Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps her Department has taken to support care leavers move into (a) further and (b) tertiary education.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
In 'Stable Homes, Built on Love', the strategy for the reform of children’s social care, the department gave a commitment to improve the education, employment and training outcomes of children in care and care leavers by 2027. This can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/650966a322a783001343e844/Children_s_Social_Care_Stable_Homes__Built_on_Love_consultation_response.pdf.
The department set out a number of actions to take this forward, including:
In addition to the bursary, the department pays businesses and training providers £1,000 for every care leaver apprentice they employ or train. Employers and providers are free to use their additional funding wherever needed to support their apprentices, including contributions to travel or childcare costs, or the provision of additional mentoring.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps her Department has taken to provide rehabilitation support to children who have lived in care who are in police custody or serving custodial sentences.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department recognises that children in care are more likely than their peers in the general population to have contact with the criminal justice system. That is why, in 2018, the department published a joint national protocol with the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), on reducing the unnecessary criminalisation of looked after children and care leavers. This can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-protocol-on-reducing-criminalisation-of-looked-after-children. Since its publication, the proportion of children in care aged 10 to 17 who are charged with an offence or receive a caution has reduced from 3% in 2019 to 2% in 2023.
Latest data for the year ending March 2023 also show that 3% of care leavers age 19 to 21 were in custody. This figure has remained the same for the last five years.
All care leavers are entitled to a Personal Adviser to support them in making the transition from care to independence. Personal Advisers are required to keep in touch with the young person, work with them to develop a mandatory pathway plan and to advocate on behalf of the young person. If a care leaver receives a custodial sentence, their Personal Adviser is still expected to keep in touch, through visiting the young person in prison, and to maintain the young person’s pathway plan.
Through the care leaver Ministerial Board, the department is working closely with MoJ to improve support and outcomes of care-experienced people in the criminal justice system. MoJ is currently updating its strategy for people with care experience, to ensure that their time in the criminal justice system is used to support them to lead crime-free lives. MoJ is aiming to publish this strategy in 2024.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many minors in care have been taken into custody in the last 12 months; and how many children who have lived in care are currently serving a custodial sentence.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department recognises that children in care are more likely than their peers in the general population to have contact with the criminal justice system. That is why, in 2018, the department published a joint national protocol with the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), on reducing the unnecessary criminalisation of looked after children and care leavers. This can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-protocol-on-reducing-criminalisation-of-looked-after-children. Since its publication, the proportion of children in care aged 10 to 17 who are charged with an offence or receive a caution has reduced from 3% in 2019 to 2% in 2023.
Latest data for the year ending March 2023 also show that 3% of care leavers age 19 to 21 were in custody. This figure has remained the same for the last five years.
All care leavers are entitled to a Personal Adviser to support them in making the transition from care to independence. Personal Advisers are required to keep in touch with the young person, work with them to develop a mandatory pathway plan and to advocate on behalf of the young person. If a care leaver receives a custodial sentence, their Personal Adviser is still expected to keep in touch, through visiting the young person in prison, and to maintain the young person’s pathway plan.
Through the care leaver Ministerial Board, the department is working closely with MoJ to improve support and outcomes of care-experienced people in the criminal justice system. MoJ is currently updating its strategy for people with care experience, to ensure that their time in the criminal justice system is used to support them to lead crime-free lives. MoJ is aiming to publish this strategy in 2024.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the current employment rate is for care leavers, 12 months after leaving local authority care.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The latest data for the year ending March 2023 shows that 38% of care leavers aged 19 to 21 are not in education, employment or training, compared to 13% of their peers in the general population.
Improving care leavers’ outcomes is a government priority and the department has established a care leaver Ministerial Board, co-chaired by the Secretaries of State from the Department for Education and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, and including Ministers from 12 other departments, to consider what more can be done collectively to improve care leavers’ outcomes.
The department’s broader ambitions for reform of children’s social care are set out in the response to the independent review carried out by Josh MacAlister, which is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/642460653d885d000fdade73/Children_s_social_care_stable_homes_consultation_February_2023.pdf.
In relation to supporting care leavers to engage and succeed in education, employment and training, the department has:
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps her Department has taken to support care leavers with their move into employment.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The latest data for the year ending March 2023 shows that 38% of care leavers aged 19 to 21 are not in education, employment or training, compared to 13% of their peers in the general population.
Improving care leavers’ outcomes is a government priority and the department has established a care leaver Ministerial Board, co-chaired by the Secretaries of State from the Department for Education and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, and including Ministers from 12 other departments, to consider what more can be done collectively to improve care leavers’ outcomes.
The department’s broader ambitions for reform of children’s social care are set out in the response to the independent review carried out by Josh MacAlister, which is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/642460653d885d000fdade73/Children_s_social_care_stable_homes_consultation_February_2023.pdf.
