Asked by: Heidi Allen (Liberal Democrat - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of Family Hubs.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
We welcome the development of family hubs. We know that many areas are already moving towards this model of support for children and families.
However, it is up to local councils to decide how to organise and commission services in their areas. Local councils are best placed to understand local needs and how best to meet them, and they should be the ones to determine the effectiveness of their services to children and families.
Asked by: Heidi Allen (Liberal Democrat - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress her Department is making on updating relationship and sex education guidance.
Answered by Nick Gibb
We want to help all schools to deliver high quality Relationships Education, Relationships and Sex Education and Personal, Social, Health and Economic (PSHE) Education so that all young people are equipped to have healthy and respectful relationships, and leave school with the knowledge to prepare them for adult life.
The Department is currently conducting thorough and wide-ranging engagement with stakeholders, which will help us to reach an evidence-based decision on PSHE, as well as to determine the content of the regulations and statutory guidance.
We will consult on draft regulations and guidance and the regulations will then be laid in the House allowing for a full and considered debate. We are working towards schools teaching the new subjects from September 2019.
Asked by: Heidi Allen (Liberal Democrat - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Oral contribution of the Minister of State for Education of 18 July 2017, Official Report, column 713, what discussions her Department has had with HM Revenue and Customs to resolve the issues identified with the digital childcare service; and what progress her Department has made on steps identified in those discussions to resolve those issues.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
As of 31 August, over 216,000 30 hours eligibility codes have been issued for the Autumn term. Whilst the majority of parents applied with no issue, some parents experienced difficulties. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) are working with National Savings & Investments (and their supplier Atos) to make a range of improvements to the childcare service. The department maintains continuous contact with HMRC and are involved in key discussions.
HMRC put in place arrangements to ensure parents were able to access a place in the Autumn term. For example, they provided 30 hours free childcare codes manually to all parents who reported experiencing difficulties applying through the digital route. The department then encouraged all local authorities to fund 30 hours places for the autumn term where the parent applied on 31 August or before, but received their code after the deadline.
We are committed to working with colleagues to ensure we continue to improve the customer experience as we deliver this important programme nationally.
Asked by: Heidi Allen (Liberal Democrat - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many full-time disabled students were registered on higher education courses in (a) 2015-16 and (b) 2016-17.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Marylebone
The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) collects and publishes data on students enrolled at UK Higher Education Institutions. Statistics on numbers of students with disabilities are published as part of the Statistical First Release on higher education student enrolments and qualifications obtained at higher education providers, which can be found at the following link:
https://www.hesa.ac.uk/news/12-01-2017/sfr242-student-enrolments-and-qualifications.
Statistics for the 2016/17 academic year will be available from HESA in January 2018.
Asked by: Heidi Allen (Liberal Democrat - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to close the deprivation attainment gap in South Cambridgeshire constituency.
Answered by Edward Timpson
We are committed to making this a country where everyone has a fair chance to go as far as his or her talent and hard work will allow. The pupil premium provides schools with significant additional funding - £2.5bn this year alone – to raise the achievement of their disadvantaged pupils and so close the attainment gap. Our guarantee to maintain current per-pupil funding levels for the rest of this Parliament will ensure schools continue to have the support they need to improve disadvantaged pupils’ outcomes.
This year, disadvantaged pupils in South Cambridgeshire will benefit from £2.6 million in pupil premium funding.
Asked by: Heidi Allen (Liberal Democrat - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of recent changes to the National Funding Formula on the deprivation attainment gap in schools.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government is committed to creating a country that works for everyone, regardless of their background. We want all children to reach their full potential and to succeed in adult life.
Disadvantage has a significant impact on pupils’ attainment. This impact is seen throughout the school system and compounded in areas of disadvantage. In recognition of that, our formula recognises educational disadvantage in its widest sense, using different indicators within the deprivation factor into target funding widely. We want, in particular, to include those pupils who are not necessarily eligible for free school meals, but whose families are still struggling to get by.