Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will take steps to review the eligibility criteria for free school meals before the end of the 2022-23 autumn term.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
The department does not have plans to assess the potential impact of changes in the cost of living on pupils who are not eligible for free school meals (FSM). However, we continue to monitor the rising cost of living whilst working with other government departments on support surrounding this issue.
The department will continue to keep FSM eligibility under review to ensure that these meals are supporting those who most need them. In setting a threshold, the government believes that the current level is correct, as it enables children to benefit from FSM, while remaining affordable and deliverable for schools.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the cost of living crisis on the numbers of children living in poverty who are not eligible for free school meals.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
The department does not have plans to assess the potential impact of changes in the cost of living on pupils who are not eligible for free school meals (FSM). However, we continue to monitor the rising cost of living whilst working with other government departments on support surrounding this issue.
The department will continue to keep FSM eligibility under review to ensure that these meals are supporting those who most need them. In setting a threshold, the government believes that the current level is correct, as it enables children to benefit from FSM, while remaining affordable and deliverable for schools.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to analysis by Child Poverty Action Group and its finding that 800,000 children in poverty do not qualify for free school meals, published on 9 June 2022, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of this analysis.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
The department does not have plans to make changes to Free School Meal (FSM) eligibility. However, we continue to monitor the rising cost of living whilst working with other government departments on support surrounding this issue. The department will continue to keep FSM eligibility under review to ensure that these meals are supporting those who most need them.
In setting a threshold, the government believes that the current level, which enables children to benefit from FSM, while remaining affordable and deliverable for schools, is the right one.
The latest published statistics show that around 1.9 million pupils are claiming FSM. This equates to 22.5% of all pupils, up from 20.8% in 2021. Together with a further 1.25 million infants supported through the Universal Infant Free School Meal policy, the greatest ever proportion of school children, 37.5%, are now provided with FSM.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the letter from Education Unions dated 21 July 2022, how many schools were provided with HEPA air filtration devices during the 2022 summer holidays in preparation for the Autumn term.
Answered by Jonathan Gullis
Over the last year, backed by £25 million in Government funding, the Department has provided 386,699 CO2 monitors to state-funded education settings including early years, schools and further education providers. CO2 monitors can support schools to identify poor areas of ventilation which will provide further reassurance that existing ventilation measures are working, especially over the winter months. As well as helping to identify areas that are poorly ventilated, CO2 monitors can be useful to help settings balance good ventilation with keeping classrooms warm.
Where an area of poor ventilation has been identified that cannot be resolved through simple measures such as opening doors and windows. Where it is not possible to maintain adequate ventilation, it may be appropriate for settings to consider the use of an air cleaning unit while the underlying ventilation issue is addressed. In January, the Government committed to fulfil all eligible applications for air cleaning units to state-funded education settings for poorly ventilated teaching spaces where quick fixes to improve ventilation were not possible. All eligible applications received have been fulfilled, with 8,026 air cleaning units distributed by 24 June 2022. All units delivered use High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA).
A marketplace remains open for all state-funded education settings as a route to purchasing air cleaning units directly from suppliers at a suitable specification and competitive price. All units available on the marketplace use HEPA filtration. It can be accessed on GOV.UK at the following link: Air cleaning units for education and childcare settings - Find a DfE approved framework for your school - GOV.UK (find-dfe-approved-framework.service.gov.uk).
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether under arrangements for Education, Health and Care Plans for Deaf children may include provision and specific funding to support parents and close family members of those children to learn British Sign Language.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
Funding is available through the adult education budget (AEB) for qualifications in or focussing on British Sign Language (BSL) up to and including level 2. About 60% of the AEB has been devolved to Mayoral Combined Authorities and the Greater London Authority who determine which provision to fund for learners resident in their areas. Education and Skills Funding Agency provides the remaining funding for learners resident in non-devolved areas. Some providers of community learning offer BSL courses, and those providers determine the course fees, including levels of fee remission. For qualifications at level 3 and above, Advanced Learner Loans are available for certain BSL qualifications. BSL qualifications and the appropriate further education funding offer can be found here: https://www.qualifications.education.gov.uk/Search. Eligible students will be able to apply for student support if their undergraduate course is designated for funding under The Education (Student Support) Regulations 2011. If undertaking a BSL qualification that leads to a masters level qualification, eligible students can access a postgraduate loan, as long as they have not previously accessed the postgraduate loan product, or already hold a level 7 qualification. Several universities and organisations offer such qualifications.
There is a statutory duty, under Section 17 of the Children Act 1989, for local authorities to safeguard and promote the welfare of ‘children in need’ in their area, including disabled children, by providing appropriate services to them. Services for disabled children provided under Section 17 will typically include short breaks for parent carers, equipment or adaptations to the home, and support for parents.
