Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to expand the delivery of digital skills short courses and skills academies.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Digital and computing skills are critical to achieving the department’s science and technology superpower ambitions, which were published in March 2023 in the UK Science & Technology Framework. Programmers, data scientists, and other key digital roles will help to deliver the department’s ambitions for the critical technologies detailed in the Framework, like AI and Quantum, but their importance is not limited to these technologies. These roles are fundamental to the wider labour market with 60% of businesses believing their reliance on advanced digital skills will increase over the next five years.
The department is investing in employer led technical skills and education, with courses and training in digital subjects often at the forefront of its reforms. For example, the department has introduced three Digital T Levels. These are gold-standard Level 3 technical qualifications designed with employers to meet industry standards. They have a significant industry placement built in to give experience of work within the digital sector.
There are also over 30 Digital Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQs) now being taught. These are Level 4/5 qualifications developed by awarding bodies in collaboration with employers so students can develop the digital skills that employers want. Additionally, digital apprenticeships continue to grow with over 22,000 starts in 2022/23, which is an increase of 19% from the previous year.
The department is building on these initiatives through the Digital and Computing Skills Education Taskforce which brings together government and external expertise to increase the numbers of individuals taking digital and computing qualifications in mainstream and tertiary education and to attract individuals into digital jobs.
The department’s ambitious skills agenda is backed by an additional £3.8 billion in further education and skills over this Parliament. The department is using this funding to ensure people of all ages can access high quality training and education which addresses skills gaps and boosts productivity. Key examples of how this funding has been used to support digital skills can be seen in the introduction of 21 Institutes of Technology (IoTs) across England, the introduction of the Free Courses for Jobs offer and the national roll out of Digital Skills Bootcamps.
IoTs are leaders in the provision of high quality higher level technical education. They are employer-led collaborations that bring together the best of existing further education provision with higher education partners to develop a high skilled, diverse workforce that is designed to respond to evolving sector needs. IoTs aim to help close skills gaps in STEM sectors, like digital. By establishing IoTs as a permanent network of ‘go to’ providers with deep employer relationships for Level 4/5 higher level STEM training, they play a critical role in boosting local economies and delivering the Lifelong Learning Entitlement and HTQs.
Launched in April 2021, the Free Courses for Jobs offer allows eligible adults to access over 400 Level 3 qualifications (A level equivalent) for free, including those linked with digital careers. These courses are ideal for those adults over 50 without a Level 3 qualification that are looking to improve their digital skills, retrain or upskill to meet their potential.
Skills Bootcamps are free, flexible courses of up to 16 weeks for adults aged 19 or over, with courses available in digital subjects such as software development, cyber security, and data analytics. The majority of the trailblazers in Skills Bootcamps launched in 2020, were Digital. Digital training constituted the biggest element of the department’s provision in the ensuing waves of delivery in the 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2023/24 financial years.
More Skills Bootcamps in Digital are being delivered through the launch of a Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) which enables the department to procure Skills Bootcamps in response to quickly emerging skills needs and changing employment patterns. The department focused on Skills Bootcamps in digital skills as a priority for the first competition run from the DPS, and Digital skills are further included in the second competition.
Digital skills are increasingly critical for all citizens, enabling them to play a full part in society. Through the Adult Education Budget, the department introduced a new legal entitlement in 2020 for adults to study free, high quality Essential Digital Skills Qualifications and, from August 2023, new digital Functional Skills Qualifications. These qualifications were developed against employer supported National Standards and provide learners with the essential digital skills they need to participate actively in life, work and society.
The government recognises that formal qualifications are not appropriate for everyone, which is why it also funds community learning and other non-regulated learning, such as building confidence in essential digital skills, through the Adult Education Budget. Many local authorities and other further education providers are already delivering these courses that help equip adults with the essential digital skills they need for work, life and further learning. From next year, the Adult Skills Fund will continue to support both qualification-based learning and tailored learning (which will include non-regulated learning to build digital skills) so adults can retrain and upskill in the most effective way.
