Asked by: Heidi Allen (Liberal Democrat - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many full-time disabled students were registered on higher education courses in (a) 2015-16 and (b) 2016-17.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Marylebone
The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) collects and publishes data on students enrolled at UK Higher Education Institutions. Statistics on numbers of students with disabilities are published as part of the Statistical First Release on higher education student enrolments and qualifications obtained at higher education providers, which can be found at the following link:
https://www.hesa.ac.uk/news/12-01-2017/sfr242-student-enrolments-and-qualifications.
Statistics for the 2016/17 academic year will be available from HESA in January 2018.
Asked by: Heidi Allen (Liberal Democrat - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to close the deprivation attainment gap in South Cambridgeshire constituency.
Answered by Edward Timpson
We are committed to making this a country where everyone has a fair chance to go as far as his or her talent and hard work will allow. The pupil premium provides schools with significant additional funding - £2.5bn this year alone – to raise the achievement of their disadvantaged pupils and so close the attainment gap. Our guarantee to maintain current per-pupil funding levels for the rest of this Parliament will ensure schools continue to have the support they need to improve disadvantaged pupils’ outcomes.
This year, disadvantaged pupils in South Cambridgeshire will benefit from £2.6 million in pupil premium funding.
Asked by: Heidi Allen (Liberal Democrat - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of recent changes to the National Funding Formula on the deprivation attainment gap in schools.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government is committed to creating a country that works for everyone, regardless of their background. We want all children to reach their full potential and to succeed in adult life.
Disadvantage has a significant impact on pupils’ attainment. This impact is seen throughout the school system and compounded in areas of disadvantage. In recognition of that, our formula recognises educational disadvantage in its widest sense, using different indicators within the deprivation factor into target funding widely. We want, in particular, to include those pupils who are not necessarily eligible for free school meals, but whose families are still struggling to get by.
Asked by: Heidi Allen (Liberal Democrat - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the number of children who are refused admission to a state funded faith school on the grounds of differing faith or belief; and if she will work with schools and faith groups to facilitate inclusive admission policies in all state funded schools.
Answered by Edward Timpson
The department does not collect data on the reasons why individual applicants are refused a place to particular schools.
It is for the relevant admission authority of a school designated with a religious character to decide whether or not to adopt faith-based oversubscription criteria. Not all schools with a faith designation choose to allocate places by faith. Some choose to allocate only a proportion of their places on the basis of faith. Where they have places available, schools with a faith designation must admit all children who apply, without reference to faith.
The government is committed to ensuring that new faith-designated academies and free schools provide additional places not just for pupils of their own faith, but also for other local children regardless of their faith. New provision academies and free schools with a faith designation must give priority to at least 50 per cent of their intake without reference to faith, where they are oversubscribed.