Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to students who (a) reach the end of their tenancies and (b) are required to self-isolate as a result of covid-19, what rights those students have to (i) not be evicted after the end of the tenancy and (ii) move to temporary university accommodation if a landlord requires them to vacate their property for new tenants.
Answered by Eddie Hughes
We strongly urge accommodation providers to be flexible in extending tenancies and delaying moves if tenants are isolating due to Covid-19.
However, under The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (Self-Isolation) (England) if someone is legally obliged to move, they are allowed to do so even if isolating.
We know that some universities have temporary accommodation available to those if they are required to move. Students should let their accommodation provider know immediately if they are required to isolate and speak to the university accommodation office.
Asked by: Thangam Debbonaire (Labour - Bristol West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance his Department is issuing to universities on continuing study abroad programmes for students for the academic year 2021-22.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
For any forthcoming international mobility in education, regardless of how it is funded, we expect all universities, colleges and schools managing these to follow the relevant Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) travel advice for the destination country and to highlight this to their participants, being aware that the situation can change.
We suggest anyone who may be affected discuss their placement with their provider, being conscious that their placement may not be able to continue as originally planned, but there may be opportunities for it to start at a later date if the situation changes and this is feasible. Participants should be ready to comply with local isolation, testing or quarantine requirements, and will need to rely on the local health system.
Turing Scheme and Erasmus+ mobilities will both be in operation during the 2021/22 academic year.
Current government guidance for Turing Scheme, Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps travel is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/higher-education-reopening-buildings-and-campuses/higher-education-coronavirus-covid-19-operational-guidance#travel-guidance-for-erasmus-and-european-solidarity-corps-exchanges.
FCDO travel advice per country can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what additional support he is providing to universities for students who (a) are diagnosed with covid-19 or (b) have to self-isolate.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
While universities are autonomous institutions, the safety and wellbeing of staff and students is always our priority.
We have published the ‘Higher education coronavirus (COVID-19) operational guidance’ which offers advice on supporting students who are self-isolating and can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/higher-education-reopening-buildings-and-campuses/higher-education-coronavirus-covid-19-operational-guidance#students-returning-to-campus. It is vitally important that universities continue to make sure that students feel as supported as possible if they need to self-isolate due to COVID-19. This robust package of support needs to include mental health and wellbeing support, daily communications and ensuring students have access to suitable free or affordable food.
Universities UK have also produced a checklist for providers to support students who are required to self-isolate as well as bespoke guidance for higher education (HE) providers on how to prepare for and care for students who are required to self-isolate on arrival in the UK. We encourage providers to review this guidance when considering how best to support their international and other students arriving from overseas. The checklist can be accessed here: https://universitiesuk.ac.uk/policy-and-analysis/reports/Documents/2020/uuk-checklist-support-self-isolating-students.pdf.
The Office for Students (OfS) has published a statement on support for students in self-isolation during the COVID-19 outbreak, which can be accessed here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/news-blog-and-events/blog/ofs-student-panel-statement-on-support-for-students-in-self-isolation-during-covid-19-coronavirus-pandemic/.
We have made an additional £85 million of funding available for student hardship in the 2020/21 academic year. This is on top of the £256 million of government funded student premium funding already available to HE providers to draw on. HE providers have are able to use this flexibly to support those students who need it most. It can be used in a variety of ways including the purchase mental health support and help for students due to financial hardship caused by illness and the need to self-isolate.
Alongside this, we have worked with the OfS to launch the online mental health platform Student Space, worth up to £3 million, in addition to the £15 million we have asked them to allocate to student mental health initiatives next year.
Some students may be eligible for a one-off payment of £500 through the NHS Test and Trace Support Payment scheme, if they are required to self-isolate. Further guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/test-and-trace-support-payment-scheme-claiming-financial-support/claiming-financial-support-under-the-test-and-trace-support-payment-scheme.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the Office for National Statistics Graduates Report Graduates’ labour market outcomes during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic: occupational switches and skill mismatch, published on 8 March; and what assessment have they made of the finding that over 25 per cent of employed graduates are employed in unskilled or low-skilled roles.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The government understands that the COVID-19 pandemic has had an adverse impact on students graduating this year, and we recognise that some graduates may face particular challenges gaining employment because of the ongoing impact of the pandemic on the UK labour market and economy. Students have responded to the pandemic with formidable resilience and motivation, demonstrating a clear ability to adapt and to learn at pace at a challenging time.
