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1130365

registered interest
date	06/06/2019
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Universities: Suicide
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance his Department has published on suicide prevention strategies for universities.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	261189
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/06/2019 answer text <p>Mental health is a priority for the government, which is why we have worked with Universities UK, the Office for Students, and other stakeholders in the higher education sector to develop guidance on measures to help prevent suicide. This guidance was published in September 2018, ahead of the 2018/19 academic year, and can be found here: <a href="https://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/policy-and-analysis/reports/Pages/guidance-for-universities-on-preventing-student-suicides.aspx" target="_blank">https://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/policy-and-analysis/reports/Pages/guidance-for-universities-on-preventing-student-suicides.aspx</a>.</p><p>In addition, the government has published the first cross-government suicide prevention plan for wider society. The plan, led by my hon. Friend, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention, sets out actions for local government, the NHS, the criminal justice system and the Department for Education in relation to universities. The plan focuses on how social media and the latest technology, such as predictive analytics and artificial intelligence, can identify those at risk of suicide. It can be found here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/first-ever-cross-government-suicide-prevention-plan-published" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/news/first-ever-cross-government-suicide-prevention-plan-published</a>.</p> answering member constituency Kingswood answering member printed Chris Skidmore question first answered 12/06/2019 16:02:54 answering member 4021 label Biography information for Chris Skidmore
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

1130370

registered interest
date	06/06/2019
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Universities: Pay
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 encourage pay restraint among university vice chancellors.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	261194
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/06/2019 answer text <p>Universities are autonomous institutions and they are responsible for setting the pay of their staff, including vice-chancellors. However, students and taxpayers all contribute to our higher education system and rightly expect value for money. We want to see senior staff pay in universities that is fair and justifiable. The process for setting pay must be transparent.</p><p>The Office for Students (OfS) requires universities to publish full details in their financial statements of the total remuneration package of their vice chancellor, including bonuses, pension contributions, and other taxable benefits. Universities must also publish a justification for this remuneration package, and the pay multiple of the vice chancellor's remuneration compared with that of all other employees.</p><p>My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education’s February 2019 strategic guidance letter to the OfS reiterated that ‘high pay must be justified by high performance’. It further stated that ‘Where issues with senior staff pay lead to concerns over governance, the OfS should consider carrying out independent reviews of the adequacy and effectiveness of management and governance at providers and to require improvements, where necessary, to ensure that these arrangements are fit for purpose’.</p> answering member constituency Kingswood answering member printed Chris Skidmore question first answered 12/06/2019 15:58:11 answering member 4021 label Biography information for Chris Skidmore
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

1140179

registered interest
date	18/07/2019
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Universities: Sexual Offences
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the number of sexual offences committed on university campuses in each of the last three years.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	278962
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/07/2019 answer text <p>The department does not collect information on the number of sexual offences committed on university campuses. The responsibility for this, and for meeting legal obligations, lies with individual higher education (HE) providers.</p><p> </p><p>The government expects HE providers to keep records of incidents disclosed to them and act swiftly to investigate and address them. It is important to recognise that under-reporting is common and HE providers should continue to break down barriers to reporting by ensuring that students and staff feel safe and are able to disclose sexual misconduct.</p><p> </p><p>The government takes all forms of sexual harassment extremely seriously. Therefore, the government is working closely with Universities UK (UUK) and the Office for Students (OfS) to support work to address sexual harassment and other forms of discrimination in HE institutions. This includes implementation of the UUK’s sexual violence and harassment taskforce’s recommendations on handling of reports and disclosures, as well as enabling accurate data to be captured to determine the scale of the problem and track year on-year trends.</p><p> </p><p>The government expects HE providers to take these recommendations seriously. Furthermore, the government has tasked the OfS to support this work. The OfS have invested £2.45 million in projects tackling sexual harassment, including supporting the development and improvement of reporting procedures.</p> answering member constituency Kingswood answering member printed Chris Skidmore question first answered 23/07/2019 16:43:01 answering member 4021 label Biography information for Chris Skidmore
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

1142082

registered interest
date	25/07/2019
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Pupils: Per Capita Costs
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will have discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on increasing per pupil funding for schools.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	282308
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2019 answer text <p>I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for Hendon to the answer I gave on 4 September 2019 to Question <a href="https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2019-07-25/282367/" target="_blank">282367</a>.</p> answering member constituency South Staffordshire answering member printed Gavin Williamson question first answered 09/09/2019 15:47:37 answering member 4108 label Biography information for Sir Gavin Williamson
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

1168289

registered interest
date	19/12/2019
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Academic Freedom
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he will take to promote (a) diversity of thought and (b) freedom of expression on university campuses.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	87
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/01/2020 answer text <p>This government will ensure that our universities are places where free speech can thrive, and will strengthen academic freedoms.</p><p>The freedom to express views openly, challenge ideas and engage in robust debate is crucial to the student experience and to democracy. Individuals should never be in a position where they can be stopped from, or are made to feel inhibited in, expressing an opinion perfectly lawfully. Similarly, universities should be places where students are exposed to a range of views, including those which may be controversial, and are encouraged to debate and challenge them.</p><p>Free speech is protected in universities by law and is embedded in the Office for Students’ Regulatory Framework. Under the Education (No 2) Act 1986, universities have a specific duty to take reasonably practicable steps to secure freedom of speech within the law for staff, students and visiting speakers. The government worked with the Equalities and Human Rights Commission, who published new guidance in February 2019 on freedom of speech in higher education to support higher education providers and students’ unions in delivering their duties.</p><p>The government will be looking closely at how well higher education providers are meeting these obligations and will consider whether further action is needed, working with a range of partners.</p> answering member constituency Kingswood answering member printed Chris Skidmore question first answered 07/01/2020 16:24:03 answering member 4021 label Biography information for Chris Skidmore
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

