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1682799

registered interest
date	17/01/2024
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Students: Gambling
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what measures they have in place to improve coordination between schools, colleges, universities and support services to better assist students struggling with gambling addiction.
tabling member printed	Lord Browne of Belmont
uin	HL1681
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/01/2024 answer text <p>The government is committed to tackling gambling-related harms. While education settings are not mental health or gambling-related harm specialists, they are well placed to identify where a child or young person is struggling and help them to access support, linking them to NHS support and specialist services as needed.</p><p>Where gambling problems are affecting the mental health of young people, our programme of Mental Health Support Teams and senior mental health lead training supports schools and colleges to identify individuals in need of further support and make effective referrals to external agencies, to help young people get appropriate, timely support.</p><p>The department works closely with the higher education (HE) sector to promote and fund effective mental health support for university students. £15 million of funding this year from the Office for Students (OfS) will go to mental health support and the OfS-funded Student Space continues to provide students with free online mental health resources and confidential support on a range of topics, including addiction support. The OfS has also brought together HE providers and NHS trusts across each region in England to deliver better join up between university wellbeing support and NHS services.</p><p>Additionally, schools, colleges and universities have access to the NHS webpage 'Help for problem gambling'. This covers common indicators which could help identify whether individuals may be experiencing gambling-related harm, as well as providing initial signposting to the sources of support available to those in need<strong>. </strong>A link to the webpage can be found here: <a href="https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/addiction-support/gambling-addiction/" target="_blank">https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/addiction-support/gambling-addiction/</a>.</p><p>As part of the NHS Long Term Plan commitment to expand geographical coverage of treatment for those experiencing gambling-related harm, the National Problem Gambling Clinic in London offers specialist treatment and support for children and young people.</p><p>The government White Paper ‘High stakes: gambling reform for the digital age’, published in April 2023, announced the introduction of a statutory levy on gambling operators to fund the research, prevention and treatment of gambling-related harms. This presents an opportunity to consider how best to improve awareness and understanding of gambling-related harms amongst young people, and how to ensure availability of effective support across all educational settings.</p> answering member printed Baroness Barran question first answered 30/01/2024 17:02:10 answering member 4703 label Biography information for Baroness Barran
tabling member	3801 label Biography information for Lord Browne of Belmont

1669122

registered interest
date	09/11/2023
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Education: Competition
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that the education system remains globally competitive.
tabling member printed	Lord Browne of Belmont
uin	HL161
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/11/2023 answer text <p>The government is dedicated to improving the education system to improve outcomes for children and young people, and this will help maintain its global competitiveness.</p><p>A key part of this is our relentless focus on driving up education standards to deliver better outcomes. In 2023, primary aged children in England came 4<sup>th</sup> out of 43 countries which tested pupils of the same age, in the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study, making them the best in the western world at reading. In 2019, primary aged pupils in England achieved their highest ever score in mathematics in the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study, a significant improvement compared to 2015.</p><p>At secondary level, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Programme for International Student Assessment 2018 results showed that 15-year-olds in England performed above the OECD averages for reading, mathematics, and science. Since 2009, 15-year-olds in England have climbed 10 places in reading and mathematics.</p><p>This government is committed to creating a world-leading skills system which is employer-focused, high-quality, and fit for the future. Our reforms are strengthening higher and further education to help more people get good jobs and upskill and retrain throughout their lives; and to improve national productivity. This includes increasing opportunities for people to develop higher technical skills through T Levels, Apprenticeship Standards, Skills Bootcamps, or Higher Technical Qualifications. All of which have been developed hand in glove with thousands of employers and introduced under this government.</p><p>From 2025, the Lifelong Learning Entitlement will transform access to further and higher education, offering all adults the equivalent of four years’ worth of student loans to use flexibly on quality education training over their lifetime. The department will introduce the Advanced British Standard (ABS) for 16-19 year-olds, a new Baccalaureate-style qualification that takes the best of A levels and T Levels and brings them together into a single qualification.</p><p>The ABS will increase the number of taught hours by an extra 15% for most 16-19 students, increasing the average number of subjects students take and ensuring that all students continue to study mathematics and English. This will give students greater breadth of knowledge and bring us more in line with other countries. The department will make an initial downpayment now to support the ABS, which will focus on recruiting and retaining teachers in shortage subjects and providing better resources for teachers and pupils.</p><p>Since 2010, the department has driven up standards in education, and created more opportunities to gain new skills that businesses truly value. So whatever age or stage of life people are at they can access high-quality opportunities to get ahead in their chosen career.</p> answering member printed Baroness Barran question first answered 23/11/2023 11:55:53 answering member 4703 label Biography information for Baroness Barran
tabling member	3801 label Biography information for Lord Browne of Belmont

