Closing Schools
Selaine's response:
I appreciate that many people wanted to see schools closing, or at least see the opening delayed at the start of this year. I did not want to see schools close as I am acutely aware of how important face-to-face education is. I am also aware of the huge amount of work undertaken by schools to ensure their premises were as Covid-secure as possible.
We could not, however, ignore the exceptional rise in cases nationally from late December where it is now estimated that 1 in 50 people in England are Covid positive. The national lockdown is to reduce people’s movement, not because schools are not safe, and have been taken as a last resort to protect the NHS.
Schools will continue to be open for vulnerable children and the children of critical workers. This in itself is a challenge, but having spoken to a number of schools one that they are well prepared for. Schools are also much better prepared for online learning than they were in March and I welcome the fact that the BBC will be broadcasting lessons during this lockdown.
To date the Government have invested over £300 million to help schools and colleges as they transition to remote education provision. This includes £4.84 million to fund the Oak National Academy, an online resource, designed by teachers, which provides video lessons across a wide range of subjects for every year group from Reception to Year 10.
The Department of Education has taken the difficult decision that exams will not go ahead as planned this summer. Instead the Education Secretary is working with Ofqual to put in place alternative arrangements based on teacher assessed grades, the full details of which will be announced shortly. There are also significant concerns about technical qualifications, many will be taking exams this month and I have sought urgent guidance for our further education providers.
I do want schools to reopen to more children as soon as possible. I do genuinely worry about the longer term damage to this generation’s education and life chances. I am glad that this fact is generally recognised but of course, we can only reopen when we have brought down case numbers and reduced hospitalisations.
January 2021
SATS and Coronavirus
Selaine's response:
I am delighted that children are now back in school. It will be vital this year to understand the impact coronavirus (COVID-19) has had on children's education, and so I am pleased to hear that Ministers are preparing for primary assessments to take place in 2021. This will help to understand the impact of COVID-19 and target ongoing support to those that need it most. Ministers have been working closely with Ofqual, the exam boards, groups representing teachers, schools, colleges, students, and teaching unions to consider the approach to exams and other assessments next year.
I recognise that this year has placed extra burdens on schools and children alike. However, not holding the regular primary assessments this year could risk disadvantaging this year's cohort of learners. It is important that the current cohort is treated consistently with their peers.
Ministers are planning on the basis that primary assessments will take place in 2020/21 to allow us to understand the remaining impact of COVID-19 and target ongoing support to those that need it most. Timings for SATs in 2021 will be confirmed shortly.
November 2020
Free School Meals - Opposition Day Debate
Selaine's response:
The vote on Wednesday was on an Opposition Day motion which means that if the motion had passed, there would have been no change in the law or change to the free school meals scheme.
Contrary to what some people have been saying, I have not voted to take free school meals from children. Supporting vulnerable children, families and individuals has been at the heart of all I have done at this challenging time.
The Opposition know this, but they prefer to frame these votes as more than they are in a cynical attempt to play politics with a serious issue.
As a matter of principle, the best way to help support children is through the welfare system. I agree that those who need it should be provided with free meals when they are in school, but we must be careful not to overburden schools with tasks which rightly fall under the remit of the broader welfare system. Accordingly, the Government have introduced a broad range of measures to support children during the pandemic.
When schools were closed to most pupils during lockdown, free school meals continued in recognition of the extraordinary circumstances in which we found ourselves. Families also received over £380 million in supermarket vouchers through the National Voucher Scheme. The Government has allocated an additional £9.3 billion for this financial year, which means an extra £1,040 a year for families on Universal Credit and Working Tax Credits. On top of that, the Local Housing Allowance has been increased and a range of welfare schemes administered by local councils have been set up. The Government have also provided direct income support through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme.
I think this is the right way to support those most in need. As I said earlier, one of my primary concerns is the burden on schools and this concern was exacerbated by the Labour Party’s inability to say when their proposals would come to an end. It would be valuable for us to have a debate about the best ways in which to support the most vulnerable, and there is room for reasonable disagreement about whether free school meals or other welfare schemes are the best way to do this.
I am part of the Department of Work and Pensions Select Committee and just last week we set out a selection of proposals to improve Universal Credit including improving the timeliness of payments, increasing the flexibility of when and how people are paid. It is through work such as this that I as an MP can make a real and lasting difference for my constituents. It is disingenuous on the part of the Labour Party to suggest that voting against their motion meant Conservative MPs do not care about their constituents. Whether this motion had passed or not would not have resulted in any change. As so often in politics, this was a disagreement about means, not ends, and to portray it as anything else is to make national politics a more poisonous place.
