Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that children with autism receive a good standard of education.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department aim is for all children and young people, including those who are autistic, to receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life. The department wants all children to achieve well throughout their education, to find employment, to lead happy and fulfilled lives and to experience choice and control.
In the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan, the department set out a vision to improve mainstream education by setting standards for the early and accurate identification of need and the timely provision of access to support. The standards will clarify the types of support that should be ordinarily available in mainstream settings and who is responsible for securing the support. This will give parents confidence and clarity on how their child’s needs will be met.
As part of this, the department has committed to developing practitioner standards, which were known as practice guides in the Improvement Plan, to provide advice to education professionals. The three practitioner standards will be published by the end of 2025, one of which will be focused on autism. The department will build on existing best practice and will include guidance on how an education environment may be adapted to better support the needs of autistic pupils.
The department’s Universal Services contract brings together SEND-specific continuous professional development and support for the school and further education workforce to improve outcomes for children and young people, including those who are autistic.
The contract offers autism awareness training and resources delivered by the Autism Education Trust (AET). Over 100,000 education professionals have undertaken autism awareness training as part of AET's ‘train the trainer’ model since the Universal Services programme commenced in May 2022.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the potential merits of installing HEPA filters in early years educational settings.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
To date, department officials are not aware of any studies looking at the impact of using air conditioning units (ACU) specifically in early years settings. However, there is strong evidence from laboratory studies of the efficacy of high-efficiency particulate absorbing (HEPA) filtration technology at removing airborne viruses and particulate matter from the air. In addition, department officials sit on the working group for a project looking at the implications and potential benefits of fitting primary schools with air cleaning technology: the Bradford classroom air cleaning technology (class-ACT) trial. This was funded by the Department of Health and Social Care and managed through the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). The study is run from the Centre for Applied Education Research which is based at the Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, UK. The trial has concluded and the academic leads intend to publish the results in a peer-reviewed journal in due course.
The department recognises that good ventilation helps to create a healthy indoor environment for staff and students. Letting fresh air into indoor spaces can help remove air that contains virus particles which reduces the risk of respiratory illness, as well as improving pupils’ alertness and concentration.
Between September 2021 and April 2023, the department delivered over 700,000 CO2 monitors to over 45,000 state-funded settings, including early years, further education, childminders operating in groups of four or more, and children’s homes that offer places to 6 or more. This means that all eligible settings now have an assigned CO2 monitor for every teaching and childcare space to help them manage their ventilation.
For settings that identified spaces with sustained high CO2 readings (1500ppm or more) through their monitors, an application process was made available for department-funded ACUs that utilise HEPA technology. This policy was informed by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies’ (SAGE) Environmental Modelling Group, which advises that ACUs have limited benefit in spaces that are already adequately ventilated and should only be considered where the ventilation is inadequate and cannot be easily improved. The department has subsequently delivered over 9,000 ACUs to over 1,300 settings between January 2022 and April 2023. This included eligible early years settings.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to page 2 of the Department for Education's consultation response entitled Higher Education Policy Statement and Reform: Government consultation response, published in July 2023, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of proposals to cap the numbers of students on low quality courses on (a) students and (b) providers in each English region; and whether she discussed the potential impact of those proposals on the levelling up agenda with the Secretary of State for Education before the publication of the Government consultation response.
Answered by Robert Halfon
As the independent regulator, it will be for the Office for Students (OfS) to determine whether Higher Education (HE) provision is in breach of condition of registration B3, which requires providers to deliver positive student outcomes, and whether a recruitment limit is an appropriate and proportionate response to any individual breach. Therefore, the department cannot predict which providers and provision might be subject to a recruitment limit in the future. OfS are currently investigating 18 of the total 421 registered HE providers, in relation to condition B3.
Further detail about condition of registration B3 can found here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/regulation/registration-with-the-ofs-a-guide/conditions-of-registration/.
