AS a mother of four teenage daughters and an advocate for our young people’s prosperous futures, it was my pleasure to accept the position of Apprenticeship Ambassador as part of the Apprenticeship Reform Programme.

Apprenticeships are key to making sure that people of all ages and backgrounds can fulfil their potential and I will be working hard to promote the programme to employers and key local partners in my constituency.

Since 2010, there have been 6,170 apprenticeship places in Copeland and I am pleased to hear the government commit to delivering an extra three million nationwide by 2020. I have also been invited to co-chair the Apprenticeship Delivery Board, working to implement an employer engagement strategy that would help to deliver an increase in apprenticeships as well as supporting those who are both applying and starting their apprenticeship.

Both these recent appointments complement an upcoming event planned for our area’s young people. On Thursday November 2, I will be welcoming jobseekers, school leavers and those looking for a training opportunity or apprenticeship to the Copeland Skills Fair.

A first for the area, the free event will be held at the Solway Hall in Whitehaven between 2pm and 7pm. For me, supporting young people to secure a prosperous future is what it's all about. Having four teenage daughters myself, I understand the importance of ambition and having a path to follow - there will be lots of apprenticeship, training and employment advice and I'm really grateful to all the companies that will be joining me all day.

I'm also excited to be launching my TeenForce100 project. This will help more than 100 teenagers into the part-time workforce, in partnership with parents, schools and employers. There is a well-established association between having a part-time job as a teenager and being in full-time employment in adulthood, but many young people are struggling to find a job. I want to make that connection easier, to help open doors, provide some basic training and enable young people to enjoy a little financial independence, it's so important.

Prior to conference recess, I attended the first meeting in my new role on the education select committee. The meeting focused on setting up the new committee and was an opportunity to meet with fellow members before agreeing the initial programme of work for the new parliament, social justice and productivity. It is imperative that our education system helps to improve young people’s lives and places them on the ladder of opportunity.

As many of you will be aware, my first party conference was cut short, due to the devastating floods in Millom and Haverigg. As the MP for Copeland I felt it my duty to abandon the speeches, meetings and events and return to Copeland to assist in the clean-up efforts and support my constituents during what can only be described as a distressing time.

I was pleased with the ambition talked of during the party’s conference - putting the interests of ordinary, working people first, ensuring our country is a fairer place to live and work while taking a balanced approach to our economy.

This led to several encouraging announcements, including the decision to move to an opt-out system for organ donation, the recruitment of 21,000 new mental health workers to ensure mental and physical health services are properly integrated and the introduction of a new nursing apprenticeship offering aspiring nurses the chance to learn and qualify on the job.