Asked by: Caroline Nokes (Conservative - Romsey and Southampton North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department has taken to (a) plan and (b) prepare for arrangements for year-11 exams at the end of the 2020-21 academic year.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government has been clear on its top priority to keep schools open throughout the COVID-19 outbreak and ensure all pupils get a high quality education. On Monday 12 October, we announced that assessment by examination will be part of a normalised year for these cohorts because we believe examinations are the fairest form of assessment. The examinations will start on 7 June and end on 2 July for almost all AS/A levels and GCSEs. This is three weeks later than the usual start dates from previous years. The delay and the changes to the content of assessments for certain subjects, will give pupils extra time to study, without causing unnecessary disruption to the usual timetable of the academic year.
My right hon. Friend, The Secretary of State for Education has also asked Ofqual to work with the Department to develop and assess a range of contingency measures for potential disruption to 2021 examinations, engaging widely with schools and colleges, exams boards, unions and students as well as the further and higher education sectors. This is to ensure we plan for all foreseeable scenarios to safeguard students’ ability to sit exams and achieve qualifications which allow them to progress to the next stage of their education or employment. We expect to share details of these contingency plans later in the autumn.
Asked by: Caroline Nokes (Conservative - Romsey and Southampton North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what research his Department has undertaken on the effect of social distancing on the emotional well-being of children.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The department is working closely with educational institutions, sector organisations, the Department for Health and Social Care, NHS England and Public Health England to understand the effects of the measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 on mental health and wellbeing and identify the children and young people that need help and will continue to do so as pupils return to school.
The return to school is a key part of supporting the mental health and wellbeing of pupils, as in addition to providing more opportunities for physical activity, attendance at school allows social interaction with peers, carers and teachers, which benefits wellbeing. To support this, we have encouraged schools to focus on mental wellbeing as pupils return. The department has now published detailed plans for all children and young people to return to full-time education from September. The guidance for schools is available here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools.
We have been working closely with partners to provide resources and update guidance to support and promote children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing during the COVID-19 outbreak. This includes signposting to resources on supporting and promoting mental wellbeing among the list of resources to help children to learn at home, which are available here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-online-education-resources.
We are working with the Department of Health and Social Care to put in place further specific support for school staff to understand the issues that pupils will face with their mental wellbeing. This includes training for teachers, such as a new module developed with clinical experts on how to teach about mental health in health education. More information is available here:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/teaching-about-mental-wellbeing.
Access to mental health support is more important than ever during the COVID-19 outbreak. NHS services remain open, and leading mental health charities are being supported to deliver additional services through the £5 million Coronavirus Mental Health Response Fund. During Mental Health Awareness Week the government also announced that a further £4.2 million will be awarded to mental health charities – including the Samaritans, Young Minds, and Bipolar UK.
All NHS mental health trusts have been asked to ensure that there are 24/7 open access telephone lines to support people of all ages. Public Health England and Health Education England have also developed advice and guidance for parents and professionals on supporting children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing, which are available here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-on-supporting-children-and-young-peoples-mental-health-and-wellbeing.
In addition, children and young people can access free confidential support anytime from government-backed voluntary and community sector organisations either by texting SHOUT to 85258, or by calling Childline on 0800 1111 or The Mix on 0808 808 4994. Children and young people can also find online information on COVID-19 and mental health on the Young Minds website, which is available here:
https://youngminds.org.uk/about-us/reports/coronavirus-impact-on-young-people-with-mental-health-needs/.
Asked by: Caroline Nokes (Conservative - Romsey and Southampton North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effect of the non-resumption of breakfast and after-school provision on working (a) parents and (b) mothers.
Answered by Vicky Ford
As of 4 July, all providers offering wraparound care, holiday clubs and out-of-school activities for children have been able to open for both indoor and outdoor provision with safety measures in place. We have published guidance for providers of these activities on the measures they should put in place to ensure they are operating as safely as possible, which is available here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-implementing-protective-measures-in-education-and-childcare-settings/coronavirus-covid-19-implementing-protective-measures-in-education-and-childcare-settings.
We recognise that breakfast and after-school provision are important sources of additional childcare for parents and carers, particularly those who may need to return to, or continue to, work in the autumn term.
