Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he plans to introduce a voluntary exit programme for civil servants serving in his Department.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department grew to address recent challenges, including its response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but now some of that extra capacity is no longer necessary. Rather than top down numbers targets, the Department is concentrating on having an effective workforce for the future that allows it to do the best it can for children and young people.
To do that, the Department has taken the decision to launch a selective Voluntary Exit Scheme. This will support those who wish to leave the Department, and who may not necessarily have the key skills needed. This is an approach that many organisations use and it will help the Department to retain those staff needed to deliver its programme.
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate his Department has made of the number of (a) primary and (b) secondary school pupils in (i) Tameside and (ii) Oldham who do not have wifi or an unlimited mobile data connection and cannot access remote learning.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government is investing over £400 million to support access to remote education and online social care services, including securing 1.3 million laptops and tablets for disadvantaged children and young people.
This includes over 750,000 laptops and tablets that were delivered to schools, trusts and local authorities by the end of last week.
The Department has estimated the need for devices and internet connectivity by using data on the number of pupils eligible for Free School Meals, alongside data from Ofcom.
All schools in Tameside and Oldham can order their allocation of laptops and tablets and request connectivity support. As of 12 January, 1,086 devices have been delivered directly to Tameside local authority and 1,329 devices have been delivered directly to Oldham local authority. Devices have also been allocated to academy trusts that include schools in Tameside and Oldham that are not included in this figure.
The Department has partnered with the UK’s leading mobile operators to provide free data to help disadvantaged children get online as well as delivering 4G wireless routers for pupils without connection at home. This offer is available to all schools in England.
The Department is grateful to EE, O2, Sky Mobile, Smarty, Tesco Mobile, Three, Virgin Mobile, and Vodafone. We continue to invite a range of mobile network providers to support the offer.
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he has taken since March 2020 to help ensure that school pupils in (a) Tameside and (b) Oldham can access remote learning during covid-19 restrictions.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government is investing over £400 million to support access to remote education and online social care services, including securing 1.3 million laptops and tablets for disadvantaged children and young people.
This includes over 750,000 laptops and tablets that were delivered to schools, trusts and local authorities by the end of last week.
The Department has estimated the need for devices and internet connectivity by using data on the number of pupils eligible for Free School Meals, alongside data from Ofcom.
All schools in Tameside and Oldham can order their allocation of laptops and tablets and request connectivity support. As of 12 January, 1,086 devices have been delivered directly to Tameside local authority and 1,329 devices have been delivered directly to Oldham local authority. Devices have also been allocated to academy trusts that include schools in Tameside and Oldham that are not included in this figure.
The Department has partnered with the UK’s leading mobile operators to provide free data to help disadvantaged children get online as well as delivering 4G wireless routers for pupils without connection at home. This offer is available to all schools in England.
The Department is grateful to EE, O2, Sky Mobile, Smarty, Tesco Mobile, Three, Virgin Mobile, and Vodafone. We continue to invite a range of mobile network providers to support the offer.
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) primary and (b) secondary school pupils who do not have a laptop or mobile device and cannot access remote learning in (i) Tameside and (ii) Oldham.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government is investing over £400 million to support access to remote education and online social care services, including securing 1.3 million laptops and tablets for disadvantaged children and young people.
This includes over 700,000 laptops and tablets that were delivered to schools, trusts and local authorities by 11 January.
The Department has estimated the need for devices and internet connectivity by using data on the number of pupils eligible for Free School Meals, alongside data from Ofcom.
All schools in Tameside and Oldham can order their allocation of laptops and tablets and request connectivity support. As of 12 January, 1,086 devices have been delivered directly to Tameside local authority and 1,329 devices have been delivered directly to Oldham local authority. Devices have also been allocated to academy trusts that include schools in Tameside and Oldham that are not included in this figure.
The Department has partnered with the UK’s leading mobile operators to provide free data to help disadvantaged children get online as well as delivering 4G wireless routers for pupils without connection at home. This offer is available to all schools in England.
The Department is grateful to EE, O2, Sky Mobile, Smarty, Tesco Mobile, Three, Virgin Mobile, and Vodafone. We continue to invite a range of mobile network providers to support the offer.
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many laptops and mobile devices have been distributed by his Department to pupils to enable them to access remote learning in (a) Tameside and (b) Oldham since March 2020.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government is investing over £400 million to support access to remote education and online social care services, including securing 1.3 million laptops and tablets for disadvantaged children and young people.
This includes over 700,000 laptops and tablets that were delivered to schools, trusts and local authorities by 11 January.
The Department has estimated the need for devices and internet connectivity by using data on the number of pupils eligible for Free School Meals, alongside data from Ofcom.
All schools in Tameside and Oldham can order their allocation of laptops and tablets and request connectivity support. As of 12 January, 1,086 devices have been delivered directly to Tameside local authority and 1,329 devices have been delivered directly to Oldham local authority. Devices have also been allocated to academy trusts that include schools in Tameside and Oldham that are not included in this figure.
The Department has partnered with the UK’s leading mobile operators to provide free data to help disadvantaged children get online as well as delivering 4G wireless routers for pupils without connection at home. This offer is available to all schools in England.
