Welcome to this week's newsletter
As you will see from this week’s newsletter, I have been very busy in both the constituency and in parliament.
First off – an update on the Post Office. Ahead of a meeting with Post Office Ltd I spoke on BBC Sussex where I heard a lot of resident’s concerns about the potential closure of the Devonshire Square branch. This just reaffirms how important the Post Office to our community.
The meeting itself was disappointing, as representatives could not answer some very basic questions for a decision which will be made so soon! They have promised further information at the end of this week and further discussions with MPs.
In the Chamber I challenged the Deputy PM on the Government’s rural funding settlement, which gives around 40% less spending power per head to rural areas compared with urban ones. This does nothing to fix the clear disparity in funding to rural areas, further confirming that Labour will continue to put big cities first.
An exiting rite of passage, I took part in Question Time last week. It was a good debate on important local issues, including housing and infrastructure. A real concern of mine is the increase in housing targets for rural areas, with a decrease in urban areas. With the he reduction in spending power from the rural funding settlement, it only further supports that Labour puts cities first.
I was pleased to meet with Eurostar CEO to discuss the return of Eurostar to Ashford International. I know that this is a popular idea locally, as the Ashford stop offered East Sussex easier access to the continent. The past few years have seen only excuses for the lack of service, but what we need to a clear roadmap for reopening, which I will continue to push for.
In the Chamber I raised concerns of so many local businesses and employers over this Government’s job tax through NI contributions. With the OBRs forecast that this will damage the very growth our country desperately needs, I asked the Chief Secretary whether they agreed.
I was delighted to receive a letter from the King thanking me for sending him the Christmas Card designed by Barnaby from Bodiam CE Primary School. Congratulations once more Barnaby!
In the constituency, I visited the new Community Diagnostic Centre facility, and Bexhill Hospital. It is great to see how productive the new Diagnostic centre which has been - a huge thank you to the tireless efforts of all staff.
During my visit to the Bexhill Hospital, I was told about some of the practical challenges that come with delivering care in an aging hospital, despite this staff do an amazing job of creating a supportive and relaxing environment for patients. I will continue working with our local Healthcare Trust to deliver first class healthcare to patients in Bexhill & Battle.
Focused on supporting healthcare locally, I met with Cllr Eleanor Kirby Green, and Mary Barnes, to discuss concerns over the scheduled closure of Ticehurst GP Surgery. Following my meeting I’m pleased to share that Ticehurst Surgery will remain open until at least May 2027! This is a positive step forward, but there’s still work to do. I’ll continue to monitor this issue and make sure our community gets the healthcare it needs.
I was pleased for the opportunity to attend All Saints Church coffee morning a couple of weekends back. A great team of volunteers to help with all the great activities they host. Please check out their website link for more information.
A huge congratulations to Little Gate Farm, who were awarded the Tesco’s Golden Grant! This is a scheme which awards the voted-for project with a one-off £5000 grant, based on a customer receiving a golden token – there is only 1 of these found per 500 shops. Once again, a big congratulations to Little Gate in securing this generous grant and thank you to the individual who chose them as their charity to receive it.
I attended the Gingerbread Parliamentary reception, where I heard about the damage caused to children when absent parents do not make their child maintenance payments. Whilst the CMS are tasked with cracking down on cases of parents who fail to make these payments, it is clear their current approach is still not working. Too many children are being let down by the CMS.
You may have heard of Asda’s Cashpot for Schools campaign, which was fronted by Joe Wicks to raise money for schools. I was pleased to see that £4,847 was raised by shoppers in Bexhill & Battle for our local schools, which will help schools to buy extra books, tech and sports equipment. Well-done everyone!
I was fortunate last week to visit St Mary’s Special School and College in Bexhill to take part in their whole school assembly and receive a tour from their Head Boy and Head Girl. A huge thank you to the staff and students for having me! I look forward to supporting the school in any way I can in the future.
Lindsay from Bexhill Community Supporters, met with me to discuss their plans to transform Broad Oak Park into a hub for conservation, environmental education, and green job training. I share their frustration and will do what I can to support them in getting this important initiative off the ground.
And lastly, I took time to visit Egerton Park Bowls Club to chat to some of their members about the vital role the club plays in our local community. It was great to hear about how valued the club is, and about the clubs plans to install a new state-of-the-art solar grid. I fully support the clubs ambitions to make their building more sustainable and ensure it remains part of the community for decades to come.
That’s it for this newsletter. Have a great weekend!
Update on Bexhill Post Office
Last week, I spoke on BBC Sussex about the concerns many constituents have regarding the potential closure of the Post Office in Bexhill. Over 4,000 people have signed the petition so far. If you haven’t, please do so here: Save Bexhill Post Office Petition.
