Asked by: Ranil Jayawardena (Conservative - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of children's progress in specialist maths schools.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
Currently, there are two maths schools open, Exeter Mathematics School (EMS) and King’s College London Mathematics School (KCMS), both of which opened in 2014. Early performance data shows that the schools have made a strong start. Ofsted judged both to be outstanding in 2017 and their overall A level progress scores were well above average in 2016.
The relevant data for EMS can be found in: https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/school/140971 and for KCMS in https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/school/140564. Data for 2017 will be publically available on 25 January but both schools report similarly impressive outcomes for the 2016/17 academic year.
Asked by: Ranil Jayawardena (Conservative - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of children's progress in specialist maths schools.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
Currently, there are two maths schools open, Exeter Mathematics School (EMS) and King’s College London Mathematics School (KCMS), both of which opened in 2014. Early performance data shows that the schools have made a strong start. Ofsted judged both to be outstanding in 2017 and their overall A level progress scores were well above average in 2016.
The relevant data for EMS can be found in: https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/school/140971 and for KCMS in https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/school/140564. Data for 2017 will be publically available on 25 January but both schools report similarly impressive outcomes for the 2016/17 academic year.
Asked by: Ranil Jayawardena (Conservative - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make it her policy to allow parents to remove their child from relationships education classes in primary schools.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The issue of withdrawal from Relationships Education in primary schools was discussed during the passage of the Children and Social Work Bill in March and April, and the House agreed that there would be no right of withdrawal from Relationships Education. This is because the subject will cover topics all children should know. The Secretary of State does not, therefore, have the legal power to provide in statute for a right to withdraw from Relationships Education in primary schools.
The current engagement process we are undertaking with stakeholders will help us to determine the right, age-appropriate content for relationships education and this will be set out in draft regulations and guidance, upon which we will consult and on which, in the case of the regulations, Parliament will debate and vote.
If a primary school chooses to deliver sex education, in addition to Relationships Education, this must be covered in the school’s policy and it must provide for parents to be able to withdraw their child from this education if they wish, except from elements delivered as part of the science curriculum.
Asked by: Ranil Jayawardena (Conservative - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress her Department is making on the provision of and parental choice on 30 hours of childcare to working parents in Hampshire.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The department is committed to ensuring all parents who are eligible for the 30 hours free childcare entitlement are able to take up a place that suits their childcare needs. That is why we ran a £100 million early years capital bid round, for which local authorities, in partnership with providers, were invited to submit bids. Over 350 projects across 123 local authorities were successful in this bid round – six of which were located in Hampshire.
Local authorities have a duty to secure childcare provision free of charge to qualifying children. They are, therefore, best placed to ensure parents in their area have a sufficient choice of childcare. As of 31 August, over 216,000 codes were issued for the autumn term, with 90% being validated as of 9 October.
Asked by: Ranil Jayawardena (Conservative - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of children's progress in those comprehensives known as groups which have a grammar school culture of strict discipline, smart uniforms, longer school days, competitive sports, classics and all three sciences.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Many schools pride themselves on a strong approach to behaviour management, and teaching all pupils a stretching, knowledge-rich curriculum. The best examples of such schools serve as evidence of what it is possible to achieve, and demonstrate the power of having the highest expectations of all pupils.
The freedoms the Government gives to academies and free schools, such as the ability to design their own curriculum or to set a longer school day, help ensure their pupils can reach their full potential.
Asked by: Ranil Jayawardena (Conservative - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when the Government plans to consult on statutory guidance on Relationships and Sex Education provided for in the Children and Social Work Act 2017.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Children and Social Work Act (2017) places a duty on the Secretary of State for Education to make Relationships Education mandatory in all primary schools, and Relationships and Sex Education mandatory in all secondary schools, in England.
As part of our next steps, the Department intends to conduct a thorough and wide ranging engagement on Relationships Education and Relationships and Sex Education. This will determine the content of the regulations and statutory guidance, covering subject content, school practice and quality of delivery. We will ensure the subjects are carefully designed to safeguard and support pupils whilst being deliverable for schools.
The Department is fully committed to this programme of work and will set out shortly more details about the engagement process, the timetable and the work to consider age appropriate subject content.
This will result in draft regulations and guidance on which we will consult. Following consultation, regulations will be laid in the House allowing for a full and considered debate.
Asked by: Ranil Jayawardena (Conservative - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps the Government is taking to (a) increase core schools' funding in (i) England and (ii) Hampshire and (b) introduce a fairer funding formula for schools.
Answered by Nick Gibb
My Rt hon. Friend, the Secretary of State, announced an additional £1.3 billion for schools and high needs across 2018-19 and 2019-20, in addition to the schools budget set at Spending Review 2015, on 17 July. As a result, core funding for schools will rise from almost £41 billion in 2017-18 to £42.4 billion in 2018-19 and £43.5 billion in 2019-20, representing an increase in the total schools budget of over 6% between this year and 2019-20. This means funding per pupil will now be maintained in real terms for the remaining two years of this Spending Review.
We have now announced details of the new national funding formulae, meaning that from April 2018 funding will finally be allocated on a fair and transparent basis. We have announced the funding that will be allocated for all schools in England, including schools in Hampshire, under the formula. Full details are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-funding-formula-tables-for-schools-and-high-needs.
Together these reforms will give schools a firm foundation that will enable them to continue to raise standards, promote social mobility, and give every child the best possible education.