Asked by: Lord Lexden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what encouragement and assistance they are providing to local authorities and charities to enable more children in care suited to a boarding education to find places in boarding schools.
Answered by Lord Nash
The Department for Education published guidance in November 2014, entitled Boarding schools: an opportunity to improve outcomes for vulnerable children. This is available online at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/boarding-schools-improving-outcomes-for-vulnerable-children. The Department also held a conference to support local authorities in improving outcomes for children in care.
The guidance aims to encourage local authorities, virtual school head teachers, social workers and other professionals to consider whether a boarding place could be a beneficial option for some vulnerable children, including children who are in, and on the edge of, care. The decision should always focus on what provision would be in the best interests of the child, taking into account both their social and educational needs.
In addition, statutory guidance on promoting the educational achievement of looked after children states: “where a looked-after child would benefit from attending a boarding school, either in the state or independent sector, virtual school heads and social workers should be proactive in considering this option”.
Asked by: Lord Lexden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that both teachers and other members of staff in early and later years provision are not adversely affected by the current childcare disqualification regime which originally covered only child minders and day care providers.
Answered by Lord Nash
On 26 February we published ‘Disqualification under the Childcare Act 2006’ statutory guidance for schools: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/disqualification-under-the-childcare-act-2006.
This new guidance clarifies the circumstances in which the provisions of the Childcare (Disqualification) Regulations 2009 apply to school staff. It also supports schools to take appropriate action to ensure that school staff do not work in circumstances that are in breach of those Regulations. It makes clear that where staff are disqualified schools may redeploy them or make changes to their duties. This discretion allows many of those staff affected by the Regulations to continue to work in schools while an application is made to Ofsted for a waiver of disqualification.
The childcare disqualification arrangements are not new and have never applied exclusively to child-minders and day care providers. They apply to all staff providing childcare, including in schools. These arrangements help to ensure that children in the most vulnerable age groups, those who are potentially at greatest risk, are protected regardless of the setting in which childcare is provided.
In schools they prevent staff who have been cautioned or convicted for certain serious offences, from providing childcare:
for children up to the age of five years before, during, or after school hours; and
for children aged up to eight years of age before and after school hours.
School staff are also prevented from providing childcare if they reside in a household where another person who has been cautioned or convicted for such an offence lives or is employed.
The new statutory guidance replaces the Department’s earlier advice on this subject, published in October 2014 as a supplement to ‘Keeping children safe in education’, and is a direct response to requests for additional information to help schools make appropriate and robust decisions should these matters arise.
The guidance has been developed in consultation with a range of stakeholders who have expertise and experience in child safeguarding matters, including children’s safeguarding organisations, employer representative bodies, trade unions and local authorities.
Asked by: Lord Lexden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that independent schools are not found to be in breach of statutory regulations as a result of the introduction of retrospective prohibition checks on teaching staff.
Answered by Lord Nash
From 5 January 2015, the independent school standards require that schools check both existing and new teaching staff to determine whether a prohibition order or interim prohibition made by the Secretary of State exists for any member of their teaching staff.
The checks are only retrospective in the sense that schools must confirm that existing staff, as well as new appointments, are not subject to a prohibition order. The prohibition order regime began in April 2012, and the standard does not distinguish between staff appointed before or after 5 January 2015, so existing staff should be checked too. We believe that this is entirely justified. The teacher standards which form the basis of the prohibition regime apply to independent schools, and it would be invidious if a school was able to continue employing a prohibited member of staff simply because he or she was appointed before 2015. When a school is inspected, it should be able to demonstrate that it has either completed these checks (which can be done through the National College’s Easy Access system) or is well on the way to completion. If a school cannot do so, regulatory action is likely to follow.
Asked by: Lord Lexden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what arrangements they are making to ensure that independent schools are in a position to comply with their statutory responsibilities to check that staff are not prohibited from involvement in the management of an independent school.
Answered by Lord Nash
The Department for Education is in discussion with the Disclosure and Barring Service about ways in which schools can do this with the minimum additional burden, and it is hoped that a process will be in place soon. At present no barring directions have been made under the regulations made in 2014 under section 128 of the Education and Skills Act 2008.
Asked by: Lord Lexden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that changes to examination qualifications now under discussion do not set back the expansion of classics teaching in maintained schools.
Answered by Lord Nash
Our reform programme for GCSE and A levels is intended to ensure they are demanding and more rigorous. We have taken account of a wide range of concerns in ensuring that the final content for ancient language GCSEs provides a suitable preparation for further study. The published content for A and AS levels has been designed to allow the development of new stand-alone AS qualifications, including for ancient languages, that can be co-taught with the A level. We are supporting secondary schools by funding £500,000 of training for non-specialist teachers of Latin in state schools, which will to help them get to grips with the GCSE standard.
