Asked by: Jason McCartney (Conservative - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Answer of 19 April 2021 to Question 175810 on Education: Finance, if he will confirm the cost of using a national funding rate of £4,760 to calculate 16-19 funding allocations for 2020-21.
Answered by Gillian Keegan - Secretary of State for Education
Modelling the cost of increasing the base rate to £4,760 for 16-19 funding allocations for 2020-21 would require consideration of various factors, such as, the forecast of expected student numbers across age ranges, the characteristics of those students, the courses undertaken, the effect of lagged funding and the impact of the policy change required. The department does not routinely make estimates of this kind.
Asked by: Jason McCartney (Conservative - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will make an estimate of the cost of increasing the national funding rate for all full time 16, 17 and 18 year old students to £4,760 per year.
Answered by Gillian Keegan - Secretary of State for Education
The information requested is not held centrally as the department does not routinely make estimates of this kind. Modelling such costs would require consideration of various factors, such as the forecast of expected student numbers across age ranges, the characteristics of those students, the courses undertaken, the effect of lagged funding and the impact of the policy change required.
Asked by: Jason McCartney (Conservative - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that local authorities provide sufficient short breaks to children with life-shortening conditions in England.
Answered by Edward Timpson
Since 2011, local authorities have been under a duty to provide a range of short breaks services and to publish a local Short Breaks Duty Statement showing what services are available, how they are responding to the needs of local parent carers, and how short breaks can be accessed, including any eligibility criteria. Local authorities are responsible for funding this short breaks provision.
Between April 2011 and March 2015, the government made available £800 million to local authorities for short break provision, along with an additional £80 million of capital funding for equipment and infrastructure.
Between April 2015 and March 2016, we awarded £250,555 to the Short Breaks Partnership (a consortium made up of Contact a Family, the Council for Disabled Children, Action for Children, and KIDS) to provide information and advice to those involved in designing, commissioning, providing, and taking up short breaks for disabled children. The Department for Education has allocated £200m funding over the next 4 years to support innovation and improvement to children’s social work practice. We are currently considering how we can use some of this funding to support local innovative approaches to short breaks for disabled children and their families and for making services more accessible.
The Department’s Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Advisory Team is continuing to offer support and challenge to local authorities to help make sure they meet all of their statutory requirements and that quality continues to improve. From this summer, there will be opportunities through the new Ofsted/Care Quality Commission SEND inspections framework for local areas to consider how well they are providing for the education, health and care needs of those with SEND, including their need for short breaks services. In addition, Together for Short lives, the UK charity for children and young people with life limiting conditions, received £551,029 from the Department for Education over a 3 year period – between April 2013 and March 2016, to help ensure children and young people with life limiting conditions benefited from the SEND reforms.
Asked by: Jason McCartney (Conservative - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will introduce lessons on managing the risk of injuries related to digital screen use to school curriculums.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The national curriculum sets out the essential skills and knowledge that children must be taught at school. Schools have the freedom to teach subjects or topics beyond the national curriculum to ensure that their pupils receive a rounded education.
Using technology safely is covered at each key stage in the computing curriculum, which is compulsory for all pupils aged 5-16 in maintained schools.
The programmes of study for the national curriculum in computing are published online at:
Asked by: Jason McCartney (Conservative - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many legal cases are being brought against schools in the UK related to injuries caused by digital screen use.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department for Education is not aware of any legal cases that have been brought, or are in the process of being brought, against schools in the UK in relation to injuries caused by digital screen use.
Asked by: Jason McCartney (Conservative - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many days of absence were reported to her Department on grounds of musculoskeletal injury in the (a) 2012-13, (b) 2013-14 and (c) 2014-15 school year.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department for Education does not hold information on absences resulting from musculoskeletal injury.
Asked by: Jason McCartney (Conservative - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent meetings she has had with civil society groups on potential adverse health effects of introducing more technology in schools.
Answered by Edward Timpson
The Secretary of State has not met with any civil society groups to discuss the potential adverse health effects of introducing more technology in schools.
Asked by: Jason McCartney (Conservative - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what research her Department has undertaken on the potential effect of digital screen use on students in the last five years.
Answered by Edward Timpson
There has been no specific research undertaken by the department on the potential effect of digital screen use on students in the last five years.
Asked by: Jason McCartney (Conservative - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much her Department has spent on (a) tablet computers and (b) other new information technology for students in schools in (i) 2012-13 and (ii) 2013-14.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
The Department for Education does not provide schools with dedicated funds for information technology. We are therefore unable to advise on the volume or type of equipment that has been purchased. Headteachers manage their own budgets, prioritise spend and are best placed to decide on local requirements.
Asked by: Jason McCartney (Conservative - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what her policy is on the refund of VAT costs to sixth form colleges.
Answered by Nick Boles
All funding decisions, including the question of the VAT costs currently paid by sixth form colleges, will be considered in the round at the Spending Review.