Tag: 2023

Chi Onwurah – 2023 Parliamentary Question on the Cost of Living with Students

The parliamentary question asked by Chi Onwurah, the Labour MP for Newcastle upon Tyne Central, in the House of Commons on 16 January 2023.

Chi Onwurah (Newcastle upon Tyne Central) (Lab)

What steps she is taking to help support students with the cost of living.

The Minister of State, Department for Education (Robert Halfon)

My Department has made a one-off reallocation of funding to add £15 million to this year’s student premium, now worth £276 million. Universities can support disadvantaged students by drawing on this student premium and their own hardship funds, and many universities such as Newcastle and Northumbria have allocated funds to support disadvantaged students.

Chi Onwurah

Newcastle University student union’s recent cost of living crisis survey revealed that 41% of students had considered dropping out due to financial pressures. They are trying to balance studying with part-time and full-time jobs, and they feel increasingly isolated and exhausted. The student union food bank is restocked daily and is emptied quickly, with the record being within seven minutes. The Minister knows that his additional hardship fund works out at about £10 per student, and students are £1,500 worse off because of the mismanagement of maintenance loans. Why is he punishing students like this?

Robert Halfon

Of course I recognise that some students are facing hardship with the cost of living challenges, like many people up and down the country. The £276 million is a lot of money that universities can draw on. As I mentioned, there has been an increase of £15 million. Students in private accommodation can get a £400 rebate on their energy bills. We have frozen tuition fees for the past few years; by 2024-25, they will have been frozen for seven years. We have increased maximum loans and grants by 2.8% and if students’ incomes fall below a certain level, they can reapply to get their loans looked at. I really welcome the fact that Newcastle University has increased the package of support available to students to more than £1.7 million—

Mr Speaker

Order. I call Matt Western.

Matt Western (Warwick and Leamington) (Lab)

As we hear, the cost of living crisis is serious for everyone, but students in particular are facing real hardship. Independent economists estimate that many students will be up to £1,500 worse off this year. Given the Government’s current focus on maths, can the Minister explain how his Government calculated an increase of just 2.8% in the maintenance loan, following 2.3% this year, when the rolling average inflation rate is running at 9.3%?

Robert Halfon

We have to be fair to students, but we have to be fair to the taxpayer as well. We recognise student hardship, which is why we increased the student premium by £15 million to £276 million. Universities have their own hardship funds, and I highlighted the £1.7 million given by Newcastle University. Universities across the country are helping disadvantaged students. Students whose family income falls below a certain level can apply to the Student Loans Company to have their loan reassessed.

January 17, 2023
Ian Lavery – 2023 Parliamentary Question on School Rebuilding Programme Funding in Northumberland

The parliamentary question asked by Ian Lavery, the Labour MP for Wansbeck, in the House of Commons on 16 January 2023.

Ian Lavery (Wansbeck) (Lab)

If she will make an assessment of the adequacy of the level of school rebuilding programme funding allocated to schools in Northumberland.

The Minister of State, Department for Education (Nick Gibb)

Two schools in Northumberland are prioritised for the school rebuilding programme, including Ringway Primary School in the hon. Member’s constituency. Schools were nominated by local authorities and trusts, and selected according to the condition of their buildings following a robust assessment process. This is in addition to the £5.8 million of school condition allocation funding for Northumberland County Council in this financial year.

Ian Lavery

The Department’s own report now reclassifies the risk of school buildings collapsing as critical and very urgent. Despite the sterling efforts of headteachers and staff to keep school buildings in decent condition, many children in my constituency are taught in buildings far below the standards they should expect. Despite what the Minister has just said, can he tell the House when adequate funding will be made readily available to bring all schools in my constituency up to scratch?

