Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to prepare for the future role of remote learning in the education system.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Technology in education has been essential for continuing to teach remotely during the COVID-19 outbreak and subsequent school and college closures. In the long term, it also has the potential to support teacher workload reductions, flexible working, cost savings, inclusive teaching practice and improved pupil outcomes.
A number of programmes which have been in place across the COVID-19 outbreak are providing valuable intelligence on the most impactful uses of remote education to deliver the curriculum to all pupils. The EdTech Demonstrator programme, which supports schools and colleges to use technology to strengthen remote education arrangements and develop a sustainable digital strategy, will provide an important evaluation of the impact of effective use of digital technology to improve outcomes for pupils. The Department’s digital platforms offer allows schools to provide remote online education and develop blended learning approaches for the longer term.
The Government has invested over £400 million in support for remote education, including securing over 1.3 million laptops and tablets for disadvantaged children. We will build on the foundations of this significant investment in technology and explore options for a strategy to create a more resilient digitally enabled education system which improves outcomes for all children and adults in education.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment his Department has made of the (a) accessibility and (b) effectiveness of the university refund procedure.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
Higher education (HE) providers are autonomous institutions and as such they are responsible for providing clear systems for handling students’ complaints and appeals, including requests for refunds. The university’s formal complaints procedures should be easily accessible and available on the university’s website. We expect student complaints and appeals processes to be operated flexibly, accessibly, and sympathetically by providers to resolve any concerns.
Where a student completes the formal complaints process and they are dissatisfied with the outcome, they can take a complaint to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA). The OIA offers a free service to students and can review complaints from students made against a higher education provider.
All higher education providers registered with the Office for Students provider must co-operate with the requirements of the student complaints scheme run by the OIA and make students aware of their ability to use the scheme. The OIA is independent of the government, and as such, is responsible for case allocation and timing. The OIA’s ‘Good Practice Framework on Handling Complaints and Appeals’ states that HE providers should normally be completed within 90 calendar days of the start of the formal complaints process: oia-good-practice-framework.pdf (oiahe.org.uk).
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions his Department has had with representatives of university students on their needs in the context of the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on university education.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
On 18 August, a higher education (HE) taskforce made up of various sector representatives was launched to initially advise on HE admissions. The scope of the taskforce has since been extended to include discussions on broader COVID-19 related challenges faced by the HE sector and students. We are aware of the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on students’ mental health, wellbeing, and future life chances, and must do all we can to mitigate its effects. Several taskforce subgroups have looked at these areas in more detail.
The student mental health subgroup, for instance, had representatives from the Student Minds charity and the Office for Students (OfS) to discuss responses from students. The group also heard from a current second year student who attended to share their personal experience and thoughts directly.
I also regularly meet with the National Union of Students and have engaged in several Facebook live sessions organised by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service where I have had the opportunity to discuss with students the issues affecting them the most, as well as engaging with students through the student panel of the OfS, virtual visits and The Student Room.
We will continue to work with the sector and student representative bodies and engage students, as our top priority for January will be the welfare of students, staff, and the communities around higher education providers.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will increase the eligibility threshold for sparsity funding in the national funding formula.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department recognises the financial challenges that small schools in rural areas can face, and frequently assesses evidence on this. We have increased the amount distributed through the national funding formula’s sparsity factor for the 2021/22 funding year, from £26 million to £42 million. This will help with the provision of extra support to small, remote schools.
The Department reviews the national funding formula on an ongoing basis, including the sparsity factor. We have made minimal changes to the design of the formula next year, in light of pressures caused by the COVID-19 outbreak. As such, the thresholds determining which schools attract sparsity funding will be unchanged in the 2021/22 funding year.
