To match an exact phrase, use quotation marks around the search term. eg. "Parliamentary Estate". Use "OR" or "AND" as link words to form more complex queries.


Keep yourself up-to-date with the latest developments by exploring our subscription options to receive notifications direct to your inbox

Written Question
ICT: Teachers
Monday 3rd July 2023

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many computing teachers (a) left teaching and (b) were recruited in (i) 2018, (ii) 2019, (iii) 2021 and (iv) 2022.

Answered by Nick Gibb

The Department has invested over £100 million to support the quality of computing teaching through the creation of the National Centre for Computing Education. This has provided a computing hub network and high quality training and resources for pre and in service teachers.

Information on the school workforce, including the number of subject teachers in state funded secondary schools and the overall number of teachers joining and leaving the state funded sector, is published in the ‘School Workforce in England’ statistical publication, available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-workforce-in-england.

As at November 2022, the latest data available, there were 7,529 full time equivalent (FTE) teachers teaching computer science, and 6,179 FTE teachers teaching information, computing and technology (ICT) in state funded secondary schools. It is important to note that it is possible for teachers to teach both subjects, therefore, some may be counted in both of these figures.

FTE teachers of computer science and ICT1 in statefunded secondary schools
2018/19 to 2021/222

Year

Computer Science

ICT

2022/23

7,529

6,179

2021/22

6,573

6,691

2020/21

6,049

6,670

2019/20

4,305

8,069

2018/19

3,954

8,834

Source: School Workforce Census, published at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/8bcbf8de-57df-4ae4-8a65-08db7860a436.


1: Teachers were counted once against each subject. Therefore, teachers may be counted against both computer science and ICT

2: Computer science was introduced as a new code from 2017/18 to reflect reformed GCSEs.

The requested figures for leavers and joiners by subject taught are not available.

47,954 teachers joined the state funded school sector for 2022/23, up by 3,943 since last year.

43,997 teachers left the state funded sector in 2021/22, up by 7,818 since last year.

Leavers are defined as qualified teachers leaving the state funded sector in England, for example due to a change of career or joining other UK education sectors, and those leaving on career breaks such as maternity leave or secondments outside of the school sector. Some of these teachers may later rejoin a state funded school in England.

Almost 9 in 10 (87.2%) teachers who qualified in 2021 are still teaching one year after qualification. Almost 8 in 10 (76.1%) teachers who qualified three years ago are still teaching, and almost 7 in 10 (68.7%) teachers who qualified five years ago are still teaching.

It is the Department’s priority to make sure that teachers not only stay in the profession, but thrive in it. The Department has taken action to improve teacher and leader workload, working with the profession to understand and address longstanding issues around marking, planning and data management. The Department continues to work proactively with the sector to understand the drivers behind workload and wellbeing issues and improve our policies and interventions.

The Department is supporting schools to act and remove unhelpful practice that creates unnecessary workload. The Department School Workload Reduction Toolkit, developed alongside headteachers, is a helpful resource for schools to review and reduce workload.

The Department also worked in partnership with the education sector and mental health experts to create the Education Staff Wellbeing Charter. The Department is encouraging schools to sign up to as a shared commitment to promote staff wellbeing. So far, 2,600 schools have signed up to the Charter.


Written Question
Skilled Workers: Vacancies
Monday 20th February 2023

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Employer Skills Survey 2019, how many skill-shortage vacancies were reported in England in the (a) creative industries and (b) digital and technology sector; and how many such vacancies were reported in the previous survey.

Answered by Robert Halfon

The Employer Skills Survey (ESS) has run biennially since 2011, providing a vital source of intelligence on the skills issues employers face. The survey captures the density and incidence of skills shortage vacancies.

The survey provides a breakdown of all key metrics by 13 sectors.

For the creative industries sector, the closest published sector code is arts and other services. This covers arts, entertainment and recreation and other service activities including performing arts, libraries and museums, gambling and betting, sports facilities, amusement and recreation activities, activities of religious, political, trade union and professional membership organisations, and personal services, such as hairdressing, beauty, textile cleaning, well-being activities and funeral activities. In England, in 2019 there was a total of 8,229 skill shortage vacancies in this sector, and in 2017 there was a total of 12,410 skill shortage vacancies in this sector.