Nick Gibb

We have allocated £13 billion since 2015 to school buildings and maintenance. In May 2022, for example, the Government announced the outcome of the condition improvement fund bids for 2022-23. That will provide £500 million for 1,400 projects at 1,100 schools and sixth forms. The CIF is for individual schools and groups of schools. In addition, £1.1 billion of school condition allocations was made to local authorities and large groups of academies. We take this issue very seriously and we want to make sure that all our schools are in the best possible condition for pupils to be able to learn.

January 17, 2023
PRESS RELEASE : £14 million to unlock Bromsgrove’s potential [January 2023]
The press release issued by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities on 17 January 2023.

Post pandemic, Bromsgrove Town Centre needed a boost. With a £14 million award from the Levelling Up Fund, the town can recover.

The investment will be used for projects such as the redevelopment of the former Market Hall.

New hub for town centre

The first major project is the Market Hall, which has been vacant since 2010. It is set to become a vibrant cultural and commercial hub. This will bring new businesses and footfall into the town centre.

The new site will be home for:
- flexible office space
- multi-purpose events
- gallery space
- food stalls
Opinions on the project

Both the council and residents welcome the project.

One citizen said:

this is a really good use of the space, flexible working for collaboration and individual focus time.

The investment has also been welcomed by Councillor Karen May, Leader of Bromsgrove District Council. She said:

We are totally ecstatic that we have received this huge amount of funding. It is great news for Bromsgrove and means we can get on with making our vision, to massively enhance the prosperity and economic development of the district, a wonderful reality.
January 17, 2023
PRESS RELEASE : £20 million Levelling Up transformation for North Portsmouth [January 2023]
The press release issued by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities on 17 January 2023.

North Portsmouth is the gateway to the city, harbour, and the wider region. Now, over £20 million from the Levelling Up Fund will regenerate this area of the city.

UK’s longest urban park

The Linear Park will:
- connect the West of Portsmouth to the Eastern edge
- include enhanced cycling and walking facilities
Investing in Hilsea Lido

The levelling up investment will redevelop the lido to include:
- good quality changing facilities
- children’s water play
- event space
- spectator areas
Portsmouth International Port

Portsmouth International Port offers more destinations to Europe than any other UK port. Building on this success, the redevelopment will let the port manage an estimated 250,000 extra passengers a year.

The new port terminal will also include:
- an exclusive cruise lounge
- a new check-in area
- a sky garden
With these works passengers will be able to enjoy a modern and accessible port.

Councillor Gerald Vernon-Jackson, Leader of Portsmouth City Council:

This development is fantastic news for the city, providing employment opportunities and promoting Portsmouth’s offer as the UK’s leading marine and maritime city. We expect the improved facilities to kick start further investment in the city, from hotel capacity to an increase in tourism spending. We are proud of our position as the UK’s most successful local authority owned port, and this new extension will see the port go from strength to strength.
January 17, 2023
Tan Dhesi – 2023 Parliamentary Question on Inflation in Education

The parliamentary question asked by Tan Dhesi, the Labour MP for Slough, in the House of Commons on 16 January 2023.

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Slough) (Lab)

What recent assessment her Department has made of the impact of inflation on (a) school budgets and (b) the costs to parents associated with the school day.

The Secretary of State for Education (Gillian Keegan)

Schools, like families and businesses across the world, are facing global inflationary pressures. The Prime Minister has pledged to halve inflation, and school funding will increase by £2 billion next year as well as the year after that. This will be the highest real-terms spending on schools in history, totalling £58.8 billion by 2024-25. In 2010, school funding stood at £35 billion, so we will be delivering a 68% increase in cash terms. The Government have also announced further support for parents worth £26 billion next year.

Mr Dhesi

In addition to having grave concerns about recruiting and retaining teachers, schools in Slough and across our country continue to struggle with their budgets, with a quarter of primary school senior leaders reporting that they have had to cut outings and trips due to budgetary constraints. How will the Government ensure that children do not miss out on these vital opportunities?

