Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of funding available to support teacher recruitment beyond 2024.
Answered by Nick Gibb
In line with standard Government practice, funding beyond 2019/20 is a matter for the upcoming Spending Review.
The Department recognises that funding is crucial to making the ambitions of our recently published Teacher Recruitment and Retention Strategy a reality. That is why the Department has made some specific funding commitments for key elements of the strategy such as the Early Career Framework (ECF).
Once fully embedded in schools, the Department anticipates investing an additional £130 million every year to support ECF delivery in full.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of pupils who (a) were and (b) were not eligible for free school meals in their last year of compulsory secondary school (i) entered at least one A level, (ii) achieved three or more A-levels, (iii) achieved grades ABB or better at A level, and (iv) achieved A*A*A or better at A-level in the last year for which figures are available.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department publishes student’s achievements in A levels, in different grade combinations, split by characteristics. This information can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/
statistics/a-level-and-other-16-to-18-results-2017-to-2018-revised.
Table 1, attached, uses this data to provide the number[1] of students entering at least one A level[2] and those who achieved A*/A*/A, A/B/B and E/E/E[3] [4] [5] or better, split by their free school meals (FSM) status[6] at the end of Key Stage 4. Figures are based on 2017/18[7] revised data, for students in state-funded schools and colleges. The Department does not publish estimates of the proportion of Key Stage 4 FSM pupils who go on to enter and achieve these different A level combinations by the end of 16-18 study. However, an estimate can be derived by comparing the published numbers to the size of the FSM and non-FSM groups from two years previously in 2016. These are shown in table 2, attached.
[1] The cohort of students is based on those who are eligible for inclusion in the AAB measure, however this is further restricted (see footnote 2). Inclusion in the AAB measure refers to those who entered at least one full size A level, excluding applied A levels (this includes double award A levels, but does not include AS levels, general studies or critical thinking). If students are entered for less than three full size A levels, they are only included in the measure if they have not entered for other academic, applied general and T level qualifications greater than or equal to the size of an A level. Where a student has only been at a provider for one year, they need to have entered three A levels to be included.
[2] Includes A level entries only (excludes double awards, AS levels and Applied A levels); it also excludes general studies and critical thinking.
[3] Each student's total grades are taken and compared to the requested groupings. Inclusion in each group occurs when the student has the exact grades, or when three (or more) of their grades match or are higher than the required grades. Therefore, students with only 1 or 2 grades are excluded as they do not match or beat all three required grades. These figures will differ slightly from measures published for all students nationally, due to this slight methodological difference.
[4] Only includes students with pass grades (A* to E). Discounting has been applied in line with performance tables methodology (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/16-to-19-qualifications-discount-codes-and-point-scores).
[5] The E/E/E combination identifies those who achieved three or more A levels as an E grade is the lowest passing grade.
[6] Students FSM status is taken from the census recorded completed in their final year of Key Stage 4 year study. Students who completed their Key Stage 4 study in independent schools will not have been included in the census and are grouped as 'unknown FSM'.
[7] Based on students who finished their 16 to 18 study in 2017/18. Covers results achieved during all years of 16-18 study (up to three years, i.e. the 2015/16, 2016/17 and 2017/18 academic years).
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment he has made of the results of Government-funded schemes to encourage more people to enter the teaching profession.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The latest Initial Teacher Training (ITT) census shows that postgraduate recruitment is at its highest level since 2011/12[1], with 29,255 postgraduate trainees recruited this academic year. The Department’s financial incentives package makes a substantial contribution to this. We offer bursaries and scholarships of up to £28,000 for priority subjects, working in partnership with professional bodies such as the Institute of Physics and the Royal Society of Chemistry.
The Department’s analysis demonstrates the effectiveness of the current financial offer. As the National Audit Office have acknowledged, the Department found that an increase of £1,000 in bursary value led to a 2.9% increase in applications for postgraduate ITT. The vast majority of bursary recipients go straight from training to the classroom. 94% of 2016/17 postgraduate trainee teachers who successfully completed training in a bursary subject were in a teaching post six months later.
To ensure that the Department is spending money effectively, it is piloting two new financial incentives. The first is a phased bursary for mathematics teachers which comprises a lower bursary during training, followed by early-career payments in the third and fifth years of teaching. The second is a student loan reimbursement scheme for languages and science teachers. Both pilots are designed to encourage talented teachers to remain in the profession.
[1] Teach First recruitment has been included in ITT census data since 2015/16.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to increase the number of apprenticeships in Nottinghamshire.
Answered by Anne Milton
The National Apprenticeship Service is working with Nottingham City Council to raise awareness of high value apprenticeships in the Nottingham area. The ‘Opportunities Through Apprenticeships’ project launched in November 2018. We are supporting the council in their work with local providers and employers to encourage the creation of more apprenticeships in high value sectors, such as digital, manufacturing and engineering.
