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1203313

registered interest
date	12/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Schools: Staff
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to allocate additional funding to schools for the employment of additional staff to support smaller class sizes from September 2020.
tabling member constituency	Westmorland and Lonsdale
tabling member printed	Tim Farron
uin	59200
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/06/2020 answer text <p>Schools will continue to receive their budgets for the coming year, as usual, regardless of any periods of partial or complete closure. That will ensure that they are able to continue to pay their staff and meet their other regular financial commitments.</p><p>We are also providing additional funding to schools, on top of existing budgets, to cover unavoidable costs incurred due to the COVID-19 outbreak that cannot be met from their existing resources. Our latest guidance on this is set out below:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-schools" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-schools</a>.</p><p>We want to see all children and young people back in school as soon as the scientific advice indicates they can because that is where they learn best. We are working towards bringing all children and young people back to school in September. We will provide further information and guidance with as much notice as possible.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb grouped question UIN 59201 question first answered 17/06/2020 15:40:17 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	1591 label Biography information for Tim Farron

1203314

registered interest
date	12/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Schools: Staff
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding he plans to allocate to schools to facilitate additional staff from September 2020; and what the timeframe is for the announcement of that funding.
tabling member constituency	Westmorland and Lonsdale
tabling member printed	Tim Farron
uin	59201
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/06/2020 answer text <p>Schools will continue to receive their budgets for the coming year, as usual, regardless of any periods of partial or complete closure. That will ensure that they are able to continue to pay their staff and meet their other regular financial commitments.</p><p>We are also providing additional funding to schools, on top of existing budgets, to cover unavoidable costs incurred due to the COVID-19 outbreak that cannot be met from their existing resources. Our latest guidance on this is set out below:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-schools" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-financial-support-for-schools</a>.</p><p>We want to see all children and young people back in school as soon as the scientific advice indicates they can because that is where they learn best. We are working towards bringing all children and young people back to school in September. We will provide further information and guidance with as much notice as possible.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb grouped question UIN 59200 question first answered 17/06/2020 15:40:17 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	1591 label Biography information for Tim Farron

1202998

registered interest
date	11/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Nurseries: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the need for nurseries to hire extra staff to comply with Government guidance on social distancing in order to reopen during the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	City of Durham
tabling member printed	Mary Kelly Foy
uin	58791
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/06/2020 answer text <p>On 24 May, we published a planning guide to provide information and support for all early years providers in England as they prepared to open for all children. This planning guide was co-produced with experienced senior leaders and sector representatives and is available here:<br><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/preparing-for-the-wider-opening-of-early-years-and-childcare-settings-from-1-june/planning-guide-for-early-years-and-childcare-settings" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/preparing-for-the-wider-opening-of-early-years-and-childcare-settings-from-1-june/planning-guide-for-early-years-and-childcare-settings</a>.</p><p>Unlike older children and adults, children in early years cannot be expected to remain 2 metres apart from each other and staff. In deciding to bring more children back to early years, we have taken this into account. Settings should keep children in consistent small groups and work through the hierarchy of controls set out in our guidance, which include minimising contact and mixing.</p><p>If demand for places is higher than the setting’s capacity when measures to allow physical distancing between groups are in place, it may be necessary to have a temporary cap on numbers of children attending the setting. Solutions might involve working with the local authority to support children attending a nearby setting on a consistent basis.</p> answering member constituency Chelmsford answering member printed Vicky Ford question first answered 17/06/2020 16:26:16 answering member 4674 label Biography information for Vicky Ford
tabling member	4753 label Biography information for Mary Kelly Foy

