Educational Settings

Rachel Hopkins Excerpts

Wednesday 18th March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Gavin Williamson]

As part of the Bill that we are bringing forward, we will be removing the ratios that present some of the challenges to schools. I would be wrong, though, to give my hon. Friend the promise that children will necessarily be able to continue to attend their current school. We do not know at the moment the consequences of the spread of this virus, and we may need to show a high degree of flexibility in how we provide that support and care. Sometimes that may require children attending different schools, hopefully in close proximity to their home. None the less, we do recognise the challenges that are going to be raised as a result of this announcement.

[Rachel Hopkins (Luton South) (Lab)]

Universities are expecting a huge hit financially, because international students will not be able to come here, despite the provision of some online learning. What support will be provided to universities such as the University of Bedfordshire in my constituency to ensure that they do not go bankrupt? The Government and the Office for Students have previously said that they would not usually step in under such circumstances.

[Gavin Williamson]

The financial health of the university sector is obviously of key critical interest to us. We will be working closely with Universities UK to ensure the stability and strength of that important sector for not just learning but the economy. We urge universities who are going to face financial difficulties and pressures to start engaging in an early dialogue and be honest about some of the challenges that they are going to face financially. Otherwise, it is difficult to respond if something comes out of the blue.

The issue of international students is important. We have to be realistic and expect the number of international students who attend UK universities to be lower next year. How we work with the sector to replace that capacity in different ways is something that the Department is already working on. Certainly, we are already having those discussions with UUK.

Education and Training (Welfare of Children) Bill

Rachel Hopkins Excerpts

Friday 13th March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Mary Kelly Foy (City of Durham) (Lab)]

I beg to move, That the Bill be now read a Second time.

All children, no matter what their background or which education and training provider they choose, deserve a safe environment in which they can learn. I am sure that every Member of this House can agree that nothing is more important than safeguarding our children and promoting their welfare. The Bill would ensure that all young people were protected by the same safeguarding, whichever education or training provider they chose.

I am proud to have the outstanding New College Durham in my constituency, which is one of the best further education colleges in the country. I will take a moment to highlight its continued success in the field of technology. It is one of few institutes of technology in the country and we can all congratulate it on that. Like all further education colleges, it has a legal duty to ensure that the education and training it delivers protects its students. It also has a legal duty to consider any guidance issued by the Secretary of State. The college is doing an excellent job of promoting students’ welfare and I am sure that it will continue to do so.

[Rachel Hopkins (Luton South) (Lab)]

I congratulate my hon. Friend on introducing such an important and considered Bill and I am pleased to co-sponsor it. As a governor of Luton Sixth Form College, I know how crucial the extension of statutory safeguarding arrangements is to ensure that all young people in further education get the best in life. Does she agree that, given the increasing level of mental health issues among our young people, it is important that all those in post-16 education are protected by equitable safeguarding protocols to ensure they receive support and have the best possible chance of succeeding in their studies and training?

[Mary Kelly Foy]

I thank my hon. Friend for making an important point. I know from a recent visit to New College that it takes the mental health of its students very seriously indeed. However, not all young people in my constituency pursue further education through New College. Others choose to do an apprenticeship delivered by a training provider. In the last academic year, 50 students under the age of 19 started an apprenticeship in my constituency. Those apprentices could be training for a career in health and social care, supported by Northern Care Training, an independent provider. They could also be working towards a career as a plumber with South West Durham Training, another independent provider. I was concerned to find out that legal safeguarding duties do not apply to apprentices when their training is delivered by independent providers in the same way as they do for those at an FE college such as New College. While safeguarding requirements are a condition of independent providers’ funding, those providers’ apprentices are not protected by the law in the same way. That is clearly wrong and something must be done about it. It is vital to protect the welfare of our constituents and that is why it is so important that the Bill passes.

Education (Guidance about Costs of School Uniforms) Bill

Rachel Hopkins Excerpts

2nd reading & 2nd reading: House of Commons
Friday 13th March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Florence Eshalomi]

Thankfully, I have a son and a daughter, so there will not be any passing down. If I could, I would.

