Asked by: Marco Longhi (Conservative - Dudley North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of using targeted interventions in relation to physical activity in his recovery plan for education.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government published its cross-government School Sport and Activity Action Plan in July 2019, which aims to increase levels of physical activity for all children in England through providing them with greater opportunities to do 60 minutes of physical activity every day inside and outside school. The Government has confirmed its intention to publish an update to this action plan later in 2021 and is working closely with sport organisations through the School Sport and Activity Sector Forum to discuss the Government’s long term approach to physical activity in schools.
Since 2013, the Department has funded a series of grant programmes to increase and improve access to physical education, school sport and physical activity for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities.
The Department has provided £10.1 million to open school sport facilities outside of the school day and continues to support the Holiday Activities and Food Fund and Summer Schools programme, which are targeted towards children from lower socio-economic groups and can help to maintain activity over the summer holidays. The Department has confirmed £320 million funding for the physical education and sport premium into the next academic year. Schools are provided with the flexibility to use this funding to meet the needs of their pupils.
Asked by: Marco Longhi (Conservative - Dudley North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to help ensure that children with disabilities can participate in appropriate physical activity at school in (a) the UK and (b) Dudley North constituency.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government published its cross-government School Sport and Activity Action Plan in July 2019, which aims to increase levels of physical activity for all children in England through providing them with greater opportunities to do 60 minutes of physical activity every day inside and outside school. The Government has confirmed its intention to publish an update to this action plan later in 2021 and is working closely with sport organisations through the School Sport and Activity Sector Forum to discuss the Government’s long term approach to physical activity in schools.
Since 2013, the Department has funded a series of grant programmes to increase and improve access to physical education, school sport and physical activity for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities.
The Department has provided £10.1 million to open school sport facilities outside of the school day and continues to support the Holiday Activities and Food Fund and Summer Schools programme, which are targeted towards children from lower socio-economic groups and can help to maintain activity over the summer holidays. The Department has confirmed £320 million funding for the physical education and sport premium into the next academic year. Schools are provided with the flexibility to use this funding to meet the needs of their pupils.
Asked by: Marco Longhi (Conservative - Dudley North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of a long-term strategy to improve physical activity and wellbeing in young people in (a) the UK and (b) Dudley North constituency.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government published its cross-government School Sport and Activity Action Plan in July 2019, which aims to increase levels of physical activity for all children in England through providing them with greater opportunities to do 60 minutes of physical activity every day inside and outside school. The Government has confirmed its intention to publish an update to this action plan later in 2021 and is working closely with sport organisations through the School Sport and Activity Sector Forum to discuss the Government’s long term approach to physical activity in schools.
Since 2013, the Department has funded a series of grant programmes to increase and improve access to physical education, school sport and physical activity for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities.
The Department has provided £10.1 million to open school sport facilities outside of the school day and continues to support the Holiday Activities and Food Fund and Summer Schools programme, which are targeted towards children from lower socio-economic groups and can help to maintain activity over the summer holidays. The Department has confirmed £320 million funding for the physical education and sport premium into the next academic year. Schools are provided with the flexibility to use this funding to meet the needs of their pupils.
Asked by: Marco Longhi (Conservative - Dudley North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to ensure adequate provision is made for private students to sit exams or be graded at a minimum cost to families.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department and Ofqual have ensured there is a clear and accessible route for private candidates to receive a grade this year, at the same time as other candidates.
Private candidates can work with a centre to be assessed on a range of evidence, which could include evidence from an established educational provider and the board-provided assessment materials. The Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) has issued guidance for centres about assessing private candidates, taking into account their different circumstances. These candidates should have the same opportunity as other candidates to be assessed on what they were taught, and centres can conduct assessments remotely if needed. Further guidance on assessing all candidates (including private candidates) will be published before the end of March 2021.