The main worry is that small businesses could face limits on cash deposits. In a town with many older residents who rely on cash, the Post Office is vital. Many older people also depend on it for pension services. With so many banks closing, this proposed closure is the wrong decision for Bexhill.
The following day, other MPs and I met Post Office Ltd representatives to discuss the potential closure of the last Direct Managed Branches (DMB) in the UK, including the Post Office in Bexhill. This meeting included Nigel Railton, Interim Chair of Post Office Ltd, and Neil Brocklehurst, acting CEO.
I was very disappointed with the meeting, as Post Office representatives didn’t even know what criteria they’d use to make their decision, even though a decision is expected in March.
They were also unaware of the challenges local businesses face with cash deposit services at sub-post offices compared to DMB's, one of my main concerns.
MPs made it clear this wasn’t acceptable for us or our constituents. Post Office Ltd has promised another update next week, and I will work with other MPs to robustly hold them to account.
Rural Funding Settlement
I took the concerns of rural communities to Parliament and challenged the Deputy Prime Minister on the Labour Government's rural funding settlement.
First they cut the Rural Services Delivery Grant, which gave £110m to 94 rural authorities last year to assist in the running of vital public services.
And now Labour's provisional funding settlement gives around 40% less spending power per head to rural areas compared to urban areas. Analysis from the Rural Services Network found that urban areas are getting more government funding, while rural funding has flatlined. Yet, both are expected to provide the same services.
There’s a lot of talk about reorganisation, but it does nothing to fix this deep unfairness in funding. Yet again, Labour is showing they don’t understand rural areas—putting big cities first time and time again.
Question Time!
I was a panellist on Question Time - a rite of passage for MPs! It was good to debate important local issues, including concerns around housing and infrastructure.
I used my experience as your MP and the concerns raised to inform my views and what I said. We didn't fix the issue of matching housing to more infrastructure and expanded public services in Government. We now have to take the time to come up with new solutions.
But I'm very worried that in the meantime Labour have put our housing targets even higher whilst lowering them for big cities like London.
You can watch the whole show on BBC iPlayer: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m0027f39/question-time-2025-30012025
Pushing for Eurostar's Return to Ashford International
Recently, I met with Eurostar’s CEO, Gwendoline Cazenave, alongside other MPs to push for the return of Eurostar services to Ashford International.
Before COVID-19, Ashford was a key stop, offering direct trains to Paris, Brussels, Disneyland Paris, and seasonal routes to the Alps and South of France. It was a vital link for Kent, East Sussex, and beyond—providing a convenient alternative to traveling into London.
Eurostar suspended Ashford services in March 2020 and has repeatedly delayed their return, citing financial challenges, fleet and station capacity, upcoming border system changes, and staff shortages as reasons for the continued closure.
But what we need is a clear roadmap for reopening, not more delays. I joined MPs in urging Eurostar to set out exactly what is required to restart services and how MPs, local partners, and the Government can help make it happen.
Ashford International was built with taxpayer investment and served Eurostar passengers well for years. Eurostar must be transparent about what it would take to return services and work with us to find a way forward.
Taking Your Concerns to Parliament
You may have seen I recently visited Saxonwood Care Home and St Michael's Hospice. Alongside all the positive things we talked about I also heard about their worries about the upcoming jobs tax and the impact it will have on their finances. These concerns are shared by Bexhill Chamber of Commerce, who fear the impact this will have on our high streets.
In Parliament, I took these concerns directly to the Chief Secretary, asking if they agree with the OBR's forecast that this jobs tax will harm, rather than help, growth. I’ll continue to bring the voices of our community to Westminster and fight for policies that support our local businesses and workforce.
Christmas Card - Response From The King
Delighted to have received a letter from Buckingham Palace, thanking me for sending him the Christmas card designed by Barnaby from Bodiam CE Primary School.
Congratulations to Barnaby again for his wonderful submission!
Bexhill Hospital Visit
I'm very grateful to East Sussex Healthcare Trust for a tour of Bexhill Community Diagnostic Centre and Bexhill hospital last week.
Our new Community Diagnostic Centre in Bexhill is hugely productive, thanks to the tireless efforts of the staff, who have made it such a successful venture. Residents will know that the site of the diagnostic centre use to be a car showroom, which is fantastic example of innovation in our NHS.
Bexhill hospital itself was built in 1933, off the back of one of the deepest recessions in history, and it was a pleasure to meet some of the staff who keep it running to this day. One of those is their Site Manager, Lesley, who gave me a tour of their eye surgery centre, including their new Dowling Unit, named after the Bexhill Hospital League of friends chairman, John Dowling, who helped to secure funding for it.
