Tag: Gordon Marsden

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2016-03-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what plans his Department has to promote postgraduate loans in 2016-17; and what expenditure his Department has allocated for such promotion.

Joseph Johnson

The Department is working alongside its delivery partner The Student Loans Company and stakeholders such as Universities UK and Prospects to ensure the correct information and guidance is readily available. The Student Loans Company produces information and guidance materials for institutions and prospective students and expenditure for 2016/17 is expected to be in the region of £120,000.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2016-04-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in the Department for Work and Pensions on steps to tackle recent reductions in the number of apprenticeship vacancies.

Nick Boles

Latest data shows that the number of vacancies posted on the ‘Find an Apprenticeship’ website have increased each year from 71,060 in 2010/11 to 200,460 in 2014/15. The data does not reflect all vacancies as some employers choose alternative methods for advertising their apprenticeship opportunities.

We are working closely with the Department for Work and Pensions to ensure that jobseekers are aware of apprenticeship vacancies. Vacancies posted on the ‘Find an Apprenticeship’ website are visible to jobseekers on Universal Jobmatch.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2016-04-28.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether the Further Education Act 1992 gives HEFCE current statutory responsibility for degree standards.

Joseph Johnson

The Further and Higher Education Act 1992 enables the Privy Council to bestow degree awarding powers on institutions which provide higher education, and foundation degree awarding powers on institutions within the further education sector. The Privy Council bestows these powers upon the advice of the Secretary of State who, in turn, obtains information and advice from HEFCE and the Quality Assurance Agency. HEFCE’s role in this process is explained in government guidance. Guidance for foundation degrees is available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/foundation-degree-awarding-powers.

Guidance for other degrees can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/taught-and-research-degree-awarding-powers

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2016-05-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what measures she plans to take to support further education students with additional travel costs arising from mergers of institutions as a result of area reviews of post-16 education.

Mr Sam Gyimah

Area reviews of post-16 education are focused on meeting the needs of learners in each area, and because they are overseen by steering groups including Chairs and Principals of colleges as well as local authorities, they are well placed to do this. The steering group’s discussions and recommendations are based on the best available evidence, including an analysis of local economic and educational needs and the mapping of current curriculum provision and travel to learn patterns. Recommendations made by the steering group, including mergers, should improve access to better quality teaching delivered by sustainable institutions focused on meeting learner need.

Local authorities are members of area review steering groups and have statutory responsibility for transport to education and training for 16- to 19-year-olds. We expect local authorities to make reasonable decisions about the support they offer based on the needs of their young people, local transport infrastructure and the resources they have available. Authorities will need to take account of the recommendations arising from each area review and the impact on transport for learners. We will reflect this in the next version of the post-16 transport statutory guidance which we plan to update in the autumn.

Most young people already have access to some kind of discount or concession on bus or train travel, either from their local authority, local transport providers, or from their school or college, and we would expect this to continue following any changes to post-16 provision as a result of area reviews. The 16 to 19 Bursary Fund will continue to be available to support those young people who most need it, with the costs of attending post-16 education or training such as transport and meals.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2016-06-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the operational readiness of the Student Loans Company to administer postgraduate loan applications between June and October 2016.

Joseph Johnson

The Student Loans Company will open for applications for the new master’s loan for postgraduate study from the end of June 2016 and the Department has been working closely with the company to ensure its systems and operational staff are ready to manage the loan’s administration.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2015-11-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the likely impact of proposed changes to student loan repayment thresholds on repayment regimes for students who take out 24+ Advanced Learner Loan and who study for a Level 3 qualification who then study for and complete an HE qualification.

Nick Boles

The impact of freezing the threshold for students who take out 24+ Advanced Learning Loans to study Level 3 qualification who then complete an HE qualification will be similar to the impact for all HE borrowers.

Estimates of the impact of freezing the repayment thresholds for HE borrowers are illustrated in the consultation document, which has been published here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/freezing-the-student-loan-repayment-threshold

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2016-01-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to page 52 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, what mechanisms he plans to use to ringfence the £40 million Discover England Fund.

Tracey Crouch

To date all English funding has been ringfenced within the British Tourist Authority. This will continue.The £40m Discover England funding will be separately maintained and accounted for to ensure it is used in support of product development in English destinations, and in accordance with the process and criteria to be published shortly. The progress and spend of the fund will be monitored through regular reports.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2016-01-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2016 to Question 23508, by what mechanisms his Department plans to check and monitor standards and quality of apprenticeships until the Institute for Apprenticeships is fully operational in April 2017.

Nick Boles

Existing quality checks will remain in place until the Institute for Apprenticeships is fully operational in April 2017. These include scrutiny and approval of standards and assessment plans by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, the Department for Education, Skills Funding Agency and education advisors, inspection of training provision by Ofsted, and quality assurance of qualifications by Ofqual.

Employer-led reforms continue to improve the quality of apprenticeships, providing the skills that employers need. All apprenticeships must be full time paid jobs; have a minimum duration of 12 months and involve substantial, sustained training including at least 20% off-the-job training. Apprentices develop transferable skills and English and maths to enable them to progress in their careers. New quality measures for training providers and assessment organisations have also been developed to help employers make informed choices.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2016-02-04.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress officials in his Department have made on incorporating the proceeds of the £227 million fine imposed on Deutsche Bank in relation to their Libor activities into a new three-year fund to create 50,000 apprenticeships.

Greg Hands

This government will be spending twice as much in cash terms on apprenticeships by 2020 compared to 2010. Spending on apprenticeships in England will be £2.5bn in 2019-20. The BIS spending review settlement for apprenticeships reflects the government’s commitment regarding the proceeds of the Libor fine the FCA announced in April 2015. Further announcements that support the government’s commitment to delivering employment opportunities for young people will be announced in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2016-03-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether the three-year residency rule for UK nationals will apply to postgraduate loan eligibility from 2016-17.

Joseph Johnson

The position on residency will be confirmed when the regulations are laid in Spring 2016.

Until the regulations are laid, the Government’s position on loan eligibility is set out in the response to its consultation on postgraduate master’s loans published on 25 November 2015. This is available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/479703/bis-15-573-support-postgraduate-study-response.pdf.

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