The Department is working with the sector to ensure there are enough centres available to support private candidates, and JCQ will publish a list of available centres by the end of March, giving private candidates the opportunity to find a centre at a similar cost to a normal year. The exam boards have committed that private candidates will not be charged late fees if entries are received by 26th April 2021. To support centres with the particular additional requirements of assessing private candidates this year, especially given they will not have been taught alongside a wider cohort, and avoid the cost being passed on to candidates, we are providing additional funding for centres. Centres can claim £200 per private candidate entry. We encourage all available exams centres to help these candidates achieve their qualifications in this exceptional year.
Asked by: Marco Longhi (Conservative - Dudley North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has reduce the schools' six week summer break to four weeks, to allow school children to receive additional classroom-based education.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Despite restrictions to schools for the majority of pupils, teachers and school staff are working extremely hard to give face-to-face education to vulnerable children and the children of critical workers. In addition, schools are offering robust remote learning for those who are not attending in person.
On 3 February 2021, my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, and my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, confirmed the appointment of Sir Kevan Collins as the Education Recovery Commissioner. He will advise on the approach for education recovery, with a particular focus on helping students catch up on learning lost because of the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Department will be working in collaboration with the education sector to develop short, medium and long-term plans to make sure children and young people have the chance to make up their learning over the course of this Parliament, further details will be made available in due course.
Asked by: Marco Longhi (Conservative - Dudley North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the Christmas 2020 holidays for students in schools and universities by one week to provide a circuit breaker for the covid-19 virus.
Answered by Nick Gibb
On 4 January, my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, announced new national restrictions in England. During this period, primary, secondary, alternative provision, special schools and colleges will remain open to vulnerable children and young people and the children of critical workers only. In universities, we are prioritising the return to face to face teaching only for courses which are most important to be delivered in-person in order to support the pipeline of future key workers. Wherever possible, teaching should be provided online. The list of subjects where face to face learning can continue is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/950583/Students_returning_to_and_starting_higher_education_in_Spring_Term_2021_FINAL_v3.pdf.
The reason for restricting attendance, more broadly, is to reduce the transmission of COVID-19 by reducing mixing of households in the community. This decision to restrict attendance in the spring term does not suggest that schools and colleges are no longer safe places for children and young people. Instead, limiting attendance is about reducing the number of contacts that all of us have with people in other households.
The Government is doing all it can to minimise the risks to those working and studying in our registered childcare settings, schools, colleges, and universities in this unprecedented situation, while mitigating the impact on education.
On the 7 January, the Department published:
On the 8 January, the Department published guidance on actions for further education colleges and providers during the COVID-19 outbreak: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-maintaining-further-education-provision.
On the 14 January, the Department published additional guidance for special schools, specialist post-16 providers and alternative provision during the national lockdown: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/952377/Guidance_for_special_schools__specialist_post-16_providers_and_alternative_provision_during_the_national_lockdown.pdf. This provides further information on actions schools can take to support and encourage the attendance of vulnerable children and young people, as attending their school is crucial so that they can receive high quality teaching, remain engaged in education and are kept safe from harm, and receive the specialist professional support they need.
The Department will continue to keep its plans under review and ensure our position is informed by the latest evidence.
Asked by: Marco Longhi (Conservative - Dudley North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will take steps with Public Health England to ensure all school staff are vaccinated as soon as possible to enable schools to be reopened.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Receiving face-to-face education is best for children’s mental health and for their educational achievement. The Department will continue to review the restrictions on schools, colleges and universities, and will ensure that children and young people return to face-to-face education as soon as possible.
The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) are the independent experts who advise the Government on which vaccine/s the UK should use and provide advice on who should be offered them.
JCVI advises that the first priorities for the COVID-19 vaccination programme should be the prevention of mortality and the maintenance of the health and social care systems. As the risk of mortality from COVID-19 increases with age, prioritisation is primarily based on age.
Regarding the next phase of vaccine rollout, JCVI have asked that the Department of Health and Social Care consider occupational vaccination in collaboration with other Government departments. The Department will input into this cross governmental exercise.
Asked by: Marco Longhi (Conservative - Dudley North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of cancelling examinations for (a) Key Stage 4 and (b) Key Stage 5 students in 2021 in response to the loss of in-person teaching time as a result of the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government is clear that exams will take place in summer 2021. Exams are the fairest form of assessment.
