Warrington. Since then, I have had a meeting with the Health Secretary to set out just how transformational that project could be for our town. The plan is practical and ready to go, and has been designed to ease pressure on A&E and improve access to urgent care for residents. It is now with NHS England. I thank everyone involved, especially our brilliant NHS teams, including Nik and Lucy, for their vision, dedication and tireless commitment to improving healthcare in Warrington.

The focus on practical, local solutions does not stop with the hospital; it carries through to the everyday support being delivered in our neighbourhoods. Just down the road, the Bread and Butter Thing at Dallam continues to support families with dignity and care, and in Bewsey, the community shop, which I helped to open, has become a lifeline, offering affordable food and a welcoming space at the heart of the neighbourhood.

Flooding causes real worry in parts of Warrington South. On new year’s day, I was out supporting residents, directly helping people find alternative accommodation, delivering hot meals when the power was out, and launching a fundraiser to support families. The impact of the flooding was devastating, and for many, the recovery is ongoing. Residents of Sankey Bridges, Penketh, Dallam and Bewsey know all too well what it means to live with the constant risk of flooding. That is why I have worked hard to secure over £2 million in additional funding to move the Sankey brook flood risk management scheme into its design phase, and why I will keep fighting for that important scheme.

As Parliament rises for the summer, the work continues. For me, being an MP is not just about what happens in this Chamber, but about the conversations on the doorstep, the support we offer in moments of crisis, and the changes we fight for every single day. I will keep showing up, listening and doing everything I can to make sure that Warrington South gets the future it deserves.