Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help increase the number of primary and secondary school places in Nottingham.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
Section 14 of the Education Act 1996 places a statutory duty on local authorities for providing enough school places for children in their area.
The department knows that local authorities have to create more school places, which is why the department provides capital funding through the Basic Need grant to support local authorities to provide school places, based on their own pupil forecasts and school capacity data. This Basic Need investment supports the government’s priority to ensure that every child has the opportunity of a place at a good school, whatever their background.
In addition, the free schools programme remains an important part of the government’s plan to level up standards and respond where there is need for more school places. The programme has delivered hundreds of new schools and provided thousands of good school places across the country.
The department’s Pupil Place Planning Advisers engage with local authorities on a regular basis to review a local authority’s plans for creating additional places. The Pupil Place Planning advisor for the East Midlands region is engaging with Nottingham local authority on their statutory duty and providing them with the offer of support and advice.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to improve access to mental health professionals across (a) primary school, (b) secondary school and (c) further education.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The mental health of children and young people is a priority for this government and schools play a vital role in this, particularly by providing calm, safe and supportive learning environments.
To expand access to early mental health support in and around schools and colleges, the department is continuing to roll out Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs). These teams include trained professionals who can deliver evidence-based interventions for mild-to-moderate mental health issues and liaise with external specialist services to get children and young people the right timely support and stay in education. As of April 2023, MHSTs covered 35% of pupils in schools and learners in further education in England. The department is extending coverage of MHSTs to an estimated 44% of pupils and learners by the end of this financial year and at least 50% by the end of March 2025.
The department is also continuing to offer primary schools, secondary schools and colleges a grant to train senior mental health leads who can put in place effective whole school approaches to mental health and wellbeing. This training covers how to ensure children and young people can get timely and appropriate support, including by working in partnership with and making effective referrals to local service providers and mental health professionals. 14,400 settings have claimed a grant up to 31 August 2023, including more than 7 in 10 state-funded secondary schools.
Schools and colleges are best placed to decide what pastoral support to put in place to meet the needs of their pupils. To support them in doing so, the department has commissioned a new targeted mental wellbeing toolkit, which launched just before Christmas. This practical guide and tool is designed to help schools and colleges identify and embed the most effective targeted support options for their setting, including how to access mental health professionals. It is available at: https://mentallyhealthyschools.org.uk/targeted-support/.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the impact of the privatisation of children's social care on the quality of service provision.
Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Children's homes provide care for some of the most vulnerable children and young people in the country. There are many different types of providers who operate in this sector, playing a vital role in providing homes for children in care. Ofsted has a crucial role to play in upholding children’s social care standards and making sure children are safe in care. They provide independent evaluations on the quality of support, safeguarding, and leadership in children’s social care to ensure all children in need receive the services they need. The proportion of children’s homes of all types judged outstanding or good was 79% as of 31 March 2023 (10% outstanding, 69% good), an increase from 2022, when the proportion was 77%.
Local authorities have a statutory duty set out in Section 22(3) of the Children’s Act 1989 to make sure that there is sufficient provision in their area to meet the needs of children in their care. Local authorities are sometimes paying too much for placements, and the department’s view is it is not right that council taxpayers are footing the bill. The department recognises the concerns particularly around large providers with complex, and sometimes opaque, ownership structures. There is an awareness that a provider exiting the market could have a significant impact on the care of children and young people living in their provision, and it is not a desirable position to be waiting for this to happen. The department is developing a financial oversight regime to bring greater transparency, for example on ownership, debt structures and profit making, and prevent sudden market exit across both independent fostering agencies and residential children’s homes.
Support is being provided to local authorities to meet their statutory duties through £259 million capital funding over this Parliament to maintain capacity and expand provision in both secure and open children’s homes. To support local authorities with forecasting of demand for and supply of children’s social care placements in their area, the department is also seeking to deliver national support with forecasting, procurement and market shaping to local authorities. Lastly, the department has committed to developing a core overarching set of Standards of Care for fostering, children’s homes and supported accommodation. This will help simplify the regulatory landscape, raise quality, and ensure there are consistent safeguards across different types of settings.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will publish an equality impact assessment on the draft guidance for schools and colleges on gender questioning children.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The department is currently consulting on a draft of Guidance for Schools and Colleges: Gender Questioning Children. The consultation closes on 12 March 2024. The department will publish an equality impact assessment when the final guidance is issued later in the year.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help increase the number food technology teachers.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The latest School Workforce Census showed that during November 2022, there were over 468,000 full time equivalent (FTE) teachers in state-funded schools in England, which is an increase of 27,000 (6%) since 2010. This makes it the highest number of FTE teachers on record since the School Workforce Census began in 2010.
