Weekly Update
£5.7 Million Boost for SEND Places in Enfield
Children with special educational needs in Enfield are set to benefit from a major national investment, as Labour launches a £3 billion plan to end the postcode lottery in SEND support.
Enfield Council will receive £5,712,000 to ensure more children can learn in high-quality settings close to home. Nationally, Labour’s programme will deliver around 50,000 new specialist places, including tailored facilities in mainstream schools so children can learn with the right support while staying connected to their peers.
For too long, families were left fighting for support under the previous government. Labour’s investment will ease that burden and give local authorities the tools to meet children’s needs sooner.
I’m delighted we’ve secured £5,712,000 in new SEND funding — a real breakthrough after lobbying Ministers. This is a major opportunity to improve support for children with additional needs in Enfield North.
I look forward to working with Enfield Council to ensure the funding delivers the greatest benefit for local families. Parents know support is urgently needed, and Labour has listened.
This investment lays the foundation for wider SEND reforms due early next year, helping to build a school system that is inclusive by design and ensures every child can thrive.
🌳 Have Your Say: How Should We Spend the Pride in Place Fund?
Enfield has been awarded £1.5 million from the Labour Government’s Pride in Place Fund - a major opportunity to invest in the spaces and places that matter most to our community.
I want to hear your ideas on how we can use this funding to strengthen and revitalise our neighbourhoods. The fund can support projects across three key areas:
1. Community Spaces 🌳
We can invest in creating, extending or improving valued community facilities - or help local groups take ownership of underused but important local assets.
This could include:
Refurbishing community centres
Expanding youth spaces
Bringing historic or well-loved buildings back into use
2. Public Spaces 🛝
The fund can be used to enhance the places we all share. Ideas could include:
New or improved green spaces
Better public squares or seating areas
Upgrades to outdoor play, sports or leisure areas
Street furniture, public art or clearer wayfinding
If it makes our neighbourhoods more welcoming, safer and more attractive, I want to hear it.
3. High Street & Town Centre Revitalisation 🏬
We can help breathe new life into our high streets and local centres by supporting:
Shop frontage improvements
Bringing empty premises back into use
Streetscape enhancements
Public art, trails and wayfinding
Better infrastructure for regular markets
Anything that encourages people to visit, spend time locally and support local businesses is welcome.
Share Your Ideas 📣
What improvements would make the biggest difference where you live?
Which community spaces need investment?
Where could a project spark new life into a high street or public space?
👉 Submit your ideas to me here and help shape how we invest this £1.5 million for Enfield.
A New National Plan to End Homelessness
Homelessness and rough sleeping doubled under the Conservatives - a moral failure that Labour will not allow to continue. This week, the Government launched a bold new plan to prevent homelessness before it happens and support people back on their feet.
Backed by £3.5 billion, the plan has been shaped by people with lived experience and frontline experts. By the end of this Parliament, Labour will:
✨ Halve long-term rough sleeping
✨ End the unlawful use of B&Bs for families
✨ Prevent more households from losing their homes
Charities have strongly welcomed the strategy. St Mungo’s called it a “watershed moment,” and Centrepoint praised the focus on young people - vital at a time of record youth homelessness.
As winter sets in, a family is made homeless every five minutes. This plan boosts prevention, improves temporary accommodation, and brings public services together to stop people reaching crisis point.
It builds on Labour’s wider action too: the new Renters’ Rights Act ending Section 21 evictions, £39 billion for social and affordable housing, and our mission to build 1.5 million homes.
Labour is restoring security, dignity and hope - and taking real action to end homelessness for good.
🏫 Inspiring Young Minds at St Michael’s Primary
It was a real pleasure to visit St Michael’s Primary School today. The staff gave me a wonderful welcome, and I was incredibly impressed by the enthusiasm, confidence and curiosity of the pupils.
I had the chance to speak with children about their lessons, their ambitions, and what they enjoy most about school life. Their questions were thoughtful, their ideas were inspiring, and their energy was infectious - a reminder of just how important our schools are in shaping the future of our community. It was wonderful to congratulate the new school council following their elections, and to celebrate their achievements.
I also met with teachers and school leaders to hear about their work - their dedication to giving every child the best possible start in life is evident in everything they do, and I want to thank them for their commitment.
Visits like this are always a highlight of my week. St Michael’s is a fantastic example of the brilliant work happening across our local schools in Enfield North - all of the children were wonderfully well behaved and respectful. I look forward to continuing to support them in any way I can.
🚅 A New Pattern on the Weaver Line
A reminder that Transport for London has confirmed that a new timetable will come into effect on the London Overground Weaver Line, that goes to Enfield Town, from this Sunday 14 December 2025.
Although the number of trains serving each destination will stay the same, all train times will change, so passengers are encouraged to check the updated schedules before travelling.
These changes are designed to help ease crowding and improve punctuality on one of the busiest parts of the Overground network. By better matching capacity with demand at Seven Sisters - the busiest station on the route - TfL aims to make services to and from Enfield Town and Cheshunt more reliable during peak periods.
TfL has provided the following overview of what to expect:
Seven Sisters (Peak Times)
Morning peak:
Northbound every 6, 9 and 15 minutes
Southbound every 8, 10 and 12 minutes
Evening peak:
Northbound every 7, 10 and 13 minutes
Southbound every 7, 9 and 14 minutes
Enfield Town Branch
Morning peak:
Southbound every 12–18 minutes
Northbound every 10–20 minutes
Evening peak:
Southbound every 14–16 minutes
Northbound every 13–17 minutes
Cheshunt Branch
Services will run approximately every 30 minutes.
First and Last Trains
First trains on the Chingford and Cheshunt routes will depart slightly earlier.
Last train times remain unchanged.
New late service: A final train from Enfield Town to Liverpool Street will run Mondays–Thursdays at 00:16.
Updated timetables are available now on TfL.gov.uk, the TfL Go app, and at local stations.
Please do check the new timetable before travelling from this Sunday 14 December to ensure you have the most up-to-date journey information.
🔥Helping Families Stay Warm This Winter
This Labour Government is taking decisive action to support households with the cost of energy. This winter, the Warm Homes Discount is being expanded, meaning an extra 2.7 million families will receive £150 off their energy bills - doubling the number of people receiving support to over 6 million families.
It was good to chat with Martin McCluskey MP, Minister for Energy Consumers, about how this support will help families here in Enfield and across the country.
Around 900,000 families with children and 1.8 million households living in fuel poverty will benefit directly from this expansion. By removing the unnecessary bureaucracy that previously blocked support, every billpayer on means-tested benefits will now qualify for the discount.
The previous Conservative government left behind a broken energy system that failed to put consumers first. Labour is determined to fix this-supporting families today while building a fairer, more secure system for the future.
Our wider Warm Homes Plan will help millions of households make their homes warmer, greener and cheaper to heat. Alongside this, the Government is standing up for consumers with reforms to energy debt practices, back billing, smart meters, standing charges and prepayment meters.
The long-term solution lies in clean, homegrown energy. Through our clean power mission, the UK will take back control of its energy supply, protect families from fossil fuel price shocks, and deliver cleaner, more affordable power for everyone.
I hope you have a good week!
Best wishes,
Feryal