Homophobic Bullying (Schools)

Stuart Andrew Excerpts

Tuesday 12th June 2012 Westminster Hall

[Iain Stewart]

I do not want to over-egg things. I was not physically bullied and the verbal bullying that I experienced was very mild and short-lived, but I was perceived to be different and it left deep scars. It was enough to make me feel isolated and introverted, and it took me a very long time to overcome. It is clear from the research that Stonewall and others have done that those consequences of bullying can severely impair a young person’s academic and social development. Further evidence shows that, where there is a culture of bullying in schools and particularly homophobic bullying, it drags down the performance of the class and the school as a whole, so it is not just those who are bullied who suffer; it is their classmates as well.

Social attitudes have changed enormously in the two decades or so since I was at school. Thankfully, we live in more enlightened times. However, it is wrong to think that homophobia does not exist among young people. I challenge hon. Members to read some of the horrifying stories in the recent special youth edition of Attitude magazine. Some pretty appalling things have gone on and are going on in classrooms in our schools today.

In preparing for this speech, I took the time to speak to some of the pupils in my constituency to find out what their experience of bullying in schools was. I found some pretty surprising and appalling things. One girl told me that she was doing a media studies class and part of the research involved looking at the portrayal of homosexuality in the media. The class had to view an episode of, I think, “EastEnders” in which two men were kissing. The phrase “dirty faggot” was shouted out in the classroom and clearly heard by the teacher, but the teacher did nothing about it. Such incidents take place; they are happening today. The girl also told me that a Facebook page was set up so that pupils at the school who were thought to be gay could be outed.

[Stuart Andrew (Pudsey) (Con)]

I congratulate my hon. Friend on securing the debate and on talking so personally about this issue. Bullying, in whatever form, is a terrifying experience for those who suffer it. Sadly, one of my friends committed suicide because of bullying, although it was not homophobic bullying, and that had a profound effect on me personally. My hon. Friend mentions Facebook, and there is also Twitter. In this age of modern technology, there seems to be no escape for some bullying victims, because even when they go home, whether through the mobile phone in their pocket or the laptop in their bedroom, the bullies are ever present. Does my hon. Friend think that that is another aspect of the issue that needs serious consideration?

[Iain Stewart]

My hon. Friend, as ever, makes an important point. Cyber-bullying is very much with us. It takes place in many different forms. It extends the boundaries and the times of the school, as my hon. Friend said, so that pupils feel victimised in their own homes and not just when they are within the school gates. From what I have been able to research, I do not think that there is a particular problem with homophobic bullying in cyberspace—it is just another vehicle through which homophobia and homophobic bullying can take place—but my hon. Friend is absolutely right that it needs to be part of our response to the problem.

What can we do to tackle this important problem? The Government have made a good start. It was very good that the schools White Paper included a specific reference to preventing and tackling homophobic bullying in schools. I am aware that new anti-bullying guidance has been produced for schools to use. I am glad that within the Ofsted inspection framework is the expectation that schools should create a safe learning environment for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students. I certainly applaud all those initiatives, but more needs to be done.

For all the toolkits available, research by Stonewall found that the vast majority of teachers want to combat homophobic bullying but do not feel that they have the appropriate training or support. If we isolate only one thing that needs to be done—many more things need to be done—it is to improve training for teachers, so that they have the skills to prevent bullying from happening in the first place and to tackle it when it does.

Apprenticeships

Stuart Andrew Excerpts

Monday 19th December 2011 Commons Chamber

[Stuart Andrew (Pudsey) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to take part in this very important debate.

Being unemployed is a terrifying experience that I went through a number of years ago. For me, that new year’s eve was not about looking forward to welcoming in the next year and everything that was hoped for, but about receiving my P45 and thinking what the prospect of unemployment would hold for me. During the time I was unemployed, I began to realise what work was really about. It is about more than earning money. Of course, that is a vital part of going to work, but it is also about self-worth, the reason for getting up in the morning to go and achieve things, and social interaction with the colleagues with whom one works. When I was unemployed, I found myself without any of those things. Money was scarce, and I had to make the choices between whether to put money aside for gas or for electricity—did I want to be warm or did I want to watch television? Those stark choices were very difficult. There was not much to do, either. I like to be busy and active and to have a purpose, and I dearly missed that daily contact with colleagues.

Of course, in this Chamber we all want to make party political points. I sometimes find it hard to listen to Labour Members talk about the youth unemployment statistics. One would think that this was a new phenomenon that had existed only during the past year. The fact is that it has been a growing problem for a good number of years, and we need to do everything we can to deal with it. It is simply not acceptable to see so many people out of work. It is not good for them, it is not good for the economy, and it is certainly not good for our society. The evidence is that this problem is not unique to the United Kingdom; we need only look at other countries such as Spain to see how difficult it is.

