Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing funding for SEND teaching assistants in schools.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Many teaching assistants who support pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) are partly or wholly funded from local authorities’ high needs budgets, as a result of assessments and consequent decisions about the additional support that those individual pupils need.
The department is increasing high needs funding nationally by £440 million (4.3%) in the 2024/25 financial year. This will bring the total of high needs funding to over £10.5 billion next year, an increase of over 60% from the 2019/20 allocations. Bradford Council is due to receive a high needs funding allocation of £42.2 million through their 2024/25 dedicated schools grant, which is a cumulative increase of 37% per head over the three years from 2021/22.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of earmarking funding to local authorities for funding SEND school places at independent institutions.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Local authorities have considerable flexibility to use the high needs funding within their Dedicated Schools Grant allocations to fulfil their statutory duties. This includes using their high needs budgets to discharge their special educational needs duties under the Children and Families Act.
Local authorities are able to fund educational placements for children and young people with Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans in independent schools. Where they choose to name an independent special school on an EHC plan, the local authority must fund the cost of the placement.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing SEND state school provisions in Bradford South constituency.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government recognises that there is a growing need for specialist special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision across the country and establishing sufficient school places is one of the government’s top priorities. This is why the department has invested £2.6 billion of high needs capital funding between 2022 and 2025. As well as supporting 41 new special free schools, this will enable local authorities to deliver new places for SEND pupils in mainstream and special schools, as well as other specialist settings, and also to improve the suitability and accessibility of existing buildings. As part of this, the department has published over £1.5 billion of High Needs Provision Capital Allocations for the 2022/23 and 2023/24 financial years, of which Bradford have been allocated £12.1 million.
In addition, to support local authorities to manage their specialist provision the department has started to collect data on the capacity of special schools and SEND units/resourced provision in mainstream schools, as well as forecasts of the numbers of specialist placements local authorities expect to make in SEND units/resourced provision, special schools (of all types) and alternative provision. This is expected to be an annual data collection, forming part of the existing School Capacity Survey (SCAP). The department is working closely with local authorities and other sector stakeholders to ensure the data we collect best supports the needs of users across the 0-25 system and will explore options for improving and broadening the data we collect in future years. Guidance on completing the SCAP survey, including tools to support local authorities in assessing the capacity of special schools, is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/school-capacity-survey-guide-for-local-authorities#:~:text=The%20annual%20school%20capacity%20survey%20(%20SCAP%20)%20collects%20information%20on%3A,the%20next%205%20academic%20years.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to section 2.6 of Reforms to subcontracting education for learners over 16, what steps she has taken to ensure that lead 16-19 education providers have direct contractual relationships with third parties providing specialist input.
Answered by Robert Halfon
The department has updated the subcontracting rules to stipulate that when a subcontractor wants to appoint and work with a third party, which could include a sports club, it is the provider who must have a direct contractual relationship with the third party and not the subcontractor (point 86). This rule is monitored through the standard subcontracting reporting and audit requirements, including the individualised learner record and subcontracting declaration, which from 2022 must also include the declaration of subcontracting of any employability, enrichment and pastoral activity. The department has also introduced the subcontracting standard which Education Skills and Funding Agency (ESFA) providers must meet if the aggregate total of all subcontractors delivering ESFA funded provision exceeds or is anticipated to exceed £100,000 in any single funding year.
The department is reviewing sports provision with the Football Association and the Association of Colleges. All subcontracted sports provision must adhere to the relevant subcontracting rules.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to section 2.6 of Reforms to subcontracting education for learners over 16, what steps she has taken to develop a good practice guide for sports provision with the Football Association and the Association of Colleges.
Answered by Robert Halfon
The department has updated the subcontracting rules to stipulate that when a subcontractor wants to appoint and work with a third party, which could include a sports club, it is the provider who must have a direct contractual relationship with the third party and not the subcontractor (point 86). This rule is monitored through the standard subcontracting reporting and audit requirements, including the individualised learner record and subcontracting declaration, which from 2022 must also include the declaration of subcontracting of any employability, enrichment and pastoral activity. The department has also introduced the subcontracting standard which Education Skills and Funding Agency (ESFA) providers must meet if the aggregate total of all subcontractors delivering ESFA funded provision exceeds or is anticipated to exceed £100,000 in any single funding year.
The department is reviewing sports provision with the Football Association and the Association of Colleges. All subcontracted sports provision must adhere to the relevant subcontracting rules.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she has made an assessment of the potential merits of altering eligibility requirements so that all recipients of Universal Credit can access the Pupil Premium.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department’s current eligibility threshold enables children in low income households to benefit from free school meals and pupil premium funding, while remaining affordable and deliverable for schools. The Department will continue to keep eligibility under review to ensure that support is targeted at those who most need it, as well as continuing to monitor current issues that affect disadvantaged families, such as the rising cost of living.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many qualifications (a) in and (b) including a focus on British Sign Language up to and including Level 2 were awarded to students funded through the Adult Education Budget in each of the last five years.
Answered by Robert Halfon
The number of enrolments and achievements by adults in each of the last three full academic years in courses where the title includes ‘British Sign Language’ are listed in the table below.
Academic year | Enrolments | Achievements (Awards) |
2019/20 | 1310 | 370 |
2020/21 | 870 | 590 |
2021/22 | 860 | 640 |
These aggregate figures can be calculated from published aims enrolments and achievements data, available at the following links: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/further-education-and-skills/2019-20#explore-data-and-files, https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/further-education-and-skills/2020-21#explore-data-and-files and https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/further-education-and-skills/2021-22#explore-data-and-files.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many places on courses (a) in and (b) including a focus on British Sign Language up to and including Level 2 were funded through the Adult Education Budget in each of the last five years.