Increased funding through the sparsity factor next year is a first step toward wider changes in the 2022/23 funding year to further support small, remote schools. The Department plan to consult on exact changes, and the design of the factor in 2022/23, in the New Year.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effect on small, rural schools of ineligibility for sparsity funding in the national funding formula.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department recognises the financial challenges that small schools in rural areas can face, and frequently assesses evidence on this. We have increased the amount distributed through the national funding formula’s sparsity factor for the 2021/22 funding year, from £26 million to £42 million. This will help with the provision of extra support to small, remote schools.
The Department reviews the national funding formula on an ongoing basis, including the sparsity factor. We have made minimal changes to the design of the formula next year, in light of pressures caused by the COVID-19 outbreak. As such, the thresholds determining which schools attract sparsity funding will be unchanged in the 2021/22 funding year.
Increased funding through the sparsity factor next year is a first step toward wider changes in the 2022/23 funding year to further support small, remote schools. The Department plan to consult on exact changes, and the design of the factor in 2022/23, in the New Year.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he made of the availability of strong internet connections for students studying from home during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Nick Gibb
It is vital that students have access to high quality and consistent remote education. The Department believes that through the hard work of teachers and staff, pupils will continue to receive the education they deserve, whatever the circumstances.
As part of over £195 million invested in technology to enable access to remote education, over 220,000 laptops and tablets and over 50,000 4G wireless routers have already been delivered during the summer term for disadvantaged children in Year 10, children receiving support from a social worker and care leavers.
The Department estimated the number of disadvantaged pupils without access to an internet connection using data on pupils eligible for Free School Meals in each school, taking into consideration estimations by Ofcom and reflecting that some pupils would already have access to a private internet connection.
The 4G wireless routers come with free data for the autumn term and will allow local authorities and academy trusts to support children who may have their face-to-face education and care disrupted because of the COVID-19 outbreak. Local authorities and trusts are responsible for identifying the children who need internet access and providing the routers to them.
The Department is also working with the major telecommunications companies to improve internet connectivity for disadvantaged and vulnerable families who rely on a mobile internet connection. We are piloting an approach where mobile network operators are providing temporary access to free additional data, offering families more flexibility to access the resources that they need the most. In the pilot, schools, trusts, and local authorities identified children who need access to free additional data.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the level of evidence a student is required to provide to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education in the event that that student is dissatisfied with the level of education that their university has provided during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
The statutory independent student complaints scheme for higher education is run by the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA). The scheme, guidance for students and the level of evidence has not changed during the COVID-19 outbreak. Students are still expected to raise formal complaints with their own university in the first instance, and if those cannot be resolved, students can approach the OIA. The OIA website outlines the process and the information required to submit a complaint: https://www.oiahe.org.uk/students/how-to-complain-to-us/.
On 22 June, the OIA published specific guidance outlining its approach to handling complaints that arose from the COVID-19 outbreak, including complaints on course delivery. The OIA will take a number of issues into account when considering a complaint and will consider what was promised against what was delivered. The OIA will also take into account the relevant legislation and related guidance (such as that published by the Competition and Markets Authority), and whether the higher education provider has been fair and reasonable in developing its policies.
The guidance is available at: https://www.oiahe.org.uk/resources-and-publications/latest-news-and-updates/oia-briefing-note-2-our-approach-to-complaints-arising-from-the-effects-of-coronavirus-covid-19-june-202/.
There are some issues that the OIA is unable to consider. These issues include matters relating to admissions and academic judgement. Guidance on the issues that the OIA can consider is available at: https://www.oiahe.org.uk/students/can-you-complain-to-us/.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support his Department provides to students that do not have access to (a) a laptop and (b) an internet connection; and what assessment he has made of the potential merits of extending the digital support packed offered to lower year students to university students.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
As my right hon. Friends, the Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer, have both made clear, the government will do whatever it takes to support people affected by COVID-19.
Higher education providers take their responsibilities seriously and are best placed to identify the needs of their student body as well as how to develop the services needed to support it. When making changes to the delivery of their courses, providers need to consider how they support all students, particularly the most vulnerable, to achieve successful academic and professional outcomes.
