Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what payments were made to his Department by Wigan University Technical College as a result of the overestimation of student numbers.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
As part of the established pupil number adjustment process where an academy trust’s funding agreement allows for the basis of funding to be initially calculated using estimated pupil numbers, the funding is subsequently aligned with the actual pupil numbers returned in the school census through these adjustments and recoveries or additional payments are applied as appropriate.
For Wigan University Technical College, £609,038 of advanced funding remains outstanding.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support his Department has provided to students and their families since the decision to close Wigan University Training College.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
The closure of any school is always a last resort and we will always act in the best interests of the young people involved. The department explored all possible options to secure the future of Wigan University Technical College (UTC) before this decision to close it was taken.
A breakdown of the revenue funding provided to Wigan UTC as requested is provided below:
2013/14 | £920,609.40 |
2014/15 | £1,208,318.97 |
2015/16 | £1,437,209.90 |
2016/17 | £987,893.99 |
2017/18 | £1,665,302.72 |
2018/19 | £1,318,574.62 |
Total | £7,537,909.60 |
Capital costs for the UTC are published and can be found at : https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/capital-funding-for-open-free-schools.
The local authority and academy trust provided support to all students and parents affected by the closure and the department worked with both the local authority and the trust to ensure that school places were identified that met the needs of each individual child.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department took steps to try to prevent the closure of Wigan University Training College.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
The closure of any school is always a last resort and we will always act in the best interests of the young people involved. The department explored all possible options to secure the future of Wigan University Technical College (UTC) before this decision to close it was taken.
A breakdown of the revenue funding provided to Wigan UTC as requested is provided below:
2013/14 | £920,609.40 |
2014/15 | £1,208,318.97 |
2015/16 | £1,437,209.90 |
2016/17 | £987,893.99 |
2017/18 | £1,665,302.72 |
2018/19 | £1,318,574.62 |
Total | £7,537,909.60 |
Capital costs for the UTC are published and can be found at : https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/capital-funding-for-open-free-schools.
The local authority and academy trust provided support to all students and parents affected by the closure and the department worked with both the local authority and the trust to ensure that school places were identified that met the needs of each individual child.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding from the public purse was provided to Wigan University Technical College in each year from 2013 to 2019.
Answered by Michelle Donelan - Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
The closure of any school is always a last resort and we will always act in the best interests of the young people involved. The department explored all possible options to secure the future of Wigan University Technical College (UTC) before this decision to close it was taken.
A breakdown of the revenue funding provided to Wigan UTC as requested is provided below:
2013/14 | £920,609.40 |
2014/15 | £1,208,318.97 |
2015/16 | £1,437,209.90 |
2016/17 | £987,893.99 |
2017/18 | £1,665,302.72 |
2018/19 | £1,318,574.62 |
Total | £7,537,909.60 |
Capital costs for the UTC are published and can be found at : https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/capital-funding-for-open-free-schools.
The local authority and academy trust provided support to all students and parents affected by the closure and the department worked with both the local authority and the trust to ensure that school places were identified that met the needs of each individual child.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans his Department has to discuss school funding levels with headteachers in (a) Wigan and (b) the North West.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Funding for schools in the Wigan local authority has increased by 1.4% per pupil in 2019/20, compared to 2017/18 funding levels. This is equivalent to an extra £6.9 million in total, when rising pupil numbers are taken into account.
Funding for schools in the North West has increased by 2.8% per pupil in 2019/20, compared to 2017/18 funding levels. This is equivalent to an extra £245.6 million in total, when rising pupil numbers are taken into account.
Ministers and officials from the Department regularly meet head teachers. Funding is one of the Department’s top priorities and the Department is committed to securing the right deal for education in the next spending review.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to increase funding for schools in (a) Wigan and (b) the North West.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Funding for schools in the Wigan local authority has increased by 1.4% per pupil in 2019/20, compared to 2017/18 funding levels. This is equivalent to an extra £6.9 million in total, when rising pupil numbers are taken into account.
Funding for schools in the North West has increased by 2.8% per pupil in 2019/20, compared to 2017/18 funding levels. This is equivalent to an extra £245.6 million in total, when rising pupil numbers are taken into account.
Ministers and officials from the Department regularly meet head teachers. Funding is one of the Department’s top priorities and the Department is committed to securing the right deal for education in the next spending review.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he has plans to increase the national funding rate for sixth form students.
Answered by Anne Milton
We have protected the base rate of funding for 16 to 19 year olds for all types of providers until the end of the current spending review period in 2020. As with other areas of departmental spending, 16 to 19 funding for subsequent years will be agreed as part of the next Spending Review.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing transition support for children in need.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
The government is committed to preparing vulnerable children for adult life and recognises the challenges and importance of transition. The statutory guidance, Working Together to Safeguard Children, makes it clear that when children on child protection plans reach the age of eighteen, local authorities should consider whether support services are still required. For children leaving care, the offer of support from local authorities now extends to twenty-five.
We are already delivering a major programme of reform, as set out in Putting Children First (2016). We are working to improve the quality of the workforce, develop and spread innovative practice, and improve the quality of local authority children’s services. We are also using the Department for Education’s Social Care Innovation Programme to trial programmes to improve the quality of support for adolescents.
On 16 March the government launched a review into the outcomes of children in need and opened a call for evidence. We will consider the full range of views we receive in response to the call for evidence, including any around transition support and the way this is planned by local authorities.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to improve the outcomes of children in need.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
All children, no matter where they live, should have access to the same high quality care and support to meet their needs. This includes stronger initial training and clarity about the knowledge and skills social workers need in their jobs, and creating an environment where innovation can flourish and frontline practice is driven by evidence. The government continues to implement its reform programme as set out in Putting Children First (2016). We are also taking decisive action to improve services in inadequate local authorities through our interventions programme and by implementing a new improvement strategy for local authorities at risk of failing.
The government recently launched a review into the outcomes of children in need, publishing extensive data on the educational outcomes of this cohort and launching a call for evidence. The review’s work continues, and we are engaging with professionals and organisations who support children in need and with 3 What Works Centres - the Education Endowment Foundation, Early Intervention Foundation, and the What Works Centre for Children’s Social Care - to build our national evidence base on how best to improve these outcomes.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to improve the support provided to children in need.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
All children, no matter where they live, should have access to the same high quality care and support to meet their needs. This includes stronger initial training and clarity about the knowledge and skills social workers need in their jobs, and creating an environment where innovation can flourish and frontline practice is driven by evidence. The government continues to implement its reform programme as set out in Putting Children First (2016). We are also taking decisive action to improve services in inadequate local authorities through our interventions programme and by implementing a new improvement strategy for local authorities at risk of failing.
The government recently launched a review into the outcomes of children in need, publishing extensive data on the educational outcomes of this cohort and launching a call for evidence. The review’s work continues, and we are engaging with professionals and organisations who support children in need and with 3 What Works Centres - the Education Endowment Foundation, Early Intervention Foundation, and the What Works Centre for Children’s Social Care - to build our national evidence base on how best to improve these outcomes.