So how do we deal with the problem? There are many ways. For years, our education system has concentrated too much on those who go into academia. What about the rest? I never went to university—it might show, of course—but I was fortunate enough to find a job early on. I always had a sense that I had failed somehow because I had not gone to university. My brothers were in exactly the same position. They found themselves with young families and low incomes, and going out to retrain had a huge personal and financial cost for them, but they did it and I am very proud of them for that. Apprenticeships are a way of tackling youth unemployment. We often hear the older generation talk with real pride about the apprenticeships of the past helping people to learn new skills and develop a trade. One of the hurdles that we will have to cross is the immense snobbery that remains about people who decide to go into apprenticeships. We should be proud of those who make that choice.

The Government should be congratulated on getting off to a fantastic start. I have noticed that every Member has referred to the figures in their constituency, so I will carry on the tradition. I am proud that in Pudsey 460 people took part in apprenticeships in 2009-10, and that figure has gone up to 770 in 2010-11—a growth of 67%. That is hugely impressive, but it has not happened by accident. Despite dire public finances and tough public spending decisions, the Government have increased investment in this area, and that must be welcomed as a crucial policy that demonstrates a real desire to tackle the problem. Some of the schemes may be basic, but many people out there do not have the basic skills they need for a job, and it is important that we give them the opportunity to acquire them.

One of the companies in my constituency, Airedale International, is very successful, but its customers’ increasing demand for state-of-the-art products means that it needs highly skilled employees, and the managing director said to me during a recent visit that they are simply not available. The company has had to invest £250,000 in a new training and apprenticeship skills centre so that it can get the people that it needs to do the job.

I urge the Government to continue with this excellent policy to help young people and to continue to talk to industry to ensure that we have the skills that it needs so that ultimately we can create a competitive, skilled economy and hope for those whose futures might otherwise be bleak.

Oral Answers to Questions

Stuart Andrew Excerpts

Thursday 27th October 2011 Commons Chamber

[Vince Cable]

I definitely think we should put the bunting out for the regional growth fund. As I explained in my first answer to this question, more than half of all these projects are now under way. Factories have been built; jobs have been created—that is what it is about. As was made clear at the outset and as Lord Heseltine made clear a few days ago, the release of funding is a later stage in the process when due diligence has been completed. Are the Labour Front-Bench team seriously arguing that we should dispense with controls over the spending of public money in the private sector? I know they did that in government, but we are not going to do it.

[Stuart Andrew (Pudsey) (Con)]

6. What steps his Department is taking to promote manufacturing skills.

[The Minister for Further Education, Skills and Lifelong Learning (Mr John Hayes)]

We are promoting manufacturing skills with success. Provisional figures show substantial growth, with 47,020 apprenticeship programme starts in engineering and manufacturing technologies in 2010 alone. That is an increase of 20%. The development of advanced and higher level apprenticeships and the roll-out of the “see inside manufacturing” initiative will build on that success.

[Stuart Andrew]

I congratulate my hon. Friend on the increase in the number of apprenticeships that was announced today, which demonstrates a real commitment on the part of the Government and employers to training the next generation. Companies such as ATB Morley, in my constituency, and Airedale International are crying out for a skilled work force. Will my hon. Friend elaborate on how apprenticeships can help to provide the training skills that such companies need?

[Mr Hayes]

Apprenticeships are, of course, jobs. They give people a chance to learn in the workplace. They provide individuals with a chance to gain the skills that they need and that fuel social mobility, they provide companies with a chance to gain the skills that they need in order to prosper, and they provide Britain with a chance to become a more cohesive, successful and prosperous nation.

School Funding Reform

Stuart Andrew Excerpts

Tuesday 19th July 2011 Commons Chamber

[Michael Gove]

I am very much aware that all of Northamptonshire, east and west, is benefiting from population growth. It is critical that we meet basic need pressures wherever they are. They are most acute in London and the south-east, but there are many parts of the country where the population is growing fast.

[Stuart Andrew (Pudsey) (Con)]

I welcome this announcement. The shortage of primary school places is due in part to the baby boom, as we have heard, and it is staggering that those warnings went ignored for so long. In my constituency this has been compounded by massive residential estates on brownfield sites, leaving my schools to struggle and the situation to get worse. I urge my right hon. Friend to give due consideration to that, and to the schools that are suffering.

