Asked by: Ben Spencer (Conservative - Runnymede and Weybridge)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the covid-19 outbreak, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of availability of courses for international students at UK universities for academic year 2020-2021.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
Teaching, learning and assessment in higher education (HE) are not stopping. We are working with the sector to ensure universities are able to make all reasonable efforts to enable all students, both international and domestic, to continue and complete their studies; for their achievements to be reliably assessed; and for qualifications to be awarded securely.
Despite the significant disruption being felt across the HE sector, students deserve appropriate support and recognition for their hard work and dedication - many universities and colleges have moved rapidly to develop new ways of delivering courses through online teaching and alternatives to traditional end-of-course exams.
Our universities will always be open to international students. Both the government and the HE sector are working together to ensure existing rules and processes are as flexible as possible under the current unprecedented circumstances, to ensure that international students who are planning to study at a UK institution from autumn 2020 can do so.
The UK looks forward to continuing to welcome international students in the future. They enrich UK HE culturally, socially and economically, and are one of the reasons why our HE sector remains world-class.
Asked by: Ben Spencer (Conservative - Runnymede and Weybridge)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the long-term effect on children’s physical and mental health of the covid-19 lockdown; and what steps his Department is taking to mitigate those effects.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The Department for Health and Social Care has responsibility for children and young people’s health and we are working with them, Public Health England and NHS England to understand the impact COVID-19 is having. It is clear that physical and mental health support is more important than ever during COVID-19.
Public Health England has published guidance for parents/carers on supporting children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing during COVID-19:
The Department for Education’s guidance for parents/carers and schools covers how they can support children’s mental health. This information is available at the following links:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/closure-of-educational-settings-information-for-parents-and-carers/closure-of-educational-settings-information-for-parents-and-carers and
We have also developed online education resources, including resources to support mental wellbeing, physical activity, and special educational needs and disabilities (SEND): https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-online-education-resources/coronavirus-covid-19-list-of-online-education-resources-for-home-education.
The NHS Change for Life website and Sport England’s Join the Movement campaign both provide advice on staying physically active.
Access to support from health services remains important. NHS services remain open for everyone and leading mental health charities are being supported to deliver additional services through the £5 million Coronavirus Mental Health Response Fund. The NHS is also setting up 24/7 open access telephone lines for urgent mental health support for people of all ages. The Department for Education is working across government on further support, including the first of the newly established Mental Health Support Teams which are now working in or near schools and colleges, to support children during the COVID-19 outbreak.