1202443

registered interest
date	10/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Schools: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of social distancing measures in schools on levels of mental well-being among children.
tabling member constituency	City of Durham
tabling member printed	Mary Kelly Foy
uin	58076
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/06/2020 answer text <p>The department is working closely with educational institutions, sector organisations, the Department for Health and Social Care, NHS England and Public Health England to understand the effects of the measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus on the mental health and wellbeing and identify the children and young people that need help and will continue to do so as more pupils return to school.</p><p>The return to school will, in itself, be part of supporting the mental health and wellbeing of pupils, as attendance enables social interaction with peers, carers and teachers. Pupil wellbeing is an important consideration within our guidance on actions for educational and childcare settings as they begin to open in June 2020, which is available at:<br> <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-educational-and-childcare-settings-to-prepare-for-wider-opening-from-1-june-2020" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-educational-and-childcare-settings-to-prepare-for-wider-opening-from-1-june-2020</a>.</p><p>It is also included as a specific theme in the planning framework the department has issued, which is available here:<br><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-educational-and-childcare-settings-to-prepare-for-wider-opening-from-1-june-2020/opening-schools-for-more-children-and-young-people-initial-planning-framework-for-schools-in-england" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-educational-and-childcare-settings-to-prepare-for-wider-opening-from-1-june-2020/opening-schools-for-more-children-and-young-people-initial-planning-framework-for-schools-in-england</a>.</p><p>We are working with the Department of Health and Social Care to put in place further specific support for school staff to understand the issues that pupils will face with their mental wellbeing. This includes training for teachers, such as a new module developed with clinical experts on how to teach about mental health in health education, and more information is available here:<br> <a href="https://www.gov.uk/guidance/teaching-about-mental-wellbeing" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/guidance/teaching-about-mental-wellbeing</a>.</p><p>The government remains committed to promoting and supporting the mental health of children and young people. Access to mental health support is more important than ever during the COVID-19 outbreak. NHS services remain open, and leading mental health charities are being supported to deliver additional services through the £5 million Coronavirus Mental Health Response Fund.</p><p>All NHS mental health trusts have been asked to ensure that there are 24/7 open access telephone lines to support people of all ages. Public Health England and Health Education England have also developed advice and guidance for parents and professionals on supporting children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing, which is available here:<br> <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-on-supporting-children-and-young-peoples-mental-health-and-wellbeing" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-on-supporting-children-and-young-peoples-mental-health-and-wellbeing</a>.</p><p>Children and young people can access free confidential support anytime from government-backed voluntary and community sector organisations either by texting SHOUT to 85258, or by calling Childline on 0800 1111 or The Mix on 0808 808 4994. Children and young people can also find online information on COVID-19 and mental health on the Young Minds website, which is available here:<br> <a href="https://youngminds.org.uk/about-us/reports/coronavirus-impact-on-young-people-with-mental-health-needs/" target="_blank">https://youngminds.org.uk/about-us/reports/coronavirus-impact-on-young-people-with-mental-health-needs/</a>.</p> answering member constituency Chelmsford answering member printed Vicky Ford question first answered 17/06/2020 16:37:40 answering member 4674 label Biography information for Vicky Ford
tabling member	4753 label Biography information for Mary Kelly Foy