Many providers will have hardship funds to support students in times of need, including emergencies. The expectation is that where any student requires additional support during this exceptional period (for example, they have no access to the internet, no computer at home or cannot afford to purchase a computer), providers will support them through their own hardship funds.
We have worked closely with the higher education regulator in England, the Office for Students (OfS), to help clarify that providers can draw upon existing funding to provide hardship funds and support disadvantaged students impacted by COVID-19. Providers can use the funding, worth around £23 million per month for April, May, June and July, towards student hardship funds, including the purchase of IT equipment.
The OfS has provided guidance for providers on the use of existing student premium funding to support students facing hardship:
www.officeforstudents.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/coronavirus/provider-guide-to-coronavirus/provider-faq/.
Details of the technology support available for children and schools are here: www.gov.uk/guidance/get-help-with-technology-for-remote-education-during-coronavirus-covid-19. These measures are the result of a £100 million allocation to support remote education, including providing routers and laptops to vulnerable students, prioritising care leavers, including those at university.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans his Department has to support students that find themselves in financial difficulty during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
As my right hon. Friends, the Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer, have both made clear, the government will do whatever it takes to support people affected by COVID-19.
Higher education providers take their responsibilities seriously and are best placed to identify the needs of their student body as well as how to develop the services needed to support it. When making changes to the delivery of their courses, providers need to consider how they support all students, particularly the most vulnerable, to achieve successful academic and professional outcomes.
Many providers will have hardship funds to support students in times of need, including emergencies. The expectation is that where any student requires additional support during this exceptional period (for example, they have no access to the internet, no computer at home or cannot afford to purchase a computer), providers will support them through their own hardship funds.
We have worked closely with the higher education regulator in England, the Office for Students (OfS), to help clarify that providers can draw upon existing funding to provide hardship funds and support disadvantaged students impacted by COVID-19. Providers can use the funding, worth around £23 million per month for April, May, June and July, towards student hardship funds, including the purchase of IT equipment.
The OfS has provided guidance for providers on the use of existing student premium funding to support students facing hardship:
www.officeforstudents.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/coronavirus/provider-guide-to-coronavirus/provider-faq/.
Details of the technology support available for children and schools are here: www.gov.uk/guidance/get-help-with-technology-for-remote-education-during-coronavirus-covid-19. These measures are the result of a £100 million allocation to support remote education, including providing routers and laptops to vulnerable students, prioritising care leavers, including those at university.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support is available to students that have found themselves in financial difficulty during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
As my right hon. Friends, the Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer, have both made clear, the government will do whatever it takes to support people affected by COVID-19.
Higher education providers take their responsibilities seriously and are best placed to identify the needs of their student body as well as how to develop the services needed to support it. When making changes to the delivery of their courses, providers need to consider how they support all students, particularly the most vulnerable, to achieve successful academic and professional outcomes.
Many providers will have hardship funds to support students in times of need, including emergencies. The expectation is that where any student requires additional support during this exceptional period (for example, they have no access to the internet, no computer at home or cannot afford to purchase a computer), providers will support them through their own hardship funds.
We have worked closely with the higher education regulator in England, the Office for Students (OfS), to help clarify that providers can draw upon existing funding to provide hardship funds and support disadvantaged students impacted by COVID-19. Providers can use the funding, worth around £23 million per month for April, May, June and July, towards student hardship funds, including the purchase of IT equipment.
The OfS has provided guidance for providers on the use of existing student premium funding to support students facing hardship:
www.officeforstudents.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/coronavirus/provider-guide-to-coronavirus/provider-faq/.
Details of the technology support available for children and schools are here: www.gov.uk/guidance/get-help-with-technology-for-remote-education-during-coronavirus-covid-19. These measures are the result of a £100 million allocation to support remote education, including providing routers and laptops to vulnerable students, prioritising care leavers, including those at university.