For the digital and technology sector, the closest published sector code is information and communications. This covers television, film and music production, broadcasting, telecommunications, computer programming, publishing, software and computer games and consultancy and information service activities, such as data processing and hosting. In England, in 2019 there were 9,075 skill shortage vacancies in this sector, and in 2017 there was 10,064 skill shortage vacancies in this sector.

In its current format, the ESS is not able to provide representative data for a more granular level of sector than the above. The department is exploring the feasibility of including breakdowns by two and four digit Standard Industrial Classification codes for future publications of the ESS data.


Written Question
Skilled Workers: Vacancies
Monday 20th February 2023

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Employer Skills Survey 2019, how many skill-shortage vacancies were reported in England in the (a) creative industries and (b) digital and technology sector.

Answered by Robert Halfon

The Employer Skills Survey (ESS) has run biennially since 2011, providing a vital source of intelligence on the skills issues employers face. The survey captures the density and incidence of skills shortage vacancies.

The survey provides a breakdown of all key metrics by 13 sectors.

For the creative industries sector, the closest published sector code is arts and other services. This covers arts, entertainment and recreation and other service activities including performing arts, libraries and museums, gambling and betting, sports facilities, amusement and recreation activities, activities of religious, political, trade union and professional membership organisations, and personal services, such as hairdressing, beauty, textile cleaning, well-being activities and funeral activities. In England, in 2019 there was a total of 8,229 skill shortage vacancies in this sector, and in 2017 there was a total of 12,410 skill shortage vacancies in this sector.

For the digital and technology sector, the closest published sector code is information and communications. This covers television, film and music production, broadcasting, telecommunications, computer programming, publishing, software and computer games and consultancy and information service activities, such as data processing and hosting. In England, in 2019 there were 9,075 skill shortage vacancies in this sector, and in 2017 there was 10,064 skill shortage vacancies in this sector.

In its current format, the ESS is not able to provide representative data for a more granular level of sector than the above. The department is exploring the feasibility of including breakdowns by two and four digit Standard Industrial Classification codes for future publications of the ESS data.


Written Question
Department for Education: Iron and Steel
Tuesday 6th April 2021

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the level of UK-produced steel procured by his Department and associated departmental public bodies and agencies in (a) 2019-20 and (b) 2020-21.

Answered by Nick Gibb

The Government is working with the steel industry, the unions and devolved administrations to support the UK steel sector to develop a long-term sustainable future. This includes making sure that UK producers of steel have the best possible chance of competing for and winning contracts across all Government procurement.

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) collates and publishes annually information on how much steel is purchased for the Government’s major infrastructure projects in the previous financial year, including what proportion is UK-produced.

BEIS has collated the 2019/20 data and expect to publish later this year. BEIS will start collating the data on UK steel procured in 2020/21 in due course.


Written Question
Children: Disadvantaged
Wednesday 6th May 2020

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Department for Education:

What steps he is taking to ensure that the attainment gap between disadvantaged children and their peers does not widen during the covid-19 outbreak.

Answered by Nick Gibb

The government has already committed over £100 million to boost remote education, including by providing devices and internet access to vulnerable children who need it most.

Schools also continue to receive the pupil premium – worth around £2.4 billion annually – to help them support their disadvantaged pupils.


Written Question
After School Clubs
Thursday 2nd April 2020

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to provide financial support to protect the viability of after school clubs in the event of school closures in England.

Answered by Nick Gibb

Schools and all childcare providers are closed, except for a limited number of children - children who are vulnerable and children whose parents are critical to the COVID-19 response and cannot be safely cared for at home.

In his speech of 20 March 2020, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a range of measures to support businesses, including:

  • the coronavirus job retention scheme for employees who are not working but kept on payroll – the Government will contribute 80% of a worker’s wages of up to £2,500, backdated to 1 March 2020;
  • the Business Interruption Loan Scheme will now be interest-free for 12 months rather than 6 months; and
  • VAT payments for next quarter will be deferred – they will not need to be paid until March 2021.

