Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when he plans to respond to the letter dated 28 January 2021, reference ZA55341, regarding the re-opening of schools.
Answered by Nick Gibb
I can confirm that a response, ref ZA55341, has been sent to the hon. Member for West Lancashire.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the recommendations made by the Disabled Children Partnership in their report, The Longest Lockdown, published February 2021, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of implementing additional short breaks for families with disabled children who are currently experiencing high levels of family exhaustion.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The COVID-19 outbreak has been extremely challenging for many families of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities. Supporting them is a priority for this government, and their wellbeing remains central to our response to COVID-19.
We have published ‘Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance for children's social care services’, making clear that parents or carers of disabled children and young people may continue to access respite care. This guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-childrens-social-care-services/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-local-authorities-on-childrens-social-care. We have communicated best practice to Directors of Children's Services and encouraged local authorities to ensure that as many disabled children and young people as possible can continue to access these respite services during the COVID-19 outbreak. We have encouraged local authorities to prioritise respite support for disabled children, and to consider flexible and pragmatic options to deliver that support, including using direct payments and carrying out activities virtually.
We are providing £40.8 million for the Family Fund in the 2020-21 financial year to support over 80,000 families on low incomes raising children with disabilities or serious illnesses. This includes £13.5 million to specifically respond to needs arising from the COVID-19 outbreak.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when he plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for West Lancashire of 13 January 2021 on tax-free childcare, reference ZA54965.
Answered by Nick Gibb
I can confirm that a response has been sent to the letter dated 13 January from the hon. Member for West Lancashire.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether a new module on the importance of pelvic floor health education can be introduced into the school curriculum targeting girls between the ages of 13-16.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Pupils need to know how to be safe and healthy, and how to manage their academic, personal, and social lives in a positive way. That is why we have made Health Education compulsory in all state-funded schools in England alongside Relationships Education (in primary schools) and Relationships and Sex Education (in secondary schools). Health education gives schools the opportunity to drive up the consistency and quality of pupils’ physical health knowledge by delivering clear content through evidence-based teaching. The aim of teaching pupils about physical health and mental wellbeing is to give them the information they need to make good decisions about their own health and wellbeing, recognise issues in themselves and others and, when issues arise, seek support as early as possible from appropriate sources.
The Department is committed to supporting schools in their preparations and has published non-statutory implementation guidance alongside teacher training materials. Both are designed to provide teachers with further clarity and practical advice on how to implement the Relationships, Sex and Health Education curriculum, to help all teachers increase their confidence and quality of teaching. The support is available on a one-stop page for teachers on GOV.UK. This covers all the teaching requirements in the statutory guidance including the importance of developing and maintaining good muscular and skeletal health through regular exercise; and the main changes which take place in males and females, and the implications for emotional and physical health.
As with other aspects of the curriculum, schools have flexibility over how they deliver these subjects so they can develop an integrated approach that is sensitive to the needs and background of their pupils. This could include, for example, choosing to teach about the importance of pelvic floor health education to girls between the ages of 11 and 13. The Department has provided advice on choosing resources in the non-statutory implementation guidance “Plan your Relationships, Sex and Health Curriculum”. We are working with Public Health England to make sure good quality teaching resources are available for teachers delivering health education.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether girls between the ages of 13-16 receive formal pelvic floor health education to help avoid future incontinence.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Pupils need to know how to be safe and healthy, and how to manage their academic, personal, and social lives in a positive way. That is why we have made Health Education compulsory in all state-funded schools in England alongside Relationships Education (in primary schools) and Relationships and Sex Education (in secondary schools). Health education gives schools the opportunity to drive up the consistency and quality of pupils’ physical health knowledge by delivering clear content through evidence-based teaching. The aim of teaching pupils about physical health and mental wellbeing is to give them the information they need to make good decisions about their own health and wellbeing, recognise issues in themselves and others and, when issues arise, seek support as early as possible from appropriate sources.
The Department is committed to supporting schools in their preparations and has published non-statutory implementation guidance alongside teacher training materials. Both are designed to provide teachers with further clarity and practical advice on how to implement the Relationships, Sex and Health Education curriculum, to help all teachers increase their confidence and quality of teaching. The support is available on a one-stop page for teachers on GOV.UK. This covers all the teaching requirements in the statutory guidance including the importance of developing and maintaining good muscular and skeletal health through regular exercise; and the main changes which take place in males and females, and the implications for emotional and physical health.
