Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that children from disadvantaged backgrounds have equal access to digital learning resources and technology.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
Schools are responsible for making decisions about what technology to buy to meet their pupils’ needs, and how best to use it support their teaching.
The government delivered over 1.95 million laptops and tablets to schools, trusts, local authorities and further education (FE) providers for disadvantaged children and young people as part of a £520 million government investment to support access to remote education and online social care services. These laptops and tablets are now owned by schools, trusts, local authorities or FE providers, who can lend them to children and young people who need them the most. These laptops and tablets were an injection of support on top of the estimated 2.9 million that were already owned by schools before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Building on its success in the pandemic, Oak National Academy was established as an arm’s length body on 1 September 2022, working independently of the government and collaboratively with the education sector. Oak aims to support teachers to improve curriculum delivery, reduce workload and support improved pupil outcomes, and continues to provide a remote education contingency. Oak will work with teachers across the country, giving them and their pupils access to free, optional, and adaptable high-quality digital curriculum resources.
The government has provided over £2.6 billion of pupil premium funding in the 2022/23 financial year to support pupils from lower income families. Rates will increase by 5% for 2023/24, taking total pupil premium funding to £2.9 billion. As set out in the menu of approaches, schools can use both pupil premium and recovery premium on technology and other resources that support high quality teaching.
Social tariffs offer low-cost landline and broadband services for those on certain means tested benefits. The government is encouraging those providers who do not currently offer social tariff packages, to do so. A range of affordable tariffs, designed specifically to support low-income families, are now available to 99% of UK households. BT, Virgin Media O2, Sky, Vodafone, and other providers offer broadband and mobile social tariffs for as little as £10 per month, representing a significant saving for households in receipt of Universal Credit and other means tested benefits.
In addition, the government secured a range of commitments from the UK’s major broadband and mobile providers to support families through the global rise in the cost of living. These commitments include more manageable payment plans, switching to a cheaper package free of charge, or taking a more affordable social tariff if the customer is eligible. The government encourages people to contact their provider to see what support is available. Awareness and take up of social tariffs need to improve. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport is working with the sector to urge those providers who have yet to offer a social tariff to do so, and for the industry to ensure that offers are publicised.
Asked by: Seema Malhotra (Labour (Co-op) - Feltham and Heston)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department is taking steps to help schools give pupils from families with low incomes access to (a) broadband and (b) computers at home to support their learning.
Answered by Robin Walker
A survey by Ofcom showed that during 2021, 94% of children (aged 0 to 17) in England had internet access and used it in the home, and figures for the UK show that almost half (47%) of children aged 3 to 17 used a laptop or netbook to go online, and 17% used a desktop. Use of more personal and portable devices was more common, with more than four in ten children (43%) saying they only used any device other than a laptop, netbook, or desktop to go online. The survey is available here: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0024/234609/childrens-media-use-and-attitudes-report-2022.pdf.
The department has data on the number of devices distributed to local authorities. However, we only know where devices were shipped. The devices distributed through the department are owned by schools, trusts, local authorities or further education (FE) providers who can lend these devices to children and young people who need them the most. The department does not have visibility of how devices move or how ownership was transferred after receipt.
10,272 devices were distributed to Hounslow local authority as part of the get help with technology scheme, including 9,685 laptops or tablets and 587 4G routers.
For all London constituencies, the total number of devices distributed was 354,493, including 334,075 laptops or tablets and 20,418 4G routers.
The department does not have data for the number of devices distributed to Feltham and Heston constituency.
The department has delivered over 1.95 million laptops and tablets to schools, trusts, local authorities and further education providers for disadvantaged children and young people as part of a £520 million government investment to support access to remote education and online social care services.
The department also provided support for over 130,000 families to get online through uplifts in mobile data and 4G wireless routers. This included partnering with the UK’s leading mobile operators to provide free data to help over 33,000 disadvantaged children get online and delivering over 100,000 4G wireless routers for pupils without connection at home. The government also provided funding to support schools and FE providers in providing internet access for disadvantaged pupils whose face-to-face education is disrupted due to COVID-19.
