Asked by: Earl of Clancarty (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether reducing absenteeism in schools will be an explicit goal of the curriculum review.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
Tackling absence is at the heart of the government’s mission to break down the barriers to opportunity. Thanks to the efforts of the sector there are more learners in school but, with 1.6 million children still persistently absent, this remains a major challenge.
The Curriculum and Assessment Review is being independently conducted by a group of education leaders (the review group) and chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE. The terms of reference were published in July, which is attached and can also be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/curriculum-and-assessment-review.
The review will look closely at the key challenges to attainment for young people, and the barriers which hold children back from the opportunities and life chances they deserve, in particular those who are socioeconomically disadvantaged, or with special educational needs or disabilities. However, the review will not be able to address every issue facing the curriculum and assessment system. It will therefore seek to identify and focus on addressing the most significant and pressing issues facing curriculum and assessment without destabilising the system.
Ministers will take decisions on what changes to make to curriculum, assessment and qualifications in the light of the final recommendations from the review group next autumn.
Asked by: Earl of Clancarty (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Smith of Malvern on 17 October regarding the music and dance scheme (HL Deb col 303–04), whether they are having similar discussions with providers of the Dance and Drama Awards Scheme; and whether similar consideration will be given to support by the Department for Education for that scheme.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
The government has engaged with providers involved in the Dance and Drama Awards scheme to discuss the issue of VAT on private education and will consider how best to support young people engaged in this programme following the spending review.
Asked by: Earl of Clancarty (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will negotiate for the UK to rejoin Erasmus+.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
The department is working to reset the relationship with its European friends to strengthen ties and tackle barriers to trade. My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs has said that the department must do more to champion ties between the UK and the EU’s people and culture, for example, holidays, family ties, school and student exchanges, the arts and sport.
This is not about renegotiating or relitigating Brexit, but about looking forward and building a strong and constructive relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union.
Asked by: Earl of Clancarty (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will review the amounts payable for Initial Teacher Training bursaries for arts subjects
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
For those starting initial teacher training (ITT) in the 2024/25 academic year in art and design and music, the department is offering a £10,000 bursary.
The bursaries that the department offers are designed to incentivise more applications to ITT courses. The department reviews bursaries each year before deciding the offer for trainees starting ITT the following academic year. In doing this, the department takes account of a number of factors, including historic recruitment, forecast economic conditions and teacher supply need in each subject.
The government is committed to delivering 6,500 new expert teachers. To deliver that commitment, the department will review the way bursaries are allocated and the structure of retention payments. The department will announce its recruitment and retention incentive offer for 2025/26 in due course.
All trainees on a tuition fee-funded ITT course can apply for a tuition fee loan and maintenance loan to support their living costs. Additional funding is also available depending on individual circumstances, such as the Childcare Grant. More information about teacher training funding can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/teacher-training-funding.
Asked by: Earl of Clancarty (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their definition of "cultural education" as referred to in the published terms of reference for the Cultural Education Plan Expert Advisory Panel.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
The published terms of reference for the cultural education plan expert advisory panel, sets out that cultural education sits at the heart of an enriching and fulfilling curriculum for pupils. A broad and balanced curriculum includes arts and heritage in the range of subjects taught, and in wider co and extracurricular activities.
The breadth and depth of cultural education is demonstrated by, but not exclusive to, the following: visual arts, music, craft, dance, design, digital arts and gaming, drama and theatre, film and cinema, galleries, heritage, libraries, literature and poetry, live performance, museums, and archaeology, architecture and the built environment, and archives.
This plan will focus on how the department can support access and participation in a wide range of arts subjects and activities, particularly for children and young people from disadvantaged backgrounds and in underrepresented groups. It will also further support young people who wish to pursue careers in our creative, cultural, and heritage industries.
Asked by: Earl of Clancarty (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the justification for imposing fines for absenteeism in schools; and whether they intend to review the use of this measure.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
Absence is often a symptom of wider issues a family is facing. Schools, trusts and local authorities should always work together with other local partners to understand the barriers to attendance and provide support. Where support is not successful, not engaged with, or not appropriate, legal intervention remains an important part of local authorities’ powers to protect every child’s right to a full-time education.
The department has consulted on a new framework to improve consistency and fairness in issuing penalty notices and to ensure they are used effectively as part of the suite of parental responsibility measures. The department will be responding to this consultation in due course.
Asked by: Earl of Clancarty (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Barran on 26 April (HL Deb cols 1208–11), whether (1) the National Curriculum, and (2) accountability measures, will be in scope of the Cultural Education Plan.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
More details on the Cultural Education Plan will be published shortly, including the Expert Advisory Panel and the Terms of Reference for their work. The Government has already implemented significant reforms to raise expectations in terms of what all pupils are taught and how schools are held accountable, and we do not plan to make further changes to the National Curriculum or performance measures in this Parliament. We value the work of teachers and schools in responding to these changes and as such these matters are out of scope of this Plan.
The Cultural Education Plan will highlight the importance of a high quality cultural education and the important role that wider cultural institutions can play by working with schools.
Asked by: Earl of Clancarty (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government when the (1) Expert Advisory Panel, and (2) Terms of Reference, for the Cultural Education Plan will be announced.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
More details on the Cultural Education Plan will be published shortly, including the Expert Advisory Panel and the Terms of Reference for their work. The Government has already implemented significant reforms to raise expectations in terms of what all pupils are taught and how schools are held accountable, and we do not plan to make further changes to the National Curriculum or performance measures in this Parliament. We value the work of teachers and schools in responding to these changes and as such these matters are out of scope of this Plan.
The Cultural Education Plan will highlight the importance of a high quality cultural education and the important role that wider cultural institutions can play by working with schools.
Asked by: Earl of Clancarty (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will introduce the arts premium outlined in the most recent Conservative Party manifesto.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
This government is committed to high quality education for all pupils, and integral to this are the arts and music.
The Autumn Statement announced additional investment of £2 billion in each of 2023/24 and 2024/25, over and above totals announced at the 2021 Spending Review.
This means funding for both mainstream schools and high needs is £3.5 billion higher in 2023/24, compared to 2022/23. That funding is on top of the £4 billion, year-on-year increase provided in 2022/23. In total, this represents an increase of £7.5 billion, or over 15%, in schools’ funding in just two years.
Arts education is integral to the school system and the department will also continue to invest around £115 million per annum in cultural education to 2025, through our music, arts and heritage programmes. Consideration for an Arts Premium will be given in due course.
Asked by: Earl of Clancarty (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will produce a formal response to The Times Education Commission's final report, published on 15 June.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
We are very grateful for the work of the Times Education Commission, noting both the breadth of issues and the depth of evidence considered during its inquiry.
We remain committed to our ambitious programme of educational reforms. These include the bold measures set out in our 2021 Skills for Jobs White Paper, which will give people the opportunity to train, retrain and upskill flexibly throughout their lives, in order to get great jobs in the sectors that our economy needs and to boost productivity.
Through the changes set out in our 2022 Schools White Paper, we are also driving improved standards in schools with measures that will ensure an excellent teacher for every child, high standards of curriculum, attendance and behaviour, and targeted support for children who are behind in English or maths and a stronger and fairer school system that works for every child.
We remain focused on these and our other reform priorities and have no current plans to publish a formal response to the Commission.