Gillian Keegan

The autumn statement announced significant additional investment in core schools funding. The core schools budget will increase by £2 billion in 2023-24 and 2024-25. That will be paid into schools’ bank accounts in April, and I am sure they will welcome that additional funding.

January 17, 2023
Zarah Sultana – 2023 Parliamentary Question on Free School Meals

The parliamentary question asked by Zarah Sultana, the Labour MP for Coventry South, in the House of Commons on 16 January 2023.

Zarah Sultana (Coventry South) (Lab)

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of extending the eligibility criteria for free school meals.

The Minister of State, Department for Education (Nick Gibb)

The Government support the provision of nutritious food in schools, which ensures that children are well-nourished, develop healthy eating habits and can concentrate and learn. Some 1.9 million pupils are eligible for free school meals. That is an increase from 2021, when 1.7 million pupils were eligible. In large part, the increase is due to protections put in place to support families as they move to universal credit. In addition, 1.25 million pupils are eligible under the universal infant free school meal programme.

Zarah Sultana

Each month, 4 million children experience food insecurity, go to bed hungry and set off to school on an empty stomach. To tackle this injustice, my free school meals for all Bill would guarantee that every child in England had a hot, healthy meal each day, just as they do in Scotland and Wales. It could be paid for twice over by removing the private schools’ £1.7 billion tax break, a move that the Conservative party on the Government Benches blocked last week. My Bill is due to get its Second Reading on Friday. Will the Minister back my Bill, or does he believe that protecting tax breaks for elite private schools is more important than feeding hungry children?

Nick Gibb

The Government have extended free school meals to more groups of children than any Government over the past century, including Labour Governments, increasing numbers from 1.7 million to 1.9 million children. This Government introduced an extension to 85,000 students in further education colleges, new eligibility for some children of families with no recourse to public funds, and a scheme for 1.25 million children in infant schools.

Mr Speaker

I call the Scottish National party spokesperson.

Carol Monaghan (Glasgow North West) (SNP)

The Levelling Up Secretary said in October that extending free school meal provision would be the most timely, effective and targeted of all public health interventions that this Government could make. The Scottish Government have already committed to universal free school meals for primary children. Does the Minister agree with his colleague? If not, what targeted interventions would he make to tackle child hunger?

Nick Gibb

We are spending £1.6 billion a year on free school meals for children. We want to make sure that that funding is targeted at the most needy. That is precisely what is happening. We accept the point, and I agree with the hon. Lady that it is important that free school meals are provided to children from disadvantaged backgrounds and those who cannot afford meals at lunchtime—and we are doing that. As I said, we have increased the number of children eligible for benefit-related free school meals from 1.7 million to 1.9 million pupils.

January 17, 2023
Miriam Cates – 2023 Parliamentary Question on Political Impartiality Guidance for Schools

The parliamentary question asked by Miriam Cates, the Conservative MP for Penistone and Stocksbridge, in the House of Commons on 16 January 2023.

Miriam Cates (Penistone and Stocksbridge) (Con)

What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of political impartiality guidance for schools.

The Minister of State, Department for Education (Nick Gibb)

The law is clear that schools must prohibit the promotion of partisan political views and take steps to ensure the balanced presentation of opposing views on political issues when they are taught. Guidance to schools on political impartiality was published in February 2022. It summarises the legal position and states that clear and proportionate steps should be taken to ensure that those legal duties are met.

Miriam Cates

You do not have to be a historian, Mr Speaker, to understand the dangers of indoctrinating children, yet YouGov polling for Policy Exchange shows that the majority of UK children are being taught political ideology as fact in school. That includes gender ideology that children can be born in the wrong body and men can have babies; critical race theories that race is a social construct; or sex positivity, such as in the document I have here that instructs teachers of children with learning disabilities to simulate sexual arousal on anatomically correct dolls while playing sexy music in class. These are not isolated incidents but are endemic in our schools. The guidance is not working. What does the Minister intend to do about it?

