Apprenticeships: Ethnic Minorities
Debate between Baroness Wilcox and Lord Addington
Baroness Wilcox
I cannot give the noble Lord details at the moment but I will of course write to him on what we are doing. Cutting down in any area like this is obviously difficult. No Government want to come in and find that the coffers are so empty that they have to withdraw that sort of help.
Lord Addington
My Lords, can my noble friend assure me that the Government will look at all aspects of the apprenticeship schemes to ensure that people from all walks of society can be included in them? As we know—I have taken up a great deal of the House’s time on this—the biggest disability group, that of dyslexics, was once excluded. Can we look at the basic structure to make sure that there are no more such mistakes waiting to be unearthed?
Baroness Wilcox
My noble friend does wonderful work making sure that dyslexia stays at the very top of my agenda, and he knows that we are working hard to see if we can get the right access criteria for dyslexia. Yes, we will continue to look at any group of young people who are being excluded from work. We cannot afford to have anybody out of work at the moment.
Education: Skills
Debate between Baroness Wilcox and Lord Addington
Lord Addington
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the key skills and functional skills requirements in the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009 are compatible with the Equality Act 2010 in relation to accessibility for dyslexic and other disabled conditions.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (Baroness Wilcox)
My Lords, the apprenticeships provisions within the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act are compatible with the Equality Act. Employers say that basic English and mathematics are essential for apprentices. The specification of apprenticeship standards for England sets out minimum requirements for apprenticeships. Key skills are being withdrawn as they are not fit for purpose and, from October, apprentices can choose between the GCSEs or functional skills for English and mathematics.
Lord Addington
I thank the Minister for that Answer and draw attention to my declared interests. Does my noble friend agree—I have shown this to her—that I have some legal opinion which might contradict that? Does she acknowledge that, at the moment, there are people who are failing to pass the English qualification because of dyslexia who could be helped through to degree level if they chose that path? There is also evidence which shows that people are having problems because those who administer these tests do not know what they could do. Under these circumstances, does not our Government have a duty to make sure that something which has been brought forward as a great saviour of our skill force—the apprenticeship—is made fit for purpose?
Baroness Wilcox
The noble Lord is an expert on this subject and I think carefully about the answers that I give him. Yes, he had already given me sight of the Question he was going to ask. There is no evidence to suggest that the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act is not compliant with the Equality Act. The Equality and Human Rights Commission is a critical friend in order for us to be assured of continued compliance, and it stays alongside us. On tackling the colleges and providers, where a college or provider is not using appropriate access arrangements they may lose their right to deliver these qualifications as an approved centre. We will be watching that situation very carefully. Both English and mathematics, of course, are ongoing problems for people with dyslexia but, where barriers to access remain, as a last resort individuals can be exempted from up to two or three of the assessed components within the functions skills—I have checked this and found it to be right—speaking, listening, communication, reading and writing. In the last event, two or three of those components can be removed to make it as accessible as possible.
Perhaps I might add that the employers are very keen that everyone should have basic English and mathematics, and we know how difficult this is for many people with dyslexia. However, it is important, if we can, to keep people with disabilities and dyslexia inside the system and to help them to be as much a part of our community as everyone else. So, wherever it is possible to keep people inside the community, we will. I am sorry that my answer was long but the issue is important.
Apprenticeships: Dyslexia
Debate between Baroness Wilcox and Lord Addington
Lord Addington
My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper, and draw attention to my declaration in the register of interests.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (Baroness Wilcox)
My Lords, the Government recognise that there are issues with delivery that can make it difficult for people with dyslexia to get the English qualifications that apprenticeships require. We want to ensure that all learning providers offer the right provision and support, and are challenging these providers’ representatives to see what more their members can do to make this work. I know that assessment arrangements for key skills are a particular concern to my noble friend Lord Addington and I assure him that this qualification will be phased out of the apprenticeship by the autumn of next year.