The get help with technology service is transitioning to provide further support to schools and colleges on meeting technology standards, including in relation to connectivity and devices. This is focused now on levelling up technology in schools and other education providers rather than in homes, but the support and funding already provided should give schools the flexibility to provide remote education support and can continue to be used in the longer term.
Asked by: Seema Malhotra (Labour (Co-op) - Feltham and Heston)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent estimate he has made of the number of children in (a) Feltham and Heston constituency, (b) Hounslow, (c) London and (d) England without access (i) to broadband at home and (ii) to a computer at home to support their learning.
Answered by Robin Walker
A survey by Ofcom showed that during 2021, 94% of children (aged 0 to 17) in England had internet access and used it in the home, and figures for the UK show that almost half (47%) of children aged 3 to 17 used a laptop or netbook to go online, and 17% used a desktop. Use of more personal and portable devices was more common, with more than four in ten children (43%) saying they only used any device other than a laptop, netbook, or desktop to go online. The survey is available here: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0024/234609/childrens-media-use-and-attitudes-report-2022.pdf.
The department has data on the number of devices distributed to local authorities. However, we only know where devices were shipped. The devices distributed through the department are owned by schools, trusts, local authorities or further education (FE) providers who can lend these devices to children and young people who need them the most. The department does not have visibility of how devices move or how ownership was transferred after receipt.
10,272 devices were distributed to Hounslow local authority as part of the get help with technology scheme, including 9,685 laptops or tablets and 587 4G routers.
For all London constituencies, the total number of devices distributed was 354,493, including 334,075 laptops or tablets and 20,418 4G routers.
The department does not have data for the number of devices distributed to Feltham and Heston constituency.
The department has delivered over 1.95 million laptops and tablets to schools, trusts, local authorities and further education providers for disadvantaged children and young people as part of a £520 million government investment to support access to remote education and online social care services.
The department also provided support for over 130,000 families to get online through uplifts in mobile data and 4G wireless routers. This included partnering with the UK’s leading mobile operators to provide free data to help over 33,000 disadvantaged children get online and delivering over 100,000 4G wireless routers for pupils without connection at home. The government also provided funding to support schools and FE providers in providing internet access for disadvantaged pupils whose face-to-face education is disrupted due to COVID-19.
The get help with technology service is transitioning to provide further support to schools and colleges on meeting technology standards, including in relation to connectivity and devices. This is focused now on levelling up technology in schools and other education providers rather than in homes, but the support and funding already provided should give schools the flexibility to provide remote education support and can continue to be used in the longer term.
Asked by: Robert Halfon (Conservative - Harlow)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of school children that do not have a personal laptop or tablet.
Answered by Robin Walker
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the department has delivered over 1.95 million laptops and tablets to schools, trusts, local authorities, and further education providers for disadvantaged children and young people. This is part of a £520 million government investment to support access to remote education and online social care services.
The laptops and tablets distributed through the department are owned by schools, trusts, local authorities, or further education providers who can lend these to children and young people who need them the most. These laptops and tablets are an injection of support on top of an estimated 2.9 million already owned by schools before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. These devices are intended to give schools the flexibility to provide remote education support and can continue to be used in the longer term either in the classroom or from home.
Asked by: Seema Malhotra (Labour (Co-op) - Feltham and Heston)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment his Department has made on the impact of the home learning environment on children's school outcomes; and what steps he is taking to support children's learning at home.
Answered by Robin Walker
The department recognises that teachers and leaders have been working incredibly hard to provide high quality on-site and remote education, with much being achieved during the pandemic.
The department has announced nearly £5 billion for a multi-year education recovery plan which includes high quality tutoring, world class training for teachers and early years practitioners, additional funding for schools, and extending time in colleges by 40 hours. We are supporting the most disadvantaged, vulnerable and those with the least time left in education, wherever they live, to make up for education lost during the pandemic and are carefully monitoring the progress being made by children in school.
Through the department’s Get Help with Technology programme, we have delivered over 1.9 million laptops and tablets to schools, trusts, local authorities and further education providers for disadvantaged children and young people as part of a £520 million government investment to support access to remote education and online social care services.
