Asked by: Baroness Garden of Frognal (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to exempting PhD students from the international student levy.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The International Student Levy will require higher education providers to pay a flat fee of £925 per international student per year. The income raised by the levy will be reinvested into skills.
Providers will be given an allowance for the first 220 international students per year. This is to mitigate the levy having a disproportionate impact on smaller providers, particularly those operating specialist and resource intensive models with limited other means of cross-subsidisation. The levy will not be introduced until 2028/29 to give providers time to plan for its introduction. Providers will pay the levy one year in arrears, to help with their financial planning.
Asked by: Baroness Garden of Frognal (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had, if any, with parties involved in the sale of the City & Guilds of London Institute prior to the sale of its charitable assets in October 2025.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
City & Guilds of London Institute is an independent organisation. The government has no role in its governance or commercial decisions, including the sale of its charitable assets in October 2025.
The department did not hold discussions with parties involved in that sale prior to it taking place.
Following the sale of City and Guilds Ltd, the organisation has confirmed they will continue to deliver qualifications within the further education sector and work constructively with providers as usual.
Asked by: Baroness Garden of Frognal (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of commissioning an inquiry by Ofqual into the sale of the City & Guilds of London Institute, given the implications for the qualifications system.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
City and Guilds of London Institute is an independent organisation. The government has no role in its governance or commercial decisions, including the sale of its charitable assets in October 2025.
Following the sale of City and Guilds Ltd, the organisation has confirmed they will continue to deliver qualifications within the further education sector and work constructively with providers as usual.
Ofqual remain actively engaged with City and Guilds Ltd.
Asked by: Baroness Garden of Frognal (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the proposed international student levy on universities’ capacity to support artificial intelligence research, skills development and commercialisation, and the Government's ambitions for AI-driven economic growth.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government will set out further details on the international student levy at the Autumn Budget. This will include setting out the amount of the levy and the way in which proceeds will be reinvested into our higher education (HE) and skills system through targeted means-tested maintenance grants for students studying courses that support our missions and Industrial Strategy.
The department has engaged with many HE providers and representative bodies regarding the levy since the publication of the Immigration White Paper, and we will set out our plans for further engagement on the levy in due course.
We will also publish an impact analysis of the levy in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Garden of Frognal (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the alignment between the proposed international student levy and their wider objectives for economic growth, innovation and skills.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government will set out further details on the international student levy at the Autumn Budget. This will include setting out the amount of the levy and the way in which proceeds will be reinvested into our higher education (HE) and skills system through targeted means-tested maintenance grants for students studying courses that support our missions and Industrial Strategy.
The department has engaged with many HE providers and representative bodies regarding the levy since the publication of the Immigration White Paper, and we will set out our plans for further engagement on the levy in due course.
We will also publish an impact analysis of the levy in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Garden of Frognal (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to publish the methodology, data sources and modelling assumptions used in any Treasury impact assessment on the proposed international student levy.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government will set out further details on the international student levy at the Autumn Budget. This will include setting out the amount of the levy and the way in which proceeds will be reinvested into our higher education (HE) and skills system through targeted means-tested maintenance grants for students studying courses that support our missions and Industrial Strategy.
The department has engaged with many HE providers and representative bodies regarding the levy since the publication of the Immigration White Paper, and we will set out our plans for further engagement on the levy in due course.
We will also publish an impact analysis of the levy in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Garden of Frognal (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to consult the higher education and business sectors on the proposed international student levy.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government will set out further details on the international student levy at the Autumn Budget. This will include setting out the amount of the levy and the way in which proceeds will be reinvested into our higher education (HE) and skills system through targeted means-tested maintenance grants for students studying courses that support our missions and Industrial Strategy.
The department has engaged with many HE providers and representative bodies regarding the levy since the publication of the Immigration White Paper, and we will set out our plans for further engagement on the levy in due course.
We will also publish an impact analysis of the levy in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Garden of Frognal (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what was the cash outlay for English domiciled students in the financial years (1) 2022–23 and (2) 2023–24 for fee and maintenance loans for (a) full-time and part-time 'foundation degree' students and (b) full-time and part-time ‘other undergraduate’ students.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
For English domiciled students in the 2022/23 and 2023/24 financial years for fee and maintenance loans, the following breakdown of outlay is provided:
For the 2022/23 financial year:
Full-time students studying for foundation degrees:
Part-time students studying for foundation degrees:
Full-time students studying for ‘other undergraduate’ qualifications:
Part-time students studying for ‘other undergraduate’ qualifications:
For the 2023/24 financial year:
Full-time students studying for foundation degrees:
Part-time students studying for foundation degrees:
Full-time students studying for ‘other undergraduate’ qualifications:
Part-time students studying for ‘other undergraduate’ qualifications:
‘Other undergraduate’ includes all undergraduate courses not classified as first degrees and covers a wide range of qualifications from levels 4-6 as defined by the Higher Education Standards Authority (HESA). More information on HESA’s classification standards can be found here: https://www.hesa.ac.uk/support/definitions.
'Other undergraduate' qualifications include all 'foundation degree' qualifications. Funding for courses at levels 3-6 is also available through Advanced Learner Loans.
