Higher Education: T-Levels

Lord Bishop of Coventry Excerpts

Thursday 24th February 2022 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[The Lord Bishop of Coventry]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the acceptance of T Levels by Higher Education institutions for candidates for admission to universities via the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) in the current application cycle.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education (Baroness Barran) (Con)]

My Lords, we recently published a list of higher education providers that will accept T-levels. Some 118 higher education providers, of which 78 are English universities, have so far agreed to accept applications from T-level students. This overall figure has increased from 75 since December last year, and we expect it to continue to grow.

[The Lord Bishop of Coventry]

My Lords, I thank the Minister for her very helpful response and the progress that has been made. Given the importance of students and parents having every opportunity to find out about T-levels, alongside other routes into intended careers, what further steps are the Government considering to better ensure that parents and students receive the right kind of information and advice at the right time? Might the Minister consider bringing together those with a specific contribution to make in addressing these and other issues to ensure the success and full take-up of T-levels in advance of the next admissions cycle?

[Baroness Barran (Con)]

In response to the last part of the right reverend Prelate’s question, I say that we would be delighted. We are already hosting a number of round tables, particularly with higher education providers, and would be glad to widen that circle and learn from his expertise and that of others like him. We are working hard to engage with the sector directly. We are providing support and resources so that students can find the course that is right for them.

Education: Special Educational Needs Budget

Lord Bishop of Coventry Excerpts

Thursday 17th October 2019 Lords Chamber

[Lord Agnew of Oulton]

I respectfully disagree with the noble Lord, because while local authorities lose a proportion of these appeals, they do not lose the entirety of each appeal. For example, a parent might win through appeal the right to send their child to a certain school but elements of the support that they asked for would not be granted.

[The Lord Bishop of Coventry]

My Lords, several heads in Coventry and Warwickshire have told me about the heavy demands on their energies and budgets from, to quote one primary head, children who are not on the SEN register but face horrific circumstances at home and so need extra help; for example, families who are homeless through domestic violence and children whose mental health is so poor—these are nine year-olds—that they threaten suicide. Does the Minister recognise the pressures on schools in mainstream education from children who do not meet the thresholds of special needs but who nevertheless have severe needs and require acute support? Is he confident that there is sufficient funding for them?

[Lord Agnew of Oulton]

The right reverend Prelate is correct that there seems to be an increasing trend of mental health needs in young people, and I urge all noble Lords who are concerned with this area to look at why this is happening. It is certainly happening, but there is not enough discussion around why it is happening. To restate our commitment, we have increased high needs funding from £5 billion a year in 2013 to £6.3 billion this year and over £7 billion next year. As I mentioned in an earlier answer, we have increased core school budgets by 5%, which will indeed help with the lower levels of SEN not specifically addressed in the high needs budget.

Social Mobility

Lord Bishop of Coventry Excerpts

Wednesday 22nd November 2017 Lords Chamber

[Lord Agnew of Oulton]

My Lords, I assure the noble Lord that they are a high priority. Indeed, in the next few weeks we will announce some work on alternative provision which captures a lot of these very vulnerable children. He may be aware that we have opened 39 alternative-provision free schools in the last seven years, 82% of which have already been rated as good or outstanding.

[The Lord Bishop of Coventry]

My Lords, on my visits to primary schools in Coventry in Warwickshire, I am often struck by head teachers in poorer areas telling me that they cannot help their children without also helping the families, who often face very complex issues. The Minister referred to the opportunity areas. Can he confirm that there is a plan to involve parents and guardians in that work of uplift and that there will be help for head teachers in that task?

[Lord Agnew of Oulton]

The right reverend Prelate raises an important point—that families are vital to the process of dealing with disadvantaged communities. When I ran a number of academy schools, the thing that struck me most was dealing with the lack of aspiration among the parents. Looking at one of the first opportunity area plans, which has just been published and which happens to be in my own area of Norwich, I can see that the stakeholders cover a number of the communities that the right reverend Prelate refers to. Therefore, I am confident that families will be included in the process.

Regional Schools Commissioners

Lord Bishop of Coventry Excerpts

Thursday 14th April 2016 Lords Chamber

[Lord Nash]

I think that it is unlikely that any particular decision would affect so many schools, but if the noble Lord is referring to small primaries, we are very conscious of the issues facing them and are very keen to support them. We believe that they will be more sustainable as part of groups working together in MATs. As Lucy Powell said in the other place only yesterday, it is acknowledged that schools work better in local regional clusters, and we are keen to see them be able to do that.

[The Lord Bishop of Coventry]

My Lords, I declare my interest as the president of a diocesan board of education and a member of a multi-academy trust. Can the Minister explain the factors that influence RSCs in their decisions about the capacity of sponsors for new schools, and the extent to which those factors are objectively determined?

[Lord Nash]

The right reverend Prelate makes an extremely important point. It is all about capacity. Regional schools commissioners, along with head teacher boards, use performance data, Ofsted reports, intelligence from academy visits and their own expertise to ensure that a robust decision is reached. They will look at the geographic focus of the sponsor, whether they have brought into their group recently many failing schools, and the management capacity and skill set of the MAT board.