Asked by: Lord Lexden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have plans to encourage more maintained schools to work with independent schools in establishing new cadet units.
Answered by Lord Nash
Many of our most respected independent schools and some state schools have for over 100 years looked to military themed activities to give their pupils a sense of discipline, adventure and achievement.
Partnership with an existing cadet unit provides many benefits to state funded schools wanting to set up new units under our Cadet Expansion Programme. Partnership helps to share good practice and transfer skills, especially into schools with no prior military experience. There are many established independent school cadet units willing to partner with state schools.
To date 23 of the 65 schools approved to establish a cadet unit under the Cadet Expansion Programme are benefiting from such a partnership. While we strongly encourage partnership to help schools establish a new unit, we also encourage them to develop their aspirations to establish a stand-alone unit that is able to deliver the cadet experience to many more of their pupils.
Asked by: Lord Lexden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to tackle homophobic bullying in schools.
Answered by Lord Nash
The Government has made preventing and tackling bullying one of its top priorities by striking the right balance between schools’ legal requirements, freedom and accountability.
On 16 October, the Department for Education announced the £25 million National Prospectus grants programme. Voluntary and community sector organisations, social enterprises and other organisations will be able to bid for part of this funding to tackle bullying. On 29 October, in tandem with the Government Equalities Office, the Department also announced that £2 million will be made available in 2015-16 to help schools tackle homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying more effectively.
All schools are required by law to have a behaviour policy with measures to address all forms of bullying, including homophobic bullying. We have strengthened teachers’ powers to tackle bullying and are providing £4 million to anti-bullying organisations that are working with schools and children to combat bullying. We have also issued specific advice to schools on preventing and tackling bullying in which we link to national organisations such as Stonewall who can provide specialist advice to schools to tackle homophobia. This information is published online at:
www.gov.uk/government/publications/preventing-and-tackling-bullying
Schools are also held to account by Ofsted for their effectiveness in managing pupil behaviour and safety, which includes homophobic bullying. Inspectors must consider pupils’ freedom from all forms of harassment, bullying and discrimination. As part of the inspection, schools are asked to make available evidence of records and analysis of bullying, in particular homophobic bullying.
Asked by: Lord Lexden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that schools in membership of member associations of the Independent Schools Council have confidence in changes to the arrangements under which they are inspected.
Answered by Lord Nash
My officials have discussed these matters with the Independent Schools Council (ISC). We have also taken into account the responses of ISC and its member associations to the recent consultation on independent inspectorates, and as a result are making changes to the advice for independent inspectorates, which we will finalise shortly.
If the Independent Schools Inspectorate makes any changes to its inspection arrangements, we would expect it to consult with their schools and the associations before implementing any changes.
Asked by: Lord Lexden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government when changes to the structure and operations of the Independent Schools Inspectorate will come into effect.
Answered by Lord Nash
The Government recently consulted on regulations and advice on the approval of independent inspectorates. We intend to commence the relevant provisions of the Education and Skills Act 2008 in September 2014, and introduce the new regulations and advice under those sections. The current approval of the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) under the Education Act 2002 will cease to have effect, and as signalled in the consultation we intend to re-approve ISI under the 2008 Act. We will publish a response to the consultation shortly which will also set out the timescales for the implementation of changes.
The 2008 Act also gives a basis in statute to Ofsted's quality assurance role. This role will continue, with Ofsted carrying out monitoring activities and reporting annually to the Secretary of State on the performance of the independent inspectorates.
If, as a result of the revised agreement or for any other reason, ISI makes changes to their structure and operations, we would expect ISI to consult the schools it inspects before changes are introduced.
Asked by: Lord Lexden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what relationship they envisage in future between Ofsted and the Independent Schools Inspectorate.
Answered by Lord Nash
The Government recently consulted on regulations and advice on the approval of independent inspectorates. We intend to commence the relevant provisions of the Education and Skills Act 2008 in September 2014, and introduce the new regulations and advice under those sections. The current approval of the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) under the Education Act 2002 will cease to have effect, and as signalled in the consultation we intend to re-approve ISI under the 2008 Act. We will publish a response to the consultation shortly which will also set out the timescales for the implementation of changes.
The 2008 Act also gives a basis in statute to Ofsted's quality assurance role. This role will continue, with Ofsted carrying out monitoring activities and reporting annually to the Secretary of State on the performance of the independent inspectorates.
If, as a result of the revised agreement or for any other reason, ISI makes changes to their structure and operations, we would expect ISI to consult the schools it inspects before changes are introduced.