Advocacy

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Pamphlet for TSSA Union and Action for Rail. April 2016

 

YOU ARE PAYING TOO MUCH FOR YOUR COMMUTE

 

If you are reading this, it is almost certain that you are paying too much for your commute. A quarterly ticket to commute between Bristol and London Paddington costs the unlucky traveller £2,250 (National Rail, 2016). This is nearly a month’s wages if you earn the median full-time monthly salary of £2,288 (Office for National Statistics, 2015).

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As you must be aware, this is not a stand-out fare. A quarterly from Ipswich costs the commuter £2,062 (National Rail, 2016). Paying for three months of commuting from Reading, will cost you £1,218, even though the journey may only take 26 minutes (National Rail, 2016). These costs are particularly concerning for lower wage part-time workers, as the savings on season tickets are based on travelling five days a week and the costs of individual tickets are even more absurd.

 

Rail fares continue to increase every year

The government has congratulated itself on keeping regulated fare rises at one percent this year, but this ignores the reality that around 55 percent of fares are unregulated (Butcher, 2016). While regulated standard fares rose in real terms by 6.6 percent between 1995 and 2015, unregulated fares rose by 32.9 percent and unregulated long-distance tickets by 49.8 (Nair, 2015). These fare increases have no limits and there is currently no light at the end of this tunnel.

 

Britain has the most expensive railway system in Europe

European commuters pay a far lesser percentage of their wages to get to work. The average pence per kilometre cost for a day return in the United Kingdom is 26 (Lawlor, 2011). German equivalents cost 17 pence per kilometre and the French pay just eight (Lawlor, 2011).

 

The Human Cost- Your Stories

“Each year I have to make a decision as to whether I can actually afford to work in London any more, and it may force me out of my current job.”- Simon Grierson*

“I live constantly fearful that something may happen to my mum and that I won't be able to be by her side when it matters most because the fares are too high."- KK*

*Responses given to Campaign for Better Transport.

 

Why are you paying more?

When the government began the process of privatisation of Britain’s rail networks, it was with the promise of a more cost-effective system. Yet at the same time that the rail budget has been increasing exponentially from fare rises, government subsidy has also been growing. Between 1990 and 1995, before privatisation, the contemporary equivalent of around £2.4 billion of taxpayer money was spent on the railways each year (Taylor & Sloman, 2012). Between 2005 and 2010 this had expanded to around £5.4 billion (Taylor & Sloman, 2012). Meanwhile the failing free-market system means that millions are still being paid out to shareholders. The government and these private companies have a lot of questions to answer.

 

It is time to demand answers

Please join us to protest the exorbitant fees you are forced to pay just to get to work. Our next Action for Rail rally will be held on Saturday 30th of April at Paddington station from 6am.

 

For more information about this event, as well as research on the UK’s privatisation problems, please visit: http://actionforrail.org/ or email enquiries@tssa.org.uk

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Walk to School Week campaign. August 2014.

 

Direct mail letter

 

Dear parent/ guardian,

 

I am writing to inform you of the Living Streets’ Walk to School Week program your child’s class is taking part in. Walk to School Week is an exciting way to encourage our students to be more physically active.

 

The program will be running from the 18th to the 22nd of May, Monday to Friday, with a special event on Wednesday the 20th. We hope that you will support and encourage your child to take part.

 

Each day of the week school staff and volunteers will be supervising several ‘walking buses’ which will visit all the homes of our students in the local area. The walk will be adequately supervised at all points of the journey. The routes and timings of the walking buses are yet to be arranged. If you would like to volunteer your time for a stint of the journey please do contact the school.

 

We would love for you to be involved, even if you live too far away from the school to walk the entire journey. Hungerford Tesco will be allocating a section of their car park for the school traffic where you will be able to park and walk the remaining 1.5 miles to the school.

 

Students will be awarded points for their efforts to work towards exciting prizes for both individuals and classes. Walk to School Week also run inter-school competitions, so the school could win new equipment for the playground.

