Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number of Confucius Institutes in the UK.
Answered by Robert Halfon
There are currently 30 Confucius Institutes in the UK, including five in Scotland, three in Wales and one in Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to increase the effectiveness of the apprenticeship levy.
Answered by Gillian Keegan
The department is responsible for apprenticeships policy in England only.
The apprenticeship levy is collected by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs from all UK employers with a pay bill above £3 million. Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland receive a share of levy funding and it is the responsibility of the devolved administrations to determine how they spend this share to fund and operate their apprenticeship programmes.
Apprenticeships are vital in driving economic recovery, and we continue to improve apprenticeships to make it easier for employers in England to make full use of their levy funds. To help businesses of all sizes in England to offer apprenticeships as new employment opportunities, we have increased our cash incentive payments to £3,000 for every apprentice they hire as a new employee from 1 April until 30 September 2021.
We are improving the apprenticeship levy transfer process so that, from August 2021, employers in England who pay the levy will be able to pledge funds for transfer to other employers, including small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), supported by a new online service to match levy payers with SMEs.
In addition, since 1 April 2021 all SMEs in England arranging new apprenticeship starts have done so through the apprenticeship service. This gives them more control over their apprenticeship choices and the ability to reserve funds before choosing the provider that best meets their needs.
We are also making apprenticeships in England more flexible so that they better meet the needs of employers from all sectors. We continue to support employers by encouraging greater use of innovative apprenticeship training models, such as the front-loading of off-the-job training. We are also developing accelerated apprenticeships so that apprentices with substantial prior learning (e.g. T Level graduates) can complete an apprenticeship more quickly.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if his officials will discuss the National Tutoring Programme and other similar schemes in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland with officials in the devolved Administrations to ensure best practice for supporting disadvantaged pupils is implemented across the UK.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department has worked closely with the devolved administrations throughout the COVID-19 outbreak, mutually and beneficially exchanging information and policy developments across the full range of issues and challenges facing education systems in the UK. For example, in addition to education recovery, there has also been a UK-wide discussion on the reopening of schools and colleges and arrangements for awarding qualifications in 2021.
One example where the Department is working with the devolved administration to enhance educational opportunities is on the Turing scheme, the UK-wide replacement for Erasmus+, which will support 35,000 students from schools, further education and higher education across the UK to do study and work placements abroad. It aims to improve social mobility, targeting students from disadvantaged backgrounds, making life-changing opportunities accessible to everyone across the country.
The Department will continue to engage with the devolved administrations on the response to the COVID-19 outbreak and on how to support education recovery. This engagement will include sharing information and evidence on education recovery initiatives, including the National Tutoring Programme.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the outcome was of the strategic guidance letter he issued to the Office of Students to identify higher education providers which have yet to adopt an internationally recognised definition of anti-semitism.
Answered by Michelle Donelan
There is no place in our society, including within higher education (HE), for antisemitism. The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition is an important tool in tackling antisemitism. Adopting the widely recognised definition sends a strong signal that HE providers take these issues seriously.
My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, wrote to the sector in October 2020, calling upon leaders to adopt the IHRA definition. He repeated this message in May, reinforcing the government's expectation that providers adopt the IHRA definition, stressing the even greater importance of doing so in light of increased number of antisemitic incidents recorded (as a result of the conflict in the Middle East). We are aware of over 100 HE providers which have now adopted the IHRA definition. This includes over 80 universities.
In his February 2021 strategic guidance letter, the Secretary of State also asked the Office for Students (OfS) to undertake a scoping exercise, to identify providers which are reluctant to adopt the definition. He asked them to consider introducing mandatory reporting of antisemitic incident numbers by providers, with the aim of ensuring a robust evidence base, which the OfS can then use to effectively regulate in this area. I meet regularly with the OfS, and they have assured me they are progressing work in response to Secretary of State's request, including in relation to a scoping exercise to identify higher education providers which have yet to adopt the IHRA definition.
The decision on adoption of the definition rests with individual providers, but the government will continue to urge them to adopt the definition and ensure that HE is a genuinely fulfilling and welcoming experience for everyone.
