Cultural and Education Exchanges

Earl of Clancarty Excerpts

Thursday 22nd July 2021 Grand Committee

Asked by

[The Earl of Clancarty]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the value of cultural and education exchanges for (1) students, and (2) others who may benefit from such exchanges.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, having started my Question by referring to “cultural” exchanges but wishing to focus on educational exchanges, I requested—just to be on the safe side—that the debate be answered by the Department for Education. I am very glad that the noble Baroness, Lady Berridge, is here to do so. However, in truth, on reflection, my Question could have been directed in some sense at almost every government department, including, and perhaps especially, the Home Office—I will come back to that.

I first became aware of the term “cultural exchange” in the 1980s, when there was a trend for exchanges of artists between countries. From my time in Sheffield, I remember that there was a huge interest, there and elsewhere, in the culture of countries that are less visited or difficult to visit, including those behind the Iron Curtain or just released from it. Georgia was one such country.

However, one of the things that you quickly observed was how cultural exchange can, at least potentially, get very complicated because the artists concerned have this new, exciting relationship but might also have quite another relationship with their own respective countries—they do not necessarily represent them. One was particularly aware of these undercurrents at the time, even if the wider world then took little notice, at least on our side.

I detect an echo of this today, in a more reverberative way, in the fairly clear unwillingness of our current Government during negotiations to sign up to those aspects of Erasmus+ that they would have been uncomfortable with. Therefore, they could not sign up to Erasmus at all, certain that the schemes would, to the ears of some Brexiteers, have sounded a little too much like an overly cosy relationship at best, and EU propaganda at worst.

My belief is that the reason that the Government dropped Erasmus+ had very little to do with money, as they claim, but everything to do with ideology. Educational exchanges are cultural exchanges and, as with physical borders, this Government are just as keen to control the borders of such exchanges if they feel that their side of the border is in any way threatened. Curiously, they have a very different view of scientific collaboration, with our continuing membership of Horizon Europe, into which we are ploughing large sums of money. This is perhaps ironic, given that science subjects are as much affected by the decision to drop Erasmus+ as any other.

We presently seem to be in a kind of lull between the loss of Erasmus+ and discovering the results of Turing applications. On the plus side, relief has been expressed that something, at least, has been put in place. Also on the plus side is the appointment of the British Council and Ecorys to oversee the scheme, providing both experience and the possibility of a degree of continuity, at least. However, the debit side is long. From what we have heard, Turing woefully lacks the range, depth and ambitions of Erasmus+. The greatest apprehension concerns the potential loss of the links built up over many years by staff and colleges and through associated projects.

One of the major claims for Turing is that it will be global, but figures from 2017-18 show that four out of the five most popular destinations for students are the US—by a wide margin—Australia, Ireland and Canada. Remove the English-speaking countries and France, number 3 on the list and our closest neighbour, becomes the most popular. The language barrier, then, acts to some extent as a disincentive to the majority of UK students. The point here is that emphasising that Turing is to have a global reach only confirms a bias that is already there. Moreover, many universities already have arrangements with other countries, and Erasmus+ itself now reaches beyond Europe. The non-English speaking countries are the ones that really need targeting.

Knowledge of languages, as I am sure the noble Baroness, Lady Coussins, would point out, is a key factor in deeper cultural exchange, and is, moreover, hugely important for academic and scientific advancement. As someone very interested in the contemporary arts across Europe, I am aware of how much language differences can be a barrier to understanding. Yet, as a number of recent reports point out, language learning in the UK is decreasing. Andreas Schönle, of Bristol University, says:

“A particular concern … is the increasing social divide in foreign language ability. Yet bilingualism opens many doors and fosters social mobility”.


This is an important point to consider, if educational exchanges are also to help the disadvantaged.

In an answer to a Parliamentary Question on 17 June, the Universities Minister wrote:

“The Turing scheme is targeted at all students, particularly the most disadvantaged. While the UK was part of Erasmus, the most privileged were 1.7 times more likely to benefit from studying abroad”.


I ask the Government: what is the evidence base for that statement, and are they referring only to UK students?