The department’s teacher recruitment and retention reforms are aimed at supporting teacher recruitment and retention across all subjects, including food technology. The department accepted in full the School Teachers’ Review Body’s recommendations for the 2023/24 pay award for teachers and leaders. This means that teachers and leaders in maintained schools will receive a pay award of 6.5%. This is the highest pay award for teachers in over thirty years. The award also delivers the manifesto commitment of a minimum £30,000 starting salary for school teachers in all regions in England, with a pay award of up to 7.1% for new teachers outside London.
The department knows there is further to go to improve recruitment in some subjects. That is why the department has put in place a range of measures, including bursaries. For those starting Initial Teacher Training (ITT) in the 2024/25 academic year, £25,000 tax-free bursaries are being offered in design & technology, which includes food technology. Over the past two years, the design and technology bursary has increased from £15,000 to £25,000.
The department has created an entitlement to at least three years of structured training, support and professional development for all new teachers, underpinned by the ITT Core Content Framework and the Early Career Framework. Together, these ensure that new teachers will benefit from at least three years of evidence-based training, across ITT and into their induction, to ensure teachers are better supported at the start of career.
The department has published a range of resources to help address teacher workload and wellbeing, which impact retention. This includes the school workload reduction toolkit, developed alongside school leaders, which is a helpful resource for schools to review and reduce workload. The toolkit is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/school-workload-reduction-toolkit.
The department has also worked in partnership with the education sector and mental health experts to create the Education Staff Wellbeing Charter, which we are encouraging schools to sign up to as a shared commitment to promote staff wellbeing. The charter is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/education-staff-wellbeing-charter.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to introduce statutory class size limits in key stage two and above.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
Schools are free to decide their class sizes (other than infant classes), in a way that is consistent with raising attainment and helping pupils to achieve their potential.
The assessment of the evidence by the Education Endowment Foundation found some evidence for additional benefits of smaller class sizes with younger children, suggesting that smaller class sizes may be a more effective approach during the early stages of primary school. For older year groups, however, the impact of reducing class sizes on educational attainment is low compared to the high cost of doing so. More information can be found here: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/education-evidence/teaching-learning-toolkit/reducing-class-size.
Research by Professor John Hattie found that reducing class sizes ranked 186 out of 250 on influences on pupil achievement. More information on this can be found online at: https://visible-learning.org/.
Despite an increase of more than a million pupils in state-funded primary and secondary schools since 2010, at secondary level, average class sizes remain low at only 22.4 pupils, whilst the average primary class has remained broadly stable at 26.7 pupils.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what underspends have been returned to HM Treasury in the last four years of the National Tutoring Programme; and whether she has made representations to the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the use of those funds.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department has made over £1 billion available through the National Tutoring Programme (NTP) over the four academic years since the programme’s introduction in summer 2021, which has seen the Department deliver nearly 4 million tutoring courses as of May 2023. This has included providing £310 million directly to schools in the 2021/22 academic year and £350 million in the 2022/23 academic year. In the 2023/24 academic year, the Department will provide £150 million directly to schools.
In the 2021/22 academic year, which is the most recent full year for which data is available, 47% of pupils receiving tutoring were eligible for free school meals at some point in the last six years. Final delivery figures for the 2022/23 academic year will be published in December. Figures for the current academic year will be published throughout the year.
The Department has committed that, from the 2023/24 academic year, tutoring will have been embedded across schools in England. The Department expects tutoring to continue to be a staple offer from schools, with schools using their core budget, including pupil premium, to provide targeted support for those children who will benefit.