Asked by: Baroness Garden of Frognal (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address the gender divide amongst science and maths teachers in order to provide more positive role models for girls in the classroom.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
The department is offering a Levelling Up Premium worth up to £3,000 after tax annually for mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing teachers in the first five years of their careers who choose to work in disadvantaged schools, including in Education Investment Areas. For 2024/25 and 2025/26, the department will be doubling the rates of the Levelling Up Premium to up to £6,000 after tax. These payments will incentivise the recruitment and retention of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) teachers within the schools where they are needed most.
The department has put in place a range of measures, including bursaries worth £28,000 tax-free and scholarships worth £30,000 tax-free, to encourage talented trainee teachers to key subjects such as mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing. This is alongside delivering a £30,000 starting salary for school teachers in all regions of the country, with a pay award of up to 7.1% for new teachers outside London.
This academic year, physics trainees from overseas are also eligible for bursaries and scholarships, and for a one-off payment of £10,000 as part of the international relocation payment pilot.
To encourage engineering graduates and career changers with an engineering background to consider a career as a physics teacher, the department has also launched the ‘Engineers teach physics’ Initial Teacher Training course. Following a pilot in 2022, the department has now rolled this out nationally.
The department is also taking action to support all teachers to stay in the profession and thrive and has published a range of resources to help address teacher workload and wellbeing and to support schools to introduce flexible working practices.
On the subject of diverse teacher role models in science and mathematics, there remains a larger proportion of female teachers than male teachers in state-funded schools overall (76%).
The department aims to support the diversity of the workforce through our communications campaigns, workforce programmes that support all teachers to develop across their careers, and policies to support the workforce, such as flexible working. For example, the Get Into Teaching marketing campaign supports diverse recruitment into the profession through inclusive recruitment campaigns and marketing materials, which strive to reflect the diversity of our target audiences who want reassurance that teaching is for people like them. The campaign regularly showcases STEM teachers from diverse backgrounds.
The department supports a range of work to improve diversity and inclusion in STEM education in schools, including funding a Stimulating Physics Network to improve the quality of physics teaching and improve progression to A level physics, particularly for girls.
More widely, the government supports girls and pupils from other underrepresented groups into STEM education through programmes such as the CyberFirst Girls competition which aims to promote cybersecurity careers to girls aged between 12 and 14.
The government also funds the STEM Ambassadors programme, a nationwide network of over 30,000 registered volunteers representing thousands of employers, who engage with young people to increase their interest in STEM subjects and to raise awareness of the range of careers that STEM qualifications offer. Approximately 48% of Ambassadors are women and 17% are from minority ethnic backgrounds, providing young people with a variety of role models.
Asked by: Baroness Garden of Frognal (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to (1) recruit, and (2) retain, more science and maths teachers in schools serving the most disadvantaged communities.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
The department is offering a Levelling Up Premium worth up to £3,000 after tax annually for mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing teachers in the first five years of their careers who choose to work in disadvantaged schools, including in Education Investment Areas. For 2024/25 and 2025/26, the department will be doubling the rates of the Levelling Up Premium to up to £6,000 after tax. These payments will incentivise the recruitment and retention of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) teachers within the schools where they are needed most.
The department has put in place a range of measures, including bursaries worth £28,000 tax-free and scholarships worth £30,000 tax-free, to encourage talented trainee teachers to key subjects such as mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing. This is alongside delivering a £30,000 starting salary for school teachers in all regions of the country, with a pay award of up to 7.1% for new teachers outside London.
This academic year, physics trainees from overseas are also eligible for bursaries and scholarships, and for a one-off payment of £10,000 as part of the international relocation payment pilot.
To encourage engineering graduates and career changers with an engineering background to consider a career as a physics teacher, the department has also launched the ‘Engineers teach physics’ Initial Teacher Training course. Following a pilot in 2022, the department has now rolled this out nationally.
The department is also taking action to support all teachers to stay in the profession and thrive and has published a range of resources to help address teacher workload and wellbeing and to support schools to introduce flexible working practices.
On the subject of diverse teacher role models in science and mathematics, there remains a larger proportion of female teachers than male teachers in state-funded schools overall (76%).
The department aims to support the diversity of the workforce through our communications campaigns, workforce programmes that support all teachers to develop across their careers, and policies to support the workforce, such as flexible working. For example, the Get Into Teaching marketing campaign supports diverse recruitment into the profession through inclusive recruitment campaigns and marketing materials, which strive to reflect the diversity of our target audiences who want reassurance that teaching is for people like them. The campaign regularly showcases STEM teachers from diverse backgrounds.
The department supports a range of work to improve diversity and inclusion in STEM education in schools, including funding a Stimulating Physics Network to improve the quality of physics teaching and improve progression to A level physics, particularly for girls.
More widely, the government supports girls and pupils from other underrepresented groups into STEM education through programmes such as the CyberFirst Girls competition which aims to promote cybersecurity careers to girls aged between 12 and 14.
The government also funds the STEM Ambassadors programme, a nationwide network of over 30,000 registered volunteers representing thousands of employers, who engage with young people to increase their interest in STEM subjects and to raise awareness of the range of careers that STEM qualifications offer. Approximately 48% of Ambassadors are women and 17% are from minority ethnic backgrounds, providing young people with a variety of role models.