A major intention of Erasmus+ is to help the less well-off, and there is a wealth of anecdotal evidence to support its effectiveness in this respect. A 2019 survey of 31 colleges by the Association of Colleges found that three-quarters gave that programme full marks for benefit to their institution. How will the Government monitor their intention to help the disadvantaged through study abroad, particularly in Europe, where post-Brexit logistical difficulties may well deter many, including the disadvantaged? Perhaps a better measure of success would be in absolute numbers, rather than ratios.

An interesting aspect of what has happened since the announcement about Erasmus has been the divergence in terms of opportunities available to students and others within the UK, across England and the devolved nations. The £65 million promised by the Welsh Government in March for the period 2022 to 2026 is not just an influx of money; it is an attempt, alongside Turing, to restructure opportunities according to the Erasmus+ model, and not to lose out on the partnerships that have already been built.

The press release, rather pointedly called “New International Learning Exchange programme to make good the loss of Erasmus+”, has this to say:

“The Programme will provide funding to enable students, staff and learners across universities, Further Education and Vocational Education and Training, Adult Education, youth work settings and schools to undertake a period of structured learning or work experience overseas, as well as enabling strategic partnerships … A fundamental principle of the programme will be reciprocity. Where necessary, the programme will fund costs related to the inward mobility of learners, teachers and young people from partner organisations abroad. This will enable existing partnerships which have been built up under Erasmus+ to continue and help to create new ones”.


Quite simply, Wales is trying to recreate Erasmus+. Scotland has said it wants Erasmus+ back, and Northern Ireland looks as though it will get both Erasmus+, courtesy of Ireland, and Turing. Meanwhile, England, without the direct political representation that could make the case for itself, as is increasingly true on so many matters, is left having to make do with Turing on its own, with no promise of further development of that scheme.

I have some other questions. The applications for Turing have now closed, so when will the Government publish detailed statistics, including the educational establishments participating, the number of participants involved per country, and the numbers per type of exchange? How will they monitor the effectiveness of Turing, and what criteria will they use? Will they commit to a longer cycle of funding? Will they, as Wales has decided to do, expand the scheme to take advantage of the links that already exist, and include other types of exchange, as well as the staff trips that so many colleges, including further education colleges, have, through Erasmus+, found so valuable in developing new ideas?

Will Turing be expanded to include partnerships and collaborative projects, such as the skills sector partnerships, crucial to the identification of emerging skills gaps across Europe, including gaps in digital skills? For so many current projects simply to be dropped through the loss of Erasmus+ would surely be a massive waste and a blow to educational development in this country—not to mention the jobs that would be lost. Will Turing reintroduce reciprocity in funding? That would be a key aspect of any claim for it to be a viable cultural exchange programme. I look forward to the Government’s response.

Finally, with regard to school trips from the EU, it is, again, the obsessive need to control our borders—we come back to the Home Office—that has led to the passport and visa changes on 1 October. The noble Baroness, Lady Williams, said in the House on 9 June that this would not lead to a fall in trips to the UK, and the Minister here today may back that view up, but the people we should all listen to are surely those who run the relevant businesses. The Guardian reported on 4 June the trip organisers’ view that there might be up to 375,000 fewer trips. The noble Baroness’s response —that the Government were bringing the regulations into line only with those for non-EU countries—was disingenuous, because within Europe the EU identity card is used as a passport, while on both sides the loss of the list of travellers scheme will mean the cancellation of trips, because some students will not be able to participate.

It will be the less well-off students who lose out—the opposite of what the Government claim they intend to achieve on our side with the Turing scheme. Will they monitor what effect these actions have on the number of school trips from Europe? If the numbers do fall, what effect will that have on the economy, including that of cities such as Canterbury, which depend so much on education?

Covid-19: Education Settings

Earl of Clancarty Excerpts

Thursday 8th July 2021 Lords Chamber

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, contrary to what the noble Lord, Lord Bethell, suggested earlier today, face masks work, and they work well. Studies show that they stop up to 80% of droplets escaping and 50% of those inhaled and, according to a new Addenbrooke’s study, FFP3 masks can afford up to 100% protection. So are the Government really convinced they are doing the right thing this week in not advising their use in schools at all from September if cases are rising fast and the greatest transmission is among the unvaccinated young?

[Baroness Berridge (Con)]

My Lords, we have outlined some of the details that the noble Earl outlined on personal protective equipment. In relation to the advice that it will not be necessary to use masks in schools as of 19 July, that is in accordance with step 4, which is based on the best scientific advice we have. There is no absolute certainty in any of these decisions, particularly in schools. Wearing masks has never been a requirement for primary-age children, because they affect children’s experience of education and cause difficulties. We are as clear as we can be, being human beings making decisions, that, for balance, as the right honourable Secretary of State for Health and Social Care said, in terms of mental health and well-being, this is the stage at which to take this step. Schools will be in line with what we are expecting of other people. We will not restrict school pupils more or less than the general population.

Secondary Schools: Arts Subjects

Earl of Clancarty Excerpts

Monday 7th June 2021 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[The Earl of Clancarty]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what support they intend to provide for education in arts subjects in secondary schools.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education and Department for International Trade (Baroness Berridge) (Con)]

My Lords, the Government are committed to high-quality education for all pupils, including in the arts. Schools are required to teach a broad and balanced curriculum, which includes promoting pupils’ cultural development. We have spent over £620 million between 2016 and 2021 on a range of cultural education programmes, which we continue to fund this year. This includes the Model Music Curriculum, which supports teachers to deliver high-quality music education.

--- Later in debate ---

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, can the Minister confirm that the £90 million arts pupil premium, promised last year and due to start this September, will go directly to schools? Secondly, does the Minister agree that proposed cuts to HE funding of arts subjects, based on perceived strategic priorities, are misguided? The innovation this Government wish to encourage will not come from STEM subjects alone, but as much from the creative subjects, and that starts in schools.

[Baroness Berridge (Con)]

My Lords, the Government have had to make some difficult fiscal decisions on the arts premium. As noble Lords are aware, we have no money for free schools this year. That, along with the arts premium, will be in the spending review in the autumn. The Office for Students has just consulted on the request to reprioritise the strategic priorities grant and, as the noble Earl is aware, an extra £10 million will be made available for specialist providers, which includes drama and arts institutions.

Education (Guidance about Costs of School Uniforms) Bill

Earl of Clancarty Excerpts

Friday 16th April 2021 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Altmann (Con) [V]]

My Lords, it is a pleasure to follow the noble Baroness, Lady Bull. I thank my noble friend the Minister for issuing the guidance for us to look over before this debate.

This is a rather narrow and—in almost all cases—uncontroversial issue. It needs to be dealt with quickly, as the noble Lord, Lord Blunkett, and the noble Baroness, Lady Bull, said; the sooner we can get this moving, the better. The sooner the guidance is issued, the better the position parents will be in to ensure that their children can comply with any requirements from this narrow Bill.

I sympathise in principle with the aims of my noble friend Lord Blencathra’s amendment. Having sat so often in recent months through legislation and statutory instruments that have gone through this House with so little scrutiny—and measures that have been introduced with no scrutiny—in principle I think it is important that the role of Parliament in scrutinising legislation be reasserted. We should make sure in coming years that the experience of the past months is not regularly repeated, but I cannot help but agree, I am afraid, with the noble Lord, Lord Blunkett, and the noble Baroness, Lady Bull, that this Bill is not the right place to impose such a principle at this time.

It is urgent that we make sure that we do everything possible to get the Bill through before the end of this Session. The Government have issued a delegated powers memorandum, and I think my noble friend the Minister has been doing her utmost to make sure that we are moving this forward. Even if we were to accept this amendment and the negative procedure were applied, it is hardly likely that on its passage through Parliament—whether in debate or in the scrutiny committee—any meaningful change would be achieved.

I am delighted to see that the guidance emphasises the importance of keeping costs down for parents and keeping branded items to a minimum, which will also assist with costs. I have a few questions for my noble friend. The guidance mentions that schools should take a “mindful and considerate approach” to resolving problems where children are unable to comply with uniform requirements due to financial hardship rather than wilful non-compliance. Could my noble friend give some indication of what would constitute such a mindful and considerate approach?