Through skills reforms, the government is continuing to ensure learners are supported, including those who need the most support, to train, retrain and upskill so they can climb the ladder of opportunity towards better jobs, better wellbeing, and better options for the future.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address the digital skills gap for those aged over 50.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Digital and computing skills are critical to achieving the department’s science and technology superpower ambitions, which were published in March 2023 in the UK Science & Technology Framework. Programmers, data scientists, and other key digital roles will help to deliver the department’s ambitions for the critical technologies detailed in the Framework, like AI and Quantum, but their importance is not limited to these technologies. These roles are fundamental to the wider labour market with 60% of businesses believing their reliance on advanced digital skills will increase over the next five years.
The department is investing in employer led technical skills and education, with courses and training in digital subjects often at the forefront of its reforms. For example, the department has introduced three Digital T Levels. These are gold-standard Level 3 technical qualifications designed with employers to meet industry standards. They have a significant industry placement built in to give experience of work within the digital sector.
There are also over 30 Digital Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQs) now being taught. These are Level 4/5 qualifications developed by awarding bodies in collaboration with employers so students can develop the digital skills that employers want. Additionally, digital apprenticeships continue to grow with over 22,000 starts in 2022/23, which is an increase of 19% from the previous year.
The department is building on these initiatives through the Digital and Computing Skills Education Taskforce which brings together government and external expertise to increase the numbers of individuals taking digital and computing qualifications in mainstream and tertiary education and to attract individuals into digital jobs.
The department’s ambitious skills agenda is backed by an additional £3.8 billion in further education and skills over this Parliament. The department is using this funding to ensure people of all ages can access high quality training and education which addresses skills gaps and boosts productivity. Key examples of how this funding has been used to support digital skills can be seen in the introduction of 21 Institutes of Technology (IoTs) across England, the introduction of the Free Courses for Jobs offer and the national roll out of Digital Skills Bootcamps.
IoTs are leaders in the provision of high quality higher level technical education. They are employer-led collaborations that bring together the best of existing further education provision with higher education partners to develop a high skilled, diverse workforce that is designed to respond to evolving sector needs. IoTs aim to help close skills gaps in STEM sectors, like digital. By establishing IoTs as a permanent network of ‘go to’ providers with deep employer relationships for Level 4/5 higher level STEM training, they play a critical role in boosting local economies and delivering the Lifelong Learning Entitlement and HTQs.
Launched in April 2021, the Free Courses for Jobs offer allows eligible adults to access over 400 Level 3 qualifications (A level equivalent) for free, including those linked with digital careers. These courses are ideal for those adults over 50 without a Level 3 qualification that are looking to improve their digital skills, retrain or upskill to meet their potential.
Skills Bootcamps are free, flexible courses of up to 16 weeks for adults aged 19 or over, with courses available in digital subjects such as software development, cyber security, and data analytics. The majority of the trailblazers in Skills Bootcamps launched in 2020, were Digital. Digital training constituted the biggest element of the department’s provision in the ensuing waves of delivery in the 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2023/24 financial years.
More Skills Bootcamps in Digital are being delivered through the launch of a Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) which enables the department to procure Skills Bootcamps in response to quickly emerging skills needs and changing employment patterns. The department focused on Skills Bootcamps in digital skills as a priority for the first competition run from the DPS, and Digital skills are further included in the second competition.
Digital skills are increasingly critical for all citizens, enabling them to play a full part in society. Through the Adult Education Budget, the department introduced a new legal entitlement in 2020 for adults to study free, high quality Essential Digital Skills Qualifications and, from August 2023, new digital Functional Skills Qualifications. These qualifications were developed against employer supported National Standards and provide learners with the essential digital skills they need to participate actively in life, work and society.
