Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Gavin Williamson and Cherilyn Mackrory

Monday 6th September 2021 Commons Chamber

[Gavin Williamson]

South Cheshire College, along with many colleges up and down the country, has demonstrated the real value and worth that further education can deliver, working in conjunction with the higher education sector. I am afraid I cannot be drawn into an early awarding announcement, but we recognise the real importance of such colleges and the obvious success that the early, first-wave institutes of technology are already having in the communities they serve.

[Cherilyn Mackrory (Truro and Falmouth) (Con)]

11. What steps his Department is taking to support the development of T-levels.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Gavin Williamson and Cherilyn Mackrory

Monday 12th October 2020 Commons Chamber

[Cherilyn Mackrory (Truro and Falmouth) (Con)]

In my constituency, our secondary schools are near full capacity. With bigger year groups to come as the population of Cornwall continues to grow, will my right hon. Friend work with me to explore the option of a new free secondary school for the children of my constituency?

[Gavin Williamson]

My hon. Friend raises such an important point about the importance of having the right provision in Cornwall for her constituents. When I visited her constituency, I saw how she was campaigning so hard to get the very best for all her constituents. I would be very happy to meet her to discuss this further and to discuss how best to ensure that we deliver the brilliant provision she is always rightly fighting for.

Educational Settings

Debate between Gavin Williamson and Cherilyn Mackrory

Wednesday 18th March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Gavin Williamson]

As I alluded to earlier, we have already guaranteed the Government funding regardless of what their pupil numbers are in terms of continued funding for all those nursery settings. We have already done it.

[Cherilyn Mackrory (Truro and Falmouth) (Con)]

Will my right hon. Friend join me in thanking all the staff and everyone involved, including parents, for the effort they have made so far and for the common-sense and sensible approach that they have taken to keeping schools open? We need to understand that we are doing this as a national effort and everyone has to play their part to keep the NHS at a capacity at which it can cope with this virus, and this change is part of that effort. My one concern in my area, which is rural, is whether the school transport provision will still be in place for those children who still need to attend their schools because they are eligible.

[Gavin Williamson]

We are certainly very much hoping that the school transport system will be there, although that is dependent on other strains within the transport network. My hon. Friend highlights the importance of saying an enormous thank you to those many public servants who have been doing so much to support parents and families and, most importantly, to support children. We are incredibly indebted to them, but we recognise that we will still be asking an awful lot more of them in the future.