I echo the words of the noble Baroness, Lady Bull, on the dangers of excluding children or disciplining them with procedures when it will be very difficult for schools in many cases to differentiate between wilful non-compliance on behalf of the schoolchildren and non-compliance due to unaffordability for parents. Children who keep falling over or who have grown quickly and need new uniforms, rather than having just one set for the year, can often be a problem for parents.

Finally, in terms of a planned timetable, I encourage my noble friend to introduce this as speedily as possible, hopefully in time for the coming school year this September, and at least a clear implementation timing plan so that parents and schools can plan ahead and get the correct amounts of clothing for their children during the summer holidays and suppliers can bring in stock in preparation.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, I was a little taken aback by the reaction to my comments at Second Reading, both from this House and from outside. I seem to have unwittingly struck a nerve. The question that I simply leave your Lordships with is why every country on the continent, with the sole exception of Malta, can get along perfectly well without school uniforms —including, importantly, state schools—while we apparently cannot.

Having said that, school uniforms are currently the norm in this country, and I want to make it clear that what I said at Second Reading was in no way an attack on the Bill. I support it and congratulate the noble Baroness, Lady Lister of Burtersett, on bringing it to this House. School uniforms have become expensive and it is important that costs are kept down in the fight against poverty. I would therefore be very glad if the noble Lord, Lord Blencathra, did not press his albeit justifiable amendment to a vote. I am also glad that we have sight of the draft statutory guidance, as the Minister promised, and which the noble Lord, Lord Blencathra, asked for.

I have two questions for the Minister, of which I have given her advance notice. First, from my own vantage point, can she reassure me that the Bill, or any steps that the Government thereby take, will not affect the right of all schools to which the draft statutory guidance refers to decide whether they will have a school uniform? I appreciate that the Government have a stated preference. Nevertheless, there is a reference in the draft guidance to schools that

“may not have a uniform policy or dress code”

in paragraph 11. Still, I would like to hear that reassurance directly from the Minister.

My second question revolves around the curious fact that there does not seem to be a definition of what a school uniform is. It is perhaps assumed that we know what one is, but the truth is that the composition of uniforms may vary from school to school, and that in itself will affect costs. The draft guidance is fairly detailed, so a definition is implied, but a related concern is the cost of additional sportswear. Here I very much understand the importance of uniform in the practical sense, for team identification and aesthetically, so when paragraph 25(e) asks that additional items should not be used for interschool competitions, that feels disingenuous to me. Here again the cost to parents needs to be kept down. Could the Minister say a few words about that?

I wish the Bill a speedy passage. It is important that it gets on to the statute book.

[Lord Flight (Con)]

My Lords, I follow the remarks that have just been made in wishing the Bill to succeed and to move as quickly as possible to that end. A lot of people care about schools and school uniforms, and many of us may have noted the events in Pimlico of recent weeks.

I strongly support school uniforms. They are effective social levellers, really do help a good ethos and encourage camaraderie. Any good school head ought to make sure that his school has a well-structured, managed regime for second-hand school uniforms. I note that I still have a blazer from my schooldays that was second-hand when I acquired it.

Clearly it is crucial to keep costs down for parents and to review regularly the suppliers and the terms and competitiveness thereof. We need to encourage the second-hand clothing market in school uniforms. As I have just said, heads ought to take a role in leading that. However, if a school wants to retain a school uniform structure in the long term, it needs to achieve success now.

I was a little surprised to get the Department for Education paper. I thought I had read about a “daft cost of school uniform guidance”, but the word was actually “draft”. That makes the point that this is all far too complicated, and involving statutory elements is questionable. If you give schools too much to do, they will tend not to do the important things. Yes, provide advice to parents about uniforms, especially second-hand ones, but this document virtually envisages civil servants managing children’s school uniforms in detail. That is way over the top and I hope that, in due course, the Bill can be thinned down.