1169477

registered interest
date	08/01/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Music: Secondary Education
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 his policy to roll out the Music in Secondary School Trust initiative throughout state schools in England.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	1384
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/01/2020 answer text <p>The Government believes that music is an important subject and that all pupils should receive a high-quality music education. The subject is compulsory in the national curriculum up to age 14 and the Government is providing funding of over £300 million for music education hubs between 2016 and 2020. We recently announced a further year’s funding for music hubs, to help thousands more children learn to play musical instruments, as well as continued support for a range of smaller music and arts programmes, totalling £85 million.</p><p>Music education hubs have done excellent work to ensure there is more equitable access to music education. We are aware of the work of the Music in Secondary Schools Trust and thank them for their commitment to music education. My officials and I would welcome a meeting with officials from the Trust to discuss their work further.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 17/01/2020 10:40:18 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

1169582

registered interest
date	08/01/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Students: Loans
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 introduce Sharia compliant student loans.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	1442
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/01/2020 answer text <p>The government remains committed to introducing an Alternative Student Finance product for tuition fee and maintenance loans. Details on implementation will follow the conclusion of the review of post-18 education and funding.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Kingswood answering member printed Chris Skidmore question first answered 13/01/2020 14:57:02 answering member 4021 label Biography information for Chris Skidmore
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

1170630

registered interest
date	14/01/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Schools: Mental Health Services
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 effectiveness of the Mental Health Support Teams Trailblazers in London.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	3180
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/01/2020 answer text <p>The first Mental Health Support Team (MHST) trailblazer sites were announced in December 2018. The 7 Mental Health Support Team (MHSTs) sites selected in London will deliver 15 MHSTs in this first wave of implementation. They are all expected to have completed their training by the end of 2019 / early 2020 and will be fully operational following this. As a result, it is too early to assess their effectiveness in schools and colleges.</p><p> </p><p>A further 16 MHST sites were announced in London in 2019 (23 MHST sites in total), due to deliver a total of 41 MHSTs between them. Each team is expected to support up to 20 schools and colleges, or a population of around 8,000 children and young people.</p><p> </p><p>The national early evaluation of the trailblazer programme formally commenced on 1 October 2019. The protocol for the first phase of the evaluation is available at <a href="https://fundingawards.nihr.ac.uk/award/16/138/31" target="_blank">https://fundingawards.nihr.ac.uk/award/16/138/31</a>, and findings are expected to be published in Spring/Summer 2021.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 22/01/2020 17:32:25 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

1170636

registered interest
date	14/01/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Relationships and Sex Education: Greater London
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 effectiveness of relationship and sex education at the north west London early adopter site.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	3182
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/01/2020 answer text <p>The Department is working closely with over 1600 schools across the country who are acting, on a voluntary basis, as early adopters of relationships education; relationships and sex education (RSE); and health education. As early adopters, these schools have indicated their intention to start teaching the new requirements: relationships education (for primary aged pupils), RSE (for secondary aged pupils) and health education (all pupils in state-funded schools), during the academic year 2019/20, ahead of the subjects being compulsory from September 2020.</p><p> </p><p>The Department has been working closely with these early adopter schools to develop a programme of support. Recently four national conferences took place (including for 229 early adopter schools based in the North West London and South Central Region), to help early adopters plan for delivery of the new subjects, and to enable the Department to learn about their current practices and assess support needs. Following feedback from the conferences, consideration is being given to what further regional support may be required.</p><p> </p><p>This engagement with early adopter schools is helping the Department develop its programme of support for the new subjects, which will be available to all teachers from spring 2020. The programme will focus on tools that improve schools’ practice and will offer opportunities for teachers to improve subject knowledge, build confidence and share best practice. This support will be accessed through a new online service and will include an implementation guide, which will accompany the statutory guidance, case studies from early adopter schools, and innovative materials to support staff training. We will continue to test this package with early adopter schools.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 22/01/2020 16:34:15 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

1170638

registered interest
date	14/01/2020
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Youth Endowment Fund
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent discussions he has had with the Home Secretary on the promotion of the Youth Endowment Fund to (a) schools and (b) providers of alternative education that are eligible to apply to that fund.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	3184
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/01/2020 answer text <p>The Youth Endowment Fund (YEF) is a £200 million investment targeted at developing early intervention projects over 10 years to prevent young people from becoming involved in crime and serious violence, including reoffending. The fund is working with local communities to guarantee support reaches those at greatest risk. This could include issues such as children who may not be engaged with education. Through the first grant round in 2019, the YEF identified 23 successful applicants. These projects range from intensive family therapy to school mentoring programmes. The YEF will advertise future funding rounds, as well as offer regional and national events for prospective applicants when funding rounds open. The department will work with the Home Office to ensure that appropriate future rounds are publicised to all eligible bidders. More information on future rounds as well as how to apply for grants can be found on the YEF website: <a href="https://youthendowmentfund.org.uk/" target="_blank">https://youthendowmentfund.org.uk/</a>.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Chippenham answering member printed Michelle Donelan question first answered 22/01/2020 15:59:49 answering member 4530 label Biography information for Michelle Donelan
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord