Asked by: Kate Osborne (Labour - Jarrow)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the guidance for schools on transgender pupils will help to ensure that students are protected from transphobic bullying.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government is clear that bullying should never be tolerated and is committed to supporting schools to tackle bullying. The Department provides advice for schools, which outlines schools’ responsibilities. The advice makes clear that schools should make appropriate provision for a bullied child's social, emotional and mental health needs. The guidance is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/preventing-and-tackling-bullying.
Gender is a complex and sensitive issue. That is why the Department is working with the Minister for Women and Equalities to develop guidance to support schools in relation to gender questioning pupils. The Department will publish a draft for consultation later in the summer term.
More widely, the Department is providing over £2 million of funding, between 10 August 2021 and 31 March 2023, to five anti bullying organisations to support schools to tackle bullying.
The Department is also making sure that all children in England will be taught about respectful relationships, in person and online, as part of new mandatory Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE). These subjects are designed to give pupils the knowledge they need to lead happy, safe and healthy lives and to foster respect for other people and for difference.
All schools are required by law to have a behaviour policy that outlines measures to encourage good behaviour and prevent all forms of bullying amongst pupils. The policy should set out the behaviour expected of pupils, the sanctions that will be imposed for misbehaviour, and rewards for good behaviour. This should be communicated to all pupils, school staff and parents. This behaviour policy is supported by ‘Respectful School Communities’, a self review and signposting tool to support schools to develop a whole-school approach which promotes respect and discipline. This tool is available here: https://educateagainsthate.com/resources/respectful-school-communities-self-review-signposting-tool-2/. This can help with combatting bullying, harassment and prejudice of any kind, including hate based bullying.
Asked by: Kate Osborne (Labour - Jarrow)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department has undertaken an assessment of the affordability of subsidised milk under the School Milk Subsidy Scheme in the context of the increasing cost of living; and what steps the Government is taking to ensure that families are able to afford to purchase subsidised milk for their children in schools.
Answered by Will Quince
Milk is an excellent food for children’s growth and development. This is why under the school food standards, schools must ensure it is available to all pupils who want it during school hours. Further guidance on the school food standards can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-food-standards-resources-for-schools.
Lower fat milk or lactose reduced milk must be available for drinking at least once a day during school hours and milk must be provided free of charge to pupils eligible for free school meals. Schools may offer milk as many times as they wish, however it must be free to infant and benefits-based free school meal pupils when it is offered as part of their school meal and free to benefits-based free school meal pupils at all other times.
Where schools provide milk, they can also choose whether to participate in the School Milk Subsidy Scheme which can be used to reduce the cost of the milk. The rate for the subsidy is topped up nationally for pupils in primary education.
Further information about the scheme is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/the-school-milk-subsidy-scheme-guidance.
As announced in the Spring Statement, the government is continuing to provide targeted cost of living support for households most in need. From April 2022, the government is providing an additional £500 million to help households with the cost of household essentials, on top of what we have already provided since October 2021, bringing the total funding for this support to £1 billion.
Asked by: Kate Osborne (Labour - Jarrow)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Lifelong Loan Entitlement, for what reason a student studying a module at level 4 in higher education will be eligible for maintenance support, but an adult wishing to do a full level 3 qualification does not qualify for that support.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Lifelong Loan Entitlement (LLE) will provide individuals with a loan entitlement to the equivalent of four years of post-18 education to use over their lifetime. It will be available for both modules and full years of study at higher technical and degree levels (levels 4 to 6), regardless of whether they are provided in colleges or universities.
We want to drive a transformative impact on post-18 study, delivering greater parity between further education (FE) and higher education (HE). Under this flexible skills system, people will be able to space out their studies and learn at a pace that is right for them, including choosing to build up their qualifications over time, within both FE and HE providers.
The Skills and post-16 Education Bill modifies my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education’s existing powers to set the levels of loan available to support more modular provision, which could extend across both tuition fee and maintenance support. The LLE is also intended to fund whole courses, or their component modules if taken separately, that meet the necessary regulatory requirements and are provided by or on behalf of a registered provider. We are considering what maintenance loans and student support grants would be available for any study funded through the LLE, as well as how to best support modular study. We will consult on the detail and scope of this in due course. The LLE does not extend to level 3 provision, which is already funded through a number of other funding streams.
