Asked by: Sarah Owen (Labour - Luton North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Prevent strategy in ensuring equal treatment in education for children from all backgrounds.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Prevent is about safeguarding people who are at risk of radicalisation. Prevent does not target a specific faith or ethnic group; it deals with all forms of extremism.
Protecting pupils from the risk of radicalisation forms part of schools wider safeguarding duties, alongside protecting children from other harms, such as drugs, criminal and sexual exploitation. As with other forms of safeguarding, the aim is to protect and meet the needs of any vulnerable child.
The Department trusts teachers and other school staff to exercise their professional judgment about whether a referral is appropriate, as they do for all other safeguarding risks. Schools and colleges must follow the public sector Equality Duty and must ensure equal treatment of children from all backgrounds.
The Government is committed to assessing the effectiveness of the strategy and are carrying out an independent review of Prevent. William Shawcross was appointed on 26 January 2021 as the new Independent Reviewer, and the review will look at how effective the statutory Prevent Duty is and will make recommendations for the future.
Asked by: Sarah Owen (Labour - Luton North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Prevent strategy, how often his Department holds discussions with education providers to seek their feedback on the strategy; what form those discussions take; and how participants are selected.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department works closely with networks of Government funded Prevent practitioners. This includes Prevent Education Officers, which are employed by local authorities in priority areas, and regional coordinators who support further education colleges and universities.
When required, the Department seeks feedback on specific issues or areas of guidance from a range of stakeholders, such as volunteers identified by practitioners and partner organisations.
The Department also has a public facing helpline for providers if they are concerned about extremism or would like further advice. Further information is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/preventing-extremism-in-schools-and-childrens-services/preventing-extremism-in-the-education-and-childrens-services-sectors.
The Government is committed to assessing the effectiveness of the Prevent strategy, which is why it is carrying out an independent review of Prevent. William Shawcross was appointed on 26 January 2021 as the new independent reviewer. The review will look at how effective the statutory Prevent duty is, including through engagement with the education sector, and will make recommendations for the future.
Asked by: Sarah Owen (Labour - Luton North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions officials in his Department have had with representatives of Muslim student groups regarding freedom of speech on university campuses.
Answered by Michelle Donelan
The government is clear that the Prevent Duty should not be used to suppress free speech. It requires providers, when exercising their functions, to have due regard to the need to prevent people being drawn into terrorism. There is no prescription from the government, or the Office for Students (OfS), in regard to what action providers should take once they have had due regard. The legislation imposing the Prevent duty in relation to higher education specifically requires that providers must have particular regard to their duty to ensure freedom of speech and to the importance of academic freedom.
In the most recent published assessment by the OfS on implementation of the Prevent programme in the English higher education sector in 2019, they found no cause for concern that free speech was being undermined by Prevent in external speakers’ policies and their implementation. The assessment is available here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/publications/prevent-review-meetings-programme-findings/.
The government also remains committed to an Independent Review of Prevent, which is why William Shawcross was appointed on 26 January 2021 as the new Independent Reviewer. The call for evidence for the Independent Review was reopened on the 24 March 2021 and will close on the 26 May 2021. The review will look at how effective the statutory Prevent duty is and will make recommendations for the future.
The department has carried out structured discussions at all stages of the policy development leading up to the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill, including student engagement through the National Union of Students and roundtables with students’ unions. The department welcomes further discussions and will continue to proactively engage stakeholders with a wide range of interests and backgrounds during and after passage of the Bill, including Muslim, East Asian and South East Asian students. The department plans to meet with Muslim organisations, as well as other stakeholders, in the next few weeks and looks forward to discussing the Bill measures in detail.
Asked by: Sarah Owen (Labour - Luton North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions officials in his Department have had with (a) East and (b) South East Asian students regarding freedom of speech on university campuses.
Answered by Michelle Donelan
The government is clear that the Prevent Duty should not be used to suppress free speech. It requires providers, when exercising their functions, to have due regard to the need to prevent people being drawn into terrorism. There is no prescription from the government, or the Office for Students (OfS), in regard to what action providers should take once they have had due regard. The legislation imposing the Prevent duty in relation to higher education specifically requires that providers must have particular regard to their duty to ensure freedom of speech and to the importance of academic freedom.
In the most recent published assessment by the OfS on implementation of the Prevent programme in the English higher education sector in 2019, they found no cause for concern that free speech was being undermined by Prevent in external speakers’ policies and their implementation. The assessment is available here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/publications/prevent-review-meetings-programme-findings/.
The government also remains committed to an Independent Review of Prevent, which is why William Shawcross was appointed on 26 January 2021 as the new Independent Reviewer. The call for evidence for the Independent Review was reopened on the 24 March 2021 and will close on the 26 May 2021. The review will look at how effective the statutory Prevent duty is and will make recommendations for the future.
The department has carried out structured discussions at all stages of the policy development leading up to the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill, including student engagement through the National Union of Students and roundtables with students’ unions. The department welcomes further discussions and will continue to proactively engage stakeholders with a wide range of interests and backgrounds during and after passage of the Bill, including Muslim, East Asian and South East Asian students. The department plans to meet with Muslim organisations, as well as other stakeholders, in the next few weeks and looks forward to discussing the Bill measures in detail.
Asked by: Sarah Owen (Labour - Luton North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment he has made of the potential effect of the Prevent strategy on free speech on university campuses.