Section H1 of an education, health and care plan must specify all services assessed as being needed for a disabled child or young person under 18, under section 2 of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970. This may include services to be provided for parent carers of disabled children, including following an assessment of their needs under the Children Act 1989. Where this assessment judges that the family needs provision to learn BSL, it could be included here.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what (a) local and (b) national funding is available for parents and close family members for studying advanced British Sign Language courses that enable them to communicate more effectively with their children.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
Funding is available through the adult education budget (AEB) for qualifications in or focussing on British Sign Language (BSL) up to and including level 2. About 60% of the AEB has been devolved to Mayoral Combined Authorities and the Greater London Authority who determine which provision to fund for learners resident in their areas. Education and Skills Funding Agency provides the remaining funding for learners resident in non-devolved areas. Some providers of community learning offer BSL courses, and those providers determine the course fees, including levels of fee remission. For qualifications at level 3 and above, Advanced Learner Loans are available for certain BSL qualifications. BSL qualifications and the appropriate further education funding offer can be found here: https://www.qualifications.education.gov.uk/Search. Eligible students will be able to apply for student support if their undergraduate course is designated for funding under The Education (Student Support) Regulations 2011. If undertaking a BSL qualification that leads to a masters level qualification, eligible students can access a postgraduate loan, as long as they have not previously accessed the postgraduate loan product, or already hold a level 7 qualification. Several universities and organisations offer such qualifications.
There is a statutory duty, under Section 17 of the Children Act 1989, for local authorities to safeguard and promote the welfare of ‘children in need’ in their area, including disabled children, by providing appropriate services to them. Services for disabled children provided under Section 17 will typically include short breaks for parent carers, equipment or adaptations to the home, and support for parents.
Section H1 of an education, health and care plan must specify all services assessed as being needed for a disabled child or young person under 18, under section 2 of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970. This may include services to be provided for parent carers of disabled children, including following an assessment of their needs under the Children Act 1989. Where this assessment judges that the family needs provision to learn BSL, it could be included here.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reasons his Department will not introduce a GCSE in British Sign Language until September 2025.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
The department is committed to developing the new British Sign Language (BSL) GCSE as quickly as we can, while also ensuring it can be completed to the highest standard. We are working closely with subject experts, stakeholders and Ofqual, the independent qualifications regulator, to develop the draft subject content for the BSL GCSE. The department plans to consult publicly on this draft content later this year. We will then make any necessary amendments in light of the consultation responses and finalise the high-level subject content next Spring.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, work to support the management of and recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, including to ensure pupils could access the qualifications they needed to progress, was prioritised. This meant that the development of this GCSE was delayed. However, once the pressures of the COVID-19 pandemic eased, we resumed work to develop the new BSL GCSE.
The development and introduction of a new GCSE is a complex process. It typically takes over two years from the publication of the department’s high level subject content to the first teaching of a new qualification.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when he plans to launch a consultation on the British Sign Language GCSE.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
The department is committed to developing the new British Sign Language (BSL) GCSE as quickly as we can, while also ensuring it can be completed to the highest standard. We are working closely with subject experts, stakeholders and Ofqual, the independent qualifications regulator, to develop the draft subject content for the BSL GCSE. The department plans to consult publicly on this draft content later this year. We will then make any necessary amendments in light of the consultation responses and finalise the high-level subject content next Spring.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, work to support the management of and recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, including to ensure pupils could access the qualifications they needed to progress, was prioritised. This meant that the development of this GCSE was delayed. However, once the pressures of the COVID-19 pandemic eased, we resumed work to develop the new BSL GCSE.
The development and introduction of a new GCSE is a complex process. It typically takes over two years from the publication of the department’s high level subject content to the first teaching of a new qualification.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions he has had with representatives of AQA about grade allocations following the reported leak of A level chemistry paper 2; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Will Quince
The department has not had discussions with representatives of AQA about the alleged leak of material from an A level chemistry paper. While serious exam malpractice remains rare, it is vital that any breach is thoroughly investigated by the exam boards.
Exam boards have well established processes in place to manage such incidents. AQA have confirmed that their Exams Integrity team is investigating these reports and they will take any action necessary, including working with the police.
While such leaks are very rare, exam boards have demonstrated previously that they are able to effectively gather evidence about the students who had unauthorised access to any questions before the exam was taken. In the event of a leak, Ofqual will work with the exam board to minimise the impact on students.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of exclusions from schools in Hertfordshire were of (a) pupils with SEND and (b) black pupils in 2020-21.
Answered by Brendan Clarke-Smith
The requested information is not yet available for the 2020/21 academic year. This is due to be published on 28 July 2022.
Information for the 2019/20 academic year and earlier academic years is available in the Office for National Statistics’ release ‘Permanent exclusions and suspensions in England’, available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/permanent-and-fixed-period-exclusions-in-england.
The following data has been produced from the ‘Explore data and files section’. It includes details of permanent exclusions and suspensions by characteristic (pupils with special educational needs and disabilities and black pupils), from 2006 to 2019 in Hertfordshire: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/9aa11aed-bd1a-43a2-9c3a-d891128d54b8.