There’s been an acceleration in the pace of life in Parliament and in the constituency since my last update. Those early months as a new MP – setting up an office, recruiting a team, finding my way around Parliament - are a memory. Now I’ve got a full team in place and we’re moving at speed to deal with more than 100 constituent cases that come into my inbox each week.

Now that I’ve found my feet in Westminster, it’s onto more important business: pressing for action and increasing awareness on the issues you’ve told me are important to you. In the last few weeks, I’ve spoken out in favour of the government’s plans to provide more affordable childcare, voted for the biggest upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation, and called out profiteering by private providers of education for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities.

One of the great pleasures of this job is combining the personal and the political. As one of very few MPs who grew up in care, and as a former university teacher, I know we need to do more to remove barriers to opportunity for all young people – regardless of background. That’s why I was delighted to be elected to the Education Select Committee. These committees play an important role in holding government to account by examining policy, making recommendations, and gathering evidence from the public. Drawing on my own experience, I’ll work cross-party to ensure all young people from Southampton and across the country get the best life chances from this Labour government.

If my prevailing feeling is one of hope for the future we’re building, there’s a lingering feeling of anger about the present. Everyone deserves to live in safe, secure homes but this remains beyond the reach of too many Southampton residents who have talked to me about the stress and uncertainty caused by cladding and fire safety and are clear that they want to see swifter action. This is unacceptable and I’ll be meeting with more than 60 constituents soon to discuss how we can end this scandal – once and for all.

This week the chancellor delivered a Budget that will bring real benefits to people in Southampton, from the increase in the living wage that will put more money in people’s pockets, to more funding to help the NHS deliver more treatment and reduce waiting times. The chancellor made some tough decisions to begin turning around 14 years of Tory decline and enable the government to deliver the growth and prosperity that are so central to our mission.

On a happier note, I can’t finish without mentioning one special highlight – meeting Larry the Cat at Number 10. I get asked more questions about Larry than almost any other political personality, and it was great to meet him briefly despite the customary feline aloofness!

As ever, if you’re a constituent and would like my help or to raise an issue, please don’t hesitate to get in touch at darren.paffey.mp@parliament.uk.