Tag: Stephen Timms

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-01-28.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans he has, when removing housing benefit entitlement from young people, to protect the entitlement of those who are (a) leaving care, (b) pregnant, or (c) have dependent children.

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, and once this work is complete we will bring forward detailed proposals.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-02-09.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will reform taxation arrangements for temporary and contract workers to ensure that they are equitable in comparison with those of direct employees.

Mr David Gauke

The taxation of temporary and contract workers’ income will depend on their employment status for tax, as is the case for direct employees and the self-employed.

Decisions about tax policy are made by Treasury ministers. However, as recommended by the Office of Tax Simplification, officials from HM Treasury, HM Revenue and Customs, the Department for Work and Pensions, and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills will form a Cross Government Working Group for Employment Status early this year.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-02-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what her policy is on the threshold for the number of coasting academies in an academy chain above which her Department plans to take action.

Edward Timpson

An academy will be considered coasting where data shows that over a three year period it has failed to ensure that pupils reach their potential. An academy will only be coasting if performance data falls below the coasting bar in all three previous years. Therefore, no academy will be identified as coasting until after the 2016 performance data is published and there is 3 years of data available for 2014, 2015 and 2016.

Regional Schools Commissioners will take action when any academy falls within the coasting definition and cannot demonstrate that it has a sufficient plan to improve rapidly without additional support.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-03-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what her Department’s policy is on Work Coaches working in schools.

Mr Sam Gyimah

The Government has pledged to introduce demand-led Jobcentre Plus staff to supplement careers guidance and help schools deliver their statutory duty to provide high-quality, independent and impartial careers advice.

As part of the ‘Jobcentre Plus Support for Schools’ initiative introduced by the Department for Work and Pensions, local Jobcentre Plus advisors will work with schools to help offer 12 to 18 year old pupils insight into the world of work and advise on options such as traineeships and apprenticeships. This scheme is directed particularly at those students at risk of becoming NEET (not in employment, education or training) or who may otherwise be disadvantaged in the labour market.

This support will be aligned with The Careers & Enterprise Company Enterprise Adviser Network (or other local structures) to avoid adding complexity to the careers landscape for schools and will be delivered initially as a pathfinder in 10 areas. This pathfinder phase started in Birmingham in January 2016.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-03-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 7 March 2016 to Question 29565, what criteria will be applied to determine whether the Jobcentre Plus support for schools initiative should be rolled out more widely.

Priti Patel

To determine the wider roll out of Jobcentre Plus Support for Schools, DWP will undertake an evaluation of the pathfinder activity in Autumn 2016 using programme data and a qualitative research study.

The evaluation criteria will include assessing the demand for JCP support from schools, the level of employer engagement with schools being generated, work experience opportunities being brokered through the programme and schools perceiving the programme to have value in providing a more rounded career guidance offer to pupils – in particular those at highest risk of becoming NEET.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-03-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he plans to announce details of the 2016-17 social work bursary.

Alistair Burt

The Department plans to publish details of the number of new social work bursaries that will be available in the 2016 academic year, by the end of May 2016. This will include details of the number of new bursaries allocated to each Higher Education Institute for both undergraduates and postgraduates.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-03-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many appeal hearings at the First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum) were (a) withdrawn and (b) adjourned because the Home Office did not send a representative in (i) 2012-13, (ii) 2013-14 and (iii) 2014-15.

Mr Shailesh Vara

The First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber) is administered by HM Courts & Tribunals Service.

There are no available data relating to numbers of appeals withdrawn where the Home Office representative did not attend the hearing.

The number of appeal hearings adjourned because the Home Office did not send a representative in (i) 2012-13 was 64 (ii) 2013-14 was 61 and (iii) 2014-15 was 68. For comparison, the figure in 2009/10 was 94.

Data provided are internal Management Information and not subject to the same quality checks as Official Statistics.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-04-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many enlisted soldiers who were not commissioned officers gained GCSEs in (a) English and (b) mathematics while serving in the army in each of the last five years; and how many such soldiers gained GCSEs in (i) English and (ii) mathematics within four years of enlisting.

Mark Lancaster

The Army provides opportunities for personnel to gain functional skills in literacy and numeracy. These are the standards that the Army has determined it requires and links these functional skills qualifications with promotion to certain ranks. Individuals are free to pursue GCSEs as part of their elective personal development with the support of learning credits schemes but the details of such GCSE qualifications are not held centrally.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-04-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 19 April 2016 to Question 33687, what funding and support (a) his Department and (b) NHS England have provided to integrate blood-borne virus testing into mobile digital radiology screening for active TB in line with NICE guidance NG33 of January 2016.

Jane Ellison

As yet, no funding has been allocated to include blood-borne virus (BBV) testing into mobile screening outreach services.

NHS England has provided additional funding to the London ‘Find & Treat’ mobile health unit so that they can offer latent Tuberculosis testing and treatment. The Find & Treat service continues its discussions with the Hepatitis C Trust to work in partnership to provide on-the-spot screening for hepatitis C and onward care.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance NG33 published in January 2016 suggests that integrating BBV testing into mobile digital radiology screening services would be good practice. NHS England has expressed an interest to consider this further, and discussions continue with the lead London Clinical Commissioning Groups.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-05-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 25 April 2016 to Question 34910, how many Guided Learning Hours are required for recruits to complete a (a) GCSE and (b) Level 2 in numeracy or literacy.

Penny Mordaunt

The Ministry of Defence has no established policy relating to time allowed to deliver GCSEs and Level 2 functional skills. Armed Forces Training Establishments follow the Guided Learning Hours (GLH) guidance provided by Education Awarding Bodies. The GLH as identified by the course governing body are used as a starting point when teaching functional skills. Our aim is to provide our trainees with a framework to achieve the qualification with the best possible support, not to achieve it within a certain period of time.

The Royal Navy normally allocate three weeks for guided learning functional skills courses delivered as part of longer professional skills development training. The GLH for each qualification in the Army is 45 hours; however this can vary depending on individual needs and other factors such as location. Time allocated to functional skills training in the RAF will depend on the establishment delivering the training with some schools allocating between 45 and 64 hours.

GCSEs are treated as elective courses for Service Personnel and time allocated for GCSEs is dependent on the individual and varies between four weeks for an intensive course and up to 16 weeks for a part time course. Army Personnel can undertake GCSEs or IGCSEs through evening classes run by the Army Education Centres and there will be a set programme linked to the GLH which is usually a minimum of 125 hours. The RAF and Navy offer courses which can be intensive or delivered over an extended period of time delivered by external providers.

All Armed Forces Training Establishments have the ability to deliver functional skills training and GCSEs flexibly and time allocated is dependent on the individual and their needs as reflected in each individual’s learning plan.