Tag: Department for Education

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 22 February 2011.

Sir

I am sorry that Fiona Millar constantly seeks to diminish the efforts of dedicated parents, teachers and charities who simply want to improve education for children in their area (Fiona Millar ‘Why free schools will cost our children and society dear’, Yorkshire Post 11 February 2011). Contrary to what she claims, free schools will not allow ‘covert selection’, cause a threat to community cohesion or receive preferential funding. They will follow the same legal admissions procedures as other schools, and will be monitored by Ofsted and the government.

They will simply be state-funded schools established where there is local demand from parents for a good and new type of school for their children.

The truth is that top-down solutions of the sort favoured by Fiona Millar have not worked, despite the best efforts of teachers and heads. By freeing up the system we are giving local groups of parents and teachers the opportunity to increase choice and raise standards. The fact that we have had such a strong response – over 250 proposals already shows that there is a great deal of enthusiasm for the idea of free schools. I am glad to be on the side of parents, charities and committed teachers who are trying to make things better and am sorry that the forces of conservatism represented by Fiona Millar want to snuff that diversity out.

Lord Hill

Schools Minister

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 18 February 2011.

Responding to a letter from the National Secular Society to the Secretary of State, shared with the media, about the protection of non-religious staff in faith schools, a Department for Education spokeswoman said:

We are disappointed with the misleading claims from the National Secular Society (NSS). The clause highlighted by the NSS is in fact there to ensure that the statutory rights of staff are protected when a school converts to Academy status.

The Education Bill does not reduce protections for teachers within faith schools that convert into Academies and we are confident that the Bill does not breach any domestic or European law.

Additional background:

A combination of provisions within the Bill, the Academies Act Commencement Order, Funding Agreements and the Equalities legislation provide protection for teachers when schools convert to academy status.

If, as can only happen with the agreement of the Secretary of State, an academy later changes from a model similar to voluntary-controlled to voluntary-aided teachers will be protected through a transitional provision. There have been six such conversions in the since 2007.

We consider that three main points are raised and our responses to these are as follows:

Where a voluntary controlled or foundation school with religious character converts to Academy status, clause 58 of the Education Bill continues the protection of non-reserved teachers that existed before the conversion. The protection is afforded to such schools in the meantime by way of transitional provisions in the Academies Act 2010 (Commencement and Transitional Provisions) Order 2010. Therefore it is not right to say that teachers in such schools are not currently protected if their schools convert to Academy status. The position of future staff is also protected in the funding agreement.

After conversion, it is possible for such an Academy to change its governance arrangements so that they reflect the maintained school voluntary aided model, in the same way that it is possible for a voluntary controlled or foundation school in the maintained sector to become a voluntary aided school. In practice this is rare – there have been 75 incidences of conversion from VC to VA model over the last 10 years.

Just as that process requires consultation in the maintained sector, we would expect any Academy wishing to make such a change to set out their business case fully and ensure a wide and thorough consultation was carried out. The Secretary of State would only approve an amendment to the Funding Agreement or the Memorandum and Articles if he was satisfied that sufficient consultation had taken place in the case of such a change and that the responses to the consultation showed that such a change was supported. If the Secretary of State agreed to change the governance arrangements of an Academy a deed of variation would be needed to make these amendments.

The Bill enables the Secretary of State to make an Order to disapply new section 124AA of the 1998 Act in the case of such a change, which would mean that section 124A of the 1998 Act would apply so that the school could lawfully discriminate in respect of up to 100% of its teachers on religious grounds. However, any Order made would include transitional provisions to continue the protection of existing non-reserved teachers. In the case of any change of category from voluntary controlled to voluntary aided in the maintained sector, it is secondary legislation that provides for the protection of non-reserved teachers, not primary legislation (The School Organisation (Prescribed Alterations) Regulations 2007, paragraph 55 of Schedule 3). Therefore, we do not see any need to put this on the face of primary legislation.

The protections afforded to staff at community and secular voluntary and foundation maintained schools against discrimination on grounds of religious opinions etc. in current legislation are not applied to independent schools. Academies have existed since 2000 and we are not aware that this issue has been a problem in practice in this time. We are content to rely on the general Equality legislation in respect of such teachers.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 16 February 2011.

The Department for Education has confirmed today that Capita Business Services Ltd has been selected as the preferred supplier to administer the Teachers’ Pension Scheme (TPS) from October 2011.

The TPS is the second largest pension scheme in the country with 1.6 million members and has been administered by Capita since 1996. The new contract, worth £80 million, is for a period of seven years, with an option to extend by up to three further years.