Lord Addington
I thank my noble friend for that Answer. I am sorry to have to return to this subject yet again. I hope the Government can give us an assurance that they are looking at finding a way through this and give us some sort of timescale. With that in mind, could the Government please tell us whether any precedent that is set in other parts of the education department is appropriate to be taken as a whole to this area? If you can get through the A-level system and to university, surely you should be allowed to get through the apprenticeship system.
Baroness Wilcox
My noble friend rightly repeats a worry and a question that he has over the fact that using the key skills system for the apprenticeships is extremely difficult. We are looking, as he knows, at how we can improve access. There is no doubt that to encourage employers to take as many apprentices as possible is good for our country and we want to use all the talents that we have. That means harnessing able and disabled students wherever possible.
Dyslexia
Debate between Baroness Wilcox and Lord Addington
Lord Addington
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress has been made in making apprenticeships fully accessible to those with dyslexia.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (Baroness Wilcox)
My Lords, we have been taking forward the commitment to develop an alternative way for disabled people to demonstrate their suitability for an apprenticeship. We have developed an initial recommendation. The next steps are to confirm wider endorsement of the proposed model and focus on implementation. External experts continue to advise officials on this and other disability access issues in apprenticeships. We are currently reviewing these advisory arrangements and would welcome specialist input on dyslexia.
Lord Addington
I thank my noble friend for that reply. Will she confirm that it is an absurdity that people can get special arrangements to help them through the A-level system whereas dyslexics are failing a communication test which they have to take in the apprenticeships process and are thus not being allowed to qualify, when direct access to this qualification would allow them to earn a living? Is this situation not an absurdity, and will the Government assure us that they will report back to the House when they have corrected it? If not, we are going to go back to it again and again.
Baroness Wilcox
The noble Lord is an expert in this area and has spoken to me about this question so I am able to give him my hope for the reassurance that he is asking for. He is talking about the option of key skills as opposed to functional skills in apprenticeships. We have looked at this and extended the options of key skill apprenticeships only on a temporary basis until autumn 2012, because not enough providers were geared up to offer the functional skills which we—and which I know that he and employers—actually prefer. We are well on the way to providing this. We wanted to ensure that there was continuation during this time. However, it does seem very odd that you can get into university or take your GCSE with a functional skill that is not being provided at apprenticeship level. I give the noble Lord my personal assurance that I shall make sure that we continue to address this.
Student Loans Company
Debate between Baroness Wilcox and Lord Addington
Lord Addington
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proposals they have concerning the performance of the Student Loans Company as regards its general duties and its support for disabled students.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (Baroness Wilcox)
My Lords, last year, the service delivered by the Student Loans Company was unacceptable. The Student Loans Company now has a strengthened leadership team and is engaging more effectively with its stakeholders, including those representing disabled students. My department has provided increased resources to help the Student Loans Company put the service back on track, and has set tighter turnaround targets for applications for the disabled students’ allowance.
Lord Addington
I thank my noble friend for that Answer. As something like 10,000 students did not receive their disabled students’ allowance last year, can the noble Baroness give an indication of what is being done to make sure that any future reorganisation of the service does not result in a disaster like this one, where a locally run service was replaced with a central one and ended up failing totally?
Baroness Wilcox
My Lords, the Student Loans Company has made a number of improvements in the way it processes applications, which I hope will improve customers’ experience. The scanning technology that was at the heart of the processing problems last year has been moved from Glasgow to Darlington where the processing teams are based so that all paper documentation is sent to one location, allowing the Student Loans Company to react quickly to any problems. A more user-friendly online application process has been introduced for new and returning students. Applications for disabled students’ allowances are now being turned around faster, and in consultation with stakeholders—who have proved to be an invaluable support to us—the Student Loans Company has streamlined its processes for dealing with these applications. That includes a fourfold increase in the number of staff allocated to the work, with better training and quality assurance to ensure consistency in the service provided to its customers.