Asked by: Andrew Lewer (Conservative - Northampton South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to (a) reduce and (b) end the use of cash retentions.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
In procuring construction works, the department takes account of relevant legislation, best practice and government guidelines. In deciding whether cash retentions are appropriate for procurements, the department balances managing public money considerations, the suitability of alternative approaches, and the need to ensure and enforce quality standards against the department’s desire to improve payment practices and cashflow through the supply-chain. The department regularly reviews its approach to payment and security in relation to construction procurements. In considering the use of cash retentions on future procurements, including in its construction frameworks, the department will continue to consult with contractors and other stakeholders to ensure that an appropriate position is reached and, where possible, that the use of cash retentions is reduced or eliminated.
Asked by: Andrew Lewer (Conservative - Northampton South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of (a) refocussing the National Tutoring Programme to reach those children who need the most help and (b) ringfencing specific funding to support early intervention and expert literacy work to help close the attainment gap for pupils.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Since 2020, the National Tutoring Programme (NTP) has delivered over 3 million courses of tutoring to pupils most in need of catch up following the effect of COVID-19. There is extensive evidence that tutoring is one of the most effective ways to accelerate academic progress. This is why the Department is investing more than £1 billion in tutoring, so that pupils can catch up through accessing high quality tuition.
The Department’s guidance for the NTP in 2022/23 sets out that schools are expected to prioritise their Pupil Premium cohort to receive tutoring, in line with the programme’s objective of supporting disadvantaged pupils. Schools are best placed to understand the needs of their pupils and so may also consider offering tuition to other pupils, where appropriate. Since the programme was launched in 2020, the Department estimates that 49.8% of pupils who have received tuition through the NTP have been eligible for free school meals in the past 6 years.
The NTP allows schools to have autonomy in deciding what subjects to deliver tutoring in. In primary schools, a high proportion of tutoring is delivered in English and mathematics. Schools are also able to choose how best to provide tutoring for their pupils, either through academic mentors, outsourced tuition partners or school led tutoring.
Closing the attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers is a priority for the Department. A large majority of school leaders across all three tutoring routes reported that the NTP was having a positive effect on reducing the attainment gap for disadvantaged pupils, including 85% of those doing school led tutoring, which is the most popular route under the NTP.
In addition, the Department has funded £17 million to deliver the Nuffield Early Language Intervention programme, improving the language skills of Reception age pupils. The programme targets pupils needing extra support with their speech and language development and is proven to help them make approximately three months of additional progress. Over two thirds of eligible mainstream primary schools are taking part in this evidence based programme, benefitting around 90,000 children who are most in need of language support.
The Department has committed that from 2024, tutoring will be embedded across schools in England. The Department is expecting tutoring to continue to be a staple offer from schools, with schools using their core budgets, including Pupil Premium, to fund targeted support for those pupils who will most benefit.
Asked by: Andrew Lewer (Conservative - Northampton South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the statement made in her Department's Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan: Right Support, Right Place, Right Time report, published in March 2023, that the Government intends to replace the NASENCo with a mandatory leadership level SENCo NPQ for SENCos that do not hold the qualification, what steps she has taken to assess the strength of the business case for that policy; on what evidence her Department based its assessment of the likely impact of that change on the ability of SENCos to identify (a) children and young people's needs and (b) appropriate interventions in a timely way; and what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the planned change on the number of children and young people who will require (i) specialist support and (ii) Education and Health Care Plans.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
The introduction of a new leadership level SENCO National Professional Qualification (NPQ) to replace the existing mandatory qualification will play a key role in achieving the ambitions of the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan, by ensuring that special educational needs coordinators (SENCOs) consistently receive high-quality, evidence-based training. Research conducted by University of Plymouth highlighted that, while there is value in SENCOs completing the National Award for SEN Coordination (NASENCO), there are certain weaknesses with the current qualification, including an overemphasis on theory and academic assignment writing.
In the SEND and AP Green Paper, published in March 2022, the department consulted on the introduction of the SENCO NPQ to address these issues. There was general support for the proposal, with 48% (1,278) of respondents agreeing or strongly agreeing with this change and only 20% (529) disagreeing or strongly disagreeing.
NPQs are designed to provide training for education professionals at all levels, using the best available evidence to transform their practice and deliver improved outcomes for children and young people. In the interim evaluation of the 2021 reformed NPQs, early feedback from participants was that the ultimate beneficiaries of the NPQs will be pupils, who they believe will receive higher-quality teaching that results in better outcomes for pupils.