The contract was awarded after a fair and open competition, using the competitive dialogue procurement route, with other strong contenders involved throughout.

Companies interested in administering the scheme had to demonstrate their ability to deliver a high quality, flexible, innovative and value for money administration service. The service requirement also supports the Coalition Government’s commitment to encourage saving for retirement and the implementation of changes to the TPS that might result from recommendations by Lord Hutton’s Independent Public Sector Pension Commission.

Capita has offered a solution which will see the effective delivery of the services, with continuous improvement and innovation throughout the life of the contract to reflect the challenges associated with the pension environment. The Department will work with Capita to build on their achievements to date in delivering the requirements of this new contract.

Further information

1. The first administration outsourcing contract for seven years was awarded to Capita 1996 following a competitive procurement. In 2003 Capita Hartshead were re-appointed following another procurement competition. This contract was for seven years, with the option to extend by up to three year. In 2008, following the undertaking of an options exercise, the Department extended the contract by one year, to 30 September 2011.
2. The Department placed a notice in the European Journal on 18 September 2009 inviting expressions of interest in the contract to administer the Teachers’ Pension Scheme.
3. The appointment of Capita has been approved by a Project Board and the Department for Education’s Permanent Secretary, with Ministers being informed.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 15 February 2011.

Responding the Royal Society’s report on science and maths education, Schools Minister Nick Gibb said:

“We echo the concerns of the Royal Society about the need to improve the teaching and take-up of science and mathematics in our schools. As other countries make vast improvements in science and maths education, the UK continues to fall down international league tables and we now languish at 27th in the world for maths, and 16th for science – falling 19 and 14 places respectively in under 10 years.

The Schools White Paper reflects the importance this Government attaches to these subjects by exploring ways in which to attract the best graduates in science and maths into the teaching profession as well as improving continued professional development for teachers of all subjects.

We are also seeking the advice of universities and learned societies about how the Government can strengthen science and maths in the National Curriculum and restore rigour in GCSE and A Level exams. The English Baccalaureate includes mathematics and science which will drive up participation rates and attainment in these subjects pre and post-16. We are already committed to looking at new ways to encourage the take up of science qualifications, in particular physics, at all levels.”

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 11 February 2011.

The government has today published the findings from the review of the Vetting and Barring Scheme.

Children’s Minister Tim Loughton said:

“Protecting children and keeping them safe remains our top priority, but it’s also important that well-meaning adults are not put off working or volunteering with children.

The new system will be less bureaucratic and less intimidating. It will empower organisations to ask the right questions and make all the appropriate pre-employment checks, and encourage everyone to be vigilant.

This is a commonsense and proportionate approach which will ensure that children are properly protected without driving a wedge between them and adults.”

The Vetting and Barring Scheme remodelling review: report and recommendations is available from the Home Office.

A parallel Review of the criminal records regime led by Mrs Sunita Mason, the Government’s independent adviser on criminality information management, has also completed its first phase and the findings of that review are available online.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 11 February 2011.

Michael Gove presents award for Winkler’s tireless campaigning to support the earlier identification of children with SEN or disabilities.

Welcoming the award, Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Education said:

I congratulate Henry Winkler on this much deserved award. As an accomplished actor, author and director he has not only shown people what it’s like to live with a disability, but more importantly he has inspired young people with disabilities to make their dreams a reality.

Whilst many will remember Henry as ‘The Fonz’, in recent years he has devoted himself to improving opportunities for children and adults who have learning difficulties. He has been awarded the OBE for his tireless campaigning to support the earlier identification and better understanding of children who have a special educational need or disability (SEND). I give Henry my wholehearted thanks for the time he has spent in this country visiting schools, inspiring children and raising their aspirations.

The Government is looking at a radical shake-up of the SEND system to give children with SEND and their parents a much bigger say in the type of support they need, and to make sure they achieve their full potential. It’s thanks to people like Henry that we can give children, parents and professionals a much greater understanding of how the system can work for them.

Further information

Henry Winkler was nominated for an honour by the editor of First News Nicky Cox MBE, the Dyslexia Trust and the Teaching Awards. The Department supported the nomination.

Henry was diagnosed with severe dyslexia in his thirties. He has co-authored 17 books based on a child with dyslexia, Hank Zipzer.

Last year he fronted the First News ‘My Way’ campaign to improve perceptions of children with special educational needs (SEN) and disabilities and raise their aspirations, and he worked with the Dyslexia Trust. This year, the National Teaching Awards presented a new SEN award with prize money donated by Henry.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 11 February 2011.

The government has today responded to the judgment following judicial reviews from 6 local authorities on the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme.