[Michael Gove]

My hon. Friend makes a very good point. Our population has risen for a variety of reasons, and unfortunately the previous Government did not prioritise that in the way they should have done, but I am grateful that the right hon. Member for Leigh is now emphasising that basic need should be our shared first priority.

Oral Answers to Questions

Stuart Andrew Excerpts

Monday 7th February 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Gibb]

Yet again, the hon. Gentleman says something with which I wholeheartedly agree. He is passionate about raising standards in our schools, as are we. That is why we recently announced the setting up of a review of the national curriculum. An expert advisory panel of head teachers from around the country will consider English, maths and science as the first part of the review.

[Stuart Andrew (Pudsey) (Con)]

13. How many applications his Department has received to establish free schools for children with special educational needs.

[The Secretary of State for Education (Michael Gove)]

My Department has received a number of proposals from groups and individuals interested in establishing free schools wholly or mainly catering for children with special educational needs. We have received more than 240 applications overall.

[Stuart Andrew]

It has been a pleasure of mine to work with two groups that are hoping to take advantage of the policy. One of them, the Lighthouse project in Leeds, this weekend submitted an excellent application to open a school for young people suffering with autism spectrum disorders. It is eager to do so in the autumn, but after what it has heard from the Department, it is concerned that there may be some delays. It does not want to lose momentum. Will my right hon. Friend agree to meet me and representatives of that organisation to see what we can do to progress the application?

[Michael Gove]

I would be delighted to meet my hon. Friend and the Lighthouse group. I have to stress that it is important to ensure that all the issues surrounding the establishment of any new school are successfully navigated. Opening any free school in September 2011 is a challenging timetable. Under the last Government it would take between five and 10 years for a new school to open, so it is remarkable that so many may open within a year. I will look closely at the matter, but I suspect that given the complexity of some of the issues involved we may not be able to open in September 2011. However, let us discuss it and ensure that we can support—

Oral Answers to Questions

Stuart Andrew Excerpts

Monday 11th October 2010 Commons Chamber

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education (Tim Loughton)]

I am grateful to the hon. Lady and am delighted to take up the invitation, as I have to many other youth centres and projects around the country; she may come to regret that invitation.

I am afraid that in this financial climate we have to think smarter about how we can provide services. In common with every Department and every other part of this Department’s work, the youth sector is under that scrutiny. My battle is to involve as many providers as possible from the voluntary sector, local authority and others in ensuring that we provide youth services to those most in need of them in the most imaginative way—with less money, because of the previous Government’s disastrous financial legacy.

[Stuart Andrew (Pudsey) (Con)]

T3. The Leeds and Bradford Dyslexia Association is applying to open a specialist school through the free schools initiative. Will my right hon. Friend agree to look at that application? Furthermore, does he agree that the application is a clear demonstration that, despite Opposition claims, free schools can not only help the brightest but be a real opportunity for groups such as the LBDA to help children and young people who need extra support?

[Michael Gove]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his question and the argument contained therein. He is absolutely right: many of those anxious to establish new free schools are motivated by the desire to help the very poorest or those most in need. As well as the case that he mentioned, in Yorkshire there is a talented young teacher, the son of a bus driver, who wants to open a free school in one of the most deprived parts of Bradford. It is the idealism of that young man, and of the dyslexia association activists my hon. Friend mentioned, that is an inspiration to us all on this side of the House.

Oral Answers to Questions

Stuart Andrew Excerpts

Thursday 8th July 2010 Commons Chamber

[Simon Wright (Norwich South) (LD)]

6. What plans he has to ensure the financial viability of the Post Office network.

[Stuart Andrew (Pudsey) (Con)]

8. What plans he has to ensure the financial viability of the Post Office network.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (Mr Edward Davey)]

We have been clear that we will ensure that post offices are allowed to offer a wide range of services in order to sustain the network. We are working with Post Office Ltd to develop new sources of revenue, including considering the case for a Post Office bank.

--- Later in debate ---

[Stuart Andrew]

In addition, I handed in a petition to Downing street, with more than 5,000 names of people who were trying to save four post offices in my constituency. Sadly, it fell on deaf ears. Is my hon. Friend concerned that Camelot’s proposed plans to allow bill payments through its terminals may adversely affect the 7,500 post offices that do not have such terminals?

[Mr Davey]

Again, I pay tribute to my hon. Friend’s work campaigning for his constituents and their post offices. I must say that Camelot’s proposal to provide commercial services through lottery terminals is still subject to the regulatory approval of the National Lottery Commission. If the commission consents to Camelot’s proposals, Post Office Ltd will carry out an assessment of the impact on sub-post offices and we will take that into account.