The government recognises that formal qualifications are not appropriate for everyone, which is why it also funds community learning and other non-regulated learning, such as building confidence in essential digital skills, through the Adult Education Budget. Many local authorities and other further education providers are already delivering these courses that help equip adults with the essential digital skills they need for work, life and further learning. From next year, the Adult Skills Fund will continue to support both qualification-based learning and tailored learning (which will include non-regulated learning to build digital skills) so adults can retrain and upskill in the most effective way.
Through skills reforms, the government is continuing to ensure learners are supported, including those who need the most support, to train, retrain and upskill so they can climb the ladder of opportunity towards better jobs, better wellbeing, and better options for the future.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what the average time was between initial contact and first payment from the Flood Recovery Framework in the latest period for which data is available.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
I extend my sympathy to all those affected by the impacts of Storm Babet, flooding is a devastating experience for anyone. I also recognise the efforts of councils and emergency responders and thank them for their ongoing work in affected areas.
The Secretary of State activated the Flood Recovery Framework on Wednesday 25 October. The activation of the Storm Babet Flood Recovery Framework will be reviewed following implementation by local authorities.
For the Storm Babet Flood Recovery Framework activation, eligible areas are those upper and lower tier authority areas:
Local Authorities and Lead Local Flood Authorities are responsible for distributing funding to affected people. They are able to do as soon as their area becomes eligible. Government funding for eligible properties will be paid to Local Authorities retrospectively, based on the certified cost of providing relief.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of the Flood Recovery Framework for providing timely financial support to people affected by flooding.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
I extend my sympathy to all those affected by the impacts of Storm Babet, flooding is a devastating experience for anyone. I also recognise the efforts of councils and emergency responders and thank them for their ongoing work in affected areas.
The Secretary of State activated the Flood Recovery Framework on Wednesday 25 October. The activation of the Storm Babet Flood Recovery Framework will be reviewed following implementation by local authorities.
For the Storm Babet Flood Recovery Framework activation, eligible areas are those upper and lower tier authority areas:
Local Authorities and Lead Local Flood Authorities are responsible for distributing funding to affected people. They are able to do as soon as their area becomes eligible. Government funding for eligible properties will be paid to Local Authorities retrospectively, based on the certified cost of providing relief.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how much financial support was provided under the Flood Recovery Framework in the first two weeks following Storm Babet.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
I extend my sympathy to all those affected by the impacts of Storm Babet, flooding is a devastating experience for anyone. I also recognise the efforts of councils and emergency responders and thank them for their ongoing work in affected areas.
The Secretary of State activated the Flood Recovery Framework on Wednesday 25 October. The activation of the Storm Babet Flood Recovery Framework will be reviewed following implementation by local authorities.
For the Storm Babet Flood Recovery Framework activation, eligible areas are those upper and lower tier authority areas:
Local Authorities and Lead Local Flood Authorities are responsible for distributing funding to affected people. They are able to do as soon as their area becomes eligible. Government funding for eligible properties will be paid to Local Authorities retrospectively, based on the certified cost of providing relief.
Asked by: Siobhain McDonagh (Labour - Mitcham and Morden)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many sector-based work academy programme starts have taken place as of 7 November 2023.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Sector-based work academies were first launched in August 2011 in England and January 2012 in Scotland. Regular statistical releases on sector-based work academies, covering participation by those on legacy unemployment benefits, began in 2011 and ended in 2017. These statistics can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/employment-schemes-work-experience-sector-based-work-academy-and-skills-conditionality-starts-to-november-2017
The scheme was relaunched as Sector-based Work Academy Programmes (SWAPs) in July 2020 as part of the Government’s Plan for Jobs. Due to data limitations, we are unable to provide a geographical breakdown for SWAPs that took place before the start of the 2021/22 financial year.
Data for the financial years 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2023/24 shows that, as of 27th October 2023, there were a total of 245,300 starts to a Sector-based Work Academy Programme. The breakdowns of these starts are provided in the attached tables.