Written Question
Children: Safety
Wednesday 1st April 2020

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to ensure that vulnerable children are safeguarded in the event of school closures in England.

Answered by Vicky Ford

Supporting vulnerable children is a priority at this time. On Wednesday 18 March, my right hon. Friends, the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Education announced that schools would remain open for vulnerable children, alongside the children of critical workers. Vulnerable children include those who have a social worker and those with education, health and care (EHC) plans.

We know that for many children who have a social worker, being in school can be a protective factor helping to keep them safe from harm. There is an expectation that vulnerable children who have a social worker will attend school, so long as they do not have underlying health conditions that put them at severe risk.

Guidance for schools on supporting vulnerable children at this time is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-on-vulnerable-children-and-young-people.

We recognise that local authorities and other safeguarding partners are under increased pressure during this period and are considering all options to ensure that they can continue to keep children safe. HM Treasury has created a £5 billion emergency response fund, which includes £1.6 billion of additional funding to help local authorities address any pressures they are facing in response the Covid-19 pandemic across all service areas, including children’s social care. Through the Coronavirus Act, we are seeking powers to bring additional social workers onto the register of social workers held by the regulator, Social Work England, to give local authorities flexibility to meet the challenges of dealing with Covid-19.


Written Question
Free School Meals
Wednesday 25th March 2020

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to ensure that children on free school meals are provided with a hot meal at home in the event of school closures in England.

Answered by Vicky Ford

Schools will be able to provide meals or vouchers for supermarkets or local shops. The total value of vouchers offered to each eligible child per week will exceed the rate paid to schools for free school meals. The department recognises that these families will not be buying food in bulk and may therefore incur higher costs. These can be sent directly to families who are either self-isolating at home or whose schools are closed on government advice.

Full guidance for schools is available at the link below: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-free-school-meals-guidance/covid-19-free-school-meals-guidance-for-schools.


Written Question
Weald of Kent School
Thursday 31st October 2019

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, on how many occasions and for how long the (a) headteacher and (b) other members of the Senior Leadership team based at the original school site at the Weald of Kent grammar school have visited the annex site in Sevenoaks.

Answered by Nick Gibb

The information requested is not held centrally. The Department does not hold operational information at this level. However, given the uniqueness of this particular case, the Department has assured itself that the Weald of Kent does indeed continue to operate as one school across two sites.


Written Question
Selective Schools Expansion Fund
Monday 28th October 2019

Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of funding was allocated from the Selective Schools Expansion Fund since that fund has been established; and how much such funding each school has received from that fund.

Answered by Nick Gibb

The Selective Schools Expansion Fund (SSEF) 2018-19 has provided funding of £49.3 million for 16 expansion projects to date. The Department has not published the amount of funding allocated to each school as this is commercially sensitive information.

The Department estimates that SSEF funding will create over 2,700 more good school places. The number of school places created at individual schools will be announced as part of each school’s published admission numbers following completion of the expansion project.

All of the 16 successful projects have planned to build capacity on their existing sites. There are no expansion projects on satellite sites.

Details of the Selective Schools Expansion Fund for 2019-20 is due to be announced during the autumn. Information will be available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/selective-schools-expansion-fund.

The factors taken into account when assessing whether a proposal to expand onto a satellite site is a genuine expansion are provided in our guidance “Making significant changes to an open academy and closure by mutual agreement,” available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/751304/Making_significant_changes_and_closure_academy.pdf.

The former Secretary of State for Education (Nicky Morgan), my right hon. Friend the Secretary for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport made a statement in the house in October 2015, outlining the reasons for the decision to approve the expansion of the Weald of Kent Grammar school. The statement is available here: https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/2015-10-19/debates/15101917000002/SchoolExpansion#contribution-15101917000003.

The Department has no plans to publish any further information about the decision to approve the expansion of the Weald of Kent grammar school.