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62035

	registered interest
	date	16/06/2014
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Teachers: Pensions
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment he has made of the (a) feasibility and (b) cost to the public purse of enabling supply teachers to contribute to the teachers' pension scheme.
	tabling member constituency	Wycombe
	tabling member printed	Steve Baker
	uin	200849
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/06/2014 answer text <p>Supply teachers are able to participate in the Teachers' Pension Scheme (TPS) where they are employed by an ‘accepted employer'. In the main, these are local authorities (LAs), academies and further education colleges. This includes supply teachers who are recruited by a supply agency but then employed directly, under a contract of employment, by the accepted employer. The LA, academy or further education college is responsible for meeting a number of obligations that fall to employers under the teachers' pensions regulations, not least of which is to pay the employer contribution to the TPS.</p><p> </p><p>However, where supply teachers are self-employed or remain employed by the supply agency, and their services are provided under a ‘contract for services', it is not possible for them to participate in the TPS. This is because the Department for Education cannot mandate that private sector employers participate in the scheme.</p><p> </p><p>It is for LAs, academies and further education colleges to determine how supply teachers are employed – which can in turn enable access to the TPS under the current arrangements.</p> answering member constituency Yeovil answering member printed Mr David Laws question first answered 23/06/2014 12:18:25 answering member 1473 label Biography information for Mr David Laws
	tabling member	4064 label Biography information for Mr Steve Baker

1465100

	registered interest
	date	23/05/2022
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Schools: Finance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will make it is his policy to increase funding for schools where English is a second language for a significant proportion of pupils; and if he will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Wycombe
	tabling member printed	Mr Steve Baker
	uin	6747
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/05/2022 answer text <p>Overall, core schools funding is increasing by £4 billion in the 2022/23 financial year, a 7% increase in cash terms per pupil from the 2021/22 financial year. This includes an increase in mainstream school funding for 5 to 16 year olds of £2.5 billion, which is equivalent to an average 5.8% cash increase, or an average of £300 per pupil.</p><p>Through the English as an additional language (EAL) factor in the national funding formula (NFF), schools attract funding for pupils who are classed as having EAL and who have started in the state-funded education system in England within the last three years. This equates to an additional £565 per primary school pupil and £1,530 per secondary school pupil in the 2022/23 financial year, meaning the NFF will distribute a total of £410 million through the EAL factor.</p><p>At present, the NFF is used to determine how much funding is provided to each local authority in England, and it is for each local authority, to set a local formula to distribute it between schools. Individual authorities can decide whether to include an EAL factor in their local formulae, and where they do, how much that factor should distribute. The government has made clear its intention to move to a ‘direct NFF’, which will determine schools’ budgets directly rather than through local formulae. This includes requiring all local authorities to use the NFF methodology of EAL3, meaning that all pupils with EAL that have entered the school system during the last three years will attract this funding. This will ensure that all schools in England will be guaranteed to receive funding in respect of their pupils with EAL.</p> answering member constituency Worcester answering member printed Mr Robin Walker question first answered 27/05/2022 13:51:27 answering member 4091 label Biography information for Mr Robin Walker
	tabling member	4064 label Biography information for Mr Steve Baker

1364819

	registered interest
	date	01/11/2021
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Dance and Music: Education
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment his Department has made of the cost-effectiveness of the Music and Dance Scheme; and if he will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Wycombe
	tabling member printed	Mr Steve Baker
	uin	67138
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/11/2021 answer text <p>The department has a long-term commitment to ensuring that high-quality dance and music education is not the preserve of the elite, but the entitlement of every single child.</p><p>The Music and Dance Scheme (MDS) allows exceptionally talented children to attend specialist music and dance education providers. The scheme provides bursaries and grants totalling around £30 million per annum to children and young people with exceptional potential, regardless of their personal circumstances, to benefit from world-class specialist music or dance training.</p><p>The department regularly assesses the effectiveness and cost effectiveness of all programmes, including the MDS. The department is working with MDS providers to improve the information collected from them each year, so future assessments can be improved.</p><p>Following the Spending Review, the department will continue to invest around £115 million per annum in cultural education over the next three years, though our music, arts and heritage programmes, and this includes the Music and Dance Scheme.</p> answering member constituency Worcester answering member printed Mr Robin Walker question first answered 08/11/2021 17:18:38 answering member 4091 label Biography information for Mr Robin Walker
	tabling member	4064 label Biography information for Mr Steve Baker