A Department for Education spokesperson said:

“We are delighted that the judge did not call into question the decision to end the wasteful and bureaucratic Building Schools for the Future programme. On the substantive points he concluded that it was a rational decision and that the authorities involved had no expectation of being allowed to proceed with their projects.”

Further information

Mr Justice Holman today found that the Secretary of State’s decision to end the BSF programme was rational and the claimants had no legitimate expectation of receiving funding.

The judge set out that the Secretary of State’s decision ‘is not open to legal challenge on the ground of irrationality, however that argument is developed or put’. He also said that further examination of the rationality of the decision would ‘be a grave and exorbitant usurpation… of the minister’s political role.’

Mr Justice Holman also concluded that ‘there was no promise or expectation’ that any of the claimants’ projects would definitely proceed.
The Secretary of State will now look again at his decision with regard to these authorities with an open mind, taking representations from them. The judge set out, however, that ‘the final decision on any project still rests with him and… no one should gain false hope from this decision’.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 8 February 2011.

Baroness Morgan of Huyton was today named the new chairman of Ofsted.

Education Secretary Michael Gove, who made the appointment, said Baroness Morgan would play a key role in ensuring Ofsted met Government priorities of focusing on pupil attainment, teaching and learning, leadership, and behaviour and safety.

Michael Gove said:

I am delighted to appoint Baroness Morgan to this high-profile and vital post.

Sally is a hugely talented individual whose passion is improving education. She will ensure Ofsted focuses on improving our schools so we can match the world’s best, and will help us make opportunity more equal for the poorest.

Baroness Morgan said:

I am delighted to be taking up this post. Ofsted has a crucial role to play in the drive to raise standards, especially for disadvantaged students. Teachers, parents, pupils, the local community and government all need to be able to rely on the assessment of a school’s performance. Above all, they want to be confident about the quality of teaching and leadership – the bedrock of all successful schools.

The previous chairman of Ofsted was Zenna Atkins, whose term ended on 31 August 2010. John Roberts, an existing board member, was appointed interim chairman from 1 September for up to six months.

Baroness Morgan of Huyton has been an adviser to the global board of ARK, a children’s charity, since 2005. She serves on a number of public bodies including the advisory committee of the Institute of Education, and is chairman of the Morgan Inquiry to encourage 18- to 24-year-olds to volunteer. She is a school governor, has a PGCE from London University and an MA in Comparative Education from the Institute of Education, and she has worked as a secondary school teacher. She was previously political secretary to Tony Blair, director of government relations at 10 Downing Street and a minster of state for equalities at the Cabinet Office. She was created a life peer in 2001.

The baroness is due to start at Ofsted on 1 March.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 7 February 2011.

The Secretary of State has responded to Darren Henley’s review into music in schools with a pledge to end the ‘musical divide’ between those wealthier children with access to great musical education and children in disadvantaged areas. To ensure that young people from every background have access to quality music education, Michael Gove announced that £82.5 million would be given to music services across England next year.

The money will be used to make opportunity more equal in music education and to enhance the prestige and esteem of music teaching as a career route for professional musicians.

The Secretary of State will implement Darren Henley’s ideas on increasing access to music education, including:

• getting more top music graduates and performers into teaching through Teach First
• producing a comprehensive national plan for music education setting out how children of all ages and ability can receive the best possible music education
• moving to a national funding formula for allocating funding for music

The government will publish a national plan for music education later this year, taking forward Darren’s work. This will set out the government’s commitment to give all young people the best possible music education.

It will take forward the recommendations for schools to create more opportunities for live music and for pupils to be able to join in vocal and musical ensembles outside the classroom.

Michael Gove said:

Music has the power to touch the soul. It is a universal language understood by people of every culture. And it gives us all the chance to be transported by beauty.

But access to the best musical education is not universal and the opportunity to benefit from great instrumental tuition is not shared equally. Many disadvantaged children are denied the music education they deserve. And that’s why we need to bridge this musical divide.

All young people should have the chance to benefit from the opportunities that music can bring – not simply those pupils from wealthy backgrounds whose parents can afford to pay for lessons. So I am delighted to announce £82.5 million funding for music education for next year – protected to ensure it goes to the front line.

We know that currently in some areas of the country music education is simply not up to scratch. That is why we asked Darren Henley to review the state of music provision. And he’s done a superb job. Not least in showing how great musicians can help us tackle the musical divide.

Teach First already does fantastic work attracting some of this country’s most impressive graduates into teaching. So I am pleased that, in line with Darren’s recommendation, they have agreed to work with us to bring many of the exceptional musicians in our universities and conservatoires into our schools.

