Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department takes to monitor the content of (a) training and (b) lessons on critical race theory provided by (i) FLAIR and (ii) other third party organisations.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Political issues relating to racial and social justice can be taught in a balanced and factual manner, just as pupils are often taught a range of different views on other topics, but schools should not teach contested theories and opinions as fact.
The Department is aware that there has been increasing focus on political impartiality in schools over the last few years. This has been challenging for head teachers, teachers and staff, given a lack of clarity regarding what the legal duties in this area really mean. That is why the Department has published clear and comprehensive guidance to help those working with and in schools to better understand legal duties on political impartiality. A link to the guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/political-impartiality-in-schools.
As with other aspects of the curriculum, schools have flexibility over how they deliver these subjects. It is important that schools take full responsibility for ensuring lessons and materials are age appropriate, suitable, and politically impartial, particularly when using materials produced by external organisations. When teaching, schools should consider the age of pupils and their religious and cultural backgrounds.
Schools are ultimately responsible for making sure the resources they use are suitable for their pupils. The Department’s guidance includes advice to help schools make good choices.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding her Department provided for language courses for deaf children in each region in the latest period for which data is available.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
The Government does not collect local authority level data on specialist education services for children with sensory impairments. The Children and Families Act 2014 requires all local authorities to publish a local offer of services for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) in their area. This is to ensure that families are aware of services that are available in their area and can contribute to shaping the services to meet local needs. Information about the support available for children with sensory impairment should be included within the local offer.
The department provides funding to support local authorities in delivering SEND provision and high needs funding for children and young people with complex needs. This financial year, over £10 billion of funding has been provided.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of deaf children were enrolled on a British Sign Language course in the latest period for which data is available.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
British Sign Language (BSL) is an important language for communication for many deaf people and people with hearing impairments. Schools are free to offer sign language programmes to meet the needs of their pupils if they wish. The department does not hold data on the proportion of deaf children enrolled on BSL courses. New subject content for a BSL GCSE has been developed by the department, together with Ofqual and subject experts. The department launched a 12 week public consultation on the draft subject content on 15 June 2023. Details of the public consultation can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/gcse-british-sign-language-bsl-proposed-subject-content. The aim is for the GCSE to be first taught from September 2025.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will publish revised safeguarding guidance on transgender issues in schools.
Answered by Nick Gibb
‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’ (KCSIE) is the statutory safeguarding guidance schools and colleges must have regard to when safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the pupils in their care.
The Secretary of State is working closely with the Minister for Women and Equalities to produce guidance to support schools in relation to pupils who are questioning their gender, following calls from schools, teachers, and parents. This guidance will clarify schools’ legal position and the importance of schools involving parents when making any decisions relating to their child and their gender. The Department will undertake a formal public consultation on this guidance before it is published.
The Department will consider whether to include links to the new transgender guidance, within future versions of KCSIE, and take into account any views on its inclusion, as part of the KCSIE public consultation process in the normal way.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department holds searchable IT archives (a) of Regulatory Impact Analysis estimates for EU-sourced regulation and (b) employing the search term out of scope relating to changes to regulatory burdens that could not be reviewed due to its EU origin.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The information requested is not held centrally. The Department does not hold searchable IT archives containing this information.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many people were employed by her Department to work on matters relating to equality, diversity and inclusivity in (a) 2021 and (b) 2022.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The average headcount of staff employed by the Department (excluding arm's length bodies of the Department) to work on matters relating to equality, diversity and inclusivity in the respective years is:
Year | Headcount |
2021 | 9 |
2022 | 8 |
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an estimate of the number of schools in England which only provide gender neutral toilets.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The advice on Standards for School Premises (2015) is clear that suitable toilet and washing facilities must be provided for the sole use of pupils, and that separate toilets for boys and girls aged 8 years or over are provided, except where the toilet facility is provided in a room that can be secured from the inside and that is intended for use by one pupil at a time. The advice on Standards for School Premises is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/410294/Advice_on_standards_for_school_premises.pdf#:~:text=The%20Education%20Act%201996%20places%20a%20duty%20on,and%20new%20schools%20maintained%20by%20a%20local%20authority3.
It is for schools to find reasonable ways, in accordance with the law, to balance every child’s right to access clean and safe toilet facilities when they need them.
The Department does not collect data on the number of schools that only provide gender-neutral toilets.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will hold discussions with the Teaching Regulation Agency on the adequacy of its guidelines on (a) misgendering and (b) preferred pronouns, in the context of the case of Joshua Sutcliffe.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Guidance on ‘Teacher misconduct: the prohibition of teachers’ (the Advice) sets out the arrangements for the regulatory system relating to teacher misconduct. These arrangements are operated by the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA), an executive agency of the Department, which acts on behalf of the Secretary of State for Education, as the regulator of the teaching profession. The Advice is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/teacher-misconduct-the-prohibition-of-teachers--3.
The Advice sets out the factors to be considered by an independent professional conduct panel convened by the TRA for the purposes of regulating the teaching profession. The Advice is used to inform panel considerations, findings and recommendations to the Secretary of State about whether to impose a prohibition order on a teacher. A panel must consider each case on its own merits. The decision maker who acts on behalf of the Secretary of State also uses the Advice when considering the panel’s recommendation and in deciding whether to make a prohibition order.
Given the independent nature of the panel, it would be inappropriate for the Secretary of State to comment on the specifics of any case or look to direct a panel in any way.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the implications for her policies on freedom of speech at universities of attempts to cancel an appearance at the Oxford Union by Professor Kathleen Stock; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
The Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023 will place duties upon registered higher education providers, their colleges and students’ unions to take steps to ensure freedom of speech.
Visiting speakers will be protected, and if they have suffered adverse consequences because of a breach of the duties of a provider, college or students’ union, they will be able to make a complaint using a new free-to-use complaints scheme, which will be operated by the Office for Students.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much her Department spent on staff training related to diversity and inclusion in 2022.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The department spent £162,835 on staff training related to diversity and inclusion in 2022.