Schools: Arts Subjects

Lord Nash Excerpts

Wednesday 12th February 2014 Lords Chamber

[The Earl of Clancarty]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what encouragement they will give to the take-up of arts subjects in secondary schools; and whether that will include a review of the current school performance discount codes.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Schools (Lord Nash) (Con)]

My Lords, the Government believe strongly that every child should experience a high-quality arts education. Music and art and design are statutory subjects for key stages 1 to 3 in the new national curriculum. The arts remain an entitlement area at key stage 4. From 2016, our new Progress 8 accountability measure provides schools with more incentive to enter pupils for arts subjects. Up to three can be included. Discount codes for drama and dance are being reviewed.

[The Earl of Clancarty (CB)]

My Lords, I thank the Minister for that reply and welcome the review of the discount codes. In the light of the figures recently released by DCMS on the value of the arts and creative industries to the economy, will the DfE seek to reverse the continuing trend towards fewer arts GCSEs being studied within schools? Will the Government review the discount codes which group together many disparate GCSE art and design subjects so that they count as one subject only towards performance tables, biasing the tables and, indeed, schools against the arts?

[Lord Nash]

I share the noble Earl’s passion for the arts and know that it is an area in which he has great experience. I am happy to report that key stage 4 entries for arts subjects have not significantly changed since 2007 and currently account for 9% of all key stage 4 entries. I assure the noble Earl that we take discounting very seriously. We are looking specifically at how it works as it is so important that schools are not incentivised to offer pupils a narrow curriculum, although it is equally important that pupils take subjects that are distinct from each other. We are reviewing how the discount codes for dance and drama work, and we are also considering whether to allow appeals against the discounting decisions that have been made in other areas if there is evidence to support reconsidering our initial consideration.

[Lord Cormack (Con)]

My Lords, does my noble friend accept that not only does studying the arts enrich the lives of those who study them but that there are marvellous careers in the arts and crafts and we ought to do more to encourage young people to consider such careers?

[Lord Nash]

I entirely agree with my noble friend. It is important that we give all our students that core cultural capital that Diane Abbott has acknowledged in the other place as being essential, particularly for underprivileged children, to enable them to get on in life and that we encourage more careers. We now have a number of university technical colleges focused on the creative industries.

[Lord Storey (LD)]

My Lords, the Minister will be aware that many young people develop their passion and talent for the arts by attending Saturday clubs, such as the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts 4:19 Part-Time Academy. Parents pay for this privilege. How can we ensure that children, particularly from disadvantaged backgrounds, can also access those Saturday club resources?

[Lord Nash]

I know of the contribution in this area of the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts, which the noble Lord knows well and whose lead patron is Sir Paul McCartney. Indeed, we have approved it to open a primary free school, which will use the creative and performing arts to encourage a lasting enthusiasm for learning. Pupil premium funding is allocated to schools to decide how to improve the outcome for disadvantaged pupils. Ofsted now inspects against this and it will be very difficult for schools to get an outstanding rating if they are not making good progress for their pupil premium pupils. All schools have to publish online how they are spending their pupil premium money and its impact.

[Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall (Lab)]

My Lords, may I recommend to the noble Lord that he looks at a report from Professor Ken Robinson that was co-commissioned by his department, as it then was, and the DCMS more than a decade ago? In the report Professor Robinson explained in great detail the value of creative education, broadly, both educationally and socially. Can the noble Lord tell the House how relations between his department and the DCMS currently are, because I am afraid that Professor Robinson’s report fell slightly foul of a lack of co-ordination between them at the time? Can he say whether his department is well acquainted with the wide range of educational opportunities provided by arts organisations to enhance the curriculum in the way that he seeks?

[Lord Nash]

The noble Baroness raises a good point. I am not aware of the report, but she is of course vastly experienced in this area as a former chief executive of the Royal Opera House and principal of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Cross-departmental working is never a smooth affair. We had some success with my noble friend in the Children and Families Bill, and I would be very interested to look into this in more detail. The noble Baroness is absolutely right that all schools should engage with wider organisations. My own school engages with a wide range of charities and organisations to enhance our arts and drama offer.

[Baroness Deech (CB)]

Is the Minister satisfied with early education in classical music at schools, the availability of instruments and whether we begin to compare with Venezuela’s El Sistema?

[Lord Nash]

Music is very important for young people at primary school and there are some very good charities operating in this area, such as London Music Masters. I was inspired to see a KIPP school in Harlem in New York, where every pupil is in the orchestra. That is certainly something that all primary schools should focus on.

[Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Lab)]

My Lords, is the Minister aware of the Sistema project in the Raploch, in Stirling, Scotland, established by Richard Holloway following the success in Venezuela? Would he or one of the other Ministers be willing to visit that project and see the incredible impact that it has had on children in one of the most deprived community schemes in Britain, who are all now training to learn an instrument and playing in the most incredible concerts—entertaining not just locals but nationally through television as well?

[Lord Nash]

I am not aware of the scheme in Stirling to which the noble Lord refers but I would be delighted to visit it.

[Lord Ramsbotham (CB)]

Can the Minister confirm that arts subjects will be on the syllabus of the fortified secondary schools that the Ministry of Justice is establishing for the custody of young offenders?

[Lord Nash]

I do not know the answer to the noble Lord’s question, but I shall look into it. I very much hope that they are, and I am very happy to discuss the matter with him further.

[Lord Brooke of Sutton Mandeville (Con)]

My Lords, pursuant to the ante-penultimate question, my noble friend’s department published an excellent analysis of 14 schools’ arts departments about 30 years ago—the 14 presumably being chosen to include an independent school. Has such an analysis been mounted during the past 30 years and, if not, would my noble friend consider one?

[Lord Nash]

I am not aware of anything done since that analysis but I shall certainly investigate and, if I find one, I will notify the noble Lord. I will certainly consider whether such an analysis would be appropriate.

[Baroness Jones of Whitchurch (Lab)]

My Lords, is the Minister aware of just how disillusioned the arts community is with the Government’s education reforms? Certainly, in all the meetings that I have with the arts community, it consistently sends out a message about how it feels that arts education in schools is marginalised and devalued. I think that the Secretary of State bears some responsibility for this. Going back to the noble Earl’s original Question, when is the Secretary of State going to champion the arts, speak up for them and recognise the massive contribution that they make to our economy and society?

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[Lord Nash]

I am extremely glad that the noble Baroness asked me that question. Under Labour, the number of pupils entering key academic subjects fell from 49.9% to 22%, as a number of extremely dotty subjects such as the level 2 diploma in fish husbandry—which accounted for four GCSE equivalents—were perpetrated into the system to give the appearance of success. Noble Lords will be delighted to hear that under this Government we are back to pre-Labour levels for arts subjects. We are determined to ensure that all pupils get the core cultural capital they need and study a broad sweep of poetry and writing. It is not possible to accuse my right honourable friend the Secretary of State for not being absolutely passionate about arts subjects.