As part of the government’s Skills Recovery Package Plan for Jobs, we are investing an additional £32 million in the National Careers Service up to March 2022. This investment will support delivery of individual careers advice for over 500,000 people whose jobs or learning have been affected by the pandemic (by the end of the 2021/22 financial year). This represents an increase of 22%.
Recent findings from the Office for National Statistics’ Graduates Report has highlighted that there is a higher proportion of graduates who have switched occupation as a result of the pandemic. We have worked with a range of institutions across the higher education sector to understand what more we can do to support graduates who are looking to enter the labour market at this challenging time. We have also worked closely with the Quality Assurance Agency, professional bodies, and the Office for Students to ensure students continue to leave university with qualifications that have real value, reflect their hard work, and allow them to progress in life.
To provide additional support, we have developed the ‘Graduate employment and skills guide’, aimed at students who are about to graduate, which was published on 10 May on the Office for Students’ website. The guide directs graduates to public, private, and voluntary sector opportunities to help them build employability skills, gain work experience, or enter the labour market, as well as providing links to further study options and resources on graduate mental health and wellbeing.
We have also worked with Universities UK to develop a Sector Statement of Support, which was published on 10 May 2021 on Universities UK’s website. The statement outlines what higher education providers and the government are doing to support graduates and encourages graduates to take advantage of the support and resources available.
We have also engaged with higher education providers to produce a collection of graduate employability case studies. Published on the provider-facing pages of the Office for Students’ website, these case studies showcase the breadth of innovative work and range of new measures that university and college careers services have introduced to support final-year students and recent graduates as they transition from university to graduate life.
Where securing work is challenging, graduates may be able to access financial support. Graduates can apply for Universal Credit immediately after finishing a degree, and they can check their eligibility at https://www.gov.uk/universal-credit/eligibility.
The government wants every student to know that, when they undertake a higher education course, they can be confident that it has a strong chance of improving their life outcomes. A key element to assessing the quality of higher education courses is ensuring that graduates are achieving outcomes consistent with the higher education courses that they have completed. Our landmark Skills and Post-16 Education Bill makes clear the power of the Office for Students to enforce minimum expectations of student outcomes for universities, helping them to tackle low-quality provision and drive up standards. This is central to the approach taken by the Office for Students, which is currently consulting on setting minimum numerical baselines that providers will be expected to reach. We welcome that consultation and we expect it to lead to results.
Asked by: Baroness Bull (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the benefits of sustaining PCR testing and sequencing at scale in universities as a means of identifying and understanding new variants; and what plans they have to fund support for such testing and sequencing.
Answered by Lord Bethell
No specific assessment has been made. The regular testing offered at universities is with lateral flow devices (LFDs) rather than polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests. In line with wider national policy, all positive LFD tests are followed by a confirmatory PCR test. The intention is for 100% of viable positive samples from PCR tests to be presented for sequencing to identify and understand new variants. PCR testing and sequencing are provided and funded by NHS Test and Trace.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, in the context of the ability of students living in private accommodation to travel to their term time address at any time, for what reason he has suggested to universities that the start of the 2021-22 academic year should be staggered.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
As autonomous institutions it is for universities to determine their own provision, including arrangements for the start of term, taking account of any government guidance.
The government will announce further easing of COVID-19 restrictions at Step 4 of the roadmap, including the outcome of the review of social distancing measures, which will be no earlier than 21 June. In light of these developments, we are working with universities to identify a number of scenarios we should consider in planning for the autumn term, taking account of the latest public health advice. We intend to update the higher education guidance in due course to support the return of students for the new academic year.
As outlined in guidance, we expect providers to continue to organise the return of students in a way that minimises the logistical risks of large numbers of students travelling between households at the same time. We encourage providers to work with other local providers to manage the return of students in a way that minimises transport pressures. Providers should apply what they have learned over the course of this academic year to minimise the risk of outbreaks at the start of the new term.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will publish the (a) scientific and (b) medical evidential basis for the decision to restrict face-to-face teaching in universities until 17 May 2021.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
We have worked extremely closely with scientists and the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) to understand and model various scenarios to inform our plan to re-open the country without putting unsustainable pressure on the NHS. We have also examined economic and social data to get a balanced understanding of the impacts of carefully easing restrictions. The government has also carefully considered data on the impact of COVID-19 and lockdown on ethnic minority communities, the vulnerable, the young, and low-income groups.
The government considered all the scientific advice and models that suggested that allowing additional indoor mixing at an earlier stage when prevalence was higher and fewer people had been vaccinated could result in significantly higher numbers of infections and that is why restrictions outdoors were eased before restrictions on most indoor activity. As the number of people vaccinated increased, we have been able to take steps to ease restrictions further.
A wealth of data, papers and evidence is being published at the same time as the roadmap, to ensure transparency on the information the government has had available to it in reaching its decisions. This includes the following information from Public Health England:
The papers from SAGE include:
The return of students was not considered in isolation but as part of the government’s overall roadmap. All areas included in the roadmap (as well as higher education) are informed by advice from the scientific and medical experts. Additional papers published by SAGE in relation to Step 3 of the roadmap can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/sage-meetings-may-2021.
Asked by: Baroness Bull (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what funding support they plan to provide to enable universities to continue utilising PCR testing as their campuses reopen.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We have worked with higher education providers to offer twice-weekly asymptomatic testing using lateral flow device (LFD) tests to all students residing in their term-time accommodation or accessing university facilities, and to all staff. This is playing an important role in identifying cases of the virus and breaking chains of transmission.
We have supported higher education providers in recovering the costs for the set-up and running of asymptomatic testing sites.
From May, higher education providers can offer their staff and students home test kits which can be collected from a location on campus.
Anyone that tests positive for COVID-19 through an LFD test is offered a confirmatory polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test free of charge, and the same applies to students and staff in the higher education sector.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to publish guidance for universities on the return of in-person graduation ceremonies as covid-19 restrictions are eased.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
The government last updated its guidance for providers of higher education on 10 May: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/higher-education-reopening-buildings-and-campuses. As autonomous bodies, higher education providers will make their own judgements on educational activities and the use of facilities. They should take account of government guidance, including any advice on the easing of restrictions in Step 3 of the Roadmap.
Providers may hold events, as long as they are compatible with COVID-19 regulations. In doing so, they should conduct appropriate risk assessments and take any additional measures as required, following public health advice. We expect graduation ceremonies to go ahead, either physically in person but delayed in line with the roadmap, or to be held virtually.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of a delayed return to in-person attendance at universities on the mental health of students.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We recognise that many students are facing additional mental health challenges due to the disruption and uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Protecting the wellbeing of higher education students is vital, and it is important that students can continue to access the mental health and wellbeing support that they need, both whilst learning remotely and when they return to in-person teaching.
We expect higher education providers to continue to support their students, which has included making support services accessible from a distance and reaching out to those students who are likely to be more vulnerable. We encourage students to stay in touch with their provider’s student support and welfare teams, as these services are likely to continue to be an important source of support.
My hon. Friend, the Minister of State for Universities, has engaged with universities on this issue and has written to Vice Chancellors on numerous occasions, outlining that student welfare should remain a priority. She has also convened a working group of representatives from the higher education and health sectors specifically to address the current and pressing issues that students are facing during the COVID-19 pandemic.
My hon. Friends, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Children and Families and the Minister of State for Universities, have also convened a Mental Health in Education Action Group. The group will drive action to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on the mental health and wellbeing of children and young people as they return to educational settings and will provide enhanced support for transitions between educational settings in the autumn.
We have worked with the Office for Students (OfS) to provide Student Space, which has been funded by up to £3 million by the OfS. Student Space is a mental health and wellbeing platform designed to bridge any gaps in support for students arising from this unprecedented situation. It is designed to work alongside existing services and provides dedicated, one-to-one telephone, text, and web chat facilities as well as a collaborative online platform providing vital mental health and wellbeing resources. The platform has been extended to cover the whole 2020/21 academic year.
We have also worked with the OfS to clarify that universities and other higher education providers can draw upon existing funding from the student premium to increase their hardship funds for students. We have made an additional £85 million of student hardship funding available to higher education providers in the 2020/21 academic year. Furthermore, we have asked the OfS to allocate £15 million towards student mental health in 2021/22, through proposed reforms to Strategic Priorities grant funding, to help address the challenges to student mental health posed by the transition to university, given the increasing demand for mental health services. This will target those students in greatest need of such services, including vulnerable groups and hard-to-reach students.
As part of the mental health recovery action plan, the government has provided an additional £13 million to ensure that young adults aged 18 to 25, including university students, are supported with tailored mental health services.
Students struggling with their mental health can also access support via online resources from the NHS, Public Health England via the Every Mind Matters website and the mental health charity Mind: https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters/ and https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/coronavirus/student-mental-health-during-coronavirus/.