The department considered the potential impact of recruitment limits on students and providers in each English region, based on provision currently not meeting the minimum thresholds for one or more of the three B3 metrics, in its HE Reform consultation response impact assessment. This impact assessment can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1170666/Higher_education_policy_statement_and_reform_-_government_consultation_response_-_impact_assessments_and_analysis.pdf.
My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities considered and agreed all of the measures in the HE Reform Consultation Response.
The department wants to make sure that every student who goes into HE will be able to reap true benefits, regardless of where they are located. Supporting students across the UK onto HE which delivers good outcomes will support levelling up.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of expanding mental health first aid training for staff in educational settings.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
The department does not hold data on the number of Mental Health First Aiders in educational settings. Schools and colleges are able to decide what training they offer to their staff based on the individual circumstances of the setting.
The department ensures that education staff have access to a range of training to help them understand and respond to the mental health and wellbeing issues that pupils and students face. Anyone supporting children and young people can now access an online Psychological First Aid training course. The department’s recent £15 million wellbeing for education recovery and return programmes also provide free expert training, support, and resources for education staff to help promote and support the wellbeing and mental health of pupils and students and recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Over 14,000 state-funded schools and colleges in England were reported to benefit from the two programmes, delivered through local authorities.
The department has also committed to offer all state schools and colleges in England a grant to train a senior mental health lead by 2025, enabling them to introduce effective whole school or college approaches to mental health and wellbeing. This is backed by £10 million in the 2022/23 financial year. Over 8,000 schools and colleges, including over half of state-funded secondary schools in England, have taken up the offer so far.
Schools may also consider other professional development, including National Professional Qualifications (NPQs). The Leading Behaviour and Culture NPQ is for teachers who have, or are aspiring to have, responsibilities for leading behaviour and pupil wellbeing in their school. Fully funded scholarships to undertake NPQs are now available for all state-funded schools, as well as state-funded 16-to-19 organisations.
The department provides a list of further mental health support and resources to promote and support mental health and wellbeing. This is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/mental-health-and-wellbeing-support-in-schools-and-colleges. Further resources and support are accessible at: https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2021/09/03/mental-health-resources-for-children-parents-carers-and-school-staff/.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of including suicide prevention in the statutory guidelines for the RSHE curriculum.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
Pupils in schools are taught about mental health as part of the relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) curriculum, which was made mandatory in 2020 for all pupils.
Schools can teach older pupils about suicide in an age-appropriate and sensitive way. The RSHE statutory guidance advises that schools should approach teaching about self-harm and suicide cautiously. Schools should be aware of the risks to pupils from exposure to materials that are instructive rather than preventative, including websites or videos that provide instructions or methods of self-harm or suicide. If teachers have concerns about a specific pupil in relation to self-harm or suicidal thoughts, they must follow safeguarding procedures immediately.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of removing funding for Applied General Qualifications on the ability of students from disadvantaged backgrounds to progress to (a) higher education and (b) skilled employment.
Answered by Gillian Keegan - Secretary of State for Education
The Department has consulted in two stages on proposals for the review of post-16 qualifications at level 3, which includes Applied General qualifications (AGQs). The review aims to ensure that students and employers have confidence that every qualification on offer is high quality and can lead to skilled employment or further study. The second stage consultation proposed that there should be a range of qualifications alongside A levels and T Levels in areas where those qualifications can demonstrate their necessity and meet new quality criteria.
The impact assessment published alongside the second stage of consultation stated that the changes will generally be positive because students will have access to higher quality qualifications in the future, including new T Levels. This will put them in a stronger position to progress to further study or skilled employment. It acknowledged that students from disadvantaged backgrounds are more likely to take qualifications that could have their funding approval removed but did not directly assess the effects of the proposed changes, including any changes to the availability of AGQs, on progression of disadvantaged students into higher education or skilled employment.
We are considering the feedback to the consultation carefully and will publish a full response, including an updated impact assessment, later this year.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress he has made on the development of a refreshed national plan for music education; and what his timeframe is for the publication of that plan.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government believes that the arts are an essential part of a broad and balanced education and that high-quality arts education should not be the preserve of the elite, but the entitlement of every single child.
