Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many individuals in foster care are in contact with their birth family.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The information requested on the number of children in foster care who are in contact with their birth family is not held centrally.
We expect that contact between children in care and their birth relatives will continue during the COVID-19 outbreak. It is essential for children and families to remain in touch at this difficult time.
Operational guidance published by the department sets out the expectation that contact arrangements are assessed on a case by case basis taking into account a range of factors including the government’s social distancing guidance and the needs of the child. It may not be possible, or appropriate, for the usual face-to-face contact to happen at this time and keeping in touch may need to take place virtually. We expect the spirit of any contact orders made in relation to children in care to be maintained and will look to social workers to determine how best to support those valuable family interactions based on the circumstances of each case.
The operational guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-childrens-social-care-services/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-local-authorities-on-childrens-social-care.
Social distancing guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-on-social-distancing-and-for-vulnerable-people.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps he has taken to ensure that contact arrangements between (a) foster children and (b) adopted children and their birth families are maintained.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The information requested on the number of children in foster care who are in contact with their birth family is not held centrally.
We expect that contact between children in care and their birth relatives will continue during the COVID-19 outbreak. It is essential for children and families to remain in touch at this difficult time.
Operational guidance published by the department sets out the expectation that contact arrangements are assessed on a case by case basis taking into account a range of factors including the government’s social distancing guidance and the needs of the child. It may not be possible, or appropriate, for the usual face-to-face contact to happen at this time and keeping in touch may need to take place virtually. We expect the spirit of any contact orders made in relation to children in care to be maintained and will look to social workers to determine how best to support those valuable family interactions based on the circumstances of each case.
The operational guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-childrens-social-care-services/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-local-authorities-on-childrens-social-care.
Social distancing guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-on-social-distancing-and-for-vulnerable-people.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to support private nurseries that are facing a loss of revenue as a result of restrictions implemented during the covid-19 outbreak to maintain places.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The government has set out specific measures to support childcare providers, including:
Childcare providers will also benefit from the wider measures the Chancellor of the Exchequer has announced to support the people and businesses of the UK:
More details on the support available are included in the latest guidance for early years settings, which can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures
We continue to work closely with the early years sector and remain committed to doing all we can to support childcare providers through this uncertain period. We will publish further guidance where appropriate.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what standards his Department uses to set acceptable levels of (a) vibration, (b) noise and (c) dust and air quality in construction projects funded by his Department; and when those applicable standards were (i) set and (ii) last reviewed.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Bowmer and Kirkland, the relevant contractor, is responsible for the safe construction of Ealing Fields High School. The Department does not adopt a compensation policy for any damage caused by construction works as any such responsibility rests with the contractor. In the case of Ealing Fields, the Department is aware that Bowmer and Kirkland has been in regular contact with residents about addressing their concerns.
When procuring capital projects, the Department applies a comprehensive framework which sets out relevant legislation, British Standards, codes of practice and other requirements that a building contractor is required to comply with when undertaking projects on behalf of the Department. These standards were established in November 2017 when the Department’s most recent construction framework was procured.
The Department is increasing the number of schools built through modern methods of construction. This method provides the opportunity to reduce site times by up to 50% which would also reduce both disruption to pupils and staff, and the noise and dust associated with onsite construction.
The Department has built 57 schools using modern methods of construction and this financial year, we plan to open another 21 schools. The department has announced a new procurement framework with a value of up to £3 billion for modern methods of construction solutions in schools. This framework is due to go live by November 2019.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the construction of Ealing Fields High school, what his Department's policy is on provision of compensation for (a) structural and (b) non-structural damage caused by construction of Departmental projects.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Bowmer and Kirkland, the relevant contractor, is responsible for the safe construction of Ealing Fields High School. The Department does not adopt a compensation policy for any damage caused by construction works as any such responsibility rests with the contractor. In the case of Ealing Fields, the Department is aware that Bowmer and Kirkland has been in regular contact with residents about addressing their concerns.
When procuring capital projects, the Department applies a comprehensive framework which sets out relevant legislation, British Standards, codes of practice and other requirements that a building contractor is required to comply with when undertaking projects on behalf of the Department. These standards were established in November 2017 when the Department’s most recent construction framework was procured.
The Department is increasing the number of schools built through modern methods of construction. This method provides the opportunity to reduce site times by up to 50% which would also reduce both disruption to pupils and staff, and the noise and dust associated with onsite construction.
The Department has built 57 schools using modern methods of construction and this financial year, we plan to open another 21 schools. The department has announced a new procurement framework with a value of up to £3 billion for modern methods of construction solutions in schools. This framework is due to go live by November 2019.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what criteria EU citizens will have to fulfil to be eligible for postgraduate funding in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
In July 2018 we announced guarantees on student finance for EU nationals. These guarantees apply in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal. EU nationals (and their family members) who start a course in England in the 2019/20 academic year or before will continue to be eligible for ‘home fee’ status, undergraduate and postgraduate financial support from Student Finance England for the duration of their course provided they meet the existing residency requirement.
For postgraduate loans, EU nationals must have resided in the European Economic Area or Switzerland for the 3 years prior to the start of their course. The purpose of that 3 year residency should not have been mainly for the purpose of receiving full time education.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will establish a service for EU citizens in the UK to obtain advice on their (a) educational status and (b) eligibility for funding support.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
I know that students, staff and providers are concerned about what EU exit means for study and collaboration opportunities. To help give certainty, we have given guarantees on student finance for EU nationals who start a course in England in 2019/20 academic year or before.
The department will continue to work closely with the Student Loans Company to ensure that students, including EU nationals, and institutions have the information they need on access to student finance support in England in good time.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether EU citizens with confirmed places at university will continue to be funded for the duration of their courses in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
To help give certainty in July 2018 we announced guarantees on student finance for EU nationals.
These guarantees apply in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal: EU nationals (and their family members) who start a course in England in the 2019/20 academic year or before will continue to be eligible for ‘home fee’ status and student finance support from Student Finance England for the duration of their course, provided they meet the residency requirement.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he plans to record data on education as an (a) export and (b) economic value (i) nationally, (ii) regionally and (i) locally.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
In January, the department published updated statistics showing UK education exports and transnational activity generated almost £20 billion for the UK economy in 2016, an increase of 26% since 2010. The department intends to publish these statistics annually. These statistics cover the whole of the UK and come from a variety of data sources and, as such, it is currently not possible to disaggregate these statistics to a regional or local authority level. Further information can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uk-revenue-from-education-related-exports-and-tne-activity.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for International Trade on including education in its strategy for future bilateral agreements; and what the outcome of those discussions has been.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
The government announced on 21 January that the Department for Education and the Department for International Trade will produce an international education strategy in early 2019. The strategy will set out the government’s ambition for international education, and plans to support the sector in driving growth in education exports.
The UK is committed to pursuing ambitious trade agreements with the United States, Australia and New Zealand after we leave the European Union, which would seek to build on the UK’s current £19.9 billion of education export revenue. The UK government will continue to ensure that rigorous protections for public services are included in all trade agreements to which it is party.