1201811

registered interest
date	09/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Students: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department has plans to reimburse students that have paid deposits on (a) private and (b) university housing for the 2020-21 academic year and whose education may be disrupted as a result of the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Wolverhampton South West
tabling member printed	Stuart Anderson
uin	57372
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/06/2020 answer text <p>As both my right hon. Friends, the Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer have made clear, the government will do whatever it takes to support people affected by COVID-19.</p><p>The government encourages universities and private hall providers to be fair in their decisions about accommodation charges for this period.</p><p> </p><p>Information published by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) gives guidance (<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cma-to-investigate-concerns-about-cancellation-policies-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-pandemic/the-coronavirus-covid-19-pandemic-consumer-contracts-cancellation-and-refunds" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cma-to-investigate-concerns-about-cancellation-policies-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-pandemic/the-coronavirus-covid-19-pandemic-consumer-contracts-cancellation-and-refunds</a>) on the COVID-19 outbreak’s effects on consumer contracts and may be helpful to students, including those who have already paid deposits for accommodation.</p><p>The guidance sets out the CMA’s view on how the law operates to help consumers understand their rights and to help businesses treat their customers fairly. Students may be entitled to refunds from certain accommodation providers depending on the terms of their contract and their particular circumstances. If students need help, organisations such as Citizens Advice offer a free service, providing information and support.</p><p>Students who have already signed an accommodation contract for next year and, because of COVID-19, think it may no longer fit their requirements, should talk directly to their housing provider.</p><p> </p><p>If a student thinks that their accommodation provider is treating them unfairly, they can raise a complaint under the accommodation codes of practice as long as their provider is a code member. The codes can be found at: <a href="https://www.thesac.org.uk/" target="_blank">https://www.thesac.org.uk/</a>; <a href="https://www.unipol.org.uk/the-code/how-to-complain" target="_blank">https://www.unipol.org.uk/the-code/how-to-complain</a> and: <a href="https://www.rla.org.uk/about/nrla-code-of-practice.shtml" target="_blank">https://www.rla.org.uk/about/nrla-code-of-practice.shtml</a>.</p><p> </p><p>We have worked closely with the Office for Students to enable higher education (HE) providers to draw on existing funding to increase hardship funds and support disadvantaged students impacted by COVID-19. As a result, providers will be able to use the funding worth around £23 million per month for June and July, towards student hardship funds.</p><p><br> We have also asked that HE providers pay particular attention to the additional financial hardships that are being faced by student staff who have been reliant on income from campus-based jobs at this time.</p> answering member constituency Chippenham answering member printed Michelle Donelan question first answered 17/06/2020 15:43:57 answering member 4530 label Biography information for Michelle Donelan
tabling member	4742 label Biography information for Stuart Anderson

1201827

registered interest
date	09/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Children: Social Services
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the findings of the report published by Barnardo's, the Children's Society, Action for Children, the NSPCC and the National Children's Bureau entitled Children and young people’s services: Funding and spending 2010-11 to 2017-18, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of funding for children's services.
tabling member constituency	Rother Valley
tabling member printed	Alexander Stafford
uin	57408
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/06/2020 answer text <p>The government announced at the Local Government Finance Settlement that English councils' core spending power is rising by over £2.9 billion this financial year. This includes £1 billion of new grant funding that can be used flexibly by local authorities to deliver adult and children’s social care services.</p><p>Further to this, the government has provided over £3.2 billion of additional funding to support local authorities in meeting COVID-19 related pressures, including within children’s services. We will keep this under review over the coming weeks and months.</p><p>Longer term funding considerations are a matter for the next Spending Review.</p> answering member constituency Chelmsford answering member printed Vicky Ford question first answered 17/06/2020 15:45:18 answering member 4674 label Biography information for Vicky Ford
tabling member	4866 label Biography information for Alexander Stafford

1201865

registered interest
date	09/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Private Education: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 4 June 2020 to Question 51707 on Private Education: Coronavirus, whether independent schools are permitted to reopen for year 8 pupils when that is their final year before moving on to secondary education.
tabling member constituency	Hemel Hempstead
tabling member printed	Sir Mike Penning
uin	57102
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/06/2020 answer text <p>The Department has asked primary schools to welcome back children in nursery, Reception, year 1 and year 6, alongside priority groups. Where primary and middle schools have already made provision for these children and where they have capacity, they may choose to welcome back additional pupils, in line with wider protective measures. It is up to schools to decide which pupils to prioritise, based on their knowledge of their children and communities.</p><p>Where middle schools choose to invite year 8 pupils back, they should be confident they can manage this within the strict measures the Department has asked primary schools to adopt. This includes having no more than 15 pupils in a class, and maintaining consistency of these groups. This guidance covers independent schools where year 8 pupils are in their final year before moving on to another school.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 17/06/2020 16:00:37 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	1528 label Biography information for Sir Mike Penning

1201917

registered interest
date	09/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Schools: Closures
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effect of the devolved response on school closures on the effectiveness of communications issued to the public.
tabling member constituency	Shrewsbury and Atcham
tabling member printed	Daniel Kawczynski
uin	57140
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/06/2020 answer text <p>The Government’s COVID-19 recovery strategy makes clear that part of that UK wide approach will be acknowledging that the virus may be spreading at different speeds in different parts of the UK. Measures may need to change in different ways and at different times.</p><p>Education is a devolved matter and it is right that individual jurisdictions take decisions in line with their local circumstances.</p><p>There are various factors including different school term dates and concerns about rates of infection that mean governments in the devolved administrations need to take the decisions that are right for them.</p><p>The Department engages regularly and positively with our counterparts in the devolved administrations to collaborate on our shared education challenges, including on the wider opening of schools.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 17/06/2020 15:52:02 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	1566 label Biography information for Daniel Kawczynski

1201950

registered interest
date	09/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Students: Finance
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he plans to make an assessment of the effect on BAME communities of the requirement that non-EU nationals must in general have indefinite leave to remain in order to apply for student finance.
tabling member constituency	Leeds Central
tabling member printed	Hilary Benn
uin	57094
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/06/2020 answer text <p>Student finance is generally available to those who have no restrictions on their ability to live and work in the United Kingdom, so that they are likely to be able stay in the UK to complete their education and contribute to the UK economy afterwards.</p><p> </p><p>In 2016, the regulations governing student support were amended to introduce a new eligibility category for those who do not have settled status but who have resided in the UK for an extended period. The amendment extended access to support to students who have spent half their life or at least 20 years in the UK preceding the first day of the first academic year of their course, or 7 years for those under 18 years old. Like most other students, they must be ordinarily resident in England and have been ordinarily resident in the UK and Islands (Channel Islands and Isle of Man) for the 3 years preceding the first day of the first academic year of their course to qualify for support.</p><p> </p><p>An equality impact assessment was carried out on this change before it was introduced. This can be found at: <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/517514/bis-16-200-new-eligibility-category-for-higher-education-student-support-equality-impact-analysis.pdf" target="_blank">https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/517514/bis-16-200-new-eligibility-category-for-higher-education-student-support-equality-impact-analysis.pdf</a>. This assessment concluded that the policy could particularly benefit people from the Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia Central, Europe Other or Middle East regions.</p> answering member constituency Chippenham answering member printed Michelle Donelan question first answered 17/06/2020 12:11:51 answering member 4530 label Biography information for Michelle Donelan attachment 1 file name 57094-new-eligibility-category-for-higher-education-student-support-equality-impact-analysis.pdf title 57094_PDF
tabling member	413 label Biography information for Hilary Benn

1201960

registered interest
date	09/06/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Children: Day Care
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether parents unable to utilise their 30 hours free childcare entitlement during the covid-19 lockdown will be able to carry those unused hours over for use during the summer holidays 2020.
tabling member constituency	Elmet and Rothwell
tabling member printed	Alec Shelbrooke
uin	57179
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/06/2020 answer text <p>We want parents to have access to a range of affordable childcare, giving them increased flexibility in their working hours and helping children thrive in the crucial early years. The government-funded early years entitlements deliver 15 or 30 hours a week of free, high quality, flexible childcare for eligible two, three and four-year-olds for 38 weeks a year.</p><p>The government wants to support nurseries, pre-schools and childminders during what must be a worrying and uncertain time. On 17 March, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, confirmed the government would continue to pay funding to local authorities for the free entitlements for two, three and four-year-olds during the period of closures, providing reassurance for early years settings in light of the COVID-19 outbreak. This entitlement funding has continued to be paid to providers to try and ensure that once the lockdown measures are eased and people return to work, there remains sufficient childcare for all those who need it.</p><p>These entitlements, therefore, cannot be accrued for time not spent in the setting and so parents will not be able to carry over unused hours for use in the summer holidays.</p><p>From 1 June, childcare settings have been able to reopen for children of all ages.</p> answering member constituency Chelmsford answering member printed Vicky Ford question first answered 17/06/2020 15:50:21 answering member 4674 label Biography information for Vicky Ford
tabling member	3997 label Biography information for Sir Alec Shelbrooke