1355448

	registered interest
	date	14/09/2021
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Schools: Ventilation
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department has taken to improve ventilation in schools to inhibit the spread of covid-19.
	tabling member constituency	Wycombe
	tabling member printed	Mr Steve Baker
	uin	49114
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/09/2021 answer text <p>On 21 August, the department announced that carbon dioxide monitors will be provided to all state-funded nurseries, schools, and colleges from September. Backed by a £25 million government investment, the new monitors will enable staff to act quickly where ventilation is poor and provide reassurance that existing ventilation measures are working.</p><p>The programme will provide nurseries, schools, and colleges with sufficient monitors to take representative readings from across the indoor spaces in their estate, assessing all spaces in a relatively short space of time. On 6 September, the department also provided new information to settings on how to use CO2 monitors to better manage ventilation.</p><p>The department has committed to supplying around 300,000 carbon dioxide monitors across England in the Autumn term. From 6 September, the department started to despatch carbon dioxide monitors to special schools and alternative provision, who have been prioritised to receive their full allocation given their higher-than-average numbers of vulnerable pupils.</p><p>The government has also launched a trial of air purifiers in 30 schools in Bradford, which is designed to assess the technology in schools and whether they could reduce the risk of transmission.</p> answering member constituency Worcester answering member printed Mr Robin Walker question first answered 20/09/2021 16:15:45 answering member 4091 label Biography information for Mr Robin Walker
	tabling member	4064 label Biography information for Mr Steve Baker

1457485

	registered interest
	date	14/04/2022
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Schools: Disciplinary Proceedings
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps the Government is taking to help ensure that teachers and other education staff can choose to be accompanied to disciplinary or grievance hearings by a person other than a trade union representative or colleague.
	tabling member constituency	Wycombe
	tabling member printed	Mr Steve Baker
	uin	153920
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/04/2022 answer text <p>My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, is supportive in principle of a change to the Employment Relations Act 1999 to give teachers who are not members of a trade union the right to be accompanied by a representative of another professional body, such as Edapt, to disciplinary and grievance meetings.</p> answering member constituency Worcester answering member printed Mr Robin Walker question first answered 25/04/2022 16:02:28 answering member 4091 label Biography information for Mr Robin Walker
	tabling member	4064 label Biography information for Mr Steve Baker

673502

	registered interest
	date	16/01/2017
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Free Schools
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will review the free school application process to ensure that hon. Members, local councillors and other relevant stakeholders are kept informed of proposed developments in their area.
	tabling member constituency	Wycombe
	tabling member printed	Steve Baker
	uin	60009
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/01/2017 answer text <p>The free schools programme is a demand-led programme. We assess applications to establish free schools against published criteria. At the beginning of each application wave we write to local authorities to ask for their views about any free school applications received. We consult them again about the ones that have been invited to attend an interview and then again about the ones that are proceeding to the next stage of the process, the pre-opening stage. In addition Lord Nash writes to all the relevant Hon. Members at the end of the application wave to let them know which applications in their constituencies have been successful.</p><p>Under section 10 of the Academies Act 2010 the trust behind the proposal must consult the people they think appropriate on whether to enter into a funding agreement with the Secretary of State. The funding agreement needs to be signed before the school can open. This statutory consultation informs stakeholders and the local community about the project and gives them the opportunity to comment on it.</p><p>We are continually looking for ways to improve the application process.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Crewe and Nantwich answering member printed Edward Timpson question first answered 23/01/2017 13:40:47 answering member 1605 label Biography information for Edward Timpson
	tabling member	4064 label Biography information for Mr Steve Baker

658477

	registered interest
	date	14/12/2016
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Penn School
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent discussions she has had with (a) the Education Funding Agency and (b) other statutory bodies about the future use of the former Penn School site; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Wycombe
	tabling member printed	Steve Baker
	uin	57553
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/12/2016 answer text <p>The department has received and responded to correspondence about the site of the former Penn School. There is a meeting scheduled to take place with Mr Baker and Martin Post, Regional Schools Commissioner (RSC) for North West London and South Central England, on 13 January 2017 in order to discuss the future of the school site and provide some assurances. A representative from the Free Schools Regional Delivery team is also available to be contacted prior to this meeting.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Crewe and Nantwich answering member printed Edward Timpson question first answered 19/12/2016 18:33:12 answering member 1605 label Biography information for Edward Timpson
	tabling member	4064 label Biography information for Mr Steve Baker