Funding for the 16-19 tuition fund is currently in place until the end of the 2023/24 academic year. The Department is evaluating the Tuition Fund and considering the most appropriate way to support disadvantaged 16-19 students from the 2024/25 academic year.
The NTP’s Year 2 Implementation and Process Evaluation report examined the implementation of the programme in the 2021/22 academic year. It found that most head teachers were satisfied with the programme and that the programme is perceived as having a positive impact on pupils’ attainment, self confidence and helping them catch up with their peers. It also found that most schools are prioritising pupil premium eligible pupils for tutoring. This report can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-tutoring-programme-year-2-implementation-and-process-evaluation. The Department plans to publish in autumn 2023 an external quantitative impact evaluation, which explores the impact of the programme on pupil attainment in the 2021/22 academic year.
For the 2020/21 to 2023/24 academic years, the Department is making available funding of up to £420 million for one to one and small group tuition for 16 to 19 year olds. The 16-19 tuition fund is targeted at students in most need, enabling schools and colleges to deliver up to 700,000 tuition sessions each year.
The 16-19 tuition fund implementation and process evaluation report was published in July 2023 and can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/16-to-19-tuition-fund-implementation-and-process-evaluation-report. This reported that over 80% of students were satisfied with the tuition they received and found its content relevant. A full report on the impact of the tuition fund will be completed later this year and published in due course.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of (a) not requiring schools to contribute matching funds to and (b) other funding models for the National Tutoring Programme.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department has made over £1 billion available through the National Tutoring Programme (NTP) over the four academic years since the programme’s introduction in summer 2021, which has seen the Department deliver nearly 4 million tutoring courses as of May 2023. This has included providing £310 million directly to schools in the 2021/22 academic year and £350 million in the 2022/23 academic year. In the 2023/24 academic year, the Department will provide £150 million directly to schools.
In the 2021/22 academic year, which is the most recent full year for which data is available, 47% of pupils receiving tutoring were eligible for free school meals at some point in the last six years. Final delivery figures for the 2022/23 academic year will be published in December. Figures for the current academic year will be published throughout the year.
The Department has committed that, from the 2023/24 academic year, tutoring will have been embedded across schools in England. The Department expects tutoring to continue to be a staple offer from schools, with schools using their core budget, including pupil premium, to provide targeted support for those children who will benefit.
Funding for the 16-19 tuition fund is currently in place until the end of the 2023/24 academic year. The Department is evaluating the Tuition Fund and considering the most appropriate way to support disadvantaged 16-19 students from the 2024/25 academic year.
The NTP’s Year 2 Implementation and Process Evaluation report examined the implementation of the programme in the 2021/22 academic year. It found that most head teachers were satisfied with the programme and that the programme is perceived as having a positive impact on pupils’ attainment, self confidence and helping them catch up with their peers. It also found that most schools are prioritising pupil premium eligible pupils for tutoring. This report can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-tutoring-programme-year-2-implementation-and-process-evaluation. The Department plans to publish in autumn 2023 an external quantitative impact evaluation, which explores the impact of the programme on pupil attainment in the 2021/22 academic year.
For the 2020/21 to 2023/24 academic years, the Department is making available funding of up to £420 million for one to one and small group tuition for 16 to 19 year olds. The 16-19 tuition fund is targeted at students in most need, enabling schools and colleges to deliver up to 700,000 tuition sessions each year.
The 16-19 tuition fund implementation and process evaluation report was published in July 2023 and can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/16-to-19-tuition-fund-implementation-and-process-evaluation-report. This reported that over 80% of students were satisfied with the tuition they received and found its content relevant. A full report on the impact of the tuition fund will be completed later this year and published in due course.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of how many young people in receipt of Pupil Premium or an equivalent will have received tutoring through the (a) National Tutoring Programme and (b) 16-19 Tuition Fund by the end of (i) this and (ii) the next academic year.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department has made over £1 billion available through the National Tutoring Programme (NTP) over the four academic years since the programme’s introduction in summer 2021, which has seen the Department deliver nearly 4 million tutoring courses as of May 2023. This has included providing £310 million directly to schools in the 2021/22 academic year and £350 million in the 2022/23 academic year. In the 2023/24 academic year, the Department will provide £150 million directly to schools.