I got to join members of the league of friends, John and Bridget, for a coffee and to thank them for all the incredible work they do for our local hospitals. The League of Friends is a community group which raises funds that to pay for vital hospital upgrades and maintenance. In the past decade, they have raised nearly £3 million which has helped to buy everything from chairs for waiting rooms, to MRI scanners.
I was also given a tour of the Irvine Unit at Bexhill hospital, where their teams teams work alongside patients and their loved ones to provide personalised rehabilitation to increase their independence and enhance quality of life. Here, I was told about some of the practical challenges that come with delivering care in an aging hospital, despite this staff do an amazing job of creating a supportive and relaxing environment for patients.
I also had the opportunity to discuss the implications of the Labour governments recent decision to delay the rebuild of hospitals across East Sussex, namely Bexhill hospital, and the impact this will have on patients. Under the New Hospitals Programme, these rebuild were scheduled to be delivered by 2030, but the earliest we can expect to seen them is now 2039.With a maintenance backlog of £410 million, which includes a £160 million Critical Infrastructure bill, they were clear that the government needs to allocate more funding in the meantime while we wait for the new hospital rebuilds to start.
Having been an NHS doctor for years, Hospitals and healthcare will always be one of my key priorities, and I will be working with East Sussex Healthcare Trust to ensure they get the funding they need to continue to deliver first class healthcare to patients in Bexhill and Battle.
Ticehurst Surgery Update
I recently met with Cllrs Eleanor Kirby Green and Mary Barnes who raised concerns on behalf of residents about the scheduled closure of Ticehurst surgery, which was planned for spring 2025.
I shared their concerns about the impact this will have on local residents with NHS Sussex, and I know others did the same. After this, I’m pleased to share that Ticehurst Surgery will remain open until at least May 2027!
This gives us much-needed time to ensure that local healthcare services are properly planned for the future.
During this period, NHS Sussex and the GP practice will be reviewing how best to provide services in our area, and I will be pressing them to give consideration to our elderly population in Ticehurst, who rely on having locally accessible GP services.
In the coming weeks, stakeholders—including parish, district, and county councillors—will be meeting to discuss next steps and I’ve requested to attend to ensure your concerns are heard loud and clear. Also, a wider community engagement event is planned for 6th March at Ticehurst Village Hall from 2-7pm.
This is a positive step forward, but there’s still work to do. I’ll continue to monitor this issue and make sure our community gets the healthcare it needs.
All Saints Church Coffee Morning
It was great to drop in on the coffee morning at All Saints Church, Sidley. I met with Fr Ian Edgar and the team of volunteers and got to enjoy a delicious slice of homemade Bakewell tart and got lucky on the tombola!
It was good to hear about the other activities that take place there like the baby and toddler group and girls youth group. Thanks for having me!
Golden Grant for Little Gate Farm
I met with Mary, member of Little Gate’s team, at Tesco’s parliamentary reception to celebrate charities who have received a Golden Grant. Little Gate is a charitable organisation I’ve spoken about previously, which was born out of a vision to enrich the lives of people with learning difficulties and autism.
To support those adults with learning difficulties who want to learn the skills needed for paid employment, Little Gate offers Supported Training, Supported Apprenticeship and Supported Employment opportunities for adults.
In 2024, 5 projects across the Bexhill and Battle constituency received a Tesco Stronger Starts grant. However, Little Gate Farm were the lucky recipients of a Golden Grant, which awards the voted-for project with a one-off £5000 grant.
Mary was pleased to tell me about the £5000 grant they received as part of Tesco’s Golden Grant scheme. For those unaware, Tesco offers customers a token after each shop which can then be awarded to one of a selection of charities within the local area of that shop.
The golden token is a very special one of these, with only 1 of these found per 500 shops.
So, a big congratulations to Little Gate in securing this generous grant and thank you to the individual who chose them as their charity to receive it.
Gingerbread Parliamentary Reception
I find it disgraceful that some absent parents fail to financially support their children, shifting all the responsibility to their ex-partner and taxpayers.
Research by York university has found that if child maintenance payments were secured from absent parents, it would lift 60% of children living in single-parent households that currently are not receiving them out of poverty. Proof that delinquent parents are literally choosing to keep their children in poverty. This is reprehensible.
There is a body tasked with cracking down on cases where parents fail to pay their maintenance. It is called the Child Maintenance Service. Unfortunately, the current approach they are taking is simply not delivering results.
According to Gingerbread, maintenance arrears under the CMS are forecast to hit £1 billion by March 2031. We know the money is there and can be collected, but the CMS fails to enforce payment time and again. Behind this figure lie personal stories like that of Rachel and her daughter Abi. Speaking at the reception, Rachel spoke of how her ex-partner had not once paid a full year of maintenance since their split. Whilst claiming he could not afford to pay for his children, he was simultaneously posting pictures online of his luxury holidays and vanity purchases.