[Rachel Hopkins (Luton South) (Lab)]

As the sister of an older brother, I assure my hon. Friend that hand-me-downs happened and I can wear a navy blue jumper as well as any boy.

Equality of Funding: Post-16 Education

Rachel Hopkins Excerpts

Tuesday 25th February 2020 Westminster Hall

[Rachel Hopkins (Luton South) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Davies. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Brighton, Kemptown (Lloyd Russell-Moyle) on securing this important debate.

For the past five years, I have been a governor at Luton Sixth Form College, which is the oldest in the country and, with more than 3,100 students, one of the largest. It is the college that I am proud to have attended. I have seen how vital further education provided by sixth-form colleges is to improving young people’s life chances and laying the foundations for a successful life. In deprived areas or places with limited employment opportunities, education is integral to setting young people up with the skill set to improve their living standards and their surrounding community.

I welcome the comments already made about ensuring that we retain a mix of A-levels, BTEC and T-levels to meet students’ varied demands; that applies equally to the vital opportunities that some students at Luton Sixth Form College have to take the extended project qualification, for example, enabling them to broaden their horizons in independent study. Those things are at risk as a consequence of underfunding.

The fact that funding has been squeezed leads to pressures on both teaching and support staff, as has been said. It is absolutely unacceptable that since 2010 the Government have frozen the rate for 16 and 17-year-olds and cut it for 18-year-olds. As to funding for support staff, student services have been slashed in 78% of cases, and in 81% there are larger class sizes. The Home Secretary yesterday said that the Government are levelling up our country’s skills, but in reality that could not be further from the truth.

VAT is another point that it is vital to cover. Under the area-based review a few years ago, Luton Sixth Form College was commended and it was agreed that it would stand alone as a sixth-form college. However, it has to pay £350,000 to £400,000 in VAT. It was told that to consider becoming an academy, to claim that back for students, it could not be a stand-alone academy but would have to go into a multi-academy trust. We felt that that would detract from our core education mission, which had already been praised. We need a joined-up approach to all that.

The effect of underfunding on state schools and colleges is clear. Only 18% of state-schooled A-level students went on to attend the most selective universities in 2016-17, compared with students from the independent system. Another consideration that particularly affects my town and constituency is that the population is growing. The Office for National Statistics forecasts a 29% rise in the number of 16 to 18-year-olds in Luton by 2028, which equates to nearly 1,500 more students. Luton’s sixth-form sector will struggle to accommodate that growth. Therefore, colleges such as Luton Sixth Form College, and other school sixth forms in my constituency, such as Stockwood Park Academy and Manshead Academy, will need additional funding to ensure adequate additional capacity for those students. The rate must be raised to £4,760 per student per annum, and yearly increases must be tied to inflation. The increase must be taken alongside the wider aim of achieving funding parity with secondary schools.

As colleagues have mentioned, the funding commitment constitutes only a one-year deal for 2020-21 for sixth forms and colleges, whereas schools in the five-to-16 sector received a three-year funding deal, with a further commitment to keeping pace with inflation. We want to hear from the Minister why five-to-16 education receives funding certainty but the 16-to-18 education sector does not. Properly funding sixth-form colleges creates a bridge between school education and higher education that facilitates effective social mobility. Ten years of underinvestment have damaged that bridge, but there is a clear way forward: raise the rate and set a sustainable further education funding model.

Education and Local Government

Rachel Hopkins Excerpts

Tuesday 14th January 2020 Commons Chamber

[Rachel Hopkins (Luton South) (Lab)]

I thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker, for calling me to make my maiden speech during this part of the debate on the Queen’s Speech, because like many Members on both sides of the House, local government is close to my heart, having served as a local councillor in Luton for over eight years. Like my hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield South East (Mr Betts), I too will champion local government in this Parliament.

