Asked by: Lord Lucas (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans, if any, they have to use the powers in clauses 2 and 4 of the Data (Use and Access) Bill to require the Student Loans Company to collect data on the courses its customer attended when incurring their student debt and their subsequent career progression in order (1) to assess the long-term value of those courses, (2) to propose course improvements, and (3) to enable universities to improve the quality of the data they provide to prospective students about likely career destinations and progression for students of each course.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)
The government has no plans to ask the Student Loans Company for data about its customers for these purposes.
The Office for Students (OfS) uses Graduate Outcomes survey data to monitor providers’ compliance with registration condition B3, which stipulates that at least 60% of a providers’ students must progress into professional employment or further study within 15 months of graduating. Students can see how providers are performing against this target on the OfS's website.
The OfS considers B3 and National Student Survey (NSS) data alongside submissions from providers and students to award ratings of Gold, Silver or Bronze to providers which take part in its Teaching Excellence Framework.
Students can also find information about different courses on the Discover Uni website, which is the official source of information about higher education across the UK and uses the NSS, Graduate Outcomes survey and Longitudinal Education Outcomes data.
Asked by: Lord Lucas (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the extent to which local authorities in England are fulfilling their obligation to publish information on the admissions arrangements for all state schools in their area, including full admissions rules and details of the outcomes of the previous admissions round.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)
Local authorities are required to comply with the School Admissions Code, which sets out various requirements to ensure they provide information on local admission arrangements to parents.
This includes a requirement to publish a composite admissions prospectus for parents. This must include information on the admission arrangements for each state-funded school, the number of parental preferences expressed for the school the previous year, and information relating to how to apply for schools in that area. Local authorities must also produce an annual report on admissions for all the state-funded schools in their area, which is published on the authority’s website and sent to the Schools Adjudicator.
Whilst the department does not routinely assess whether the required information is made available, if a parent or other party is unhappy that information is not available they can complain to the local authority through their complaints process. If they remain dissatisfied after exhausting the complaints procedure, they can complain to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman. Additionally, if my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, becomes aware of an issue she can, if necessary, use her powers to direct the local authority, where it is failing in its duty.
Asked by: Lord Lucas (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many responses they received to their consultation Review of the Relationships Education, Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) and Health Education statutory guidance, which launched on 16 May and closed on 11 July; and when they intend to publish their response to the consultation and summary of responses.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)
The public consultation on the Relationships Education, Relationships and Sex Education and Health Education statutory guidance was open for eight weeks and received over 14,300 responses.
My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education has been clear that children’s wellbeing must be at the heart of this guidance for schools and as such the government will look carefully at the consultation responses and consider the relevant evidence, including through stakeholder conversations, before setting out the next steps to make sure the guidance draws from the best available evidence. This will include plans for responding to the consultation.
Asked by: Lord Lucas (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they expect to sign off the proposed Natural History GCSE.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
The department announced the introduction of a new natural history GCSE last year. We are committed to developing the GCSE as quickly as possible, provided that it meets the rigorous requirements that apply to all GCSEs. The department is working closely with OCR and other exam boards, and independent experts to develop draft subject content for the GCSE.
The department aims to consult publicly on the draft subject content later this year. Any amendments to subject content will then be made in light of responses to the public consultation.
Asked by: Lord Lucas (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is Ofsted's policy regarding its expectation of the duties and actions of Local Authority Elective Home Education Officers.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
When inspecting Local Authority children’s social care services, Ofsted looks at the arrangements for children’s welfare and protection while they are being electively home educated.
Ofsted will look at the ways in which Local Authorities identify children who are not receiving suitable education and what steps the Local Authority takes to deal with that, particularly those children who are either on a child protection plan, education, health and care plan, or are a child in need as part of its children’s social care remit. They may also request a report on children for whom the local authority is responsible who are of school age and who are not in receipt of full-time school education at the time of inspection.
The ‘Evaluating the educational progress of children in care and care leavers’ section of the Ofsted framework for inspections states that Her Majesty’s Inspectors will analyse data and information on elective home educated children and children missing education, as part of these inspections.
Inspectors do not have powers to evaluate or comment on the quality of home education, only the way Local Authorities deal with it as part of their statutory responsibilities.
Asked by: Lord Lucas (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government which 50 schools had the highest average Progress 8 scores for (1) boys, and (2) girls, in the summer of 2019; and for those schools, what were the percentage of White British (a) boys, and (b) girls, who received Free School Meals; and for each of these groups, what was their average Progress 8 score.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
The attached file contains the top 50 schools with the highest average progress 8 scores for boys and girls in the 2019 academic year. Each of these lists is populated with the closest information currently available. Amongst other variables, each list of schools contains the following information: the adjusted progress 8 score, the adjusted progress 8 score for boys and girls, and the adjusted progress 8 score of disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged pupils.
Disadvantaged status considers whether the pupil has received free school meals in the last six years or were looked after for one day or more.
Asked by: Lord Lucas (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government which schools in England had more than 40 per cent of pupils who (1) identified as White British, and (2) were in receipt of Free School Meals, in the summer of 2019.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
The department publishes annual statistics on the number of pupils eligible for free school meals (FSM) and identifying as different ethnicities. The figures are based on January school census data and included in the statistical release ‘Schools, Pupils and their Characteristics’. We do not routinely publish summer term FSM figures and we do not collect ethnicity as part of the summer census. Therefore, figures derived from the spring census 2019 have been provided. Figures for January 2019 can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2019.
The attached tables show schools which had more than 40% of pupils identifying as white British and schools that had more than 40% of pupils eligible for FSM in January 2019.
Asked by: Lord Lucas (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what regulations regarding the provision of toilets apply to (1) maintained schools, (2) academy schools, and (3) independent schools.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
The Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014 states that, in relation to toilets, a room is a space that, “can be secured from the inside and that is intended for use by one pupil at a time”. This is the standard which is applied to school buildings.
The regulations relating to the provision of toilets for mainstream schools are in the School Premises (England) Regulation 2012. The regulations for independents schools and academies are held in the Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014.
Asked by: Lord Lucas (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to Independent School Standards Regulation 23A in the Advice on Standards for School Premises, published by the Department for Education in March 2015, whether an individual cubicle consisting of only a toilet and no washing facilities, that can be secured from the inside, constitutes a "room"; or whether a "room" constitutes an entire washroom space, including the cubicle and washing facilities outside it.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Shadow Minister (Education)
The Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014 states that, in relation to toilets, a room is a space that, “can be secured from the inside and that is intended for use by one pupil at a time”. This is the standard which is applied to school buildings.
The regulations relating to the provision of toilets for mainstream schools are in the School Premises (England) Regulation 2012. The regulations for independents schools and academies are held in the Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014.
Asked by: Lord Lucas (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their estimate of the number of 17 year-olds in each local authority in England; and what proportion of them are studying for (1) academic, and (2) vocational qualifications, at state schools (a) within, and (b) outside, the local authority.
Answered by Baroness Berridge
Information is not available for the specific breakdowns requested.
There are 2 table attachments for this response. The first table attachment (titled ‘Annex A’), has local authority level data showing the proportion of the population aged 17 in education and training as at March 2020. The proportion of 17 year olds participating will include those studying academic and vocational qualifications, participating on an apprenticeship or in wider training or re-engagement activity that complies with raising the participation age requirements. Activity can take place in schools, general further education colleges, sixth form colleges or private training providers.
The second table attachment for this response (titled ‘Annex B’), has local authority level data giving the proportion of children aged 17 in each local authority who attend state schools within and outside the local authority they reside, as at January 2020.