 

Each year a theme is chosen and relevant activities are carried out. This year’s theme is wildlife. On Wednesday the 20th we are asking children to dress up as their favourite animals that they may or may not see on their walk to school. Teachers will then supervise a ‘wildlife hunt’ around the school.

 

According to the Office of National Statistics only 33% of boys and 21% of girls meet the recommended levels of physical activity. Living Streets work with over 750 000 children in 2 000 schools every year to encourage improvement of these statistics. Hungerford Primary is proud to be part of this program to work towards creating a healthier school environment. We hope that you will get on board with this important mandate.

 

Yours Sincerely,

EBritten

Elise Britten

Head Teacher

Hungerford Primary School

01635 345 893

e.britten@hungerfordprimary.edu.uk

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Pamphlet for the children (unformatted)

 

Front Page:

Go Wild!

Come Join Us for Walk to School Week 2015

 

Inside Page 1:

From the 18th to the 22nd of May, schools all over the UK are going to be hitting the streets and having some fun.

 

Walk to School Week means:

- A chance to be healthy and have fun with your friends

- A chance to learn about the animals in your local area

- Competition within your school for you to win awards or help your class to win the trophy

- Competition between schools for cool prizes such as new equipment for your playground

 

Ask your teacher about how your school is getting involved!

 

Inside Page 2:

This year’s theme is wildlife. Dress up as your favourite animal that you may or may not see on your walk to school for a wildlife hunt!

 

See how many of the following animals you can spot in your area:

- Pigeon               - Duck

- Bee                    - Hawk

- Squirrel              - Butterfly

- Fish                    - Grasshopper

- Hedgehog          - Ant

- Snail                  - Mouse

 

Challenge your friends to see what else you can find!

 

Back:

Get Online!

Ask your parents to join you and find us at http://www.livingstreets.org.uk/ to see what it’s all about.

 

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Newsletter article

 

Hungerford Primary Goes Wild

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Hungerford Primary will soon be participating again in Living Streets’ Walk to School Week. This year’s theme is wildlife. The Program, designed to promote healthier lifestyles one step at a time, will run from the 18th to the 22nd of May and aims to involve every student of the school.

 

According to a recent NHS report one fifth of children starting school are overweight, which increases to over one in three by the final year of primary school. This highlights how important primary school years are for promoting healthy living in children.  The Office of National Statistics has found that only 33% of boys and 21% of girls meet the government’s recommendations for physical activity. Walk to School Week seeks to encourage an improvement in these concerning statistics. Culture and Sport Minister John Griffiths promotes the program, “we all know how important it is to exercise and walking to school is a great way to be healthy and have fun at the same time.”

 

You may think that you see plenty of children stepping out on the streets, but National statistics suggest only 42% of children now walk to school. This compares to a recent government survey which found that 80% of adults said they walked to school when they were young. Living Streets Chief Executive, Tony Armstrong, explains the importance of this, “encouraging the walk to school not only helps keep children healthy today, but makes for healthier adults in the future.”

 

Hungerford Primary will be running ‘walking buses’ every day of Walk to School Week where students will be picked up by a group of walkers, rather than a vehicle. Other students will park further away from the school in the Tesco car park and walk the remaining distance. To suit this year’s ‘wildlife’ theme, on one of the days children will dress up as their favourite animal and undertake a ‘wildlife hunt’ around the school.

 

Here at Hungerford Chain Mail, we ask that members of our community will be considerate of the program and keep a particular eye out for children on the streets during this time. Tony Armstrong tells of how many parents choose not to walk to school as they “fear for their children’s and their own safety as a consequence of issues such as speeding, heavily congested traffic and inconsiderate parking at the school gates.” The wider mission of Living Streets is not just about promoting healthier lifestyles for children and adults alike, but also to create environments that are safe and pleasant to walk in.

 

To find out more, visit Living Streets’ website at: http://www.livingstreets.org.uk/ and click on the ‘Walk with Us’ link.

 

If you would like to sponsor Walk to School Week or are interested in being involved in future events at Hungerford Primary please contact Head Teacher Elise Britten at e.britten@hungerfordprimary.edu.uk