These laptops and tablets are intended to give schools the flexibility to provide remote education support and can continue to be used in the longer term either in the classroom or from home.
The priority should always be for schools to deliver high quality face-to-face education to all pupils and remote education should only ever be considered as a short-term measure and as a last resort where in person attendance is not possible.
When in-person attendance in school is either not possible or contrary to government guidance schools should continue to provide remote education to allow children and young people who are well enough to keep pace with their education.
The department will publish updated guidance to support schools with remote education and will continue to work with the sector on this, learning from the many examples of excellent practice developed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
An appropriate home education environment is also essential for parents who opt to provide their children with elective home education. The government is committed to a form of local authority registration for children not in school as well as a duty on local authorities to provide support to home educators when it is required. Further details on this are in the Children Not In School consultation response which was published on 3 February 2022. We hope to legislate on this measure at the next suitable opportunity.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many 4G wireless routers his Department has purchased for educational settings that have not been distributed.
Answered by Robin Walker
The department has now delivered 101,955 4G wireless routers to schools, colleges, academy trusts and local authorities, to enable disadvantaged children and young people to access remote education and essential social care services during the COVID-19 outbreak. All routers that we have purchased have been delivered.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to provide parents with catch-up vouchers for each day their child is absent from school due to COVID-19 in order to help pay for the costs of remote learning.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department’s priority is for schools to deliver face-to-face, high-quality education to all pupils. The evidence is clear that being out of education causes significant harm to educational attainment, life chances, mental and physical health.
School attendance is mandatory for all pupils of compulsory school age and it is the department’s priority to ensure that as many children as possible regularly attend school. The department’s current guidance for remote education states that schools affected by the remote education temporary continuity direction must provide remote education for state-funded, school-aged pupils whose attendance would be contrary to public health advice or government guidance or law relating to COVID-19 during the 2021/22 academic year. This means that schools should be offering remote education to pupils who test positive for COVID-19 or present with COVID-19 symptoms, where they are well enough to learn from home. Schools must also have regard to the expectations for remote education published here: https://get-help-with-remote-education.education.gov.uk/statutory-obligations.
The government has committed to an ambitious and long-term education recovery plan, including an investment to date of nearly £5 billion to support the tutoring programme, deliver world class training for teachers, provide additional direct recovery funding to schools, and to extend time in colleges by 40 hours a year. This support will help children and young people make up for education lost and get back on track.
The department’s overall direct investment in education recovery includes funding for up to 100 million tutoring hours for 5-19 year olds, the multi-year recovery premium so schools can deliver evidence-based interventions based on pupil needs, summer schools, extra time in 16-19 education and 500,000 training opportunities for school teachers and early years practitioners.
Recovery programmes have been designed to allow early years, school, and college leaders the flexibility to support those pupils most in need, including the most disadvantaged.
Alongside overall investment in education recovery, the department has delivered over 1.7 million laptops and tablets to schools, trusts, local authorities and further education colleges for disadvantaged children and young people as part of a £520 million government investment to support access to remote education and online social care services.
The department has previously announced funding to support schools and colleges in providing internet access for disadvantaged pupils whose face-to-face education is disrupted due to the COVID-19 outbreak and has enabled ordering of 4G routers for schools and colleges.
Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment he has made of the impact of No Recourse to Public Funds on children's ability to access (a) the internet and (b) a computer to complete school work.
Answered by Robin Walker
The department is investing over £520 million to support access to remote education and online social care through the Get Help with Technology programme. This programme has already provided over 1.35 million devices to enable disadvantaged children and young people to access education stay in touch with their school and peers and improve their digital skills. On 22 October, the department announced a further rollout of an additional 500,000 devices. Schools and colleges decide how to best use the devices to make sure all pupils, no matter their background, can access education.
In addition, the programme also provided support for over 110,000 families to get online through uplifts in mobile data and 4G wireless routers. This included partnering with the UK’s leading mobile operators to provide free data to help over 33,000 disadvantaged children get online and delivering over 77,000 4G wireless routers for pupils without connection at home. The department has announced new funding to support schools and colleges in providing internet access for disadvantaged pupils whose face-to-face education is disrupted during the autumn term and enabled ordering of 4G routers for schools and colleges.
