Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether FE and apprenticeship training providers are (a) required to close and (b) may open in specific circumstances during the national covid-19 lockdown announced in January 2021; and if he will make a statement.

Further education (FE) providers will remain open for on-site attendance to vulnerable students and the children of critical workers.

A small number of FE students and apprentices who would otherwise be completing their courses or apprenticeships in January, February or March are able to attend where it is not possible for their training or assessment to be completed remotely.

This includes:

• Those who are due to do a licence to practise, or other occupational competence, assessment in January, February or March.
• Those training for some critical worker roles, for example, engineering, health and social care, manufacturing technologies, nursing and subjects and vocations allied to medicine, transportation operations and maintenance, agriculture, education and training and building and construction (where this is connected to utilities and communications) that are due to complete in the next 3 months.

All other students will continue to learn remotely.

We will continue to review restrictions and will ensure that remaining students and apprentices return to face-to-face education as soon as possible.