Notes on the data:
Attached are tables listing the number of SWAP starts to date by Country, Region, Local Authority, Parliamentary Constituency, Sector and Age band. The figures used are correct as of 27th October 2023 and these figures have been rounded according to departmental standards.
These figures reflect the number of starts by claimants in receipt of Universal Credit (UC), Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA), Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) or Income Support (IS).
It is important to note that the information provided shows the current home location of the person who has started a SWAP. For starts by those in receipt of JSA, ESA or IS, due to data limitations a location cannot be assigned to these starts and as such they are categorised as unknown within the figures. SWAPs are run in England and Scotland, where a person’s current home location is outside of this they have also been categorised as unknown.
Although care is taken when processing and recording SWAP starts, the data collected might be subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any clerical recording system, but is provided in the interests of transparency.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the provision of employability services in rural areas.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Jobcentre Plus employer and partnership leads work closely with local employers and providers to understand labour market needs and to ensure provision is available to address skills gaps, and that the delivery of local employment support services is tailored to the needs of communities, alongside our national support offer. For example, our successful Sector-based Work Academy Programme (SWAPs) combines work experience, job specific training and a guaranteed interview to support claimants into local vacancies.
Every Jobcentre Plus district has a place-based plan that uses local knowledge, experience, and insight to shape the services and activities in the area, in collaboration with local employers and partners. This includes taking account of the needs of claimants living in rural communities to access employment support services and vacancies, such as any barriers around travel and how these might be overcome.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of extending prescribing rights for stop smoking medicines to (a) dentists, (b) opticians and (c) specialist nurses.
Answered by Will Quince
On 4 October 2023, as part of the Prime Minister’s smokefree generation announcement, the Government also announced an additional £70 million of funding per year to local stop smoking services to help even more people to quit smoking. Local authorities will work with a range of local partners to deliver this. The announcement is available at the following link:
Dentists are all qualified prescribers. Several health professions can undertake training to independently prescribe including nurses and optometrists. This allows healthcare professionals who have the necessary skills and experience to prescribe within their area of professional competence. These professionals would need to have the necessary skills in prescribing nicotine replacement therapy and have been commissioned to provide the service.
Asked by: Bridget Phillipson (Labour - Houghton and Sunderland South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the impact of changes in the levels of local authority section 114 notices on the (a) adequacy, (b) resilience and (c) robustness of the market for alternative provision for children with SEND (i) in affected local authority areas and (ii) elsewhere.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Councils are responsible for their own finances and the decision to issue a Section 114 notice is one taken locally. Whilst the department has not made a formal assessment of the impact of Section 114 notices on the Alternative Provision (AP) market, where a notice is issued, Departmental officials work alongside colleagues from Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, and will monitor the situation closely to ensure that statutory and key services to children and vulnerable people are not affected because of these controls.
The published Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and AP Improvement Plan sets out the department’s plans to improve the experience and outcomes for children and young people with SEND and those who need AP, within a fair and financially sustainable system. The Improvement Plan outlines our approach to building capacity to achieve the behaviours and culture required for the successful implementation of these policy reforms, and can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-and-alternative-provision-improvement-plan.
Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Government Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Strategy, published March 2022, what progress his Department has made on the aim of providing reliable public charge points near to where people live.
Answered by Jesse Norman
As of 1 September 2023, the Government and industry have supported the installation of over 48,100 public charging devices in the UK. This represents an increase of 43 per cent since September 2022 - growth rate consistent with over 300,000 public charging devices in the UK by 2030.
The £381 million Local EV Infrastructure Fund will support local authorities in England to work with industry to deliver tens of thousands of local chargepoints, transforming the availability of charging for drivers without off-street parking.
The Government has also laid regulations to improve the consumer experience across the public charging network, and has published accompanying guidance.
The regulations mandate open data to ensure consumers can locate the right chargepoints for their needs; mandate 99 per cent reliability across each rapid charging network; and ensure a 24/7-hour helpline across the entire public charging network.