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1,271 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsMy Lords, education is a devolved matter and it is therefore up to each jurisdiction. There are also certain differences in term dates and, in Scotland for instance, different…03 Jun 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsMy Lords, the attainment gap between disadvantaged students and their comparator group has narrowed at every level since 2011, and we are keen to ensure that that is maintained.…03 Jun 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsMy Lords, the Secretary of State has made clear that schools will not be expected to be open throughout the summer holidays. That is not to say that there will not be specific,…03 Jun 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsMy Lords, the coronavirus outbreak has caused disruption to young people’s education, as teachers and parents have had to adapt to remote education. We are working at pace with…03 Jun 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsMy Lords, I have been in touch over this period directly with the head of the Boarding Schools’ Association to talk about their specific issues. We will shortly be issuing…20 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsMy Lords, I am grateful for the noble Baroness’s acknowledgement that the population is having to deal with a time of great uncertainty around the disease. The department has…20 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsMy Lords, this two to three-week period is vital for schools to plan for reopening, but the tracking of the disease in the population will not be static during this period. My…20 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsMy Lords, I am not aware of how many health and safety officers have performed such risk assessments, but I will seek to obtain the information for the noble Lord. It is the…20 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsMy Lords, this is a new virus and the scientific understanding of it is developing. The current understanding is that there is a high degree of confidence that the severity of the…20 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsMy Lords, school leaders, teachers and support staff are indeed concerned about the education of their children and have been undertaking risk assessments in relation to whether…20 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsWhen the Government announced the five tests to be satisfied to plan for reopening on 1 June, we also included the enabling programmes mentioned in the road map. This includes the…20 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsMy Lords, it is obvious that the good and protective factor that a school provides to children cannot be replaced. I assure my noble friend that in making this decision,…20 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsI join the noble Lord in thanking all of our teachers and draw attention to the fact that 80% of education settings are open for vulnerable children and the children of critical…20 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsMy Lords, the first two batches of SAGE papers were released on 20 March and 5 May. Further batches will be released shortly. From the week commencing 1 June, we hope to welcome…20 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsMy Lords, the Secretary of State outlined that the evidence will be published. As I have said, the latest updates from SAGE have been published; the latest was on 5 May. We are…20 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsMy Lords, we are seeking to learn from the experience of other countries but this is a disease and it is affecting populations in different ways so we will be introducing a track,…20 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsI am grateful to the right reverend Prelate for his assertion. We in the department are particularly aware of the risks for disadvantaged students and the attainment gap the…14 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsI can assure noble Lords that all scientific information is being considered by SAGE. In particular, there is a sub-group in relation to children and its advice has obviously been…14 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsThe noble Baroness is correct and that is why the transition year of year 6 is one of the priority years to bring children back into school. Of course, we are also looking at the…14 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: SchoolsNoble Lords will be aware that the scientific evidence we rely on comes from the SAGE committee. Obviously, I join the noble Lord in paying tribute to the hard work of so many…14 May 2020