Darren Henley, Managing Director of Classic FM, welcomed the government’s commitment to music education. He said:

This is a real opportunity for everyone involved in working in music to help to ensure that we have a generation of children who are both musically literate and music lovers. We want to ensure that the music education that every child receives is excellent in every way. And we want to make it possible for every child to be able to progress through a music education system that enables them to achieve their full musical potential.

I hope that my review will provide a basis for the thousands of passionate and dedicated professionals who work in music education every day to work together in partnership to develop a vibrant future for music education in this country. I would like to thank the hundreds of individuals and organisations who have helped me to shape the 36 recommendations contained in my review. I’m also very grateful to Michael Gove and to Ed Vaizey for the strong commitment to music which they have both personally shown in today’s announcement.

Culture Minister Ed Vaizey said:

Darren Henley has done a fantastic job helping us realise our goal of making sure that every child can experience the joy of music. We want all children to have the opportunity to learn an instrument and to sing, not just those whose family can afford private tuition. There’s no question that learning about music offers huge rewards, unlocking a lifetime of cultural pleasure and teaching vital life skills too.

I’m delighted but not surprised that the contribution that our world-leading orchestras, musicians and cultural institutions make to children’s musical development has been brought centre stage. I look forward to working closely with Michael Gove in the coming months to realise our ambitions, not just on music but cultural education more broadly.

The Federation of Music Services (FMS) also welcomed the announcement today.

Virginia Haworth-Galt, Chief Executive of FMS, said:

The Federation of Music Services believes this is a landmark report. As music teachers, we see every day the outstanding contribution music makes to a child’s development. Darren Henley has argued passionately for the value of music education and has provided clear recommendations to ensure that children, wherever they live in England, can benefit from it.

We congratulate the government, led by Michael Gove and Ed Vaizey, for responding so positively to the report and listening to us and others across the sector. We welcome the news that music services will receive the same level of funding from the government and urge all local authorities to continue their financial support too.

By backing the report’s recommendation for a national plan for music education, the government has also shown its commitment to work with us, schools and all music educators to make Darren Henley’s vision a reality – to provide all children with the music education they deserve.

Brett Wigdortz, Teach First Founder and CEO, said:

Teach First recognises the value of music education to children from low income communities. Teach First already provides a small number of its participants as music teachers who work with pupils in schools in challenging circumstances. We would be very happy to work with schools and music institutions to establish the level of need in our eligible schools and how we can best recruit and train more inspirational and effective music teachers.

The Secretary of State asked Darren Henley to review music education last September. His remit was to look at:

• how to make sure music funding benefits more young people
• improving the music opportunities young people receive both in and out of school
• improving the teacher training and professional development offered to music teachers
• how to attract more music professionals into schools
• how best to offer quality live music experiences to all young people

Darren Henley has made 36 recommendations for central and local government, and for the music sector itself.

To provide certainty to music services, and to demonstrate the government’s ongoing commitment to music education, the Secretary of State has confirmed that funding for music education for 2011 to 2012 will be £82.5 million – the same amount as went to local authorities in 2010 to 2011. The Department will then work with music services over the next year to manage future budget pressures.

In line with Darren Henley’s recommendations, the government will also start the move towards a national formula for music education funding this year but we will ensure that no local authority loses more than 10% of its central funding in this first year.

The government intends that the majority of funding will go to front-line delivery of music education. However, knowing that schools and teachers value the resources provided by ‘Sing Up’, the Department for Education is providing some funding for 2011 to 2012 to enable a sustainable future for ‘Sing Up’ to be developed. The government will also commit a further year’s funding of up to £500,000 in total for the current ‘In Harmony’ projects so that the lessons being learnt from this approach to community development can be better understood. The government also urges individuals and organisations to pledge financial support to ensure the future of ‘In Harmony’.

Julian Lloyd Webber said:

I applaud the Government’s commitment to bring music to every child and it is wonderful news that it will continue to support the ‘In Harmony’ project which has already had such a massive impact in its communities. The door is also now open for ‘In Harmony’ to seek funding from other sources which provides a fantastic opportunity for organisations and individuals to invest in our children’s future.

David Grant, top TV vocal coach and music producer, said:

I am both pleased and relieved that the funding for music education is being protected and I hope, as suggested in the report, that the Department for Education find the most efficient way of ensuring the impact of the money allocated is maximized.

I am delighted that the report recommends that music remains accessible to all and advances the case for its rightful place as an essential and beneficial part of a rounded education. The learning of music helps prepare young people not just for the passing of exams, but for the journey through life.

