Education: Special Educational Needs Budget

Debate between Lord Agnew of Oulton and Baroness Hussein-Ece

Thursday 17th October 2019 Lords Chamber

[Lord Agnew of Oulton]

My Lords, I am very happy to accede to the request of the noble Lord, Lord Blunkett, to do that, and I will carry out some inquiries.

[Baroness Hussein-Ece (LD)]

My Lords, can I take the Minister back to the reply he gave to the noble Lord, Lord Lexden, on state schools impeding parents from applying to private schools for special educational needs? I declare an interest as I have a grandson who has special needs and who has applied to a special needs school outside the system. In most instances, state schools have to fund these private places, which do not come cheap. Can the Minister give an assurance that these schools, which provide excellent facilities that the state system may not supply, will have sufficient funds so that some of these children can access these services in the private sector?

[Lord Agnew of Oulton]

My Lords, part of the reason for the very substantial increase in funding we have just announced is to provide more resources. I certainly cannot promise unlimited resources for all requests, but I believe that the £780 million we have just announced is substantial.

Social Mobility Commission

Debate between Lord Agnew of Oulton and Baroness Hussein-Ece

Monday 23rd April 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord Agnew of Oulton]

The right reverend Prelate is correct, and we ought to record our great debt of gratitude to him personally as one of the very first academy sponsors in Norfolk. I have seen the work that he has done. The short answer is yes. We have taken 1,950 previously largely failing schools into sponsored academy status. At the time they came in, only 10% of them were rated good or better. Today, 70% of those are good or better, which accounts for about 450,000 children. So I see the academy programme as a vital plank in social mobility.

[Baroness Hussein-Ece (LD)]

My Lords, from the evidence that we have heard, social mobility inequalities are not narrowing or improving, despite what we have heard from the noble Lord and despite what the Prime Minister pledged—to make Britain a country that works for everyone. Can the Minister say why the Government are not prioritising this and why is it not improving—or is it that the Government are rather preoccupied with something else?

[Lord Agnew of Oulton]

My Lords, I assure noble Lords that it is a very high priority of this Government. If we look at some of the papers and initiatives that have been launched just over the past few months, we can see the 30-hours policy in December 2017, which was aimed at disadvantaged families. Then there was Unlocking Talent, Fulfilling Potential, aimed at improving social mobility, issued in December. I mentioned earlier the integration strategy, and we had a careers strategy in December 2017. These are all aimed at improving social mobility.

Social Mobility

Debate between Lord Agnew of Oulton and Baroness Hussein-Ece

Wednesday 22nd November 2017 Lords Chamber

[Lord Agnew of Oulton]

The noble Lord raises an important point. I am sure that all noble Lords are aware that my right honourable friend the Secretary of State in the other place has placed social mobility at the core of her mission in this department. One of her key concerns is the creation of 12 opportunity areas in some of the most disadvantaged parts of the country, six of which have now issued their own plans to tackle some of the issues that the noble Lord raises.

[Baroness Hussein-Ece (LD)]

My Lords, the Social Mobility Commission found that many minority communities were being left behind and made many specific recommendations in that regard. One concerns Muslim women, particularly those from Pakistani and Bangladeshi communities, who do very well in education and go on to university but are less likely to find well-paid jobs. With that in mind, the commission called for schools, universities and employers to provide targeted support to ensure that Muslim women progress in the workplace. What is being done to meet this aim?

[Lord Agnew of Oulton]

My Lords, over the last seven years, we have put a lot of emphasis on helping students from less advantaged backgrounds into higher education. That includes, of course, those from minority backgrounds. We are spending £840 million a year to help disadvantaged students into university. That is nearly twice as much as in 2010. That includes things such as outreach programmes, pastoral support and support for internships. All these things will help the group to which the noble Baroness referred.