Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will publish the employment contract and job description for the post Ms Maria Strizzolo held at her Department.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
Ms Strizzolo was recruited to a role providing secretariat support for the Apprenticeship Delivery Board (ADB). Her key responsibilities included translating policy and strategy into operation plans; planning and managing commissioned projects and events; the provision of governance for the ADB which included developing, implementing and monitoring Board membership; monitoring progress against plans; and developing communication and event plans.
Ms Strizzolo was on a temporary Skills and Funding Agency (SFA) Fixed Term Appointment (FTA) contract covering maternity leave, but it would not be appropriate for the Department to publish information which is personal between an employer and employee.
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the job description is for a senior manager in the Skills Funding Agency.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The attached job description highlights the skills, knowledge and experience required to hold a senior manager position within the Skills Funding Agency.
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what skills, knowledge and experience is required to hold a senior manager post in the Skills Funding Agency.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The attached job description highlights the skills, knowledge and experience required to hold a senior manager position within the Skills Funding Agency.
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the process was for Ms Maria Strizzolo's appointment to the Skills Funding Agency.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The individual concerned was recruited to a temporary maternity cover role in the Skills Funding Agency on a one-year contract. The recruitment fell under Exception 1 of the Civil Service Commissioner’s recruitment principles which covers temporary appointments to fulfil an urgent need for specific skills.
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the oral contribution by the Chancellor of the Exchequer to the Treasury Committee on 12 December 2016, in response to Q311, who in her Department is responsible for assessing whether grant applications for Horizon 2020 funding are (a) value for money and (b) in line with Government objectives.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Marylebone
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to her by my rt. hon. Friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury to Question UIN 57694:
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that nurseries in County Durham recruit well qualified staff including early years teachers.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The Department does not hold data on the workforce for specific Local Authority areas as the duty to ensure sufficient childcare places resides with the individual Local Authority.
However, as a Government we want to continue to attract and retain good quality staff to deliver good quality early years provision and the Government has committed to developing a workforce strategy to help employers to do this. As part of this strategy we are focussed on removing the barriers to attracting, retaining and developing staff so that new and existing staff can achieve their potential and forge a successful career in early years.
The Government has recently published a consultation on the literacy and numeracy skills needed to perform as a Level 3 Early Years Educator in response to messages from the sector that the current requirements are creating a barrier to attracting and retaining high quality staff: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/level-3-early-years-educator-numeracy-and-literacy-requirements
Between 2008 and 2013, the proportion of full day care staff with a degree or higher increased from 5 to 13%. To support this, the Department delivers early years initial teacher training and provides financial support for eligible graduates in the form of bursaries.
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the potential cost to the public purse of replacing her Department's funded assistive listening devices, such as radio aids used by deaf children in schools, in the event that such devices suffer from interference as a result of the release of the 2.35 to 2.39 GHz spectrum bands.
Answered by Edward Timpson
Under the Equality Act, schools and local authorities are required to provide auxiliary aids when it would be reasonable to do so and if such an aid would alleviate any substantial disadvantage that the pupil faces in comparison to non-disabled pupils.
We are protecting the core schools budget in real terms throughout this Parliament, enabling a per pupil protection for the dedicated schools grant, which includes funding for high needs. Local authorities have also received an additional £92.5m high needs funding as part of their dedicated school grant this year, which will help them meet the costs of special educational needs and disability provision in their area.
The Office of Communications (OFCOM) is managing the release of the 2.35 to 2.39 GHz spectrum bands. OFCOM have carried out careful tests of listening devices and sought evidence from across the deaf community to ensure these devices will not be affected by future mobile signals.
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 15 September 2016 to Question 45985 on extracurricular activities: offenders, what measures are in place to protect children when such classes are provided (a) privately and (b) on private property.
Answered by Edward Timpson
Any measures to protect children where they are attending privately run classes, including those provided on private property, rest entirely with parents. It is a matter of parental choice to allow their children to attend and to make a considered decision about the suitability of the individuals running the class.