We have introduced a wide range of reforms to apprenticeships to improve their quality and encourage employers across England to increase the number of apprenticeships they offer.
To support all employers to make the long-term, sustainable investment in training, from April 2019 we have halved the co-investment rate from 10% to 5% for new starts and have increased the amount that levy paying employers can transfer to other employers from 10% to 25%.
We are working to raise awareness of apprenticeships across the country and the benefits they bring to both employers and apprentices. Our ‘Fire it Up’ communication campaign, seeks to change the way people think about apprenticeships and demonstrate that they are an aspirational choice for anyone with passion and energy.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the number of care leavers in (a) Mansfield and (b) Nottinghamshire that have been homeless in each of the last five years.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
There were no young people in Nottinghamshire local authority area aged 19 to 21 who were care leavers and classified as homeless or of no fixed abode in the last 5 years.
Figures for young people in Nottinghamshire local authority area aged 17 and 18 who were care leavers have only been collected since the year ending 31 March 2016. None of these young people were classified as homeless or of no fixed abode by the local authority.
The department does not collect data at parliamentary constituency level.
Further information on care leavers over the last 5 years in the Nottinghamshire local authority area is published by the department in the underlying data tables accompanying the statistical release, ‘Children looked after in England (including adoption): 2017 to 2018’. The latest release is available on the department’s statistical web page at:
Previous releases can also be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-looked-after-children.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will ensure that apprenticeships of all levels including levels (a) 6 and (b) 7 will continue to be eligible for apprenticeship levy funding.
Answered by Anne Milton
We are pleased that employers are choosing to move to new, higher-quality apprenticeship standards. Employers are designing higher-level apprenticeships that take longer, require more off-the-job training and as a result cost more, and that presents longer-term financial challenges.
We continue to make funding available for apprenticeships at all levels, including levels 6 and 7. We will keep our funding policy under review in order to ensure that apprenticeships continue to be affordable and offer value for money for the taxpayer.
In 2019-20, funding available for investment in apprenticeships will have increased to over £2.5 billion, double what was spent in 2010.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to increase the number of degree apprenticeships available in Nottinghamshire.
Answered by Anne Milton
There are now 78 industry-designed apprenticeship standards available at level 6 and level 7, of which 60 are degree apprenticeships.
There were 10,880 starts on level 6+ apprenticeships, including degree apprenticeships, in 2017/18, a six-fold increase on the previous academic year.
We are supporting the development and take up of level 6+ and degree apprenticeships across England through the Degree Apprenticeship Development Fund (DADF). The fund has supported 103 education providers, 56 further education colleges and 47 higher education institutions, to boost capacity and internal infrastructure within higher education, including Nottingham Trent University.
The fund has supported a range of awareness raising activities aimed at higher, level 6+ and degree apprenticeship, including supporting 30 co-branded Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) and National Apprenticeship service (NAS) careers fairs, offering access to 240,000 year 12 students.
DADF funding has also supported the NAS and UCAS to develop a higher and degree apprenticeships ‘vacancy finder’ consolidating many of these opportunities into one place. Approximately 2,000 vacancies, with 2019 starts, were published in November 2018.
We have also recently launched our ‘Opportunities through Apprenticeships’ campaign, working with partners in Portsmouth, Nottingham, South Tyneside and Torbay to increase participation in apprenticeships particularly at higher levels.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the Government’s commitment not to impose a cap on the number of students that can access post-18 education applies to all forms of post-18 education.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
We have no intention to re-introduce a cap on the number of students accessing post-18 education. We want our education system to provide opportunities for everybody to improve their position in life. That is why we abolished the pre-existing cap on higher education student numbers and reduced barriers to entry. Record numbers of disadvantaged students are now going to university.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to consult with organisations from the higher education, further education and school sectors on the forthcoming recommendations of the post-18 education and funding review.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
The independent panel has undertaken an extensive programme of engagement with stakeholders and experts as part of the post-18 education and funding review – including a call for evidence that received over 400 responses. The government will continue to engage with stakeholders, including organisations from the higher education, further education and school sectors, to ensure it delivers a post-18 education system that is joined up and supported by a funding system that works for students and taxpayers.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many apprenticeships have been created in (a) Mansfield and (b) Nottinghamshire since 2015.
Answered by Anne Milton
There have been 4,590 apprenticeship starts in the Mansfield parliamentary constituency between May 2015 and October 2018. There have been 27,740 apprenticeship starts in the Nottinghamshire local authority between May 2015 and October 2018.
The number of apprenticeship starts by parliamentary constituency and local authority for the 2014/15 to 2017/18 academic years (final year figures) and quarter 1 of 2018/19 (provisional figures) are available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/772388/Apprenticeship-starts-ach-geography-tool_201415-Q1201819_Jan2019_v1.xlsx.