Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when she plans to announce whether her Department will provide funding for (a) BTEC and (b) Alternative Technical Qualification courses in the (i) 2025-26 and (ii) 2026-27 academic year.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
In July 2024, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education announced a short pause to the defunding of qualifications to enable a review of post-16 qualification reforms at Level 3 and below. This was followed by a Written Ministerial Statement by my noble Friend, the Minister for Skills on 25 July. This statement can be accessed here: https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2024-07-25/hlws20.
Additional details about the principles of the review were published in an FE Week article on 30 September 2024, which can be accessed here: https://feweek.co.uk/how-well-go-about-reforming-the-level-3-landscape.
The department is working to review the defunding due to take place in 2025 and will publish the outcomes of this review before the end of the year.
The department has not announced any defunding for 2026.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of providing teachers in sixth form colleges with the same pay increases as those agreed with school teachers.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government does not set or recommend pay in further education (FE), including in sixth form colleges. The pay and conditions of FE staff remains the responsibility of individual colleges and providers who are free to implement pay arrangements in line with their local needs.
The department recognises the vital role that teachers in sixth form colleges, as well as other FE colleges, play in developing the skills needed to drive the government’s missions to improve opportunity and economic growth. That is why the department is investing around £600 million across the 2024/25 and 2025/26 financial years. This includes extending retention payments of up to £6,000 after tax to eligible early career FE teachers in key subject areas, including in sixth form colleges. The department also continues to support recruitment and retention with teacher training bursaries worth up to £30,000 tax-free in certain key subject areas, and with support for industry professionals to enter the teaching workforce through the Taking Teaching Further programme.
My right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer has announced a Budget on 30 October to be followed by a multi-year spending review in the spring of next year. Decisions about future post-16 funding and capital programmes will be subject to the outcomes of these fiscal events.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 20 July 2022 to Question 37614 on Schools: Buildings, which schools in Manchester, Gorton constituency had at least one construction element in (a) condition grade C and (b) condition grade D when that data was collated; and which of those schools (a) have already received funding from the School Rebuilding Programme and (b) are expected to receive funding from the School Rebuilding Programme in the next two years.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Condition Data Collection (CDC) is one of the largest and most comprehensive data collection programmes in the UK’s public sector. It collected data on the building condition of government funded schools in England. It provides a robust evidence base to enable the Department to target capital funding for maintaining and rebuilding school buildings.
The key, high level findings of the CDC programme were published in May 2021 in the ‘Condition of School Buildings Survey: Key Findings’ report. This is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/989912/Condition_of_School_Buildings_Survey_CDC1_-_key_findings_report.pdf.
Individual CDC reports have been shared with every school and their responsible body to use alongside their existing condition surveys to plan maintenance schedules and investment plans. The Department plans to publish detailed school level CDC data. The Department is still preparing the data and will publish it as soon as possible.
Well maintained, safe school buildings are a priority for the Department. Our funding is directed both to maintaining the condition of the school estate and rebuilding schools. The Department has allocated over £13 billion for improving the condition of schools since 2015, including £1.8 billion committed this financial year.
The ten year School Rebuilding Programme (SRP) is condition led. 400 of the 500 available places on the programme have been provisionally allocated. A list of these schools and the methodology used to select them is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-rebuilding-programme-schools-in-the-programme.
The following table shows the constituencies specified that have schools or colleges selected for the SRP:
Parliamentary constituency | Schools selected for SRP |
Wakefield | Ossett Academy and Sixth Form College, announced December 2022 |
Stockton North | St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, announced July 2021 St Paul's Catholic Primary School, announced July 2021 |
The 239 schools announced in December 2022 will enter delivery at a rate of approximately 50 per year, over a five year period from 2023. The Department is currently undertaking due diligence on these schools prior to scheduling them, with schools prioritised according to the condition of their buildings, readiness to proceed, and efficiency of delivery. The scope and funding for each project will be confirmed following detailed feasibility studies and condition surveys of buildings.
Where a school identifies significant safety issues with a building, that cannot be managed within local resources, the Department considers additional support on a case-by-case basis. This includes applications for Urgent Capital Support (UCS) from eligible institutions. Schools eligible for Condition Improvement Fund (CIF) can apply for UCS where there are urgent health and safety issues that threaten school closure and cannot wait until the next CIF bidding round.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when her Department will publish the Government's response to the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Green Paper consultation.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Shadow Minister (Equalities)
The Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) green paper consultation closed on 22 July 2022. The department is currently reviewing the feedback received. We will use this feedback, along with continued engagement with the system to inform the next stage of delivering improvements for children, young people and their families.
The department is committed to publishing a full response to the green paper in an Improvement Plan early this year.
The department will continue to support the system in the immediate term to deliver change and continue to improve the experience and outcomes for children and young people with SEND and those who need AP.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when her Department plans to reply to correspondence from the hon. member for Manchester, Gorton of 22 September 2022, reference AK56008.