The Department is grateful to EE, O2, Sky Mobile, Smarty, Tesco Mobile, Three, Virgin Mobile, and Vodafone. We continue to invite a range of mobile network providers to support the offer.
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, will covid-19 testing be available for school staff who present with symptoms.
Answered by Nick Gibb
We are extremely grateful for the work schools, childcare providers and local authorities have been doing since our announcement on the closure of schools and other educational and childcare settings. We are committed to ensuring that school staff are issued with the right guidance and support to keep them safe. We are in regular contact with the teacher and head teacher unions.
Currently the NHS is rightly prioritising COVID-19 tests for those caring for hospital patients with pneumonia or acute respiratory illness while continuing to investigate outbreaks. Most adults in good health who develop symptoms will fully recover and the Chief Medical Officer has advised that it is not necessary for them to be tested. However, school staff with symptoms of COVID-19 should, just as anyone displaying symptoms, self-isolate for at least seven days to reduce the spread in the community. The Government’s latest stay at home guidance can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance/stay-at-home-guidance-for-households-with-possible-coronavirus-covid-19-infection.
On 18 March, the Government made an announcement with regard to increasing the number of people tested for COVID-19 to 25,000 hospital patients a day, which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/testing-for-coronavirus-covid-19-will-increase-to-25-000-a-day.
On 27 March, the Government launched a new drive on coronavirus tests for frontline NHS staff and more information is available here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-launches-new-drive-on-coronavirus-tests-for-frontline-nhs-staff.
Our health service and care staff are key in our fight against the virus. Frontline NHS staff who have symptoms of coronavirus or who have a family member with symptoms will be the first tested for coronavirus as the testing programme is developed. More on this developing programme can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-launches-new-drive-on-coronavirus-tests-for-frontline-nhs-staff.
We are working closely with other Government departments to secure tests for other critical workers, including in our education system.
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what his Department's plans are for children who were in the process of applying for an Education, Health and Care plan at the time schools were closed due to the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The welfare of children and young people with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND) and their parents or carers is a high priority for the government, especially during this period of uncertainty. We are working closely with colleagues across government to ensure that appropriate arrangements, and support, are in place for all of the department’s sectors – from early years and childcare to schools and children’s social care, and for vulnerable groups including children with special educational needs.
If the local authority has not yet issued an education, health and care (EHC) plan for a child, then they will not automatically be identified in the group of children considered to be vulnerable. However, educational settings and local authorities have discretion to undertake a risk assessment and offer support to children who are in the process of obtaining an EHC plan, and any other children they consider vulnerable, if that is needed.
If a child already has an EHC plan the local authority remains responsible for maintaining it, including until any appeal to the tribunal has been heard and resolved. However, the Coronavirus Act 2020 allows the Secretary of State for Education, where appropriate, to temporarily lift the statutory duty on local authorities to maintain the precise provision in EHC plans, with local authorities needing instead to apply ‘reasonable endeavours’ to support these children and their families. Any changes made to a child or young person’s provision in their EHC plan would only remain in place temporarily.
We are also proposing to amend SEND regulations to provide for flexibility over matters such as the timescales in EHC needs assessments, and the review, re-assessment and amendment processes where particular cases are affected by the COVID-19 situation.
The government has published guidance on ongoing provision for and vulnerable children which can be found at the link below:
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when the free school meals voucher scheme will be made available; and whether there will be retrospective funding of vouchers in the event that the scheme is not available immediately after schools close due to the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Vicky Ford
Schools can access the national voucher scheme as of Tuesday 31 March. This scheme allows schools to order a single voucher to the value of £15 each week for every child eligible for benefits-related free school meals who is not attending school, set a weekly £15 rolling voucher, or combine funding where a family has more than one child eligible. Schools will not have to pay for these vouchers as the costs for this scheme will be picked up centrally by the Department for Education.
Schools can also continue with a local solution to supporting pupils eligible for free school meals.
We understand that other approaches may mean that schools incur additional expenses. Guidance is available on how we will compensate schools who incur these additional costs, including prior to the introduction of the national voucher scheme, in providing free school meals or vouchers to pupils affected by COVID-19:
Further guidance is available at the link below: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-free-school-meals-guidance/covid-19-free-school-meals-guidance-for-schools.
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to his Department's guidance, Guidance for schools, childcare providers, colleges and local authorities in England on maintaining educational provision, published on 19 March 2020, whether children are eligible to attend school where only one parent is defined as a key worker during the period of school closures due to covid-19.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department has recently published guidance for parents and carers in relation to the closure of educational settings, which is available here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/closure-of-educational-settings-information-for-parents-and-carers.
The current guidance confirms that children with at least one parent or carer who is critical to the COVID-19 response can attend an education or childcare setting if necessary. However, many families with a parent or carer working in critical sectors will be able to ensure their child is kept at home. Every child who can be safely cared for at home should be, to limit the chance of the virus spreading.
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the required pupil to teacher ratio will be in schools during the period of school closures due to the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Nick Gibb
To help ensure that the risk of COVID-19 spread for both staff and children is as low as possible, we have asked schools to ensure class sizes reflect the numbers of teaching staff available and are kept as small as possible.