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1046838

registered interest
date	23/01/2019
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Apprentices
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate his Department has made of the cost to the public purse of the creation of a UCAS-style portal for apprenticeships.
tabling member constituency	Coventry South
tabling member printed	Mr Jim Cunningham
uin	211639
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/01/2019 answer text <p>We want to make the system easier to navigate for young people considering technical and vocational routes, as we committed to in the government's manifesto. We are still considering the feasibility of a centralised portal for further education. We have conducted extensive research with over 2,000 young people, colleges and career advisers. We will make final decisions on this in the context of our reforms to apprenticeships and the introduction of T levels.</p><p>We have already introduced functionality that allows levy-paying employers to advertise their own vacancies on the apprenticeship service. The Find an Apprenticeship website is accessed by thousands of would-be apprentices, their teachers and parents. Employers that do not pay the levy can continue to advertise their vacancies by contacting the national contact centre or working with their training provider. We will continue to develop this in future, informed by our engagement with employers and their feedback on the service.</p><p>​The National Apprenticeship Service and UCAS have developed a higher and degree apprenticeships ‘vacancy finder’ to consolidate many of these opportunities into one place. In November, we published thousands of vacancies from various employers starting in 2019.</p> answering member constituency Guildford answering member printed Anne Milton question first answered 28/01/2019 16:37:48 answering member 1523 label Biography information for Anne Milton
tabling member	308 label Biography information for Mr Jim Cunningham

1046845

registered interest
date	23/01/2019
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Home Education: Standards
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to ensure that children in home education placements have a high standard of education and care.
tabling member constituency	Burnley
tabling member printed	Julie Cooper
uin	211799
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/01/2019 answer text <p>The government supports the right of parents to educate their children at home, and many families do this well, taking on a very significant responsibility in doing so. Local authorities are responsible for identifying any children who are not receiving a suitable education and taking steps to remedy that situation, if necessary, by enforcing school attendance.</p><p>We want to make sure that every child receives a good education. In some cases, the government is concerned about the quality of education which some children are receiving at home, especially in the context of the increasing numbers of children who are being removed from school to be educated at home.</p><p>As a result, the government consulted in 2018 on revised guidance for local authorities and parents on home education. The finalised versions of this guidance will be published shortly. At the same time, a call for evidence on the issues of registration and monitoring of children educated at home, and support for home educating families, was held, and a government response document setting out proposed next steps will also be published soon.</p> answering member constituency Guildford answering member printed Anne Milton question first answered 29/01/2019 17:01:36 answering member 1523 label Biography information for Anne Milton previous answer version 97796 answering member constituency Guildford answering member printed Anne Milton answering member 1523 label Biography information for Anne Milton
tabling member	4405 label Biography information for Julie Cooper

1047030

registered interest
date	23/01/2019
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Apprentices
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many Aspire Achieve Advance apprentices were (a) affected by that provider ceasing trading and (b) have been found alternative provision.
tabling member constituency	Blackpool South
tabling member printed	Gordon Marsden
uin	211662
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/01/2019 answer text <p>In total, the closure of Aspire Achieve Advance has affected 4,216 apprentices. The apprentices were split between apprenticeships supported via levy funding and those supported via non-levy funding, based on the size of the employer involved. There were 2,384 apprentices with large levy paying employers and 1,832 apprentices with smaller non-levy paying employers.</p><p>It is the responsibility of the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) to source alternative high quality provision for the non-levy apprentices while employers retain the lead for sourcing alternative provision funded by the levy. They do this with the full support of the National Apprenticeship Service. So far, for the non-levy funded apprentices, the ESFA has approved 1,358 apprentice transfers to 125 high quality alternative providers.</p><p>Officials have also identified alternative, high quality provision for each of the remaining 410 apprentices and are contacting the providers involved to facilitate the transfers. 64 apprentices have notified us that they have successfully completed or withdrawn from their apprenticeship. Of the 2,384 apprentices funded by the levy, National Apprenticeship Service account managers are supporting those employers to identify new providers. To date levy paying employers have transferred 534 apprentices to new providers of their choice.</p> answering member constituency Guildford answering member printed Anne Milton question first answered 28/01/2019 12:53:08 answering member 1523 label Biography information for Anne Milton
tabling member	465 label Biography information for Gordon Marsden

