Asked by: Jeff Smith (Labour - Manchester Withington)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will reopen the suspended consultation on Regulating independent educational institutions in order to close legal loopholes that enable (a) illegal and (b) unregistered schools to operate.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department intends to re-open the suspended consultation when stakeholders are less likely to be significantly affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.
As many stakeholders in the consultation were no longer able to operate due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the Department suspended the consultation before it was due to end. The decision to suspend the consultation was due to concern that not all stakeholders may have the opportunity to respond to the consultation as they would like, therefore undermining its value.
The consultation responses that have been received to date will be combined with responses received after the consultation re-opens and they will be fully reviewed after the consultation finally closes.
It is not yet appropriate, however, to set a date for re-opening the consultation as the situation in relation to the COVID-19 outbreak continues to change.
Asked by: Jeff Smith (Labour - Manchester Withington)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he will take to monitor whether schools are teaching fully LGBT-inclusive Relationships and Sex Education when the subject becomes compulsory in 2020.
Answered by Nick Gibb
From 2020, relationships education will become compulsory for all primary aged pupils and relationships and sex education (RSE) for all secondary aged pupils in England. Alongside this, we are introducing health education for all pupils in state funded schools. The guidance will be published in due course and information concerning the guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/relationships-and-sex-education-and-health-education.
Pupils should receive teaching on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) relationships during their school years. Primary schools are enabled and encouraged to cover LGBT content if they consider it age appropriate to do so. This would be delivered, for example, through teaching about different types of family.
RSE in secondary schools should meet the needs of all pupils, regardless of their developing sexuality or identity. The guidance sets out that secondary pupils should be taught the facts and the law about sex, sexuality and gender identity. When teaching the subjects, schools should ensure there is equal opportunity to explore the features of stable and healthy same-sex relationships. This should be integrated appropriately into the RSE programme, rather than addressed separately or in only one lesson.
All schools, including faith schools, must have regard to the draft guidance. In all schools, the religious background of all pupils must be considered when planning teaching so that the topics that are included in the core content are handled appropriately. Schools must also ensure they comply with the relevant provisions of the Equality Act 2010. The guidance includes an example of how schools can address LGBT relationships in a faith context; for example, the Catholic Education Service currently publishes a model RSE curricula.
Key aspects of relationships education, RSE and health education are in scope for Ofsted inspection; for example, through inspectors’ consideration of pupils’ personal development, behaviour and welfare; and pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Information about how Ofsted inspects schools is set out in its published school inspection handbook. The new Ofsted framework from September 2019 will also introduce a separate grade for ‘personal development’.
We have also committed to reviewing the guidance every three years. This will enable us to monitor the implementation of these subjects and make changes in future where required.
Asked by: Jeff Smith (Labour - Manchester Withington)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how children who are or who may later identify as LGBT and their peers will learn about LGBT issues in a fully inclusive and tolerant manner if state-funded religious schools are permitted to omit such content from RSE.
Answered by Nick Gibb
From 2020, relationships education will become compulsory for all primary aged pupils and relationships and sex education (RSE) for all secondary aged pupils in England. Alongside this, we are introducing health education for all pupils in state funded schools. The guidance will be published in due course and information concerning the guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/relationships-and-sex-education-and-health-education.
Pupils should receive teaching on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) relationships during their school years. Primary schools are enabled and encouraged to cover LGBT content if they consider it age appropriate to do so. This would be delivered, for example, through teaching about different types of family.
RSE in secondary schools should meet the needs of all pupils, regardless of their developing sexuality or identity. The guidance sets out that secondary pupils should be taught the facts and the law about sex, sexuality and gender identity. When teaching the subjects, schools should ensure there is equal opportunity to explore the features of stable and healthy same-sex relationships. This should be integrated appropriately into the RSE programme, rather than addressed separately or in only one lesson.
All schools, including faith schools, must have regard to the draft guidance. In all schools, the religious background of all pupils must be considered when planning teaching so that the topics that are included in the core content are handled appropriately. Schools must also ensure they comply with the relevant provisions of the Equality Act 2010. The guidance includes an example of how schools can address LGBT relationships in a faith context; for example, the Catholic Education Service currently publishes a model RSE curricula.