Nick Gibb

The guidance on political impartiality makes it very clear that when teaching about sensitive political issues relating to discrimination teachers should be mindful of avoiding the promotion of partisan views or presenting contested theories as fact. Schools need to ensure that any resources used in the classroom, particularly those produced by an external organisation, are age-appropriate, suitable and politically impartial. Schools should consult parents and share lesson materials when parents ask to see them.

January 17, 2023
Daniel Kawczynski – 2023 Parliamentary Question on the Holocaust Memorial Day in Schools

The parliamentary question asked by Daniel Kawczynski, the Conservative MP for Shrewsbury and Atcham, in the House of Commons on 16 January 2023.

Daniel Kawczynski (Shrewsbury and Atcham) (Con)

What steps her Department is taking to commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day in schools.

The Minister of State, Department for Education (Robert Halfon)

Many schools and colleges already mark Holocaust Memorial Day—I have attended such a remembrance service at Harlow College—and they work closely with the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust and the Holocaust Educational Trust, two institutions that the Government support. That is all the more important given the 128 incidents of antisemitism in one year in our higher education institutions, and the fact that, sadly, such incidents are now at an all-time high.

Daniel Kawczynski

As well as educating children about the horrors of the holocaust and the second world war, can we take the opportunity to educate children about the tremendous courage, bravery and sacrifices of the Righteous Among the Nations? Many people on the continent gave up their lives to protect their Jewish friends and neighbours. One example was a member of my family, Jan Kawczynski, his wife Helena and their 13-year-old daughter Magdalena, who were all shot by the Germans for protecting and hiding their Jewish friends and neighbours on their estate in western Poland. As well as educating children about the misery of the holocaust, we must give them inspiration from the fact that many of our brothers and sisters in occupied Europe made the ultimate sacrifice to protect friends and neighbours of the Jewish faith.

Robert Halfon

Hear, hear. It was very moving to hear of the experience of my hon. Friend’s family, and I entirely agree with him: we must teach and remind people that there were many righteous Gentiles who suffered while doing everything possible to save Jews. A famous Polish lady, Irena Sendler, saved 2,000 Jewish children from the Warsaw ghettos, and was remembered in a special exhibition in the House of Commons in 2018, which I was pleased to attend. My hon. Friend has made a powerful point, and I am sure that schools up and down the country will be listening to what he says.

January 17, 2023
James Wild – 2023 Parliamentary Question on School Buildings

The parliamentary question asked by James Wild, the Conservative MP for North West Norfolk, in the House of Commons on 16 January 2023.

James Wild (North West Norfolk) (Con)

What steps her Department is taking to improve school buildings.

Sara Britcliffe (Hyndburn) (Con)

What steps her Department is taking to improve school buildings.

The Secretary of State for Education (Gillian Keegan)

In December, I announced a further 239 schools that will benefit from large-scale rebuilding and refurbishment projects as part of our school rebuilding programme, which will transform 500 schools across the country. I saw the huge impact that our investments are having at Coundon Court, where I met the headteacher Mr Heal and his students, who were very excited at the prospect of their new classrooms and design and tech and science labs. As Conservatives, we are investing in the future not only of the next generation, but of generations to come. On top of that, we have allocated more than £13 billion to improving school buildings since 2015, including £1.8 billion this year.

James Wild

I welcome the recent addition of the King Edward VII Academy to the school rebuilding programme, following the inclusion of Smithdon High School in an earlier round, and the new investment that is coming to North West Norfolk. However, given Smithdon’s grade II* listed status and the complexity that it brings, can my right hon. Friend assure me that funding for the school is protected? Will Ministers meet me to ensure that we get the heritage and other permissions we need as rapidly as possible?

Gillian Keegan

My Department is working closely with heritage and planning officers to ensure that we can address the condition of Smithdon High School as quickly as possible, while recognising the listed status of the buildings. We are working on the project with Historic England and the Twentieth Century Society, and we would be very happy to meet my hon. Friend and provide an update on progress.