1047034

registered interest
date	23/01/2019
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	16-19 Bursary Fund
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 adequacy of current funding for the 16 to 19 bursary.
tabling member constituency	Blackpool South
tabling member printed	Gordon Marsden
uin	211663
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/01/2019 answer text <p>The department provides a number of financial support programmes for economically disadvantaged 16 to 19 year olds to help with the education-related costs associated with staying in post-16 education. The 16-19 Bursary Fund is the principal scheme. Under the 16 to 19 Bursary Fund, young people are eligible for awards of up to £1,200 per year (in particular, vulnerable groups that generally do not receive financial support from their families). Those not in these particular vulnerable groups, but who still need financial support, can apply to their education institution for discretionary bursary support. Each institution receives an allocation to make available these discretionary bursaries.</p><p>The department spoke with a sample of schools, colleges and other 16-19 education providers in 2018 to help us understand how the 16 to 19 Bursary Fund was being used and to assess the extent to which discretionary bursary allocations met the needs of students in the different institutions. Providers were using the available funds to support their most disadvantaged students, but there were different responses on the adequacy of funding. We are continuing to keep the use of the fund under review to inform our understanding of whether it is providing effective support to our most economically disadvantaged students.</p><p>With regard to its effectiveness in promoting social mobility, providers have the flexibility to target those young people in most need of financial support to stay on in further education and training. This flexibility helps to ensure that the poorest students get the same opportunities available to those with more financial support, for example, by purchasing equipment for technical courses, taking part in trips, purchasing books, participating in industry placements and getting support with UCAS fees. The majority of providers that the department spoke to in 2018 confirmed that this funding was making a significant impact on the ability of young people to access opportunities.</p> answering member constituency Guildford answering member printed Anne Milton question first answered 29/01/2019 16:49:43 answering member 1523 label Biography information for Anne Milton previous answer version 97554 answering member constituency Guildford answering member printed Anne Milton answering member 1523 label Biography information for Anne Milton
tabling member	465 label Biography information for Gordon Marsden

1047035

registered interest
date	23/01/2019
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	16-19 Bursary Fund: Social Mobility
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 effectiveness of the 16 - 19 bursary in promoting social mobility.
tabling member constituency	Blackpool South
tabling member printed	Gordon Marsden
uin	211664
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/01/2019 answer text <p>The department provides a number of financial support programmes for economically disadvantaged 16 to 19 year olds to help with the education-related costs associated with staying in post-16 education. The 16-19 Bursary Fund is the principal scheme. Under the 16 to 19 Bursary Fund, young people are eligible for awards of up to £1,200 per year (in particular, vulnerable groups that generally do not receive financial support from their families). Those not in these particular vulnerable groups, but who still need financial support, can apply to their education institution for discretionary bursary support. Each institution receives an allocation to make available these discretionary bursaries.</p><p>The department spoke with a sample of schools, colleges and other 16-19 education providers in 2018 to help us understand how the 16 to 19 Bursary Fund was being used and to assess the extent to which discretionary bursary allocations met the needs of students in the different institutions. Providers were using the available funds to support their most disadvantaged students, but there were different responses on the adequacy of funding. We are continuing to keep the use of the fund under review to inform our understanding of whether it is providing effective support to our most economically disadvantaged students.</p><p>With regard to its effectiveness in promoting social mobility, providers have the flexibility to target those young people in most need of financial support to stay on in further education and training. This flexibility helps to ensure that the poorest students get the same opportunities available to those with more financial support, for example, by purchasing equipment for technical courses, taking part in trips, purchasing books, participating in industry placements and getting support with UCAS fees. The majority of providers that the department spoke to in 2018 confirmed that this funding was making a significant impact on the ability of young people to access opportunities.</p> answering member constituency Guildford answering member printed Anne Milton question first answered 29/01/2019 16:50:11 answering member 1523 label Biography information for Anne Milton previous answer version 97893 answering member constituency Guildford answering member printed Anne Milton answering member 1523 label Biography information for Anne Milton
tabling member	465 label Biography information for Gordon Marsden

1047036

registered interest
date	23/01/2019
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Further Education: Labour Turnover
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 recent trends in the levels of retention of further education teachers and staff.
tabling member constituency	Blackpool South
tabling member printed	Gordon Marsden
uin	211665
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/01/2019 answer text <p>While further education (FE) providers are a key part of our national infrastructure, unlocking potential, developing skills, and improving social mobility and productivity, they are private sector institutions, independent of government. As such, the department has not historically collected data that would allow us to measure rates of retention amongst FE teachers and other staff. However, in 2018, we carried out the first College Staff Survey, gathering new workforce data, and we expect to extend this to other types of provider in 2019, as well as conducting a follow-up survey that will allow us to assess a number of issues concerning the FE sector.</p> answering member constituency Guildford answering member printed Anne Milton question first answered 28/01/2019 16:44:49 answering member 1523 label Biography information for Anne Milton
tabling member	465 label Biography information for Gordon Marsden