Adoption of the IHRA definition is only a first step, and while the government considers that adoption of the definition is crucial, it is not enough on its own. That is why I will continue to work with the sector to ensure it better understands antisemitism and does more to end it.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will (a) review and (b) consult on the adequacy of funding available for music and arts courses at higher education level.
Answered by Michelle Donelan
The Strategic Priorities Grant, formerly referred to as the Teaching Grant, plays an important role in supporting providers and students to develop the skills and knowledge needed locally, regionally and nationally to support the economy.
We have asked the Office for Students (OfS) to reform the Grant for 2021-22. These reforms include the reallocation of high-cost subject funding towards the provision of high-cost subjects that support the NHS and wider healthcare policy, high-cost science, technology and engineering subjects and subjects meeting specific labour market needs.
One of our proposals is for a 50% reduction in the rate of high-cost subject funding, which is one element of the wider Strategic Priorities Grant, for some subjects in order to enable this reprioritisation.
It is important to note that the Strategic Priorities Grant accounts for a relatively small proportion of the total income of higher education providers today. For the providers losing funding due to this reallocation, the income lost would account for approximately 0.05% of their estimated total income, based on the latest data available.
This important reprioritisation of taxpayers’ money does not mean this government is devaluing the arts or social sciences. High-quality provision in a range of subjects is critical for our workforce, and our public services, and is culturally enriching for our society.
That is why, as part of the same reform programme, we have asked the OfS to invest an additional £10 million in our world-leading specialist providers, many of which specialise in arts provision. We want to ensure that our specialist providers receive additional support, and that grant funding is used to effectively support students.
The OfS has now publicly consulted on these proposals, and responses from universities, students and others will be taken into account before any final decisions on allocations are made.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the tuition fees that will apply to BNO citizens from Hong Kong in the event that they move to live in the UK.
Answered by Michelle Donelan
I refer the hon. Member for East Londonderry to the answer I gave on 7 July 2020 to Question 68342.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of funding for music in schools between 2014 and 2019.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department believes that music is an important subject and that all pupils should receive a high-quality music education. That is why the subject is compulsory in the National Curriculum up to age 14.
Music education is primarily the responsibility of schools. To support schools to offer a broad and balanced curriculum, the Department announced an increase in investment for schools across England of £14 billion over the next three years at the 2019 Spending Round, with increases of £2.6 billion to core schools funding in 2020-21, and further increases of £4.8 billion and £7.1 billion in 2021-22 and 2022-23 respectively. On top of this we are providing £1.5 billion for the additional pension costs for teachers, bringing the total core schools budget to £52.2 billion by 2022-23.
To support schools deliver high-quality music education for all their pupils, the Department has provided funding of over £300 million for music education hubs between 2016 and 2020, including £76 million in 2019-20. This is a significant increase from the £58 million hubs received in 2014.
In early January, we announced further funding of £85 million for music and arts in 2020-21; £80 million for music hubs coupled with further investment in film, dance, theatre and design. The Department has also confirmed that an arts premium will be provided to secondary schools to fund enriching activities for all pupils. Work is underway to develop the arts premium and we will be making further statements on this in due course.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will ensure that the curriculum for relationships education continues to include marriage as one of the issues when children are being taught about family life as set out in the Education Act 2002.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government believes that pupils need to understand the nature of marriage and its importance. The new subjects of relationships education (primary) and relationships and sex education (secondary) cover the age-appropriate knowledge that all children need to form safe, positive relationships based on respect and to prepare them for adult life, including family life.
Following the passage of the regulations for the new subjects, the Department published the statutory guidance in June 2019. The guidance covers teaching about different types of relationships, and this is addressed throughout the content. Under the topic of families, for example, the guidance sets out that by the end of primary education pupils will know “that marriage and civil partnerships represent a formal and legally recognised commitment of two people to each other which is intended to be lifelong”. By the end of secondary education, pupils will know “what marriage and civil partnerships are, including their legal status”. Teaching about family and parenting is also included in these subjects.
The guidance also notes that teaching about families requires sensitive and well-judged teaching based on knowledge of pupils and their circumstances. The guidance can be accessed here: