Tag: Jess Phillips

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-06-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 8 June 2016 to Question 40028, on investigations into unregistered schools, how many investigations her Department is currently carrying out into unregistered schools in England.

Edward Timpson

As set out in my answer to questions 39845 and 40028, we are currently investigating institutions that may be operating as unregistered independent schools in England. The actual number under investigation fluctuates all the time as new settings come to our attention and existing ones close, or are confirmed not to be operating as schools. We will make a statement about progress in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-07-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the total cost to the public purse was of the Small Schools Taskforce report on free school meals.

Nick Gibb

The small schools taskforce was made up of a number of local authority and private sector caterers and manufacturers who were unpaid but could claim expenses. The total value of the contract to deliver action arising from the School Food Plan was £204,000. We are able to directly attribute around £10,000 of this to the work of the Small Schools Taskforce; in addition there would have been small amounts claimed in expenses for the other taskforce members.

The majority of the findings from the Small Schools Taskforce report are already in the public domain following the publication of the toolkit for small schools, which is available at: http://www.thegreatschoollunch.co.uk/media/169570/CFT-SmallSchoolToolkit.pdf

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-10-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will estimate the number of employers which publish targets for the ratio of male to female apprentices.

Robert Halfon

The Government does not hold information on the number of employers that publish targets for the ratio of male to female apprentices.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2015-11-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many planning areas in England are in need of additional secondary school places by September 2016; in how many of those planning areas has there never been an application to open a secondary or all-through mainstream free school; and in how of those planning areas there are no secondary or all-through mainstream free schools.

Edward Timpson

The Department collects information from each local authority on the number of available school places and pupil forecasts through the annual school capacity survey (SCAP). The main tables contain local authority level data. The underlying data on school capacity is published at school level and pupil forecasts at planning area level. The latest published data, relating to the position as reported at May 2014, can be found on GOV.UK [1].

The Department also publishes local authority basic need scorecards for primary schools. The latest scorecards relate to 2014 capacity and contain departmental estimates of the number of additional primary school places needed to meet demand in 2016/17, once existing plans for new places have been factored in. The latest data and details of the methodology used for the estimates can be found on GOV.UK [2]

The scorecard summary data shows that across England around 63,000 additional primary places were estimated to be needed to meet demand in 2016/17, based on capacity and planned places at May 2014. The Department does not publish data on the number of additional primary places needed to meet demand at planning area level.

The Department does not currently publish basic need scorecards for secondary school places.

Between 2003/4 and 2009/10 the total number of school places in the system reduced by 200,000, against a backdrop of rising birth rates. That is why the Coalition Government doubled the funding available to create new school places during the last Parliament to £5 billion, and this Government has committed to invest a further £7 billion during this Parliament. The latest published information shows there were 445,000 more school places in May 2014 than in May 2010, and we know that many more places have been delivered since then or are in the pipeline.

Over this Parliament, we have committed to open at least 500 new free schools.

[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-capacity-academic-year-2013-to-2014

[2] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/primary-school-places-local-authority-basic-need-scorecards-2014

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-01-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he plans to publish draft regulations on housing benefit for 18 to 21 year olds.

Justin Tomlinson

Removal of automatic housing support for 18 – 21 year olds, announced in the Summer Budget 2015, will be introduced in April 2017. The Department is liaising with a range of key stakeholders as we develop the detail of the policy. Once this work has been completed we will bring forward detailed proposals.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-02-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will make it his policy to exempt victims of domestic abuse who move home to escape violence from the provisions on fixed term tenancies of the Housing and Planning Bill.

Brandon Lewis

Fixed term tenancies will enable local councils to review on-going need for a tenancy and, if this is still the case, to issue a new tenancy for the same or a more suitable home.

Where existing lifetime tenants transfer, the provisions in the Bill ensure that local authorities retain a discretion to offer the tenant a further lifetime tenancy in their new home.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-03-16.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the average time is for a school to convert to academy status.

Edward Timpson

The average time taken for a maintained school to convert to become an academy is 7 months.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-04-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential effect of a majority leave vote in the EU referendum on the teaching and learning of modern foreign languages.

Nick Gibb

The Government believes that learning a language is important to the social and economic future of the country and to help children understand the world which they live in. We are committed to the teaching of foreign languages as part of a core academic curriculum. This is why a modern or ancient language is included within the English Baccalaureate performance measure.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-04-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of pupils in schools with academy status have (a) statements of special educational needs and (b) Education, Health and Care plans.

Edward Timpson

Information on the number and percentage of pupils with statements of special educational needs or Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan by type of institution in the January 2015 School Census is available on GOV.UK:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/special-educational-needs-in-england-january-2015 (Table 1A and 1D.)

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-05-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much has been allocated to advertise the National Schools Commissioner Roadshow during June and July 2016.

Nick Gibb

The cost of the nine National Schools Commissioner Roadshows during June and July 2016 will be met from within Schools Commissioner’s Group (SCG) allocated programme budget. The programme budget is to cover the costs related to events and other communications activities. For the 2016/17 financial year, this budget is £425k.

It is expected that approximately 1,500 system leaders will attend the nine National Schools Commissioner Roadshows taking place in June and July 2016.

There was no specific allocation made for travel and subsistence costs for officials related to the National Schools Commissioner Roadshows during June and July 2016. These costs will be met from within SCG allocated administrative budget.

An official in each of the RSC offices has been involved in organising the nine National Schools Commissioners roadshows, supported by a lead in SCG. We expect approximately five officials to attend each roadshow, plus the National Schools Commissioner and the relevant Regional School Commissioner (RSC).

There has been no budget allocated to advertising the National Schools Commissioner Roadshows.