Asked by: Lord Blunkett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what was the annual breakdown, beginning with the academic year 2020–21, of the number of secondary school trainee teachers aged 40 and over working in (1) science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), and (2) non-STEM, subjects who began training but were not working as a qualified teacher in a state school two years later; and what was total annual cost of training bursaries and scholarships paid to those same trainees.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)
In the attachment, table 1 shows the total numbers of Initial Teacher Training (ITT) trainees aged 40 and above with course outcomes for the academic years 2020/21 to 2022/23 and for each secondary subject. The table also shows the number of such trainees who did not go on to teach in a state-funded school within 16 months of the end of the academic year.
Information on the outcomes of trainees in receipt of bursaries and/or scholarships is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
However, postgraduate salaried trainees are ineligible for bursaries and scholarships and the number of undergraduate fee-funded trainees over 40 who are eligible for bursaries is negligible.
In the attachment, table 2 shows, as a proportion of ITT trainees on postgraduate fee-funded ITT routes only, the number that were aged 40 and over and did not go on to teach in a state-funded school within 16 months of the end of the academic year. These proportions are applied to total bursary and scholarship spend, for each academic year and secondary subject. A small minority of trainees are ineligible for a bursary or scholarship, so this assumes that those over 40 who did not teach in a state-funded school within 16 months were as likely to be eligible for a bursary or scholarship as the overall trainee cohort in each year.
Asked by: Lord Blunkett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure that mainstream schools overseen by multi-academy trusts fulfil the requirement set out in guidance to teach a minimum of 190 days a year, with an indicative 32.5 hours including breaks per week.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)
The length and structure of the school year in academies is a matter for the academy trust.
Non-statutory guidance is in place which sets out the expectation that all mainstream, state-funded schools, including academies, should deliver a minimum school week of 32.5 hours by September 2024. As with all government policies we will keep this approach under review.
Asked by: Lord Blunkett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what was the total value of the Department for Education’s apprenticeships budget in each financial year since 2017–18.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
The department’s apprenticeships budget is used to fund training and assessment for new apprenticeship starts in apprenticeship levy and non-levy paying employers to cover the ongoing costs of apprentices already in training and any additional payments made to employers and providers.
The table below provides the total value of the department’s apprenticeship budget for England for each financial year since 2017/18.
Financial Year | 2017/18 | 2018/19 | 2019/20 | 2020/21 | 2021/22 | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
DfE Apprenticeships Budget (£ million) | 2,010 | 2,231 | 2,469 | 2,467 | 2,466 | 2,554 | 2,585 | 2,729 |
The budget figure for the 2024/25 financial year reflects the Spending Review 2021 settlement, as well as additional funding that has recently been announced to support apprenticeships, including the growth pilot announced at the Autumn Statement, and the additional funding the Prime Minister announced in March to boost apprenticeships for young people in smaller business and meet overall increased demand for apprenticeships.
Asked by: Lord Blunkett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what percentage of apprentice levy-paying employers have transferred the maximum 25 per cent of their levy contributions to other employers in each financial year since 2017–18.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
Levy paying employers have been able to transfer a proportion of their annual funds to other employers since April 2018, when the maximum transfer allowance was 10%. This was increased to 25% in April 2019 and from 22 April 2024, the department has doubled the levy transfer allowance to 50%.
The table below shows the percentage of levy-paying employers who spent all of their transfer allowance in each financial year from 2018/19 to 2023/24.
Financial year in which funds were transferred | Percentage of total levy-paying employers who used all their transfer allowance |
2018/19 | 0.0% |
2019/20 | 0.4% |
2020/21 | 1.0% |
2021/22 | 1.6% |
2022/23 | 2.0% |
2023/24 | 2.0% |
Transfers provide levy paying employers with more flexibility about how they spend the funds available to them, including supporting other businesses such as smaller employers, flexi-job apprenticeship agencies and charities to help meet local and sector-specific needs. The department has improved the transfer system, introducing a pledge and match service on GOV.UK, to make it easier to find other employers who wish to take on apprentices with transferred funds. Since the service was introduced in September 2021, over 500 employers have pledged to transfer over £37 million to support apprenticeships in businesses of all sizes, as of 9 February 2024.
Asked by: Lord Blunkett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government which organisations (1) receiving funding through the Department for Education, or (2) holding contracts related to the work of the Department, between 1 January and 22 April have been notified of either (a) a reduction in, or (b) the cancellation of, their funding, broken down by category; which of those organisations will have funding withdrawn (i) in the current financial year, or (ii) over the next two financial years; and what is the total amount that will be withdrawn for such organisations over those periods.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
The information is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Lord Blunkett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government of the 9,800 students who have enrolled on the T Level foundation year since its inception, what percentage (1) progressed onto A Levels, (2) progressed onto T levels, (3) embarked onto an apprenticeship, (4) progressed onto BTECs and/or other Applied General Qualifications, or (5) have no known progression data.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Lord Blunkett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what advanced routes to qualification will still exist from autumn 2025 for students who do not progress to the T Level Foundation Year, T levels or A-levels, relating to specific qualifications at Advanced Level 3 that they envisage will still be funded from that time.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Lord Blunkett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the estimated percentage of students taking the T Level qualification in the academic year 2022/23 who did not complete the qualification.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Lord Blunkett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Ministerial Statement by Baroness Barran, published on 19 October (HLWS1062), that 32 Advanced Qualifications with high levels of student enrolment are to be defunded from August 2025, how many of these qualifications (1) already have T Level equivalents operating across the whole of England, and (2) will have a relevant T Level Foundation year in place by 2025.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Lord Blunkett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the estimated number of qualifications that will have to be approved by the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Qualification for commencement of teaching in the academic year 2025/26, as a result of the defunding of alternative routes to advance qualification; and what is the current waiting time for the approval of such qualifications.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.