Education (Guidance about Costs of School Uniforms) Bill

Earl of Clancarty Excerpts

2nd reading
Friday 19th March 2021 Lords Chamber

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, I certainly support this Bill, encouraging as it does a reduction in costs—but it would be better to get rid of school uniforms. They are an outmoded idea and, ultimately, a repressive aspect of the education system itself, designed to keep children in line. They are, in effect, part of the wider educational policy working against a child-centred approach to education.

No school has to have a school uniform; nevertheless, the Government do not take a neutral stance on this, strongly recommending that schools have one. Moreover, in its guidance, the department states that the school uniform policy

“flows from the duties placed upon all governing bodies by statute to ensure that school policies promote good behaviour and discipline amongst the pupil body.”

I am fortunate in being able to send my daughter, who is now 16, to a school without a uniform. This is fortunate in the UK because it is the norm in all countries in Europe, barring ourselves, Ireland and Malta. My daughter has given me a quotation for this debate: “Thank God I don’t have to wear a school uniform; I wouldn’t be able to express myself every day.” Her words have a particular resonance at the moment, when school is the only time that children are seeing each other in person.

School is where you spend most of your time as a young person, with your friends and peers. It is the right place for teenagers in particular to test out what to wear and find their own style—that is, in itself, an important part of education. Parents will in any case have to buy the clothes that their children wear outside school; we do not live in the 1950s anymore. Children cannot wait to be out and about post-Covid, including going to parties. Young people wishing to wear the latest designer clothes is something that, to an extent, happens anyway, so why try to sweep that under the carpet and pretend it does not exist for most of the time children spend in school?

Perhaps, with the increased competition between schools encouraged by government, it is school uniforms that have increasingly become the luxury designer clothing item: the additional, in my view unnecessary, cost, which has little to do with education but everything to do with status. As the noble Baroness, Lady Lister, said, last year’s survey by the Children’s Society points out that

“nearly a quarter ... of parents said that the cost of school uniform had meant their child had worn ill-fitting, unclean or incorrect uniform.”

It has always been the case that you can tell who the poorest children are, and it is particularly easy to do so with school uniforms. They are not a means of levelling up—otherwise, we would not have this Bill.

Whereas over 90% of schools in England insist on school uniforms, a much lower percentage of parents—around 67%—are in favour of them. There is increasing school uniform scepticism, and the Government and schools should listen to those voices.

Education Return and Awarding Qualifications in 2021

Earl of Clancarty Excerpts

Monday 1st March 2021 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Berridge (Con)]

I am grateful to the noble Lord for highlighting the situation for early years provision, which has remained open during this time, because that kind of education is difficult, if not impossible, to deliver remotely. This is precisely the reason that catch-up will be for the lifetime of this Parliament. The £700 million is the tranche for this academic year. Sir Kevan Collins, whom I am grateful the noble Lord, Lord Storey, mentioned, will be advising us over the lifetime of the Parliament. We are investing £18 million this year on reception and early years to help those children catch up.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, thinking ahead, will the Government begin a wider consultation to ensure that 2022 GCSEs and A-levels will be fair and that there will be plenty of time to prepare for them?

[Baroness Berridge (Con)]

That issue and others are precisely what Sir Kevan Collins will be helping us with. We are monitoring interim findings on the amount of learning that has been lost. That will inform some of the basis for assessing how those students are doing. We can really only assess things from Monday to know who has lost what time in education.

Education: Supply Teachers

Earl of Clancarty Excerpts

Monday 22nd February 2021 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Berridge (Con) [V]]

My Lords, indeed, this is a regulated sector. Employers—namely, schools—and agency workers make use of this arrangement, and many teaching staff who are coming to the end of their career and who want to work in this flexible way take advantage of it. It is an advantage to the agency staff that they can choose to work one day or one week out of three and, as I said, it is particularly attractive to those ending their career, but of course there are protections to balance the advantages for the employee and those for the employer.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, the noble Baroness will be aware of what Matt Hancock said yesterday about vaccinating teachers. If the Government reconsider, will they ensure that supply teachers are not overlooked? Moving around, they are in a particularly vulnerable position, which is one very good reason why teachers should be vaccinated before any full return.

