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Written Question
Qualifications: Ukraine
Tuesday 6th September 2022

Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that the qualifications of Ukrainians who reside in the UK under resettlement schemes are recognised in the UK.

Answered by Andrea Jenkyns

The UK National Information Centre for the recognition and evaluation of international qualifications and skills (ENIC) provides expert advice on the comparability of international qualifications at all levels of education with those of the UK, on behalf of the government. ENIC maintains an extensive database of international qualifications and education systems, including for Ukraine, and is fully prepared to assess and advise on the comparability of Ukrainian and other refugees’ qualifications.

Organisations and individuals can apply for a Statement of Comparability through the standard UK ENIC portal. Within the portal, there is provision for individuals to be able to identify as refugees, which allows more flexibility for document submissions. Many organisations, including education institutions and employers, also subscribe to the UK ENIC service and use its database when assessing applications.

Higher education (HE) providers are autonomous institutions, independent from government, and they are responsible for their own admissions policies. The department has made clear to providers that they should be as flexible as possible when considering applications for students with difficult circumstances, such as those from Ukraine, and would encourage students to speak to their desired HE provider about their personal situation directly.


Written Question
Students: Coronavirus
Thursday 21st May 2020

Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what (a) support and (b) guidance he is providing to students who have returned home from university during the covid-19 lockdown and are being required to (i) pay rent for their accommodation, (ii) remove their belongings but not return and (iii) pay for storage, removal and cleaning costs.

Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology

As my right hon. Friends, the Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer have both made clear, the government will do whatever it takes to support people affected by COVID-19. Students will continue to receive scheduled payments of loans towards their living costs for the remainder of the current 2019/20 academic year.

To provide further support, we have worked closely with the Office for Students to enable providers to draw upon existing funding to increase hardship funds and to support disadvantaged students impacted by COVID-19. As a result, providers will be able to use the funding – worth around £23 million per month for April and May - towards student hardship funds, including for the purchase of IT equipment and mental health support.

The government encourages universities and private hall providers to be fair in their decisions about rent charges for this period. A number of universities and large companies have waived rents for the summer term or released students early from their contracts.

The government guidance makes clear that tenants should continue to pay rent and abide by all other terms of their tenancy agreement to the best of their ability during the COVID-19 outbreak.

The government’s COVID-19 recovery strategy, published on 11 May, sets out a cautious roadmap to ease existing measures in a safe and measured way. The strategy allows for certain necessary travel if people take precautions.

In light of this, we are developing guidance on students travelling to and from student accommodation and this will be published today.

We have made clear meanwhile that we do not believe that students should be fined for failing to collect their belongings if this is because they are complying with the government’s travel advice.

If a student has asked their accommodation provider to store their belongings for collection once the COVID-19 lockdown period is over, there may be costs to the provider associated in carrying out this service. We would not expect a provider to make a profit from such a service.


Written Question
Special Educational Needs: Cerebral Palsy
Friday 2nd February 2018

Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information his Department holds on the number of children and young people with special educational needs who have cerebral palsy.

Answered by Nadhim Zahawi

The department does not collect data in this level of detail for the child or young person’s type of need.

We collect annual data from schools and colleges on special educational needs (SEN) as part of the School Census. This data is published annually each January.

Primary type of need is collected for those pupils with a statement of SEN or Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan. There are 12 categories of need, including physical disability. This is the highest level of detail that is collected.

The latest figures are available in Table 8 of the National Tables on the department’s website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/special-educational-needs-in-england-january-2017.

Under the Children and Families Act 2014, local authorities are required to conduct statutory EHC needs assessments to determine whether children and young people in their area have special educational needs which require additional support or provision. Where a local authority deems that a statutory EHC plan should be issued, it is responsible for securing the special educational provision specified in the plan.

The department has provided local authorities with £252 million between 2014-15 and 2017-18 to support local authorities to embed the special education needs and disabilities reforms as set out in the Children and Families Act 2014. In addition, we are allocating £6 billion in high needs funding in 2018-19 which local authorities can use to secure special educational provision.


Written Question
Special Educational Needs: Cerebral Palsy
Friday 2nd February 2018

Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children and young people have cerebral palsy listed as a condition in their Education, Health and Care plan.

Answered by Nadhim Zahawi

The department does not collect data in this level of detail for the child or young person’s type of need.

We collect annual data from schools and colleges on special educational needs (SEN) as part of the School Census. This data is published annually each January.

Primary type of need is collected for those pupils with a statement of SEN or Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan. There are 12 categories of need, including physical disability. This is the highest level of detail that is collected.

The latest figures are available in Table 8 of the National Tables on the department’s website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/special-educational-needs-in-england-january-2017.

Under the Children and Families Act 2014, local authorities are required to conduct statutory EHC needs assessments to determine whether children and young people in their area have special educational needs which require additional support or provision. Where a local authority deems that a statutory EHC plan should be issued, it is responsible for securing the special educational provision specified in the plan.

The department has provided local authorities with £252 million between 2014-15 and 2017-18 to support local authorities to embed the special education needs and disabilities reforms as set out in the Children and Families Act 2014. In addition, we are allocating £6 billion in high needs funding in 2018-19 which local authorities can use to secure special educational provision.


Written Question
Special Educational Needs
Friday 2nd February 2018

Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what procedures his Department has in place to ensure that all children who (a) are entitled to an education, health and care assessment receive one and (b) receive an education, health and care plan receive the provision that plan stipulates from their local authority.

Answered by Nadhim Zahawi

The department does not collect data in this level of detail for the child or young person’s type of need.

We collect annual data from schools and colleges on special educational needs (SEN) as part of the School Census. This data is published annually each January.

Primary type of need is collected for those pupils with a statement of SEN or Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan. There are 12 categories of need, including physical disability. This is the highest level of detail that is collected.

The latest figures are available in Table 8 of the National Tables on the department’s website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/special-educational-needs-in-england-january-2017.

Under the Children and Families Act 2014, local authorities are required to conduct statutory EHC needs assessments to determine whether children and young people in their area have special educational needs which require additional support or provision. Where a local authority deems that a statutory EHC plan should be issued, it is responsible for securing the special educational provision specified in the plan.

The department has provided local authorities with £252 million between 2014-15 and 2017-18 to support local authorities to embed the special education needs and disabilities reforms as set out in the Children and Families Act 2014. In addition, we are allocating £6 billion in high needs funding in 2018-19 which local authorities can use to secure special educational provision.


Written Question
Children in Care
Thursday 11th February 2016

Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children aged up to three years old were taken into care in the last five years; and what assessment she has made of the reasons why those children were taken into care.

Answered by Edward Timpson

The number of children aged 0-3 years, that started to be looked after in the last five years ending 31 March, and the main reason why they entered care, is shown in the table below. This information is for England only.

Category of need

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

Abuse or neglect

6,880

7,350

7,430

7,380

7,270

Child's disability

50

50

60

50

50

Parents illness or disability

520

550

480

500

460

Family in acute stress

690

710

740

740

670

Family dysfunction

1,460

1,560

1,710

1,840

1,730

Socially unacceptable behaviour

50

40

70

70

60

Low income

20

20

10

20

20

Absent parenting

260

210

190

150

160

Total number of looked after children aged 0-3 years, in England

9,910

10,500

10,690

10,740

10,420

Source: SSDA903

  1. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.
  2. Only the first occasion on which a child was taken into care in the year has been counted.