Too many children are being let down by the CMS. 61% of single parents contacting the CMS said staff there are ‘reluctant’ to use their enforcement powers. It is clear this unfairness cannot continue. It is unfair on the children, on single parents caring for them and on taxpayers who are left picking up the bill for irresponsible, absent parents.
At Gingerbread’s #FixtheCMS reception I spoke with their head of policy Sarah Lambert, and discussed the need to strengthen the CMS’ enforcement powers. I shared my plans to bring stronger action against parents failing to pay, such as using home curfew’s and tagging to compel them to take responsibility and pay.
If you or someone you know is a single parent who is struggling, get in contact with Gingerbread who can help you with expert and tailored advice on any aspect of single parenting. Their website can be found here: https://www.gingerbread.org.uk/
Asda Cashpot for Schools
You might have heard of Asda’s Cashpot for Schools campaign, fronted by Joe Wicks and setting out to raise money for schools!
It was a pleasure to attend their Parliamentary reception on Tuesday, celebrating the £4,847 raised by shoppers in Bexhill and Battle for our local schools. This money will help schools buy extra books, tech and sports equipment.
Shoppers were able to nominate a local school for Asda to donate a portion of their shopping bill to. Impressively, as we don’t have an Asda locally, all this money has been raised solely from online shopping!
I’d like to thank our Bexhill and Battle shoppers for their contributions and ASDA for running this great campaign!
The schools who will benefit can be found below:
- All Saints Church of England Primary School, Bexhill
- Battle and Langton Church of England Primary School
- Beckley Church of England Primary School
- Bodiam Church of England Primary School
- Brede Primary School
- Burwash CofE School
- Catsfield Church of England Primary School
- Chantry Community Primary School
- Crowhurst CofE Primary School
- Dallington Church of England Primary School
- Etchingham Church of England Primary School
- Glenleigh Park Primary Academy
- Glyne Gap School
- Herstmonceux Church of England Primary School
- Hurst Green Church of England Primary School and Nursery
- King Offa Primary Academy
- Little Common School
- Netherfield CofE Primary School
- Ninfield Church of England Primary School
- Northiam Church of England Primary School and Nursery
- Pebsham Primary Academy
- Pevensey and Westham CofE Primary School
- Salehurst Church of England Primary School
- Sedlescombe Church of England Primary School
- St Mary Magdalene Catholic Primary School
- St Mary's School and 6th Form College
- St Peter and St Paul CofE Primary School
- Staplecross Methodist Primary School
- Stonegate Church of England Primary School
- Ticehurst and Flimwell Church of England Primary School
- Westfield School
Visit to St Mary's Special School
Recently, I was fortunate to visit St Mary's Special School and College in Bexhill to take part in their whole school assembly and receive a tour from their Head Boy and Head Girl.
I was truly inspired by the warm welcome from students and staff alike. The assembly was a wonderful celebration of the school’s achievements, and it was fantastic to see the enthusiasm and dedication of everyone involved.
During the tour, the Head Boy and Head Girl proudly showcased the school’s incredible facilities, highlighting the supportive and nurturing environment that enables students to thrive. From specialist classrooms to creative learning spaces, it was clear that St Mary’s is a place where every young person is valued and encouraged to reach their full potential.
A huge thank you to the staff and students for having me! I look forward to supporting the school in any way I can in the future.
Bexhill Community Supporters Vision for Broad Oak Park
I met with Lindsay from Bexhill Community Supporters to discuss their plans to transform Broad Oak Park into a hub for conservation, environmental education, and green job training.
Despite years of planning, public consultations, and securing early funding, progress has stalled. With support from the Heritage Lottery Fund, Bexhill Environmental Group, and Action in Rural Sussex, this project has huge potential—but it needs action.
I share their frustration and will do what I can to support them in getting this important initiative off the ground.
Visit to Egerton Park Bowls Club
Last week I got to visit Egerton Park Bowls Club and chat to some of their members about the vital role the club plays in our local community.
Members, Tink and Allison, talked about how the bowls club plays such positive role in keeping people healthy and social, they were kind enough to show me the ropes and give me an introduction to bowls—a great experience!
I also got to talk to their chairman, Denis, about the clubs plans to install a new state-of-the-art solar grid. This comes in light of the increasing cost of utilities, which is only exacerbated by the age of their building. The installation of a new solar grid would make a great deal of difference in reducing costs to the club, and could be utilised to provide clean energy to surrounding businesses.
I fully support the clubs ambitions to make their building more sustainable and ensure it remains part of the community for decades to come.