As with other aspects of the curriculum, schools have flexibility over how they deliver these subjects so they can develop an integrated approach that is sensitive to the needs and background of their pupils. This could include, for example, choosing to teach about the importance of pelvic floor health education to girls between the ages of 11 and 13. The Department has provided advice on choosing resources in the non-statutory implementation guidance “Plan your Relationships, Sex and Health Curriculum”. We are working with Public Health England to make sure good quality teaching resources are available for teachers delivering health education.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when he plans to respond to the letter dated 11 December 2020 from the hon. Member for West Lancashire, regarding covid-19 safety in SEN schools, reference ZA54854.
Answered by Nick Gibb
I can confirm that a response has been sent to the letter dated 11 December 2020, from the hon. Member of West Lancashire.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of schools in England have received their requested allocation of devices to support remote learning.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government is investing over £400 million to support access to remote education and online social care services, including securing 1.3 million laptops and tablets for disadvantaged children and young people. As of Monday 25 January 2021, this includes over 870,000 laptops and tablets that were delivered to schools, academy trusts and local authorities.
All schools have been invited to order their full allocation of devices. Schools, academy trusts and local authorities are responsible for distributing the laptops and tablets and are best placed to know which children and young people need access to a device.
Figures on the number of devices delivered are available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/laptops-and-tablets-data/2021-week-4.
The Department announced on 12 January 2021 that it is purchasing 300,000 more laptops and tablets, bringing the total number we have secured from one million to 1.3 million. The Get Help with Technology scheme will email all schools with information on the number of additional devices allocated to them, and when they will be able to order. We are providing this significant injection of devices on top of an estimated 2.9 million laptops and tablets already owned by schools before the start of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Where pupils experience barriers to digital remote education, we expect schools to offer different forms of remote education such as printed resources or textbooks. This should be supplemented with other forms of communication to keep pupils on track or answer questions about work.
Where schools need additional devices, above their allocations, they should contact the Department for Education’s service team at covid.technology@education.gov.uk. They should include the number of disadvantaged children in years 3 to 11 who require support and an explanation of how they have gathered this evidence.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when his Department plans to review the free school meals eligibility criteria to include all children living below the poverty line.
Answered by Vicky Ford
We think it is important that free school meal support is targeted at those that need it most. Free school meals are an integral part of our provision for families on low incomes and our wider actions to promote social mobility.
We will consider the full recommendations set out in the National Food Strategy. The government has committed to respond formally to the National Food Strategy following publication of Part 2 of the report.
Universal Credit is an in-work benefit which reduces as household earnings increase. It is right that free school meals remain targeted at those who are out of work and on the lowest incomes.
In 2018, Government introduced new eligibility criteria for families on Universal Credit, following a consultation in 2017. It is estimated that this will be more generous in its reach by 2022, in comparison to the legacy benefit system. Further to this we included generous protections, which mean any family transitioning to Universal Credit will continue to have access to a free school meal even if they move above the earnings threshold.
Asked by: Rosie Cooper (Labour - West Lancashire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of support being provided to nurseries during the January 2021 covid-19 lockdown.
Answered by Vicky Ford
On 17 December 2020, the government announced a return to funding early years settings on the basis of attendance.
We stay in regular contact with the early years sector and have heard from them already on this subject. We will be closely monitoring both parental take-up of places and the capacity and responses of providers and will keep under constant review whether further action is needed.
Furthermore, we have provided additional support to the early years sector during the COVID-19 outbreak, making grants and loans available and ensuring early years providers can access the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) for their non-government funded income, and childminders the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS). We continue to ensure that providers can access the support available.
On 17 December, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced that both the CJRS and SEISS will be extended to April 2021. We also updated the CJRS guidance for Early Years so that all providers who have seen a drop in their overall income are able to furlough any staff (who were on payroll on or before 30 October 2020) and who are not required for delivering the government’s funded entitlements. This guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-education-early-years-and-childrens-social-care/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-education-early-years-and-childrens-social-care.
Where Early Years providers are struggling financially, they may be eligible to access support from the Additional Restrictions Grant, if not eligible for the Local Restrictions Support Grant schemes. Further information on these grants is available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/check-if-youre-eligible-for-the-coronavirus-additional-restrictions-grant and https://www.gov.uk/guidance/check-if-youre-eligible-for-the-coronavirus-local-restrictions-support-grant-for-open-businesses. We will keep under constant review what further support businesses may require.