Answered by Robert Halfon
The number of enrolments and achievements by adults in each of the last three full academic years in courses where the title includes ‘British Sign Language’ are listed in the table below.
Academic year | Enrolments | Achievements (Awards) |
2019/20 | 1310 | 370 |
2020/21 | 870 | 590 |
2021/22 | 860 | 640 |
These aggregate figures can be calculated from published aims enrolments and achievements data, available at the following links: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/further-education-and-skills/2019-20#explore-data-and-files, https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/further-education-and-skills/2020-21#explore-data-and-files and https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/further-education-and-skills/2021-22#explore-data-and-files.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to improve the financial sustainability of the further education sector in response to the effect on that sector of Education and Skills Funding Agency lagged funding methodology and the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The potential impact of the COVID-19 outbreak was taken into consideration when making some changes to the lagged funding mechanism for 16 to 19 education. When calculating 16 to 19 education funding allocations for 2021 to 2022, we applied an average retention factor for each provider, rather than using data from 2019 to 2020. Our intention was to provide a retention factor for 2021 to 2022 allocations that was not affected by the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak. In addition, we changed how we calculated exceptional in year Growth funding, making it more responsive to the increase in students from Autumn 2020. This helped providers with the costs of student number growth, in year.
The department also provided specific interventions to help young people in the circumstances of the COVID-19 outbreak. For example, we introduced the 16-19 Tuition Fund aimed at helping colleges and other providers to give prompt support to young people who needed it. It also designed a one year offer for 18- and 19-year-olds who were due to leave school or college in the summer of 2020. This funding helped providers to offer courses of up to one year duration in high value subjects to enable young people, who would otherwise have moved into apprenticeships or employment, to continue in education if work-based opportunities were not available to them.
In the academic year 2018/19, the total amount of 16 to 19 programme funding was £5,132 million, with an average funding per student of £4,504[1]. By the academic year 2021/22 the total amount 16 to 19 programme funding had increased to £5,881 million with an average funding per student of £4,994[1]. This followed an increase in funding rates paid for in the 2019 and 2020 spending rounds.
We are committed to investing in 16 to 19 education to ensure every young person has access to an excellent education, and to ensuring the further education sector can play its part in that and in developing adult skills, which requires it to be financially sustainable. The 2021 Spending Review has made available an extra £1.6 billion per year for 16-19 education in 2024-25 compared with financial year 2021-22. This will fully fund the additional students we anticipate in the system, pay for the increasing take-up of T Levels, maintain funding per student in real terms, and enable increased time in education for all 16 to 19 year-olds. The department will set out details of how this additional funding will be allocated in due course.
The Education and Skills Funding Agency will continue to work with further education and sixth form colleges to monitor and support their financial sustainability.
[1] This calculation is based on published allocations, taking the amount of Total Programme Funding allocated, divided by the total number of students in each academic year, at providers receiving programme funding. Some institutions receive only high needs funding, and their students are not included in this calculation.
Asked by: Judith Cummins (Labour - Bradford South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what comparative assessment he has made of funding allocated via EFSA’s lagged funding methodology between the 2021-22 and the 2018-19 academic years.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The potential impact of the COVID-19 outbreak was taken into consideration when making some changes to the lagged funding mechanism for 16 to 19 education. When calculating 16 to 19 education funding allocations for 2021 to 2022, we applied an average retention factor for each provider, rather than using data from 2019 to 2020. Our intention was to provide a retention factor for 2021 to 2022 allocations that was not affected by the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak. In addition, we changed how we calculated exceptional in year Growth funding, making it more responsive to the increase in students from Autumn 2020. This helped providers with the costs of student number growth, in year.
The department also provided specific interventions to help young people in the circumstances of the COVID-19 outbreak. For example, we introduced the 16-19 Tuition Fund aimed at helping colleges and other providers to give prompt support to young people who needed it. It also designed a one year offer for 18- and 19-year-olds who were due to leave school or college in the summer of 2020. This funding helped providers to offer courses of up to one year duration in high value subjects to enable young people, who would otherwise have moved into apprenticeships or employment, to continue in education if work-based opportunities were not available to them.
In the academic year 2018/19, the total amount of 16 to 19 programme funding was £5,132 million, with an average funding per student of £4,504[1]. By the academic year 2021/22 the total amount 16 to 19 programme funding had increased to £5,881 million with an average funding per student of £4,994[1]. This followed an increase in funding rates paid for in the 2019 and 2020 spending rounds.
We are committed to investing in 16 to 19 education to ensure every young person has access to an excellent education, and to ensuring the further education sector can play its part in that and in developing adult skills, which requires it to be financially sustainable. The 2021 Spending Review has made available an extra £1.6 billion per year for 16-19 education in 2024-25 compared with financial year 2021-22. This will fully fund the additional students we anticipate in the system, pay for the increasing take-up of T Levels, maintain funding per student in real terms, and enable increased time in education for all 16 to 19 year-olds. The department will set out details of how this additional funding will be allocated in due course.
The Education and Skills Funding Agency will continue to work with further education and sixth form colleges to monitor and support their financial sustainability.
[1] This calculation is based on published allocations, taking the amount of Total Programme Funding allocated, divided by the total number of students in each academic year, at providers receiving programme funding. Some institutions receive only high needs funding, and their students are not included in this calculation.