1379059

	registered interest
	date	16/11/2021
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Breakfast Clubs: Contracts
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of Government contracts for the provision of school breakfasts.
	tabling member constituency	Wycombe
	tabling member printed	Mr Steve Baker
	uin	75878
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/11/2021 answer text <p>The government is committed to continuing support for school breakfast clubs in England and is further investing up to £24 million to continue our national programme for the next two years. This funding will support around 2,500 schools in disadvantaged areas in England, including opportunity areas. This means that thousands of children from low-income families will be offered free nutritious breakfasts to better support their attainment, wellbeing, and readiness to learn.</p><p>The breakfast clubs programme is operated by our provider Family Action.</p><p>Throughout the current contract we will be working with this provider to monitor different aspects of the current programme and its effectiveness on school breakfast provisions. We will consider the best opportunities to share information as it progresses.</p><p>The department made a £38 million investment in the National School Breakfast Programme between March 2018 and July 2021. This has helped to set up or improve breakfast clubs in up to 2,450 schools in disadvantaged areas and to sustain them in the longer term.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 23/11/2021 17:06:11 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4064 label Biography information for Mr Steve Baker

1355400

	registered interest
	date	14/09/2021
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Apprentices: Taxation
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will conduct a review of the Apprenticeship Levy focused on what further potential flexibility for businesses can be introduced into the scheme.
	tabling member constituency	Wycombe
	tabling member printed	Mr Steve Baker
	uin	49109
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/09/2021 answer text <p>In response to employer feedback, we are continuing to improve apprenticeships, making them more flexible for employers and making it easier for employers to make greater use of their levy funds.</p><p>The department is making it easier for large employers to transfer levy funds to support new starts in small businesses, or in a certain sector or region. On 13 September 2021, we launched a new online service to allow levy paying employers to advertise funding pledges, enabling a much wider range of businesses to browse and apply for available funds.</p><p>In addition, the department is making apprenticeships more flexible so that they better meet the needs of employers in all sectors. We are encouraging greater use of innovative apprenticeship training models, such as the front-loading of off-the-job training so apprentices can be productive from day one in the workplace. We are also developing accelerated apprenticeships so that apprentices with substantial prior learning from other skills programmes, such as traineeships and T Levels, can complete an apprenticeship more quickly.</p><p>In August, the department launched a new £7 million flexi-job apprenticeship fund to support greater use of apprenticeships in sectors, such as creative and construction, where flexible working practices are commonplace. Flexi-job apprenticeships will enable apprentices to move between different host employers in a sector or region as they complete the training requirements for their apprenticeship.</p><p>The department currently has no plans to review the apprenticeship levy and what funds can be spent on.</p> answering member constituency Chippenham answering member printed Michelle Donelan question first answered 22/09/2021 15:37:35 answering member 4530 label Biography information for Michelle Donelan
	tabling member	4064 label Biography information for Mr Steve Baker

1422738

	registered interest
	date	18/02/2022
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Coronavirus: Vaccination
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will issue guidance to universities that they are not to require (a) healthcare students, (b) social care students and (c) any other students to be vaccinated against covid-19 as a condition of education.
	tabling member constituency	Wycombe
	tabling member printed	Mr Steve Baker
	uin	125135
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/02/2022 answer text <p>There is no requirement for students to be vaccinated to access education. However, we strongly encourage all students to be vaccinated as soon as possible, unless they are medically exempt.</p><p>On 31 January 2022, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) announced that the legal requirement for health and social care staff to be fully vaccinated is to be removed, subject to consultation and parliamentary approval. The outcome of the consultation will be published soon.</p><p>While the legal requirement on vaccinations as a condition of deployment is set to be revoked, those working in health and social care are still strongly urged to get vaccinated and boosted as a professional responsibility.</p><p>We will continue working with DHSC, Health Education England and NHS England as this policy area evolves to make sure messages on vaccinations are communicated clearly to students.</p> answering member constituency Chippenham answering member printed Michelle Donelan question first answered 23/02/2022 17:42:53 answering member 4530 label Biography information for Michelle Donelan
	tabling member	4064 label Biography information for Mr Steve Baker