Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what financial support is available for families on low incomes in (a) Slough and (b) England that are required to purchase educational resources as a result of school closures during the covid-19 outbreak.

The Department continue to expect all primary schools, secondary schools, and further education (FE) institutions in England to provide remote education for the majority of their pupils and students.

The Government is providing over £400 million to support remote education and online social care, including securing 1.3 million laptops and tablets for disadvantaged children and young people. This includes over one million laptops and tablets that were delivered to schools, FE institutions, academy trusts and local authorities by 15 February 2021. More information on the number of devices delivered to schools, trusts and local authorities can be viewed here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/laptops-and-tablets-data/2021-week-7.

The laptops and tablets are to help support schools, academy trusts and local authorities to provide access to remote education and online social care. Schools, colleges, 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.

The Department has also made £4.84 million available for Oak National Academy both for the summer term of the academic year 2019-20, and then for the 2020-21 academic year, to provide video lessons in a broad range of subjects for Reception up to Year 11.

All four major mobile network operators, Vodafone, O2, Three and EE, have also committed to working together to make access to Oak National Academy free for school children. The Department is grateful to BT and EE, who have made access to BBC Bitesize resources free from the end of January 2021.

The BBC has adapted their education support for the 2021 spring term and is making educational content available on the television. This helps to ensure all children and young people can access curriculum based learning from home, even if they do not have access to the internet.

The Department is aware that this is a challenging time for parents, carers, and children and that many parents and carers are balancing various responsibilities while supporting their children with education at home.

The Department has published information for parents and carers on remote education and how they can best support their child while being taught from home. This includes resources and advice to help parents and carers on how to establish a routine with their child, and how best to support mental health and wellbeing during this period. The published information is available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/supporting-your-childrens-education-during-coronavirus-covid-19?priority-taxon=b350e61d-1db9-4cc2-bb44-fab02882ac25.

Parents and carers should not feel that they need to set work and/or are required to purchase educational resources for their child. If parents or carers feel they need further support or additional materials for their children, they are encouraged to discuss this with their school or FE institution first.