Asked by: Andrew Lewer (Conservative - Northampton South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to her Department's policy paper, Further education reclassification: government response, published on 29 November 2022, what plans she has to address concerns in the further education sector over borrowing controls on colleges.
Answered by Robert Halfon
Following the decision by the Office for National Statistics to reclassify colleges to the public sector, colleges are now subject to the requirements of Managing Public Money, which means they may only borrow from private sector sources if the transaction delivers value for money for the Exchequer.
To support and protect colleges the department is providing colleges with additional capital grant allocations totalling £150 million. Individual college allocations were published in December 2022 and will be paid from April 2023. The full list can be found here: https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.publishing.service.gov.uk%2Fgovernment%2Fuploads%2Fsystem%2Fuploads%2Fattachment_data%2Ffile%2F1121488%2FAdditional_FE_capital_funding_allocations_2022_to_2023.ods&wdOrigin=BROWSELINK.
The department is also bringing forward £300 million in payments from the 2023/24 financial year into the 2022/23 financial year to cover the shortfall that providers experience in February and March 2023. This means we will make additional payments to institutions in February and March 2023.
These new measures are designed to help colleges manage the restrictions on commercial borrowing. Where a college believes that commercial borrowing is still required and would deliver value for money, they can submit a consent request for consideration. Departmental officials are working closely with further education colleges through these consent requests.
Departmental officials are also working on other options to support the delivery of capital projects by the sector, including for colleges that were intending to borrow from commercial sources.
Asked by: Andrew Lewer (Conservative - Northampton South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to her Department's policy paper Further education reclassification: government response, published on 29 November 2022, if she will take steps to ensure that further education colleges do not suffer financially as a result of borrowing controls; and whether colleges that were negotiating loans will be able to proceed with those negotiations.
Answered by Robert Halfon
Following the decision by the Office for National Statistics to reclassify colleges to the public sector, colleges are now subject to the requirements of Managing Public Money, which means they may only borrow from private sector sources if the transaction delivers value for money for the Exchequer.
To support and protect colleges the department is providing colleges with additional capital grant allocations totalling £150 million. Individual college allocations were published in December 2022 and will be paid from April 2023. The full list can be found here: https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.publishing.service.gov.uk%2Fgovernment%2Fuploads%2Fsystem%2Fuploads%2Fattachment_data%2Ffile%2F1121488%2FAdditional_FE_capital_funding_allocations_2022_to_2023.ods&wdOrigin=BROWSELINK.
The department is also bringing forward £300 million in payments from the 2023/24 financial year into the 2022/23 financial year to cover the shortfall that providers experience in February and March 2023. This means we will make additional payments to institutions in February and March 2023.
These new measures are designed to help colleges manage the restrictions on commercial borrowing. Where a college believes that commercial borrowing is still required and would deliver value for money, they can submit a consent request for consideration. Departmental officials are working closely with further education colleges through these consent requests.
Departmental officials are also working on other options to support the delivery of capital projects by the sector, including for colleges that were intending to borrow from commercial sources.
Asked by: Andrew Lewer (Conservative - Northampton South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that school curriculums include teaching on freedom of religion or belief.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The National Curriculum is broad and balanced for pupils to learn about how different groups and societies have contributed to the development of the UK. The curriculum offers many opportunities for schools to do this, notably through citizenship education and relationships, sex and health education (RSHE). The RSHE curriculum has a strong focus on equality, respect, and the harmful impact of stereotyping, as well as the importance of valuing difference.
Within the citizenship curriculum pupils should be taught about the diverse national, regional, religious and ethnic identities and the need for mutual respect and understanding.
In delivering the curriculum, schools should be aware of their duties relating to political impartiality, as set out under the Education Act 1996, and must ensure that, where political issues are discussed in the classroom, they are presented in a balanced way. The Department has published guidance on political impartiality in schools which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/political-impartiality-in-schools.
Legal duties on political impartiality do not supersede other important requirements for schools, including their responsibility to promote fundamental British values, including the mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs. Developing and deepening pupils’ understanding of these values is part of the Ofsted inspection framework, alongside expectations that schools develop responsible citizens and promote an inclusive environment that meets the needs of all pupils, irrespective of their characteristics.