1655072

registered interest
date	24/07/2023
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: Northern Ireland
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to respond to the publication of the 44th Report by the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee on 22 June, in order to clarify (1) whether, and (2) how, a parent in Northern Ireland can excuse their child from Relationships and Sexuality Education.
tabling member printed	Lord Browne of Belmont
uin	HL9605
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/08/2023 answer text <p>The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has welcomed the report by the House of Lords Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee.</p><p>The Relationships and Sexuality Education (Northern Ireland) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 place a duty on the Northern Ireland Department of Education to introduce regulations to ensure that a pupil may be withdrawn from education on sexual and reproductive health and rights or elements of that education, at the request of a parent. This follows the approach taken in England and Scotland.</p><p>The Northern Ireland Department of Education has confirmed it will consult on both the guidance and the provisions for the circumstances in which a pupil may be excused from the education or specified elements of that education.</p> answering member printed Baroness Barran question first answered 02/08/2023 11:56:32 answering member 4703 label Biography information for Baroness Barran
tabling member	3801 label Biography information for Lord Browne of Belmont

1648330

registered interest
date	27/06/2023
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Children: Disadvantaged
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that children from disadvantaged backgrounds have equal access to digital learning resources and technology.
tabling member printed	Lord Browne of Belmont
uin	HL8815
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/07/2023 answer text <p>Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.</p><p>Schools are responsible for making decisions about what technology to buy to meet their pupils’ needs, and how best to use it support their teaching.</p><p>The government delivered over 1.95 million laptops and tablets to schools, trusts, local authorities and further education (FE) providers for disadvantaged children and young people as part of a £520 million government investment to support access to remote education and online social care services. These laptops and tablets are now owned by schools, trusts, local authorities or FE providers, who can lend them to children and young people who need them the most. These laptops and tablets were an injection of support on top of the estimated 2.9 million that were already owned by schools before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.</p><p>Building on its success in the pandemic, Oak National Academy was established as an arm’s length body on 1 September 2022, working independently of the government and collaboratively with the education sector. Oak aims to support teachers to improve curriculum delivery, reduce workload and support improved pupil outcomes, and continues to provide a remote education contingency. Oak will work with teachers across the country, giving them and their pupils access to free, optional, and adaptable high-quality digital curriculum resources.</p><p>The government has provided over £2.6 billion of pupil premium funding in the 2022/23 financial year to support pupils from lower income families. Rates will increase by 5% for 2023/24, taking total pupil premium funding to £2.9 billion. As set out in the menu of approaches, schools can use both pupil premium and recovery premium on technology and other resources that support high quality teaching.</p><p>Social tariffs offer low-cost landline and broadband services for those on certain means tested benefits. The government is encouraging those providers who do not currently offer social tariff packages, to do so. A range of affordable tariffs, designed specifically to support low-income families, are now available to 99% of UK households. BT, Virgin Media O2, Sky, Vodafone, and other providers offer broadband and mobile social tariffs for as little as £10 per month, representing a significant saving for households in receipt of Universal Credit and other means tested benefits.</p><p>In addition, the government secured a range of commitments from the UK’s major broadband and mobile providers to support families through the global rise in the cost of living. These commitments include more manageable payment plans, switching to a cheaper package free of charge, or taking a more affordable social tariff if the customer is eligible. The government encourages people to contact their provider to see what support is available. Awareness and take up of social tariffs need to improve. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport is working with the sector to urge those providers who have yet to offer a social tariff to do so, and for the industry to ensure that offers are publicised.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Baroness Barran question first answered 11/07/2023 13:12:42 answering member 4703 label Biography information for Baroness Barran
tabling member	3801 label Biography information for Lord Browne of Belmont

