Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Home Learning: IT Provision

Monday 23 November 2020 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • We are making over half a million laptops and tablets available for disadvantaged students by the end of the year.
  • Schools can contact the Department for Education to acquire extra computers beyond allocated amounts within 48 working hours.
  • The allocation of laptops is intended for all schools, whether or not their pupils are self-isolating, to ensure disadvantaged pupils have access when needed.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Zarah Sultana Your Party Coventry South
Education
Context

The question arises from the challenge many pupils face in accessing necessary technology when required to learn from home, particularly in disadvantaged areas.

Question

I am concerned that all pupils have laptops and internet access when required to learn from home. What steps are being taken to ensure this?

Answer from Nick Gibb

We are making over half a million laptops and tablets available for disadvantaged students across the country by the end of the year. Since September, over 100,000 devices have been delivered to schools, building on over 220,000 delivered in the summer term. Where children lack access to the internet at home, we have also delivered over 50,000 routers.

Answered
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Q2 Maria Eagle Lab Liverpool Garston
Education Employment
Context

Knowsley, one of the most deprived boroughs in the country, has seen its allocation of laptops cut significantly. With many children from 61 schools self-isolating due to health concerns, there is a critical shortage of technology needed for remote learning.

Question

Knowsley's laptop allocation has been slashed from 1,065 to 282 since the Government's cuts, and Halewood school currently has only six laptops for 60 self-isolating children. How are headteachers meant to comply with the Government's regulations on providing immediate access to remote learning when half of their students lack home technology?

Answer from Nick Gibb

Any school where pupils are self-isolating, and which has disadvantaged students who do not have access to a computer, is able to contact the Department to acquire extra computers beyond those allocated. I am told that it takes 48 working hours to have those laptops delivered to the school.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The answer does not address how schools with urgent needs can comply immediately given the 48-hour delivery time frame.

How: Under Review

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Q3 Zarah Sultana Your Party Coventry South
Education
Context

Ernesford Grange Community Academy found that 12% of students, or 101 pupils, struggle to access a device at home. The school's allocation fell from 111 to just 22 following the Government's reduction in allocations.

Question

Teachers have stressed the importance of pupils having access to computers at home but many children from working-class communities do not. Ernesford Grange saw its allocation fall drastically, so will the Minister guarantee that every school in Coventry has the laptops needed for their students?

Answer from Nick Gibb

The allocation is to schools that are not necessarily sending children home to self-isolate—that is to all schools, whether or not their pupils are self-isolating. We ensure a laptop for every disadvantaged pupil without one when self-isolating by calling the Department for Education; they will have the computer within 48 hours of fulfilling eligibility.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The answer does not guarantee that every school in Coventry has laptops needed, focusing instead on individual student need and the process to acquire laptops.

How: Under Review

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