Asked by: Andrew Lewer (Conservative - Northampton South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what methodology her Department used to perform the Market Impact Assessment published alongside the Oak National Academy business case in October 2022.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department will be carrying out a review of the Oak National Academy Arm’s Length Body (ALB) in 2024, as part of the wider Public Bodies Reviews programme. Government policy is that a new ALB should be reviewed within 24 months after the start of full operations. The review will act as a checkpoint to ensure that Oak is acting effectively and will include consideration of the effect on the educational publishing industry.
Monitoring market impact is a priority for the Department and will be factored into the ongoing evaluation of Oak National Academy. The Department carried out research and engaged with trade bodies representing relevant commercial suppliers, inviting submissions to inform the market impact assessment. The Department also conducted an informal survey of commercial providers on proposals for what the ALB would do.
Oak will work collaboratively to develop new content and will signpost users to a small number of other high quality curriculum sequences in each subject. The purpose of signposting is to demonstrate that there is more than a single approach to curriculum sequencing and to direct teachers to where they can find out more information regarding alternative curricula. Oak is not intended as a marketplace and its purpose is not to show teachers all available options. Teachers will still be free to use materials that are not signposted on the Oak website.
Asked by: Andrew Lewer (Conservative - Northampton South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reasons her Department decided to review the impact of Oak National Academy on the educational publishing industry at two year intervals.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department will be carrying out a review of the Oak National Academy Arm’s Length Body (ALB) in 2024, as part of the wider Public Bodies Reviews programme. Government policy is that a new ALB should be reviewed within 24 months after the start of full operations. The review will act as a checkpoint to ensure that Oak is acting effectively and will include consideration of the effect on the educational publishing industry.
Monitoring market impact is a priority for the Department and will be factored into the ongoing evaluation of Oak National Academy. The Department carried out research and engaged with trade bodies representing relevant commercial suppliers, inviting submissions to inform the market impact assessment. The Department also conducted an informal survey of commercial providers on proposals for what the ALB would do.
Oak will work collaboratively to develop new content and will signpost users to a small number of other high quality curriculum sequences in each subject. The purpose of signposting is to demonstrate that there is more than a single approach to curriculum sequencing and to direct teachers to where they can find out more information regarding alternative curricula. Oak is not intended as a marketplace and its purpose is not to show teachers all available options. Teachers will still be free to use materials that are not signposted on the Oak website.
Asked by: Andrew Lewer (Conservative - Northampton South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will consider lifting the cap on the number of scheme suppliers Oak National Academy will signpost.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department will be carrying out a review of the Oak National Academy Arm’s Length Body (ALB) in 2024, as part of the wider Public Bodies Reviews programme. Government policy is that a new ALB should be reviewed within 24 months after the start of full operations. The review will act as a checkpoint to ensure that Oak is acting effectively and will include consideration of the effect on the educational publishing industry.
Monitoring market impact is a priority for the Department and will be factored into the ongoing evaluation of Oak National Academy. The Department carried out research and engaged with trade bodies representing relevant commercial suppliers, inviting submissions to inform the market impact assessment. The Department also conducted an informal survey of commercial providers on proposals for what the ALB would do.
Oak will work collaboratively to develop new content and will signpost users to a small number of other high quality curriculum sequences in each subject. The purpose of signposting is to demonstrate that there is more than a single approach to curriculum sequencing and to direct teachers to where they can find out more information regarding alternative curricula. Oak is not intended as a marketplace and its purpose is not to show teachers all available options. Teachers will still be free to use materials that are not signposted on the Oak website.
Asked by: Andrew Lewer (Conservative - Northampton South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of taking steps to require higher education providers to record student data by biological sex.
Answered by Robert Halfon
The department has not made any independent assessment of requiring higher education (HE) providers to record student data by biological sex.
As the Designated Data Body that collects and publishes statistics about HE providers, the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) specifies the information that is required from students.
HESA have consulted on how personal characteristics should be collected in future. This consultation was conducted in partnership with the UK governments, Office for Students and other UK funding bodies. This consultation considered the merits of different approaches to the recording of student sex.
Following the consultation, it was determined that the sex stated on one of the individual’s legal documents such as birth certificate, Gender Recognition Certificate, or passport ought to be recorded. If there is any conflict, the newest document should be referenced.
Details of HESA’s consultation are published here: https://www.hesa.ac.uk/innovation/records/reviews/consultation-outcomes-personal-characteristics-equality-data.Details of the information required from HE providers in 2022/23 are published here: https://codingmanual.hesa.ac.uk/22056/Student/field/SEXID.