1488556

registered interest
date	12/07/2022
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	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the action required to safeguard universities as places of (1) free speech, and (2) challenging ideas.
tabling member printed	Lord Browne of Belmont
uin	HL1680
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/07/2022 answer text <p>Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.</p><p>The government supports free speech which generates rigorous debate and advances understanding.</p><p>It is the freedom to think independently, express and challenge ideas, and put forward lawful, new and controversial ideas, that makes our universities world-renowned. These are essential skills in a modern, forward-facing society. It is this freedom that the government strives to protect.</p><p>The Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill has been introduced for this reason. The bill will strengthen existing freedom of speech duties and directly address gaps within the existing law. The bill also applies the duties directly to students’ unions and constituent colleges, including those at the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge.</p><p>The changes will introduce clear consequences for breaches of the new duties and ensure that these principles are upheld.</p><p>The bill is currently passing through the House of Lords.</p> answering member printed Baroness Barran question first answered 25/07/2022 15:48:28 answering member 4703 label Biography information for Baroness Barran
tabling member	3801 label Biography information for Lord Browne of Belmont

1484919

registered interest
date	29/06/2022
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Apprentices: Specific Learning Difficulties
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what programmes are currently in place to increase the number of people with learning difficulties taking part in apprenticeships.
tabling member printed	Lord Browne of Belmont
uin	HL1336
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/07/2022 answer text <p>Apprenticeships are available for all people of all backgrounds including people with Learning Difficulties and Disabilities (LDD) to start, progress or to re-train in a variety of industries.</p><p>In recent years we have seen an improved representation of people who have declared LDD starting apprenticeships, and we want this to continue. We have improved our Find an Apprenticeship service to allow people to identify Disability Confident Employers offering opportunities and ensuring apprenticeships are available to all.</p><p>In partnership with the Disability Rights UK, we launched a Disabled Apprentice Network to provide insight and evidence on how to attract and retain disabled people into apprenticeships. Disability Rights UK published a report during National Apprenticeship Week 2022 to support employers to improve the diversity of their apprenticeship programmes whilst highlighting the barriers people may face when undertaking an apprenticeship. In this report, the apprentices identified the opportunity to build confidence, skills and networks with people with different experiences and gain paid work experience as the key points which influenced them towards undertaking an apprenticeship.</p><p>To ensure that more people who declare LDD feel confident to undertake apprenticeships, we have lowered the English and Maths requirements to apprenticeships for a defined group of individuals with LDD. We have also introduced British Sign Language (BSL) as an alternative to English Functional Skills for those who have BSL as their first language.</p><p>Furthermore, we make £1,000 payments to employers and providers for taking on 16 to 18-year-olds, or those 19 to 24 with an Education, Health and Care Plan and also offer £150 per month to help providers make reasonable adjustments for eligible apprentices with special educational needs. Providers can claim additional funding if the cost of support exceeds this rate.</p> answering member printed Baroness Barran question first answered 11/07/2022 14:19:29 answering member 4703 label Biography information for Baroness Barran
tabling member	3801 label Biography information for Lord Browne of Belmont

1484920

registered interest
date	29/06/2022
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Special Educational Needs: Vocational Guidance
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the current career support available for students with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities.
tabling member printed	Lord Browne of Belmont
uin	HL1337
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/07/2022 answer text <p>Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.</p><p>The government’s education policies are intended to ensure that all young people, whatever their background or circumstances, have the opportunity to reach their potential. Careers support for young people supports anyone, including young people with special education needs and disabilities (SEND) or in disadvantaged groups, to go as far as their talents will take them and have a rewarding career.</p><p>The statutory guidance for schools and colleges on careers guidance includes an expectation that schools and colleges will use the Gatsby Benchmarks of Good Career Guidance to develop and improve their careers programmes. The guidance is available here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/careers-guidance-provision-for-young-people-in-schools" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/careers-guidance-provision-for-young-people-in-schools</a>. The third benchmark focusses on addressing the individual needs of each student. The department expects schools and colleges to tailor careers activities and educational goals to the needs of each student, taking account of their prior knowledge and skills, the choices and transitions they face, and any additional support that may be needed to overcome barriers.</p><p>The department is working in collaboration with The Careers and Enterprise Company (CEC) and the National Careers Service to ensure careers advice for young people with SEND is of the highest quality. The department funds the CEC to increase young people’s exposure to the world of work and support schools and colleges to achieve the Gatsby Benchmarks. The CEC runs a community of practice focused on inclusion. Schools, colleges and training providers work together to support each other in their local community to work with students from disadvantaged groups, including young people with SEND, through the sharing of good practice and the development of resources. The National Careers Service provides free careers information, advice and guidance to both young people and adults through a website and telephone helpline.</p><p>To help more young people with SEND get into great careers, the department is also taking action to improve careers guidance, providing support, resources and SEND-specific training for Careers Leaders and special educational needs coordinators who design and deliver inspirational careers education programmes, tailored to the needs of young people with SEND.</p> answering member printed Baroness Barran question first answered 11/07/2022 14:16:03 answering member 4703 label Biography information for Baroness Barran
tabling member	3801 label Biography information for Lord Browne of Belmont

