Schools: Exams

Baroness Warsi Excerpts

Wednesday 6th January 2021 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Berridge (Con)]

My Lords, those students at supplementary schools are reviewed as private candidates. That is the same situation that home-educated students found themselves in last year, many of whom took advantage of the autumn series to sit examinations where centres could not, with integrity, give a grade to their work. Again I must point the noble Baroness to the consultation that will take place, but I anticipate that private candidates, including supplementary schools, will be part of what is looked at in the consultation to try to ensure that we can give them a grade through the assessment process in the summer.

[Baroness Warsi (Con) [V]]

My Lords, I declare my interest as set out in the register. I support the Government’s decision to put teachers at the forefront of grading A-levels and GCSEs this summer. Following the question from the noble Lord, Lord Storey, I stress that there must be an external moderating assessment of whatever process is put in place. Can my noble friend shed some detail on the timeframe for the consultation of what this process will be? What assessment has been made of the impact of this timetable on university applications?

[Baroness Berridge (Con)]

My Lords, as I outlined, UCAS has extended the application window for two weeks. I am anticipating that external moderation will be part of what the consultation will include. That will be swift; it needs to be a valid consultation, but we know that we need to give certainty as soon as we can to schools, pupils and families. It may be that as I speak the Secretary of State is in the other place outlining further details. I am obviously not at liberty to give them today but I will be repeating that Statement tomorrow.

Lifetime Skills Guarantee and Post-16 Education

Baroness Warsi Excerpts

Tuesday 6th October 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Berridge (Con)]

The noble Baroness is correct that, obviously, for many people, the concept of a job for life is a thing of the past. People have numerous careers or jobs during their working life. I can assure her that the curriculum taught in our schools is knowledge-based and it is rich. Young people are encouraged to explore nature and to use the outdoors. I know that many schools, whether it is forest schools or woodland schools, et cetera, have adopted that. Obviously, teaching about the environment is an important part of that.

She is entirely right, as well, that employers need to be at the centre of this. That is why there has been this transference on to employers. The institutes of technology will be a partnership of employers, universities and FE colleges. Apprenticeships are employer-standard led, and also there are local skills advisory boards that bring together local employers, the LEPs and others. There will now be a national skills and productivity board, so that we have a structure around employer engagement in these qualifications.

[Baroness Warsi (Con)]

My Lords, I draw the House’s attention to my entry in the register of interests.

I welcome the Statement, particularly the announcement of a flexible lifelong learning loan. Picking up a point raised by the noble Lord, Lord Watson, I ask my noble friend this question, of which I gave notice: when do the Government anticipate this loan becoming available? As we come to the end of the furlough scheme, where many sadly will lose long-term jobs and possibly seek to retrain, do the Government see the necessity of speeding up the consultation process and the legislative process to implement these announcements?

Educational Settings

Baroness Warsi Excerpts

Thursday 19th March 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Berridge]

Universities are separate to this Statement. It is down to the discretion of vice-chancellors following the Public Health England guidance, but we are working with universities and the Treasury in relation to the financial implications. The Secretary of State mentioned particularly the anticipated drop in international students later on in the year, so we are working closely with them and anticipate that on a case- by-case basis they will keep some of their accommodation occupied along with some of their boarding houses. Looked-after children, estranged students and students who are care leavers will potentially need to stay on campus. We are dealing with those issues, and I will write with any further detail to the noble Baroness.

[Baroness Warsi (Con)]

My Lords, following on directly from that question, is there any clarity at this stage about predicted grades and university entrance for those currently doing A-levels or equivalent qualifications? As my noble friend will be aware, many schools and colleges predict grades that end up being higher than the actual grades received by students. Universities such as mine—I declare an interest as the pro-vice-chancellor of a university—will often take on children who have not attained the grades that they were predicted, so a large amount of our intake and that of other universities lower down the league tables, if you can say “down”, is during clearing. Has any consideration therefore been given to those universities that will be oversubscribed based on predicted grades, if that is what the requirement will be, and those that will clearly be undersubscribed? What financial packages will be put in place to ensure that we do not lose any university during this time?

[Baroness Berridge]

The noble Baroness, Lady Warsi, raises some of the detailed issues that arise in this unprecedented situation. These matters are being taken into account. Whenever you think about the situation, another implication arises. All that she says will be noted and taken back. As I say, though, the assessment of grades for examinations is something that will be out, I believe, tomorrow.