Sara Britcliffe

In Hyndburn and Haslingden, we received the fantastic news just before Christmas that the Hyndburn Academy and Haslingden High School will be included in the next round of the school rebuilding programme. I eagerly await the next round so that schools in my patch, such as The Hollins, can apply. Can my right hon. Friend confirm whether school rebuilding programme funding can be used, in conjunction with other investment, for initiatives that benefit not only the school but the wider community?

Gillian Keegan

I thank my hon. Friend for her excellent question. We encourage schools to play a positive role in their community, and many choose to provide access to sports and other facilities. The school rebuilding programme directly commissions projects rather than providing funding to schools, so, where feasible, we include additional facilities beyond the scope of a project, if it is funded by the local trust or the local authority. We are interested in making sure that school facilities benefit the wider community.

Valerie Vaz (Walsall South) (Lab)

The Minister of State, the right hon. Member for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton (Nick Gibb), visited Joseph Leckie Academy, which really helped, and I had a good meeting with the heads of Joseph Leckie and Blue Coat Church of England Academies along with my friend the hon. Member for Worcester (Mr Walker). However, the schools still lost out. Will the Secretary of State, or one of her Ministers, meet those two heads and me to find out why on earth they cannot succeed in obtaining funds for vital repairs?

Gillian Keegan

Obviously some schools are disappointed that they did not have access to those funds. We have announced funding for 400 schools so far and a further 100 will be included in future rounds, but we would be happy to meet the right hon. Lady.

Munira Wilson (Twickenham) (LD)

A Schools Week investigation found that at least 40 schools contained so-called aero-concrete, while 150 more needed further investigation. Officials described the concrete as

“life-expired and liable to collapse”,

which is extremely alarming. NHS England says that it will take until 2035 to remove aero-concrete from all our hospitals; will we be waiting as long as that for it to be removed from our schools?

Gillian Keegan

Last year the Government published updated guidance on identifying and managing reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete. In March 2022, all schools were asked to complete a questionnaire about their knowledge of RAAC and its presence in their buildings and asking how, if they had it, they were managing it. We help schools where its presence is confirmed by providing the appropriate technical support, and we want to ensure that we continue that programme.

January 17, 2023
Theresa Villiers – 2023 Parliamentary Question on Maintained Nursery Schools

The parliamentary question asked by Theresa Villiers, the Conservative MP for Chipping Barnet, in the House of Commons on 16 January 2023.

Theresa Villiers (Chipping Barnet) (Con)

What steps she is taking to support maintained nursery schools.

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education (Claire Coutinho)

Maintained nursery schools make an invaluable contribution to improving the lives of disadvantaged children. We are investing an additional £10 million in their supplementary funding from 2023-24, taking the total to approximately £70 million. We are reforming the distribution of the funding to make it fairer, ensuring that all authorities with maintained nursery schools receive supplementary funding.

Theresa Villiers

I warmly welcome that extra funding, because it means for the first time that maintained nursery schools in Barnet will get a share of the supplementary funding. Will the Minister join me in welcoming that funding and express her strong support for the maintained nursery school sector in the future?

Claire Coutinho

My right hon. Friend has consistently and passionately campaigned for the maintained nursery school sector. I agree that it is doing an excellent job, not only in supporting some of the most disadvantaged children, but in sharing expertise and knowledge with other providers.

Wera Hobhouse (Bath) (LD)

Sadly, Midford Road Nursery in my constituency was forced to close its doors. Staff shortages were the major reason. Many nurseries in Bath face similar problems, and parents struggle to find alternatives. What advice would the Minister give to parents in Bath who are struggling to find a nursery?

Claire Coutinho

We have increased the funding set out for early years by about half a billion pounds since 2020-21. I agree that workforce is an issue; we are looking at recruitment and retention very carefully and will be setting out proposals as and when we can.

January 17, 2023