Education Settings Safe Learning 2022-01-31
2022-01-31
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Questions & Answers
Q1
Direct Answer
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Mr Speaker, I am answering this question on behalf of the Secretary of State who is isolating after testing positive for covid.
What steps his Department is taking to ensure that pupils can learn safely in education settings. May I offer my condolences to the family and friends on the day of the funeral of the late Member for Birmingham, Erdington?
Our top priority remains to protect face-to-face education. To reduce transmission of covid-19, regular testing continues across education and childcare, with over 109.5 million tests completed. A further £8 million will support the in-school vaccination programme. To improve ventilation, we have delivered over 353,000 carbon dioxide monitors and purchased up to 9,000 air cleaning devices.
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Q2
Direct Answer
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Expressing condolences to the family and friends of the late Member for Birmingham, Erdington.
Will he join me in expressing the view that forcing young children to wear a face covering for seven hours a day is unfair, particularly for those who are hard of hearing?
We have consistently seen 99.9% of education settings open to support face-to-face education. The Secretary of State always said that, while masks in classrooms were brought in for a period as we tried to study the impact of omicron, they should not be in place for a day longer than necessary. We no longer recommend them, and no child should be denied the opportunity to study for refusing to wear a mask.
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Q3
Direct Answer
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A school contacted the questioner due to its £30,000 energy bill which is causing concerns about managing the budget.
What urgent action will he take in response to a primary school contacting me this morning regarding its energy bills?
We recognise some of the pressures facing schools and, indeed, all parts of the economy as a result of rising energy costs. That is part of the reason why we have provided a £4 billion increase for schools in the next financial year, which is allowing them to deliver on all the pressures that they are currently facing.
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Q4
Partial Answer
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The Centre for Social Justice report highlighted the issue of ghost children and missing pupils.
Will the Department get proper data to find out where those children are, and will it use the forecast underspend from the national tutoring programme to appoint 2,000 attendance officers?
I share my right hon. Friend's passion for ensuring that children are in school. I have discussed with the Children's Commissioner the designation of “ghost children”, which we both feel is somewhat unhelpful. These are flesh and blood children who deserve to be in school and have the chance to benefit from face-to-face education.
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The specific ask regarding data gathering and using underspend for attendance officers was not directly addressed.
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Q5
Partial Answer
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Russell Scott Primary School in Denton faces significant issues due to a botched refurbishment by Carillion.
Let us get the purse strings opened and rebuild Russell Scott. That is not acceptable, is it? This is not levelling up.
A programme is due to open shortly as the hon. Gentleman knows. Of course, we cannot pre-empt the programme, but I know that he has made a strong case for his school.
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Q6
Direct Answer
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Ofsted's inquiry into the Everyone's Invited campaign highlighted issues related to sexual harassment and safeguarding in schools.
Will the Minister look to Ofsted to do further work on how schools are implementing relationship and sex education?
I know from discussions with Her Majesty's chief inspector that this is a priority for Ofsted, and we continue to work together on it. We are also supporting teachers to build their confidence in teaching this newly required subject.
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Q7
Partial Answer
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Online learning has become more prevalent, raising concerns about the digital literacy and online environment for young people.
What protections are the Government putting in place to ensure that online platforms are a safe learning environment for young people?
This is an important area of work within both the computing curriculum and the advice on keeping children safe in education. We certainly want to ensure that children are safe whether they are learning in the classroom or online.
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