[Baroness Berridge (Con) [V]]

My Lords, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation asked for a cross-governmental response on occupational vaccination and the department responded to that. I can assure the noble Earl that that was for the entire education workforce and that representation included all people, temporary and permanent, including those in early years.

Covid-19: School Students Learning From Home

Earl of Clancarty Excerpts

Monday 5th October 2020 Lords Chamber

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

My Lords, this is an important subject, but I ask Members to please keep their supplementaries short. I call the noble Earl, Lord Clancarty.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, although the share of households with internet access in the UK is now at 93%, we hear too many stories of real concern about sharing devices and lack of computers, even with connectivity. Under what precise conditions are the Government currently supplying computers to the neediest? Should they not now pledge a dedicated school computer for every child, particularly considering that any child or whole class may at a moment’s notice have to switch to online learning?

[Baroness Berridge (Con)]

The Government are distributing these laptops to the most disadvantaged students. This batch will be delivered to disadvantaged children in years 3 to 11, to any child shielding and to any child in a hospital school or a further education college doing key stage 4. We rely on local authorities and schools to know who those disadvantaged children are; free school meals are a measure, but they know who the disadvantaged children are, and we must rely on them to distribute to those in need.

Schools: Arts Teaching

Earl of Clancarty Excerpts

Wednesday 22nd July 2020 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[The Earl of Clancarty]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what support is planned for the teaching of arts and other creative subjects in schools (1) online, and (2) in classrooms, as the restrictions in place to address the COVID-19 pandemic are lifted.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education and Department for International Trade (Baroness Berridge) (Con)]

My Lords, the department is committed to high-quality education for all pupils during this difficult time, including in the arts and other creative subjects. We have introduced several initiatives for schools and parents, including signposting to a range of online resources, including BBC Education, the Oak National Academy and other professional organisations, such as Music Mark and the National Society for Education in Art and Design. On 2 July, the department published detailed guidance to support the return to full-time education in September.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB) [V]]

My Lords, there is considerable concern that so-called core subjects will be prioritised in the autumn and arts subjects sidelined, with particular worries about subjects studied in year 10—a worry further fuelled by the comments of the CEO of the Harris Federation. Will the Government ensure that, come September, a broad and balanced curriculum will mean precisely that from the off, and that students will have a wide GCSE choice, including arts and design subjects? Does the Minister agree that arts in schools are currently urgently needed to play a central role in the country’s mental recovery from Covid?

[Baroness Berridge]

My Lords, I concur with the noble Earl that arts, PE et cetera, are vital to the well-being and recovery not just of children but of adults. Yes, the guidance makes clear that schools should return to a broad and balanced curriculum, with some flexibility, though, for teachers in relation to how pupils recover in the core subjects. Key stage 4 students should be expected to continue to study all their examination subjects. However, there may be exceptional circumstances where it is best that a pupil is not entered for the full range that they were intending to study next year, but we leave that matter with school teachers. As I say, it is exceptional: the noble Earl will be aware that Ofsted will begin visiting schools again in September, and the breadth of the curriculum is one of the matters it will be discussing collaboratively with schools.

Innovation Economy: Skills

Earl of Clancarty Excerpts

Monday 16th March 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Berridge]

My Lords, it is essential that this is both a local and a national approach by the Government. A national skills and productivity board has been announced and is in development, made up of experts sitting at a national level. There are now 36 skills and advisory panels—similar name but different function—at local level, which include the FE sector and employers, so that at local level we can provide the skills that the local economy needs.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, does the Minister agree with the statement from Innovate UK on its website that

“One of the most frequently-overlooked yet crucially important elements of innovation is design”?


If so, will the Government address the currently precarious and actually pitiful position of design subjects in schools, where design and technology in particular has 67% less GCSE take-up and 43% fewer teaching hours than 10 years ago?

[Baroness Berridge]

My Lords, the Government are committed to all those sectors with a skills gap: there is design, the automotive sector and engineering. What I just outlined at local and national level is to ensure what is being developed in qualifications and skills. That is why employers are involved in ensuring that apprenticeships match the needs of the economy.