Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make it her policy to allow local leaders to use Skills Bootcamp funding to support training for coach drivers.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Skills Bootcamps are an important offer in the skills landscape, and the department continues to support the delivery of Skills Bootcamps through funding Mayoral Combined Authorities (MCAs) and local areas directly. We continue to keep the sectors eligible for Skills Bootcamps funding under review.
MCAs and the Greater London Authority have the flexibility to use up to 50% of their grants to test Skills Bootcamps in additional sectors. As of the 2024/25 financial year, two trailblazer areas, the West Midlands Combined Authority and Greater Manchester Combined Authority can use 100% of their grants to this effect.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding his Department made available for school transport for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities in academic years (a) 2020-21, (b) 2021-22, (c) 2022-23, (d) 2023-24 and (e) 2024-25.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Most central government funding for home to school travel is provided through the local government finance settlement (LGFS), which is administered by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. This funding is non-ringfenced, giving local authorities the flexibility to make the best decisions for their local area. In total, the LGFS for the 2024/25 financial year makes available up to £64.7 billion for local authorities in England. Further details on the settlement can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/final-local-government-finance-settlement-england-2024-to-2025.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to add education on diversity to school curriculums.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The government has established an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, covering ages 5 to 18, chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE. The terms of reference were published in July and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/curriculum-and-assessment-review.
The review will seek to deliver a curriculum which is rich and broad, that reflects the issues and diversities of our society, ensuring all children and young people are represented. The review will seek to identify and focus on addressing the most significant and pressing issues facing curriculum and assessment without destabilising the system.
The review group will publish an interim report early in 2025, setting out their interim findings and confirming the key areas for further work. The final review with recommendations will be published in autumn 2025.
The government intends to legislate so that, following the review and the implementation of reforms, academies will be required to teach the new national curriculum, alongside other state-funded schools. This will give parents certainty over their children’s education.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when her Department plans to update statutory guidance on the cost of school uniforms.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The government has committed to legislate through the Children’s Wellbeing Bill to limit the number of items of branded uniform and PE kit that schools can require. This proposed legislation will go further than the current statutory guidance, which only requires schools to keep branded uniform items to a minimum.
The existing statutory guidance will be updated once the new legislation has received Royal Assent. This will ensure that both work together to ensure that schools will need to justify every piece of branded uniform they include in their uniform policy. This will put an end to schools still requiring large numbers of branded items.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
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 including education on identifying misinformation online in the school curriculum.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The government has established an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, covering key stages 1 to 5, chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE.
The review will seek to deliver a curriculum that ensures children and young people leave compulsory education ready for life and ready for work, building the knowledge, skills and attributes young people need to thrive. This includes embedding digital, oracy and life skills in their learning.
The review will consider the key digital skills needed for future life and critical thinking skills to ensure children are resilient to misinformation and extremist content online.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to introduce a Natural History GCSE in September 2025.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The government has launched an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review covering key stages 1 to 5, chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE. The Review will consider the current qualification pathways available at key stage 4 and 5. A call for evidence will be published in the autumn which will set out the areas the review group would particularly welcome input from. More information about the review is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-launches-curriculum-and-assessment-review.
Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make it her policy to allow local leaders to use Skills Bootcamp funding to support training for bus drivers.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Skills Bootcamps are a great way for learners and local areas to develop the skills they need and the department provides grant funding to 30 mayoral combined authorities and local areas to deliver Skills Bootcamps training that meets local skills’ priorities. In the 2023/24 financial year, the total value of grant funding contracts awarded was approximately £114 million.
The department continues to keep the sectors eligible for Skills Bootcamps funding under review.