Music Education Hubs have a vital role to play not only in core school music but also ensuring children have access to all the benefits of a wider musical education through instrumental lessons and ensembles. They have acted swiftly and innovatively to support schools through the COVID-19 outbreak, including the continuation of continuing professional development to classroom teachers.
Following the one-year Spending Review settlement, the Department intends to fund Music Education Hubs for the financial year 2021-22 and the budget will be announced shortly. Our partner organisations have been updated on this matter, and further details on specific funding allocations for each hub will follow.
A Call for Evidence was launched to support the refresh of the national plan. However, due to the COVID-19 outbreak, analysis of the Call for Evidence and the refresh of the national plan is currently on hold. The Department remains committed to the refresh and the results of the Call for Evidence, and the refreshed plan will be published in due course.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when he plans to confirm the levels of Government funding for music education hubs in England for the 2021-22 financial year.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government believes that the arts are an essential part of a broad and balanced education and that high-quality arts education should not be the preserve of the elite, but the entitlement of every single child.
Music Education Hubs have a vital role to play not only in core school music but also ensuring children have access to all the benefits of a wider musical education through instrumental lessons and ensembles. They have acted swiftly and innovatively to support schools through the COVID-19 outbreak, including the continuation of continuing professional development to classroom teachers.
Following the one-year Spending Review settlement, the Department intends to fund Music Education Hubs for the financial year 2021-22 and the budget will be announced shortly. Our partner organisations have been updated on this matter, and further details on specific funding allocations for each hub will follow.
A Call for Evidence was launched to support the refresh of the national plan. However, due to the COVID-19 outbreak, analysis of the Call for Evidence and the refresh of the national plan is currently on hold. The Department remains committed to the refresh and the results of the Call for Evidence, and the refreshed plan will be published in due course.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to help current Year 10 pupils catch up on learning time lost as a result of recent school closures.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government recognises that extended school and college restrictions have had a substantial impact on children and young people’s education and are committed to helping pupils make up lost education due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
We appointed Sir Kevan Collins as Education Recovery Commissioner to oversee the long-term plan to help schools support pupils make up their education over the course of this Parliament. Sir Kevan will engage with parents, pupils, and teachers in the development of this broader approach and review how evidence-based interventions can be used to address the impact the COVID-19 outbreak has had. We will share further details in due course.
As an immediate step, on the 24 February, we committed an additional £700 million to support summer schools, tutoring, early language interventions and additional support to schools to help pupils make up their education. This builds on the £1 billion catch-up package announced in June 2020, which included a catch-up premium, shared across state primary and secondary schools to support schools to make up for lost teaching time over this academic year. It also includes the National Tutoring Programme which provides schools with access to high-quality, subsidised tuition in this academic year and next.
Within the £700 million catch-up package, £200 million will be available to secondary schools to deliver a two-week summer school. Although we recommend a focus on incoming year 7 pupils, schools are also free to engage pupils in other years, should they identify a particular need.
A new one-off £302 million recovery premium will also be available for state primary and secondary schools, which includes £22 million to scale up evidenced approaches, building on the pupil premium, to further support pupils who need it most.
In addition, an expansion of the National Tutoring Programme for 5-16 year olds will ensure we can support even more pupils in 2021/22. The programme will support schools by providing approved tuition partners that offer subsidised tuition to schools and schools in some of the most disadvantaged areas will be supported to employ in-house academic mentors to provide tuition to their pupils.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he plans to ensure that dependents accepted under the proposed bespoke immigration route for British Nationals (Overseas) passport holders from Hong Kong will be treated as home students for the purpose of tuition fees.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
To qualify for home fee status in England, a person must have settled status or a recognised connection to the UK. This includes those who are covered by EU law, have long residence in this country or who have been granted international protection by the Home Office. There are also requirements associated with ordinary residence in the UK.
Subject to meeting the normal eligibility requirements, British Nationals (Overseas) status holders will be able to qualify for home fee status once they have acquired settled status in the UK. The same applies to their dependants.