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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-06-06.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, if she will hold discussions with the Secretary of State for Education on encouraging regular trips to engineering firms, factories and laboratories by all-girls’ schools to encourage girls to consider STEM careers.

Caroline Dinenage

We are committed to increasing the number of girls studying STEM subjects and considering STEM careers. That is why earlier this year we announced an ambition to increase the proportion of girls studying STEM subjects by 20% by 2020. We fully encourage engagement between schools and employers to inform and inspire all young people about STEM careers.

This government wants to see improvements to the quality of careers advice and guidance available to young people, with many more schools and employers working together to provide excellent support. Helping all young people, regardless of background, get the inspiration and guidance they need for success in working life is a key part of this government’s commitment to delivering real social justice. Later this year, we will publish our careers strategy which will set out a clear vision and roadmap for our £90 million investment this parliament to improve careers education and guidance for young people.

As part of this investment, we are funding the Careers and Enterprise Company (CEC) to take a lead role in transforming the provision of careers, enterprise and employer engagement experiences for young people to inspire them and prepare them for the world of work. The CEC announced, in March, the successful bidders to the £5 million careers and enterprise investment fund, some of which have a specific focus on STEM. The fund will boost provision for nearly 250,000 young people across England in 75% of the areas the company has identified as ‘cold spots’.

The government supports the STEM Ambassadors Programme with a network of over 32,000 volunteers from STEM companies and academia who inspire schoolchildren about STEM careers. We also support the industry led Your Life campaign which aims to transform perceptions of STEM subjects by showing young people the range of careers they can pursue.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-06-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps the Government is taking to help older women and men into work.

Justin Tomlinson

DWP recognises and welcomes the valuable knowledge and skills that older workers bring to the work place. There are now more older people in employment than ever before, 9.6 million 50+ workers in the UK – an increase of over a million (1.3 million) over the last 5 years.

As well as access to the full Jobcentre Plus offer of personalised support, we introduced Older Claimant Champions in Jobcentre Plus, and have run two yearlong trials from April 2015 to test how we support older people where age is a barrier to them finding work. The trials are being evaluated and initial results will be available in autumn 2016.

The Government intends to publish a new, employer-led national strategy later this year, setting out the future direction of the Fuller Working Lives agenda.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-06-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will take steps to encourage businesses to train and employ people with learning difficulties to give them equal opportunities.

Justin Tomlinson

Employment for people with learning disabilities is a Government priority.

Through our Disability Confident campaign we are encouraging employers to attract, recruit and retain disabled people, including those with Learning Disabilities, who are eager to work and have the skills, talents and abilities that employers are looking for.

In 2014/15 Access to Work supported 2,010 awards for people with learning disabilities; the highest ever number of learning disabled people supported since the start of our records in 2007.

The Department is an active member of the National Learning Disability Programme Board, chaired by Department of Health. This is a cross-government group, working co-productively with disabled people and disability organisations to positively shape future policy to improve services and increase work opportunities for people with Learning Disabilities. The Department is supporting the development of a joint Learning Disability Strategy to drive this agenda forward.

We have also set up a taskforce to look at improving accessibility of apprenticeships for people with Learning Disabilities. Individuals invited to sit on the taskforce represent a range of organisations and specialisms, from employers and training providers to charities and educational experts. Organisations representing disabled people and those with learning disabilities (for example Scope and MENCAP) are also taking part.