Key aspects of relationships education, RSE and health education are in scope for Ofsted inspection; for example, through inspectors’ consideration of pupils’ personal development, behaviour and welfare; and pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Information about how Ofsted inspects schools is set out in its published school inspection handbook. The new Ofsted framework from September 2019 will also introduce a separate grade for ‘personal development’.
We have also committed to reviewing the guidance every three years. This will enable us to monitor the implementation of these subjects and make changes in future where required.
Asked by: Jeff Smith (Labour - Manchester Withington)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will issue guidance on LGBT issues to schools to guarantee that all children, regardless of their religious or non-religious background, receive age-appropriate LGBT-inclusive Relationships and Sex Education when the new subject is introduced in 2020.
Answered by Nick Gibb
From 2020, relationships education will become compulsory for all primary aged pupils and relationships and sex education (RSE) for all secondary aged pupils in England. Alongside this, we are introducing health education for all pupils in state funded schools. The guidance will be published in due course and information concerning the guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/relationships-and-sex-education-and-health-education.
Pupils should receive teaching on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) relationships during their school years. Primary schools are enabled and encouraged to cover LGBT content if they consider it age appropriate to do so. This would be delivered, for example, through teaching about different types of family.
RSE in secondary schools should meet the needs of all pupils, regardless of their developing sexuality or identity. The guidance sets out that secondary pupils should be taught the facts and the law about sex, sexuality and gender identity. When teaching the subjects, schools should ensure there is equal opportunity to explore the features of stable and healthy same-sex relationships. This should be integrated appropriately into the RSE programme, rather than addressed separately or in only one lesson.
All schools, including faith schools, must have regard to the draft guidance. In all schools, the religious background of all pupils must be considered when planning teaching so that the topics that are included in the core content are handled appropriately. Schools must also ensure they comply with the relevant provisions of the Equality Act 2010. The guidance includes an example of how schools can address LGBT relationships in a faith context; for example, the Catholic Education Service currently publishes a model RSE curricula.
Key aspects of relationships education, RSE and health education are in scope for Ofsted inspection; for example, through inspectors’ consideration of pupils’ personal development, behaviour and welfare; and pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Information about how Ofsted inspects schools is set out in its published school inspection handbook. The new Ofsted framework from September 2019 will also introduce a separate grade for ‘personal development’.
We have also committed to reviewing the guidance every three years. This will enable us to monitor the implementation of these subjects and make changes in future where required.
Asked by: Jeff Smith (Labour - Manchester Withington)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will make an increase to the national funding rate for sixth form students a priority in his Department’s spending review submission.
Answered by Anne Milton
We are looking carefully at funding for 16 to 19 year olds in all types of institutions in preparation for the Spending Review and we do recognise the funding challenges in the sector at the moment. We are considering how effective our funding and regulatory structures are in supporting high quality provision, and in line with the aims of the Post-18 Review, to ensure a coherent vision for further and higher education.
Asked by: Jeff Smith (Labour - Manchester Withington)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the funding for schools in Manchester in (a) 2017-18 and (b) 2018-19.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Schools in Manchester were allocated £43.2 million through the pupil premium in 2017-18 and £43.4 million in 2018-19.[1] [2] The pupil premium targets funding at pupils from the most deprived backgrounds to help them achieve their full potential.
In 2017-18, schools in Manchester were allocated £5,281 per pupil through the schools block of the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG). The average per pupil funding for England as a whole was £4,619 per pupil.[3]
In 2018-19, schools in Manchester were allocated £5,267 per pupil through the schools block of the DSG. The average per pupil funding for England as a whole was £4,630 per pupil.[4]
The figures for the two years are not comparable. In 2018-19 the Department created the central school services block, which was previously in the schools block. This is given to local authorities so that they can provide central services for schools.
[1] Full details of Pupil Premium in 2017-18 can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium-conditions-of-grant-2017-to-2018.
[2] Full details of Pupil Premium in 2018-19 can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium-conditions-of-grant-2018-to-2019.
[3] Full details of the DSG in 2017-18 can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dedicated-schools-grant-dsg-2017-to-2018.
[4] Full details of the DSG in 2018-19 can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dedicated-schools-grant-dsg-2018-to-2019.
Asked by: Jeff Smith (Labour - Manchester Withington)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when the Government plans to respond to the recommendations of the report on the National Fostering Stocktake, published in February 2018.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
The government is currently considering the recommendations of the National Fostering Stocktake report, alongside those made by the Education Select Committee. Our response to both reports will be published in spring 2018.