GCSEs are an important assessment of attainment at a crucial stage of a pupil’s progression at age 16, in England 71% of young people change institution. A levels open the door to the next stages of higher and vocational education at age 18. There is broad consensus backing the decision to hold exams because they are a critical part of the education system, giving students the foundations that they need to move on to the next stage of their life.
The Department recognises that there could be challenges for pupils being assessed in summer 2021, and we are preparing for all eventualities. The Department has announced a wide range of contingency measures, including an additional contingency paper for most subjects. We also recognise that pupils taking exams this year have faced disruption, and that is why grades in 2021 will be more generous, in line with outcomes from 2020. There will also be adaptions to exams, such as giving students advance notice of topic areas and exam support materials to ensure fairness at this exceptional time.
The Department will continue to work with Ofqual, exam boards, and representatives of the sector to ensure exams can take place successfully in the summer.
Asked by: Marco Longhi (Conservative - Dudley North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many Free School Meal vouchers have been issued to parents in Dudley North constituency during the covid-19 outbreak; and how many of those vouchers have been redeemed.
Answered by Vicky Ford
Our supplier Edenred reported that over £380 million worth of voucher codes had been redeemed into supermarket eGift cards by schools and families through the scheme, as of 19 August 2020. This funding was in addition to existing free school meal budgets.
The number and proportion of students who qualify for free school meals is published in the ‘Schools, pupils and their characteristics’ publication and its underlying data files. The 2019 publication is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2019. We do not collect data at constituency level.
Asked by: Marco Longhi (Conservative - Dudley North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to increase the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of teachers in (i) Dudley and (ii) England.
Answered by Nick Gibb
It is a top priority of the Government to ensure that we continue to attract, retain, and develop the high quality teachers we need to inspire the next generation. The Department is moving forward with delivering the Teacher Recruitment and Retention Strategy, which the Government published in January 2019: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/786856/DFE_Teacher_Retention_Strategy_Report.pdf. This includes commitments to reduce teacher workload, improve continuing professional development, and offer greater opportunities for flexible working.
The Department has started to roll out the Early Career Framework (ECF) – the biggest teaching reform in a generation – to provide the solid foundations for a successful career in teaching: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/early-career-framework-reforms. This will be backed by up to £130 million a year in funding when fully rolled out in 2021. Early roll-out from autumn 2020 is taking place in selected areas (such as the North East, Greater Manchester, Bradford, and Doncaster).
The new Initial Teacher Training (ITT) Core Content Framework, published in November 2019 for implementation from September 2020, is a mandatory core minimum entitlement for all trainees, and will work coherently with the ECF to ensure that all new teachers benefit from at least 3 years of evidence-based training, across ITT and into induction. More information about the ITT Core Content Framework is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/initial-teacher-training-itt-core-content-framework.
The Department is also launching new National Professional Qualifications (NPQs) from September 2021. The new NPQs will offer high quality professional development for teachers and school leaders at all levels, from those who want to develop expertise in high quality teaching practice, to those leading multiple schools across trusts. More information about the reform of NPQs is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-professional-qualifications-npqs-reforms/national-professional-qualifications-npqs-reforms.
We know there is further to go in some subjects. That is why we have put in place a range of measures, including bursaries worth up to £24,000 and scholarships worth up to £26,000, to encourage talented trainees towards key subjects such as chemistry, computing, Mathematics, and physics. Further guidance about early career payments for teachers is available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/early-career-payments-guidance-for-teachers-and-schools.
Whilst the implementation of these commitments will support all schools, the Department recognises that some schools and local areas face greater challenges with recruitment and retention than others.
To supplement the national strategy, we are also delivering targeted programmes to support recruitment and retention in challenging areas, including funding a range of regionally targeted initiatives. Eligible Mathematics teachers in Dudley will be able to apply for uplifted early-career payments of £7,500 in their third and fifth years of teaching if they started their training in the 2018/19 or 2019/20 academic years. Eligible Mathematics, physics, chemistry, and languages teachers in Dudley will also be able to apply for £3000 per year in their second, third, and fourth years of teaching if they started training in the 2020/21 academic year.