Answered by Michelle Donelan
The government is clear that the Prevent Duty should not be used to suppress free speech. It requires providers, when exercising their functions, to have due regard to the need to prevent people being drawn into terrorism. There is no prescription from the government, or the Office for Students (OfS), in regard to what action providers should take once they have had due regard. The legislation imposing the Prevent duty in relation to higher education specifically requires that providers must have particular regard to their duty to ensure freedom of speech and to the importance of academic freedom.
In the most recent published assessment by the OfS on implementation of the Prevent programme in the English higher education sector in 2019, they found no cause for concern that free speech was being undermined by Prevent in external speakers’ policies and their implementation. The assessment is available here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/publications/prevent-review-meetings-programme-findings/.
The government also remains committed to an Independent Review of Prevent, which is why William Shawcross was appointed on 26 January 2021 as the new Independent Reviewer. The call for evidence for the Independent Review was reopened on the 24 March 2021 and will close on the 26 May 2021. The review will look at how effective the statutory Prevent duty is and will make recommendations for the future.
The department has carried out structured discussions at all stages of the policy development leading up to the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill, including student engagement through the National Union of Students and roundtables with students’ unions. The department welcomes further discussions and will continue to proactively engage stakeholders with a wide range of interests and backgrounds during and after passage of the Bill, including Muslim, East Asian and South East Asian students. The department plans to meet with Muslim organisations, as well as other stakeholders, in the next few weeks and looks forward to discussing the Bill measures in detail.
Asked by: Sarah Owen (Labour - Luton North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to support private candidates for examinations during the summer 2021 examination season.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Given the ongoing disruption to education caused by the COVID-19 outbreak, we announced in January that GCSE, AS and A level exams will not go ahead as planned this summer.
The Department and Ofqual have ensured that there is a clear and accessible route for private candidates to receive a grade this year at the same time as other candidates. Private candidates can work with a centre to be assessed on a range of evidence, which could include evidence from an established educational provider and the board-provided assessment materials. These candidates should have the same opportunity as other students to be assessed on what they were taught. Centres can conduct assessments remotely if needed. This guidance includes information for centres about assessing private candidates, taking into account their different circumstances: https://www.jcq.org.uk/summer-2021-arrangements/.
The Department is working with the sector to ensure there are enough centres available to support private candidates. The Joint Council for Qualifications have published a list of available centres: https://www.jcq.org.uk/private-candidates-summer-2021/, giving private candidates the opportunity to find a centre at a similar cost to a normal year. The exam boards have committed that private candidates will not be charged late fees if entries are received by 26 April.
To support centres with the additional requirements of assessing private candidates this year, and avoid the cost being passed on to candidates, we are providing a grant for centres to claim £200 per private candidate entry. Guidance on the grant is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/private-candidate-support-grant-information-for-exam-centres/private-candidate-support-grant. The Government is encouraging all available exams centres to sign up to help these candidates achieve their qualifications in this exceptional year.
Asked by: Sarah Owen (Labour - Luton North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance his Department has issued on the use of clear face masks in schools to allow deaf children to be able to better communicate in those settings during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Guidance for schools for the period of national lockdown can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak.
The Department has published updated guidance on face coverings in education from 8 March 2021, which can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/face-coverings-in-education/face-coverings-in-education.
As our updated guidance outlines, where pupils in Year 7 and above are taught, we recommend that face coverings should be worn by adults and pupils when moving around the premises outside of classrooms, such as in corridors and communal areas where social distancing cannot easily be maintained.
In addition, we now also recommend that face coverings should be worn in classrooms unless social distancing can be maintained. We are recommending this precautionary measure for a limited time during this period of high COVID-19 prevalence in the community.
In primary schools, face coverings should be worn by staff and adult visitors in situations where social distancing between adults is not possible, for example, when moving around in corridors and communal areas. Children in primary school do not need to wear a face covering.
Some individuals are exempt from wearing face coverings. This applies to those who cannot put on, wear or remove a face covering because of a physical or mental illness or impairment, or disability, or if you are speaking to or providing assistance to someone who relies on lip reading, clear sound or facial expression to communicate. The same exemptions should be applied in schools, and we would expect teachers and other staff to be sensitive to those needs.
Transparent face coverings which may assist communication with someone who relies on lip reading, clear sound or facial expression to communicate, can also be worn. There is currently very limited evidence regarding the effectiveness or safety of transparent face coverings, but they may be more effective in reducing the spread of COVID-19 than not wearing a face covering at all.
We continue to work closely with Public Health England and the Department of Health and Social Care and stakeholders across the sector to ensure that our policy is based on the latest scientific and medical advice
These measures will be in place until Easter. We will keep this under review and update guidance at that point.
Asked by: Sarah Owen (Labour - Luton North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent discussions he has had with the Association of Colleges on changes to 2021 exam season.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government has announced that, from 5 January 2021, schools and colleges have moved to remote education, except for vulnerable children and children of critical workers. In light of the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 outbreak, GCSE, AS and A level exams will not go ahead this summer as planned.
The Department will continue to engage with a range of relevant stakeholders when developing plans for our policy on GCSE, AS and A level assessments in 2021, as will the exams regulator Ofqual. Along with regular, pre-existing reference groups and roundtable sessions, meetings with both the National Union of Students and the Association of Colleges, including regarding Vocational Qualifications, have taken place with the Department and/or Ofqual.
A joint consultation has launched on how to fairly award all pupils, including private candidates and students taking vocational qualifications, with a grade that ensures they can progress to the next stage of their lives. The Department has strongly encouraged our stakeholders to respond to this.