October 2020
School Breakfast Bill
Selaine's response:
I agree with you that all children should have access to a good breakfast before school for the benefit of their learning, attendance, behaviour and attainment. I know that Ministers also share this goal and are committed to ensuring that no child starts the school day hungry. It is welcome that many support programmes are already in place that provide healthy and nutritious breakfasts to many thousands of children across the country.
The Government has spearheaded numerous policy initiatives to ensure that no child goes hungry, such as the National School Breakfast (NSB) Programme which was extended in January with £11.8m of additional Government funding. So far, 1,800 school breakfast clubs have been created by the Programme which now offers support to over 280,000 children in some of the most deprived areas of England. Funding for the NSB Programme beyond March 2021 is due to be evaluated in this autumn’s Comprehensive Spending Review and I will be pressing ministerial colleagues to ensure this important programme can continue.
In addition to the NSB Programme, £9m of funding was provided for the Holiday Activities and Food Programme over the Summer. This initiative enabled over 50,000 children to access healthy meals and enriching activities during the holidays.
I understand that Ministers are also considering the recommendations put forward recently in Part One of the National Food Strategy. I hope that this response has reassured you that substantial action, including unprecedented additional support during the Covid-19 pandemic, is already being taken to ensure that children do not go hungry. I will continue to work to ensure all children get a nutritious breakfast before school and I know Ministers will do the same.
October 2020
Reception Baseline Assessment (RBA)
Selaine's response:
Primary education is fundamental to ensuring every child receives the best possible start in life. The primary assessment and accountability system plays an important role in ensuring that every child, no matter what their background, benefits from a high-quality primary education. These assessments help ensure great schools are recognised and help to improve those that can learn from others.
The reception baseline assessment (RBA) will be used to inform the way the Department for Education measures the educational progress that primary schools help their pupils to make. The RBA is not a test. It is a short, teacher-led assessment of children’s communication, language, literacy and early mathematics skills. No preparation will be required, either at home or at school. It will enable the Department for Education to develop improved progress measures which will take into account the work that primary schools do with their pupils in the reception year and throughout the first two years of schooling. Data from the assessment will only be used once children reach the end of primary school, and will not be used to judge, track or label individual pupils.
It is important to note that this assessment will replace existing end-of-key stage 1 tests, which will be made non-mandatory once the new reception baseline has become established.
I know Ministers appreciate the challenging circumstances schools are facing. The Department for Education is keeping progress towards the reception baseline assessment (RBA) under regular review and gathering feedback from stakeholders on a range of options. Further guidance on the RBA will be provided to schools in the summer term.
June 2020
Reception Baseline Assessment (RBA)
Selaine's response:
Primary education is fundamental to ensuring every child receives the best possible start in life. The primary assessment and accountability system plays an important role in ensuring that every child, no matter what their background, benefits from a
high-quality primary education. These assessments help ensure great schools are recognised and help to improve those that can learn from others.
The reception baseline assessment (RBA) will be used to inform the way the Department for Education measures the educational progress that primary schools help their pupils to make. The RBA is not a test. It is a short, teacher-led assessment of children’s communication, language, literacy and early mathematics skills. No preparation will be required, either at home or at school. It will enable the Department for Education to develop improved progress measures which will take into account the work that primary schools do with their pupils in the reception year and throughout the first two years of schooling. Data from the assessment will only be used once children reach the end of primary school, and will not be used to judge, track or label individual pupils.
It is important to note that this assessment will replace existing end-of-key stage 1 tests, which will be made non-mandatory once the new reception baseline has become established.
I know Ministers appreciate the challenging circumstances schools are facing. The Department for Education is keeping progress towards the reception baseline assessment (RBA) under regular review and gathering feedback from stakeholders on a range of options. Further guidance on the RBA will be provided to schools in the summer term.
June 2020
Coronavirus and Free School Meals
Selaine's response:
As you may be aware, the provision for free school meals is ordinarily term time only. However, during the Easter and half term holidays the Department for Education met the costs of the national voucher scheme to provide free school meals for eligible pupils. I welcome that in recognition of the unprecedented situation facing parents this summer, a new Covid Summer Food Fund has been announced. Additional funding will enable children who are eligible for free school meals to claim a 6-week voucher to cover the summer holiday period.
In addition, I welcome that during this challenging period, the eligibility criteria for FSM is temporarily being extended. This includes some groups who have no recourse to public funds. Further details can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-free-school-meals-guidance/guidance-for-the-temporary-extension-of-free-school-meals-eligibility-to-nrpf-groups.
June 2020