As a born and bred Lutonian, it is a real privilege to have been elected as the Member for Luton South, where I grew up and where I live today. I thank the people of Luton South for giving me this opportunity, and I will serve all our diverse communities from across the constituency to the best of my ability, from Dallow to Wigmore, from Caddington to Biscot—the area where I grew up and where my parents still live.

Some have commented that I followed my father’s footsteps to this place, and while that is a notable achievement, it is important to explain that the women in my family were equally strong role models, with both my grandmother and my mum being elected as local councillors and serving their communities first. While those were the women who showed me the way, Luton as a place is now leading the way for other girls and women, with not only two female Members of Parliament —my hon. Friend the Member for Luton North (Sarah Owen) was also elected—but the leader and deputy leader of Luton Council being women too. And of course, I must get on record the excellent achievement by my party in returning a majority of women to Parliament this time.

Saying that, women being in demand and leading the way in Luton is not completely new. Back in the late 19th to early 20th century, Luton was the centre of the straw hat trade in England, with many hat factories being based in Luton South. It was the nimble-fingered expert women straw plaiters who were sought after to make the famous straw boaters. Indeed, it is the hat trade and the straw boaters made in Luton that resulted in Luton Town football club being known as the Hatters.

I am proud that my constituency is home to our football club, which plays an important community role in our town through its community trust. While I experienced the somewhat quaint charm of Kenilworth Road watching Luton Town v. Fulham on Boxing day, I really look forward to watching my first match in the new stadium at Power Court. I must add that, despite the Government’s cuts to local authority funding since 2010 having a huge impact on local services, and particularly planning departments, the diligent and professional work of Luton Council planning officers ensured that the proposals for the new stadium at Power Court and development at Newlands Park were approved.

This gives me an opportunity to reflect on my predecessor, Gavin Shuker. While decisions that he made ultimately afforded me the opportunity to serve, he too was a born and bred Lutonian. Gavin also spoke up to support the football club’s plans to build a new stadium, and we would both agree that it will be vitally important to the regeneration of our town. I looked back at his maiden speech, and he talked about being educated in Luton schools, as was I. We both studied at Luton Sixth Form College, which may be situated in the constituency of my hon. Friend the Member for Luton North but serves young people across Luton South too. I am proud to be a governor of Luton Sixth Form College and I will continue to be a champion for sixth-form colleges in this place.

My predecessor talked about the importance of access to good-quality comprehensive education for our young people being integral to social mobility, but I would go a bit further and say that it is actually vital to tackle social injustice. In Luton, we are acutely aware of how social injustice can have a detrimental impact on people’s lives. Last year was the centenary of when the people of Luton burned down Luton’s town hall—it is in my constituency. That was a protest by ordinary people who were totally excluded from the peace day banquet being held by the rich bigwigs in the town hall. The cost was beyond their means, as many had returned from serving their country in the war to face unemployment, and when they were refused permission to hold their own simple celebration in Wardown park, their protest got a bit out of hand. One hundred years later, last year, we commemorated this in a more positive way, through an excellent programme of arts and cultural events exploring democracy and people power, devised and performed by, with and for the people of Luton. Arts and culture changes lives and improves wellbeing, and I will continue to champion access to arts and culture for all.

Luton South is very well connected, and I say that in transport terms and not in terms of who someone might have met at boarding school. It has an international airport, the M1 motorway and of course the railway line that runs north to the midlands and Yorkshire as well as south to London and the south coast. I have travelled by train from Luton station all my life, including commuting for work for over 20 years, but, sadly, it has not changed that much. The repeated licks of paint simply do not cover up that it is out of date and run down. We need a 21st-century station, accessible for all, as the gateway to our town in the 21st century, and I will continue the campaign, together with my Luton Council comrades, to get one.

On a final note, many have said that Luton is much like a working-class town from the north but down south. Others have said that with its hyper-diverse communities, areas of deprivation and complex needs, it is like many London boroughs. But to me, my friends and all the wonderful constituents of Luton South, it is quite simply home.