Alfie Boe, tenor, said:

I know just how important it is to make sure that young people, whatever their background, have the chance to develop their musical talent and to have people around them to nurture and support that talent. It can’t be a matter of chance. I’m pleased that the government today is making a commitment to making this happen.

Howard Goodall CBE, National Singing Ambassador said:

The Henley Review is realistic, thorough and extremely clear in its assessment and its recommendations, offering unambiguous endorsement of the fine music education already available, in patches, across the country, whilst providing signposts for further, wider improvement.

No-one in music education would claim that the current infrastructure is perfect, nor that there are not gaps and weaknesses in provision. The Review, which I welcome, can be summarised in one unequivocal truth about music education in England: namely, that much has been achieved through enlightened government investment in recent years but that moving forward with purpose is as much about accepting that there is room for a more coherent, efficient structure in the years ahead, as it is not allowing those achievements to be dismantled.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 4 February 2011.

Business Secretary Vince Cable and Skills Minister John Hayes urged more employers to drive economic growth by creating a new generation of skilled workers, while underlining the government’s commitment to increase the budget for Apprenticeships to over £1,400 million in 2011-12.

Dr Cable welcomed the expansion of British Airways successful engineering apprenticeship scheme, to take on 120 students this year. This will give more students the opportunity to become full time employees of British Airways.

Ministers also praised UK firms including British Gas, Superdrug and Procter and Gamble, which between them will create thousands of new apprenticeship places this year. BT, which hosted the event, is offering 250 places across the Group, and Jaguar Land Rover will create 1,200 new Apprenticeship places.

Calling on firms to follow the lead of these employers, Dr Cable said that the Government wanted to work with business to deliver 100,000 more apprentices by 2014. He welcomed the news that 12,000 apprentices would complete their training at Morrison’s this year.

Ahead of the launch of Apprenticeship Week in London, Dr Cable said that investment in training the next generation of highly skilled workers would be key to sustainable economic growth, and called for an end to outdated values that have seen vocational learning branded a poor relation to academic study.

Business Secretary Vince Cable said:

“I want to reinforce the message to business and young people that apprenticeships are a first-class way to start a career. That is why my department has pledged to work to create some 75,000 additional adult places than those promised by the previous government.

“Some of the most prestigious companies in England – large and small, public and private – employ apprentices and benefit from doing so. More than 30% of Rolls-Royce apprentices have progressed to senior management roles within the company. And 80% of those who employ apprentices agree that they make the workplace more productive.

“I’m calling on more businesses to follow this lead.”

Dr Cable will go on to visit apprentices at HMS Sultan, a large apprentice training base in Gosport, Portsmouth to meet apprentices in a range of disciplines, including engineering for the Royal Navy and Network Rail.

Skills Minister John Hayes, who launched the Skills Strategy in November with ambitious plans for apprenticeships at its heart, announced that apprenticeship frameworks would be renamed to confer greater recognition and status on those who successfully complete their Apprenticeships – and to make it clear that apprentices can progress to higher stages of learning through the apprenticeships programme, including to university.

Level 2 (GCSE level equivalent) apprenticeships will now be known as Intermediate Level Apprenticeships. Level 3 (A level equivalent) will become Advanced Level Apprenticeships and Higher Apprenticeships will remain unchanged. The UK Commission for Employment and Skills is also working with Sector Skills Councils to develop more Higher Apprenticeships (Level 4) frameworks.

Further Education, Skills and Lifelong Learning Minister John Hayes said:

“Our ultimate goal remains to see apprentices achieve equivalent esteem and status with university graduates, so that a place on an apprenticeship scheme is as valued as one at a university.

“In government, I have sought to characterise our policy by its commitment to apprenticeships. In my role as Minister at the Department for Education, I will work with the National Apprenticeship Service to bring forward plans for graduation ceremonies for apprentices and their families, together with an apprentice honour roll.

“BIS and the National Apprenticeship Service will facilitate the creation of alumni network, mirroring those currently used by graduates.”

Mr Hayes is also working with the Department for Work and Pensions to look at how people on unemployment benefits could be offered apprenticeship places as well as working with ministerial colleagues in the Department for Work and Pensions and Department for Education to help reduce youth unemployment and disengagement.

This week Mr Hayes will be meeting with Peter Jones, Trade Unions, and national companies to promote National Apprenticeships Week.

BT chairman Sir Michael Rake said:

“Apprenticeships are undoubtedly good for BT’s business and play a key role in ensuring that we maintain and develop a highly skilled workforce. More importantly, for young people, they’re a great way to transform their raw enthusiasm into valuable skills that that will serve them well wherever their careers take them.”