Therefore, as outlined in the guidance for full opening of schools published by the department, schools should consider resuming any breakfast and after-school provision, where possible, from the start of the autumn term to support working parents and to help children and young people re-engage with their peers and with the school. We recognise that schools may need to respond flexibly and build this up over time. The guidance is available here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools.
Asked by: Caroline Nokes (Conservative - Romsey and Southampton North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reasons his Department's Guidance for full opening: schools, published on 2 July 2020, states that social distancing for the youngest children is not mandatory.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government has been clear that our intention is for all children to return to school from September. On 2 July we published guidance to help schools prepare for this.
As part of this guidance, we are asking all headteachers to put measures in place to minimise the risk of transmission of COVID-19 in their school. This includes implementing a Public Health England endorsed system of controls that includes: ensuring that people who have symptoms do not attend school, robust hand and respiratory hygiene, enhanced cleaning arrangements, active engagement with NHS Test and Trace, and minimising contact and maintaining distance between individuals wherever possible.
Minimising contacts and mixing between people reduces transmission of COVID-19. This is important in all contexts, and schools must consider how to implement this. The overarching principle that schools have been asked to apply is reducing the number of contacts between children and staff. This can be achieved through keeping groups separate (in ‘bubbles’) and through maintaining distance between individuals. These are not alternative options and both measures will help, but the balance between them will change depending on children’s ability to distance, the lay out of the school and the feasibility of keeping distinct groups separate while offering a broad curriculum (especially at secondary).
At primary school, and in the younger years at secondary (key stage 3), schools may be able to implement smaller groups the size of a full class. If that can be achieved, it is recommended, as this will help to reduce the number of people who could be asked to isolate should someone in a group become ill with COVID-19. We recognise that younger children will not be able to maintain social distancing, and it is acceptable for them not to distance within their group but primary schools are expected to keep groups separate.
The Department's guidance on fully opening schools can be viewed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools#section-1-public-health-advice-to-minimise-coronavirus-covid-19-risks.
Asked by: Caroline Nokes (Conservative - Romsey and Southampton North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the advice that social distancing for the youngest children is not mandatory in his Department's Guidance for full opening: schools, published on 2 July 2020, whether any primary schools require young children to socially distance.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government has been clear that our intention is for all children to return to school from September. On 2 July we published guidance to help schools prepare for this.
As part of this guidance, we are asking all headteachers to put measures in place to minimise the risk of transmission of COVID-19 in their school. This includes implementing a Public Health England endorsed system of controls that includes: ensuring that people who have symptoms do not attend school, robust hand and respiratory hygiene, enhanced cleaning arrangements, active engagement with NHS Test and Trace, and minimising contact and maintaining distance between individuals wherever possible.
Minimising contacts and mixing between people reduces transmission of COVID-19. This is important in all contexts, and schools must consider how to implement this. The overarching principle that schools have been asked to apply is reducing the number of contacts between children and staff. This can be achieved through keeping groups separate (in ‘bubbles’) and through maintaining distance between individuals. These are not alternative options and both measures will help, but the balance between them will change depending on children’s ability to distance, the lay out of the school and the feasibility of keeping distinct groups separate while offering a broad curriculum (especially at secondary).
At primary school, and in the younger years at secondary (key stage 3), schools may be able to implement smaller groups the size of a full class. If that can be achieved, it is recommended, as this will help to reduce the number of people who could be asked to isolate should someone in a group become ill with COVID-19. We recognise that younger children will not be able to maintain social distancing, and it is acceptable for them not to distance within their group but primary schools are expected to keep groups separate.
The Department's guidance on fully opening schools can be viewed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools#section-1-public-health-advice-to-minimise-coronavirus-covid-19-risks.
Asked by: Caroline Nokes (Conservative - Romsey and Southampton North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of the £650 million catch-up fund he plans to allocate to special schools.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The government has announced a package of support worth £1 billion to ensure that schools have the support they need to help all children and young people make up for lost teaching time, with extra support in the form of a tutoring programme for those who need it most.
This package includes a universal catch up premium for schools of £650 million to help them make up for lost teaching time. This premium will be paid as a grant to all state-funded primary and secondary schools in England over the 2020-21 academic year.
We will confirm the timetable for publishing institution-level allocations in due course.