The Adult Education Budget (AEB) fully funds or co-funds skills provision for eligible adults aged 19 and above from pre-entry to level 3, to support adults to gain the skills they need for work, an apprenticeship or further learning. This includes a statutory entitlement to full funding for adult learners aged 19-23 undertaking their first full qualification at level 3.
Since 1 April 2021, the National Skills Fund has been supporting any adult who does not have A level equivalent or higher qualifications, to access over 400 fully funded level 3 courses, with Free Courses for Jobs. This offer is a long-term commitment, backed by £95 million from the National Skills Fund in year one. From April, any adult in England earning under the national living wage annually (£18,525) or unemployed, will also be able to access the Free Courses for Jobs offer for free, regardless of their prior qualification level.
Living costs support is not offered to those undertaking level 3 qualifications. General support for those costs is provided for by the Department for Work and Pensions. Through grant funding and a bursary fund for those with an advanced learner loan, colleges and other training providers are able to help adult learners overcome barriers which prevent them from taking part or continuing in learning. This includes:
Asked by: Kate Osborne (Labour - Jarrow)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reason the Government is introducing a Lifelong Loan Entitlement for modules and full years of study at levels 4-6 but not at level 3 and below.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Lifelong Loan Entitlement (LLE) will provide individuals with a loan entitlement to the equivalent of four years of post-18 education to use over their lifetime. It will be available for both modules and full years of study at higher technical and degree levels (levels 4 to 6), regardless of whether they are provided in colleges or universities.
We want to drive a transformative impact on post-18 study, delivering greater parity between further education (FE) and higher education (HE). Under this flexible skills system, people will be able to space out their studies and learn at a pace that is right for them, including choosing to build up their qualifications over time, within both FE and HE providers.
The Skills and post-16 Education Bill modifies my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education’s existing powers to set the levels of loan available to support more modular provision, which could extend across both tuition fee and maintenance support. The LLE is also intended to fund whole courses, or their component modules if taken separately, that meet the necessary regulatory requirements and are provided by or on behalf of a registered provider. We are considering what maintenance loans and student support grants would be available for any study funded through the LLE, as well as how to best support modular study. We will consult on the detail and scope of this in due course. The LLE does not extend to level 3 provision, which is already funded through a number of other funding streams.
The Adult Education Budget (AEB) fully funds or co-funds skills provision for eligible adults aged 19 and above from pre-entry to level 3, to support adults to gain the skills they need for work, an apprenticeship or further learning. This includes a statutory entitlement to full funding for adult learners aged 19-23 undertaking their first full qualification at level 3.
Since 1 April 2021, the National Skills Fund has been supporting any adult who does not have A level equivalent or higher qualifications, to access over 400 fully funded level 3 courses, with Free Courses for Jobs. This offer is a long-term commitment, backed by £95 million from the National Skills Fund in year one. From April, any adult in England earning under the national living wage annually (£18,525) or unemployed, will also be able to access the Free Courses for Jobs offer for free, regardless of their prior qualification level.
Living costs support is not offered to those undertaking level 3 qualifications. General support for those costs is provided for by the Department for Work and Pensions. Through grant funding and a bursary fund for those with an advanced learner loan, colleges and other training providers are able to help adult learners overcome barriers which prevent them from taking part or continuing in learning. This includes:
Asked by: Kate Osborne (Labour - Jarrow)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress his Department has made, in discussion with the Department of Health and Social Care and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, in agreeing funding for the School Games Organiser network beyond March 2022.
Answered by Will Quince
The government can confirm that funding for the School Games Organisers will be available for the full 2021/22 academic year. The government is considering arrangements for the School Games Organiser network for the 2022/23 academic year and beyond, and will confirm the position in 2022.
We are also working to deliver on the nearly £30 million announced in October 2021 towards opening up school sport facilities in England, as well as to improve the teaching of Physical Education at primary school. We will continue to work closely with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport and the Department of Health and Social Care to deliver on the aims of the School Sport and Activity Action Plan which we will be updating in 2022.
Asked by: Kate Osborne (Labour - Jarrow)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will publish guidance on the rules for isolation of classrooms in the event that a pupil in the class tests positive for the Omicron Covid-19 variant.