1045686

registered interest
date	22/01/2019
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Technicians: Recruitment
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 increase the supply of laboratory scientist technicians.
tabling member constituency	South Basildon and East Thurrock
tabling member printed	Stephen Metcalfe
uin	210634
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/01/2019 answer text <p>The government wants to encourage more students into science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education and training at all stages from primary school to higher education, which will equip people with the skills needed for such roles. We are investing an additional £406 million in skills, including maths and digital. This includes the Advanced Maths Premium and an £84 million programme to improve the teaching of computing.</p><p>It is crucial we encourage more young people to consider STEM careers, including careers such as laboratory scientist technicians. We have committed to improving STEM careers advice in schools in the government’s careers strategy which ensures that STEM encounters, such as with employers and apprenticeships, are built into school career programmes by updating school and college statutory guidance.</p><p>The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy also funds a number of programmes that aim to inspire more young people to study science subjects, such as the STEM Ambassadors programme, and the CREST awards, which engage students in STEM-related projects.</p><p>T levels will also provide alternative routes into laboratory and science technical careers. T levels will be a new gold-standard in technical education, providing a distinctive and rigorous alternative to A levels and apprenticeships. T level panels of employers are defining the outline content for the new programmes and we recently announced that T levels in the Health and Science route, which includes Laboratory Sciences, will be taught by selected providers from 2021.</p><p>Apprenticeships are available in the sector across a range of levels including Laboratory scientist (degree); Laboratory scientist Level 5; and Laboratory technician Level 3. These standards are being developed by employer groups, including groups in the health and science sector such as Pfizer, GSK, Astra Zeneca, Sterling Pharma Solutions, 3M. A full list of standards is available on the Institute for Apprenticeships’ website at <a href="https://www.instituteforapprenticeships.org/apprenticeship-standards/" target="_blank">https://www.instituteforapprenticeships.org/apprenticeship-standards/</a>.</p><p>To stimulate apprenticeships growth across all sectors, we are first and foremost ensuring that apprenticeships are a quality product recognised by individuals and employers – setting individuals on a path to a to great career and providing employers with the home-grown skills they need to grow their businesses and increase productivity.</p><p>We are also currently carrying out a review of higher technical education, looking at how level 4 and 5 classroom based technical education meets the needs of learners and employers. This forms part of our commitment to support routes to higher-earning technical roles and address the skills needs of the economy. Our ambition is to reform higher level technical education so that it delivers the skills employers and the economy need and offers attractive routes to higher earning technical roles. We also intend to establish a system of employer-led national standards for higher technical education.</p> answering member constituency Guildford answering member printed Anne Milton question first answered 29/01/2019 16:21:02 answering member 1523 label Biography information for Anne Milton
tabling member	4092 label Biography information for Stephen Metcalfe

1045984

registered interest
date	22/01/2019
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Department for Education: Cleaning Services
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which service providers are contracted to carry out third party cleaning contracts for his (a) Department and (b) executive agencies; if he will list all of the services delivered by third party contractors to his (i) Department and (ii) executive agencies; and how many people working for those third party contractors are paid less than the Living Wage as defined by the Living Wage Foundation.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Frank Field
uin	211111
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/01/2019 answer text <p>Cleaning services in buildings managed by the department are undertaken by outsourced providers, OCS and Sodexo, as part of large facilities management service contracts. The cleaning of Cheylesmore House, occupied by the Standards and Testing Agency and the Teaching Regulation Agency, is undertaken by Engie.</p><p>A list of all services delivered by third party contractors to the department is not held in a centralised location and the information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.</p><p>Rates of pay for people working for third party contractors are determined by their respective employers and not held by the department. All outsourced providers are required to pay, as a minimum, either the National Minimum Wage or the National Living Wage.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Guildford answering member printed Anne Milton question first answered 29/01/2019 13:21:07 answering member 1523 label Biography information for Anne Milton
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

1046108

registered interest
date	22/01/2019
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Further Education
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many people in post-16 education are currently working towards (a) level two, (b) level three, (c) level four and (d) level five qualifications.
tabling member constituency	Southampton, Itchen
tabling member printed	Royston Smith
uin	211296
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/01/2019 answer text <p>The attached table shows the official participation estimates and highest qualification aims for 16 to 18 year olds in full and part-time education in England for the latest 5 years.</p> answering member constituency Guildford answering member printed Anne Milton question first answered 28/01/2019 11:00:08 answering member 1523 label Biography information for Anne Milton attachment 1 file name 211296_Highest_Qualification_Estimates_16_to_18.pdf title 211296_Highest_Qualification_Estimates_16_to_18
tabling member	4478 label Biography information for Royston Smith

1046129

registered interest
date	22/01/2019
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	T-levels
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 potential effect of the introduction of T Levels on the number of people starting B Tech courses.
tabling member constituency	Blackpool South
tabling member printed	Gordon Marsden
uin	211129
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/01/2019 answer text <p>We want T levels and A levels to become the qualifications of choice for 16 to 19 year olds taking level 3 classroom-based qualifications. T levels will offer a world-class option for students who want to choose technical study over academic study.</p><p>Alongside the introduction of T levels, we have committed to carry out a review of post-16 qualifications at level 3 and below. The review aims to simplify the current qualification landscape at level 3 and below, so that all qualifications continuing to be eligible for public funding will meet three principles: have a distinct purpose, are high quality, and support progression to good outcomes.</p><p>We are conducting a two stage consultation and we will work closely with schools, colleges, and others affected by the review to consider the full range of evidence surrounding these qualifications.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Guildford answering member printed Anne Milton question first answered 28/01/2019 16:51:04 answering member 1523 label Biography information for Anne Milton
tabling member	465 label Biography information for Gordon Marsden