Answered by Nick Gibb
I can confirm that a response to correspondence dated 22 November 2022, reference AK56008 from the hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton has been sent.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to Answer of 20 October 2021 to Question 57279, what further consideration her Department has given to establishing a Takaful-based funding structure for financial support for students in higher and further education.
Answered by Andrea Jenkyns
The department remains committed to delivering an Alternative Student Finance (ASF) product compatible with Islamic finance principles. We want all learners with the potential to benefit from a higher education to be able to do so.
We are introducing a Lifelong Loan Entitlement (LLE), which will significantly change the ways students can access learning and financial support. We are currently considering if and how ASF can be delivered as part of the LLE.
We believe it is sensible to align future delivery of an ASF product with these major reforms to ensure fair treatment for all students.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether additional guidance will be issued to supplement the existing guidance on Keeping Children Safe in Education to help schools ensure pupils are kept safe online.
Answered by Robin Walker
This government is committed to keeping children safe both online and offline. All schools and colleges must have regard to the department's statutory guidance, Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE), when carrying out their duties to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.
This guidance provides schools and colleges with information on what they should be doing to protect pupils and students online.
The guidance is very clear on the actions a school or college should take if there are any concerns about a child’s wellbeing and/or safety. KCSIE, amongst other things, sets out that:
In addition, the department has published guidance on teaching online safety in schools and, through relationships, sex, and health education (RSHE), children will be taught about rules and principles for keeping safe online.
The statutory RSHE curriculum was introduced in September 2020. In these subjects, pupils are taught about online relationships, implications of sharing private or personal data online (including images), harmful content and contact, cyberbullying, an over-reliance on social media, how to be a discerning consumer of information and where to get help and support for issues that occur online.
Where it is required, schools are also expected to offer remote education to pupils who test positive for COVID-19 or present with COVID-19 symptoms where they are well enough to learn from home. There is a wide range of resources available to support schools and colleges to meet these expectations. The ‘Get Help with Remote Education’ page on gov.uk provides a one-stop-shop for teachers and leaders, signposting to support available. This includes a self-assessment framework to help schools and colleges understand where they are with their remote education provision, help to access technology that supports remote education, peer-to-peer training and guidance on how to use technology effectively and resources, and school-led webinars to support effective delivery of the curriculum.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support his Department is providing to schools to ensure pupils are protected and kept safe in online spaces; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Robin Walker
This government is committed to keeping children safe both online and offline. All schools and colleges must have regard to the department's statutory guidance, Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE), when carrying out their duties to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.
This guidance provides schools and colleges with information on what they should be doing to protect pupils and students online.
The guidance is very clear on the actions a school or college should take if there are any concerns about a child’s wellbeing and/or safety. KCSIE, amongst other things, sets out that:
In addition, the department has published guidance on teaching online safety in schools and, through relationships, sex, and health education (RSHE), children will be taught about rules and principles for keeping safe online.
The statutory RSHE curriculum was introduced in September 2020. In these subjects, pupils are taught about online relationships, implications of sharing private or personal data online (including images), harmful content and contact, cyberbullying, an over-reliance on social media, how to be a discerning consumer of information and where to get help and support for issues that occur online.
Where it is required, schools are also expected to offer remote education to pupils who test positive for COVID-19 or present with COVID-19 symptoms where they are well enough to learn from home. There is a wide range of resources available to support schools and colleges to meet these expectations. The ‘Get Help with Remote Education’ page on gov.uk provides a one-stop-shop for teachers and leaders, signposting to support available. This includes a self-assessment framework to help schools and colleges understand where they are with their remote education provision, help to access technology that supports remote education, peer-to-peer training and guidance on how to use technology effectively and resources, and school-led webinars to support effective delivery of the curriculum.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the annual Summer Reading Challenge run by The Reading Agency in maintaining standards in reading; and what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of providing financial support to local authorities to enable them to increase the reach and effect of the Summer Reading Challenge in deprived communities.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department welcomes the Summer Reading Challenge and is supportive of the work of The Reading Agency.
The Government is committed to continuing to raise literacy standards, ensuring all children, including those from disadvantaged backgrounds, can read fluently and with understanding. In 2018, the Department launched a £26.3 million English Hubs Programme dedicated to improving the teaching of reading. This focuses on supporting children making the slowest progress in reading, many of whom come from disadvantaged backgrounds. The 34 English Hubs in the programme are primary schools which are outstanding at teaching early reading. The Department has since invested a further £17 million in this school to school improvement programme, which focuses on systematic synthetic phonics, early language, and reading for pleasure. In the 2020/21 academic year, the programme is providing intensive support to over 875 partner schools.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether it is his policy to introduce an alternative Takaful-based funding structure to interest based student loans.
Answered by Michelle Donelan
I refer the hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton to the answer I gave on 9 June 2021 to Question 10312.