Answered by Robin Walker
From Tuesday 14 December, a new national approach to daily testing for contacts of COVID-19 was introduced (including until the end of this term). All adults who are fully vaccinated and children aged 5 to 18 years and 6 months, identified as a contact of someone with COVID-19, whether Omicron or not, should take a lateral flow device test every day for 7 days instead of self-isolating. Daily testing by close contacts will help to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Daily testing for contacts of COVID-19 will help protect schools, colleges and nurseries by reducing transmission and help keep pupils in face-to-face education.
Children under five years old do not need to take part in daily testing for contacts of COVID-19 and do not need to isolate.
Asked by: Kate Osborne (Labour - Jarrow)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans his Department has to monitor and publish impact data on the effect of school breakfasts provided through the National School Breakfast Programme on (a) reducing classroom hunger, (b) educational attainment outcomes and (c) health outcomes in the 2021-22 academic year.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The government is committed to continuing support for school breakfast clubs and we are investing up to £24 million to continue our national programme for the next two years. This funding will support around 2,500 schools in disadvantaged areas, meaning that thousands of children from low-income families will be offered free nutritious breakfasts to better support their attainment, wellbeing and readiness to learn.
The focus of the programme is to target the most disadvantaged areas of the country, including the Department for Education’s Opportunity Areas. Throughout the contract we will be working with our provider, Family Action, to monitor the benefits the programme is having on pupils who are attending. We will consider opportunities to share information on the programme as it progresses.
Asked by: Kate Osborne (Labour - Jarrow)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department plans to prioritise the replacement of Consortium of Local authorities Special Programme (CLASP) schools in the School Rebuilding Programme to ensure that teachers and schoolchildren are safe from asbestos.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department takes the issue of asbestos in schools very seriously, and is committed to supporting schools, local authorities, and academy trusts to fulfil their duty to manage asbestos safely. Expert advice from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is that if asbestos is unlikely to be damaged or disturbed then it is best managed in situ. We are clear that if asbestos does pose a safety risk and cannot be effectively managed in situ, then it should be removed from schools.
Since 2015, the Department has allocated over £9.5 billion, including an additional £560 million in the 2020-21 financial year, to those responsible for school buildings for essential maintenance and improvements, including removing or encapsulation when it is the safest course of action to do so.
In February 2021, the Department announced the first 50 schools to benefit from the new School Rebuilding Programme as part of a commitment to 500 projects over the next decade. School Rebuilding Programme investment is targeted on the basis of buildings’ condition. A full explanation of the methodology used to prioritise the first 50 schools has been published at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-rebuilding-programme.
The Department intends to consult later this year on the approach to prioritising schools for the longer term programme.
Asked by: Kate Osborne (Labour - Jarrow)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking with headteachers to gather information on covid-19 in their local area and take steps to create a safer environment for children in schools.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Schools supply daily attendance updates relating to COVID-19 to the Department through the schools’ online portal.
The Department also has well established Regional Education and Children’s Teams (REACTs) in place. Their purpose is to help coordinate how information and intelligence about local needs and circumstances is captured during the COVID-19 outbreak.
REACTs are in regular contact with local authorities (Directors of Children’s Services or their representatives) in England to discuss local plans and to offer support. Similarly, the same teams are in regular contact with a range of academy trusts. Through these conversations, REACTs discuss providing practical support to those local authority areas that require it. This includes a range of actions, from answering questions to action planning, and offering and negotiating resources to support local authorities.
On 7 January, the Department published further guidance which sets out what all schools will need to do during the COVID-19 outbreak from January 2021: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/950510/School_national_restrictions_guidance.pdf.
Schools will be familiar with much of this guidance, including the system of controls, which they have been implementing since the start of the autumn term.
The Department will continue to keep its plans under review and ensure our position is informed by the latest evidence.
Asked by: Kate Osborne (Labour - Jarrow)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will cancel the publication of school performance tables in the 2020-21 academic year.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government announced on 3 December 2020 that the Department would not publish the normal school and college performance tables in autumn 2021, based on summer 2021 grades. This remains the case. The announcement is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-school-and-college-performance-measures.