Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what policies her Department has in place to ensure that refugees do not face (a) language and (b) other barriers to entering the education system.

Schools take responsibility for ensuring that all of their pupils, regardless of their background, are engaged, challenged and attain to the best of their ability. School funding arrangements give head teachers flexibility over how they use their funding to support their pupils, as they are best placed to decide how to deploy the school’s resources effectively in order to address the specific needs of their pupils.

The national funding formula for schools, which replaced local funding formulae in April 2018, directs funding to schools with pupils on roll who have English as an additional language and have been in the English school system for a maximum of three years. This equates to an additional £515 per primary school pupil and an additional £1,385 per secondary school pupil. In addition, the mobility factor in the national funding formula allocates funding to schools that have a high proportion of pupils joining the school mid-way through the academic year; this totals around £22 million in 2018-19. Where appropriate, schools can also draw on the funding they are allocated to improve the progress and attainment of pupils from financially disadvantaged backgrounds.

Refugee students in 16-19 education settings are considered eligible for funding by the Education and Skills Funding Agency. The inclusion of disadvantage funding as an element of the 16-19 funding formula for school and college places may also benefit refugee students. This funding is allocated to education providers for students with low prior attainment or who live in the most disadvantaged areas, in order to help attract, retain and support disadvantaged young people (and those with lower-level special educational needs and disabilities). Possible uses of this funding include the provision of additional support in English and mathematics; outreach services to attract students; and further learning or pastoral support.

Looking beyond education, the government has set out its vision in the Integrated Communities Strategy green paper to work with civil society to find ways to support the integration of all refugees in the UK, including those granted refugee status after claiming asylum. We will continue to work with civil society to develop solutions and good practice in this area.