1439946

registered interest
date	10/03/2022
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	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to measure progress towards the restoration of disabled children’s social care services to pre-pandemic levels.
tabling member printed	Lord Browne of Belmont
uin	HL6854
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/03/2022 answer text <p>I refer the noble Lord to the answer given by my hon. Friend, the Minister for Children and Families, on 28 February 2022 to Question <a href="https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2022-02-18/125599" target="_blank">125599</a>.</p> answering member printed Baroness Barran question first answered 24/03/2022 12:41:27 answering member 4703 label Biography information for Baroness Barran
tabling member	3801 label Biography information for Lord Browne of Belmont

1349325

registered interest
date	21/07/2021
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Remote Education
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of children educated at home in each of the last two years.
tabling member printed	Lord Browne of Belmont
uin	HL2258
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/07/2021 answer text <p>The department does not collect data on children who are home educated, however we are aware of the rising numbers of home-educated children.</p><p>The department supports the right of parents to educate their children at home. Most parents do this with the intention of providing their child with the best education possible, and sometimes during challenging circumstances.</p><p>However, the rising numbers of home educated children cannot be overlooked. For some parents, the child’s education is not the primary reason behind the decision to home educate, which can mean that some children are not being provided with a suitable education.</p><p>The government remains committed to a form of registration system for children not in school. Further details on this will be in the government response to the Children Not in School Consultation, which we will publish in the coming months.</p> answering member printed Baroness Berridge question first answered 26/07/2021 15:40:37 answering member 4218 label Biography information for Baroness Berridge
tabling member	3801 label Biography information for Lord Browne of Belmont

1349326

registered interest
date	21/07/2021
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Education: Standards
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of educational underachievement in Britain; and whether they feel a one-size-fits-all approach is the answer.
tabling member printed	Lord Browne of Belmont
uin	HL2259
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/08/2021 answer text <p>Education is a devolved matter, and the response will outline the education reforms for England.</p><p>The government remains committed to raising educational standards for all pupils, to ensure they have the knowledge, qualifications and skills they need to succeed in life. The proportion of schools now rated by Ofsted as Good or Outstanding has risen from 68% in 2010 to 86% in 2020. For all phases of education, there is funding in place that specifically targets disadvantaged children and young people, in order to tackle the attainment gap.</p><p>For children in their early years, the department is investing £17 million to deliver the Nuffield Early Language Intervention, improving the language skills of reception age children who need it most during the COVID-19 outbreak. We have also announced £10 million for a pre-reception early language continued professional development programme, supporting early years staff to work with those disadvantaged children who are at risk of falling behind.</p><p>Disadvantaged children at school continue to benefit from additional funding given to their schools through the pupil premium, worth over £2.5 billion in 2021/22.</p><p>For 16 to 19-year-olds, the national funding formula includes extra funding for disadvantaged students. In 2020/21 the government allocated over £530 million to enable colleges, schools, and other providers to recruit and support disadvantaged 16 to 19-year-olds and to support students with special educational needs and disabilities.</p><p>The Disadvantage Gap Index shows that, between 2011 and 2019, the attainment gap between disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged pupils narrowed by 13% at age 11 and 9% at age 16.</p> answering member printed Baroness Berridge question first answered 04/08/2021 13:36:18 answering member 4218 label Biography information for Baroness Berridge
tabling member	3801 label Biography information for Lord Browne of Belmont