The department supports the role of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport in leading digital inclusion across government and welcomes the efforts of organisations such as the Digital Poverty Alliance in improving understanding of digital inclusion impacts, co-ordinating the wide range of existing local and national initiatives and highlighting gaps in support.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on parents and carers of children; and what assessment he has made of the accessibility of support services available to people who may be struggling.
Answered by Will Quince
The department recognises that COVID-19 has been challenging for pupils and their families. We have regularly surveyed parents and carers of school pupils throughout the COVID-19 outbreak, helping to inform our response on a range of issues. The reports from these surveys are available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/parent-and-pupil-panel-omnibus-surveys.
The department commissioned a bespoke sub-study as part of the Study of Early Education and Development (SEED) which explored the experiences of children and their parents during the COVID-19 outbreak. While this report documents the experiences of children and their parents in the SEED study covered by the COVID-19 outbreak, we cannot conclude from these analyses that their experiences were as a direct consequence of COVID-19. These findings also cannot be used to evaluate specific government policies, including those in response to COVID-19. The report from this survey is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-education-and-development-coronavirus-covid-19-study.
The government has prioritised support for children and families in the Spending Review. The government has announced a £300 million package to transform services for parents and babies, carers, and children in half of local authorities in England, helping to deliver our levelling up ambitions. It includes funding to create a family hub network, for each local authority to publish their Start for Life offer, support for breast feeding, parent-infant relationships and parenting programmes. It also includes a smaller number of pilots to trial and evaluate innovative workforce models needed to support babies and families. Family hubs are a way of joining up locally to improve access to services, the connections between families, professionals, services, and providers, and putting relationships at the heart of family help.
In total, £50 million will be available for parenting support. The department will ensure online parenting programmes are available to new parents in the 75 selected local authorities, alongside additional targeted support to families most in need. The department will set out more detail in due course, including on which parenting programmes will be available in the selected local authorities.
While services that help vulnerable children and young people keep safe have been placed under increased pressure due to COVID-19, many have continued to operate effectively. Throughout all periods of national restrictions, we prioritised support for local services to allow key safeguarding services to continue operating. The government allocated £750 million of COVID-19 funding for frontline charities, of which £360 million was directly allocated to charities providing key services and supporting vulnerable people during the crisis.
Throughout the COVID-19 outbreak, the department has worked to help parents support their child’s education. Guidance on this is updated regularly, and is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/what-parents-and-carers-need-to-know-about-early-years-providers-schools-and-colleges-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak.
To support access to remote education, the department has distributed over 1.35 million laptops and tablets for disadvantaged children and young people as part of a £400 million investment. We have ensured that children who usually receive benefits-related free school meals have had access to this support during periods of restricted attendance and provided a National Voucher Scheme to support eligible pupils required to stay at home. Over £450 million of voucher e-codes had been redeemed into supermarket gift cards for families during this period.
Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reason his Department’s Get help with remote education guidance does not include (a) UK companies and (b) challengers to the largest technology companies.
Answered by Robin Walker
The department has distributed over 1.35 million laptops and tablets to disadvantaged pupils since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak. On 22 October 2021, a further rollout of an additional 500,000 devices was announced. Our published guidance relates to devices delivered to schools as part of this programme and is intended to support users in making best use of devices they have received.
When purchasing devices, the department took account of the needs of schools and other users, availability and the need to achieve value for money. As a result, we provided devices from a range of different manufacturers. This has included large technology companies including Apple, Microsoft, Acer, Lenovo, Samsung, Dell, and HP and Tactus, a leading UK firm.
The department also has also offered, since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, support to schools to set digital education platforms offered by Microsoft and Google. Schools have told us that these platforms, which are free to use, meet their needs by offering real time communication and collaboration and education specific tools that can assist teachers, pupils and students to learn remotely. Schools can decide whether to make use of these resources or those provided by other organisations.