In relation to supporting care leavers to engage and succeed in education, employment and training, the department has:
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps her Department has taken to support care leavers with their move into training.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The latest data for the year ending March 2023 shows that 38% of care leavers aged 19 to 21 are not in education, employment or training, compared to 13% of their peers in the general population.
Improving care leavers’ outcomes is a government priority and the department has established a care leaver Ministerial Board, co-chaired by the Secretaries of State from the Department for Education and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, and including Ministers from 12 other departments, to consider what more can be done collectively to improve care leavers’ outcomes.
The department’s broader ambitions for reform of children’s social care are set out in the response to the independent review carried out by Josh MacAlister, which is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/642460653d885d000fdade73/Children_s_social_care_stable_homes_consultation_February_2023.pdf.
In relation to supporting care leavers to engage and succeed in education, employment and training, the department has:
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to amend guidance on personal, social, health and economic education in schools to promote discussion and awareness of organ, blood and stem cell donation.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The national curriculum includes substantial content which can be used by teachers as an opportunity to inform pupils about organ, stem cell and blood donation. For example, pupils are taught about the function of the heart, blood vessels and blood as part of key stage 2 science and about stem cells as part of key stage 4 science.
Alongside the national curriculum, stem cell donation can be taught as part of Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) and as part of compulsory Health Education, as pupils should know the facts about organ and blood donation.
To support schools further, the teacher training module ‘physical health and fitness’ also includes information on blood, organ and stem cell donation. A link to this module can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/teacher-training-physical-health-and-fitness.
As with other aspects of the curriculum, schools have flexibility over how and when they deliver these topical subjects and can respond according to pupil needs.
The department has been reviewing the RSE and Health Education guidance and aims to launch a public consultation very soon. Following the consultation, the department will make a decision about any new or revised content to be included in the statutory guidance, including additional content. The department anticipates that the revised guidance will be published in 2024.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on the number of school visits to EU countries that took place in (a) 2019 and (b) 2023.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department does not request or record data on school trips that have been independently organised and funded directly by schools. The Turing Scheme, launched in the 2020/21 academic year, provides funding for UK students to work and study around the world. For the current 2023/24 academic year, the Turing Scheme is providing over £10 million in funding for 6,789 UK school pupils to take part in overseas visits, and over 4,400 of these pupils are due to visit EU countries for their Turing visits.
The Department recognises the importance of cultural and educational exchanges between the UK and other nations and will continue to support opportunities for children and young people, where appropriate.
At a recent UK and France summit, the UK committed to making the travel of school groups from France to the UK easier by changing the documentary requirements for pupils on organised trips from France. France committed to ensuring appropriate mechanisms are in place for visa free travel for pupils travelling on organised school trips from the UK and to facilitating the passage of those groups through the border.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she is taking steps to help increase the number of visits by UK schools to EU countries.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department does not request or record data on school trips that have been independently organised and funded directly by schools. The Turing Scheme, launched in the 2020/21 academic year, provides funding for UK students to work and study around the world. For the current 2023/24 academic year, the Turing Scheme is providing over £10 million in funding for 6,789 UK school pupils to take part in overseas visits, and over 4,400 of these pupils are due to visit EU countries for their Turing visits.
The Department recognises the importance of cultural and educational exchanges between the UK and other nations and will continue to support opportunities for children and young people, where appropriate.
At a recent UK and France summit, the UK committed to making the travel of school groups from France to the UK easier by changing the documentary requirements for pupils on organised trips from France. France committed to ensuring appropriate mechanisms are in place for visa free travel for pupils travelling on organised school trips from the UK and to facilitating the passage of those groups through the border.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of the cost of public transport on students' (a) finances and (b) mobility.
Answered by Robert Halfon
The department continually monitors the impact of rising prices on students. The department recognises that the availability of student accommodation has been impacted by the current financial backdrop and that this can create additional transport costs for students. This is why the government has continued to increase living costs support each year with a 2.3% increase to maximum loans and grants for living and other costs for the 2022/23 academic year, and a 2.8% increase for the 2023/24 academic year.
There is £276 million of Student Premium and Mental Health funding available this 2023/24 academic year, to support students who need additional help, including disadvantaged students. This funding will complement the help universities are providing through their own bursary, scholarship and hardship support schemes.
The department works with the Office for Students to ensure universities support students in hardship using both hardship funds and drawing on the Student Premium as higher education (HE) providers have established their own hardship funds, which allow discretionary funds to be paid to students who are in need.
Decisions on student finance will have to be taken alongside other spending priorities to ensure the system remains financially sustainable and the costs of HE are shared fairly between students and taxpayers, not all of whom have benefited from going to university.