In the 2021/22 academic year, which is the most recent full year for which data is available, 47% of pupils receiving tutoring were eligible for free school meals at some point in the last six years. Final delivery figures for the 2022/23 academic year will be published in December. Figures for the current academic year will be published throughout the year.
The Department has committed that, from the 2023/24 academic year, tutoring will have been embedded across schools in England. The Department expects tutoring to continue to be a staple offer from schools, with schools using their core budget, including pupil premium, to provide targeted support for those children who will benefit.
Funding for the 16-19 tuition fund is currently in place until the end of the 2023/24 academic year. The Department is evaluating the Tuition Fund and considering the most appropriate way to support disadvantaged 16-19 students from the 2024/25 academic year.
The NTP’s Year 2 Implementation and Process Evaluation report examined the implementation of the programme in the 2021/22 academic year. It found that most head teachers were satisfied with the programme and that the programme is perceived as having a positive impact on pupils’ attainment, self confidence and helping them catch up with their peers. It also found that most schools are prioritising pupil premium eligible pupils for tutoring. This report can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-tutoring-programme-year-2-implementation-and-process-evaluation. The Department plans to publish in autumn 2023 an external quantitative impact evaluation, which explores the impact of the programme on pupil attainment in the 2021/22 academic year.
For the 2020/21 to 2023/24 academic years, the Department is making available funding of up to £420 million for one to one and small group tuition for 16 to 19 year olds. The 16-19 tuition fund is targeted at students in most need, enabling schools and colleges to deliver up to 700,000 tuition sessions each year.
The 16-19 tuition fund implementation and process evaluation report was published in July 2023 and can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/16-to-19-tuition-fund-implementation-and-process-evaluation-report. This reported that over 80% of students were satisfied with the tuition they received and found its content relevant. A full report on the impact of the tuition fund will be completed later this year and published in due course.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the (a) National Tutoring Programme and (b) 16-19 Tuition Fund.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department has made over £1 billion available through the National Tutoring Programme (NTP) over the four academic years since the programme’s introduction in summer 2021, which has seen the Department deliver nearly 4 million tutoring courses as of May 2023. This has included providing £310 million directly to schools in the 2021/22 academic year and £350 million in the 2022/23 academic year. In the 2023/24 academic year, the Department will provide £150 million directly to schools.
In the 2021/22 academic year, which is the most recent full year for which data is available, 47% of pupils receiving tutoring were eligible for free school meals at some point in the last six years. Final delivery figures for the 2022/23 academic year will be published in December. Figures for the current academic year will be published throughout the year.
The Department has committed that, from the 2023/24 academic year, tutoring will have been embedded across schools in England. The Department expects tutoring to continue to be a staple offer from schools, with schools using their core budget, including pupil premium, to provide targeted support for those children who will benefit.
Funding for the 16-19 tuition fund is currently in place until the end of the 2023/24 academic year. The Department is evaluating the Tuition Fund and considering the most appropriate way to support disadvantaged 16-19 students from the 2024/25 academic year.
The NTP’s Year 2 Implementation and Process Evaluation report examined the implementation of the programme in the 2021/22 academic year. It found that most head teachers were satisfied with the programme and that the programme is perceived as having a positive impact on pupils’ attainment, self confidence and helping them catch up with their peers. It also found that most schools are prioritising pupil premium eligible pupils for tutoring. This report can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-tutoring-programme-year-2-implementation-and-process-evaluation. The Department plans to publish in autumn 2023 an external quantitative impact evaluation, which explores the impact of the programme on pupil attainment in the 2021/22 academic year.
For the 2020/21 to 2023/24 academic years, the Department is making available funding of up to £420 million for one to one and small group tuition for 16 to 19 year olds. The 16-19 tuition fund is targeted at students in most need, enabling schools and colleges to deliver up to 700,000 tuition sessions each year.
The 16-19 tuition fund implementation and process evaluation report was published in July 2023 and can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/16-to-19-tuition-fund-implementation-and-process-evaluation-report. This reported that over 80% of students were satisfied with the tuition they received and found its content relevant. A full report on the impact of the tuition fund will be completed later this year and published in due course.