Tag: education

Bishop of Leeds asks about revisions to UK Citizenship education

The Bishop of Leeds asked a question on the possibility of revising UK citizenship education to include a greater breadth of historical knowledge and complexity on 14th April 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Leeds [V]: My Lords, I am grateful for these answers and glad that this document will be revised in due course. It is a concise, often masterful, précis of some quite complex areas of our history, but surely a confident country can cope with complexity and with where we have failed—it is not just our glorious past. History matters. For example, in relation to the role of the Soviet Union during the Second World War, much of what is regarded as glorious standing alone by the western allies would not have been possible without the role of the Soviet Union, which lost 20 million people. Will the rewriting be open to a wider scrutiny, in order that history is perhaps taken more seriously?

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Bishop of St Albans asks about study abroad opportunities

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 22nd March 2021:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked Her Majesty’s Government:

  • Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the differences between (1) the Turing scheme, and (2) the Erasmus+ scheme.
  • what assessment they have made of the impact of the decision not to pay for the tuition of disadvantaged students on the Turing scheme on the ability of such students to study abroad.
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Education (Guidance about Costs of School Uniforms) Bill: Bishop of Durham speaks at second reading

The Bishop of Durham spoke at the second reading of the Education (Guidance about Costs of School Uniforms) Bill on 19th March 2021, supporting the bill and emphasising the need to ensure affordable and ethically made school uniforms be made accessible to all:

The Lord Bishop of Durham [V]: My Lords, I speak in my capacity as chair of the National Society, and thus lead bishop in the Church of England for education. In principle, uniform is a fantastic leveller: it can foster unity and provides an opportunity for students to worry less about the challenges of fitting in. It is therefore worrying to find that the cost of uniforms is instead causing division by highlighting disparities. Having poverty- aware uniform policies means that we can avoid worsening the disadvantages that a child in poverty is already faced with. We must return uniforms to being beneficial, which the Bill will do. The Bill has my support, as it would ensure that all families can afford uniforms.

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Church Commissioners Written Questions: Church Land, Religious Freedom, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Remote Education

On 11th March 2021, the Second Church Estates Commissioner, Andrew Selous MP, gave the following written answers to questions from an MP:

Church Land

Jim Shannon MP (DUP, Strangford): To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what steps the church is taking to provide affordable, sustainable and beautiful housing on land it owns.

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Bishop of Winchester asks about support for graduating students affected by the COVID-19 pandemic

On 8th February 2021, the Bishop of Winchester asked a question on support for students seeking graduate jobs on 8th February 2021, following a government statement on the effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on university students:

The Lord Bishop of Winchester [V]: My Lords, while the short-term support offered by the Government to students facing financial difficulties is most welcome, the pandemic has also generated uncertainty about graduate employment in the short, medium and long term. What plans do Her Majesty’s Government have for supporting students and graduates who are or will be seeking skilled graduate employment?

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Bishop of St Albans asks about access to broadband in deprived areas

The Bishop of St Albans asked a question on enabling access to broadband for young people in deprived areas and the importance of education in light of the coronavirus pandemic on 28th January 2021, during following a government statement on COVID-19:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, the position for young people in school and education is mixed, with some students in poorer areas still not having access to online education and those in remote rural areas with not-spots simply not able to get online. Could the noble Baroness comment on the priority of trying to ensure that we move much more rapidly on the provision of broadband, particularly in those difficult areas? Secondly, we are going to have to do a big catch-up on educational standards and achievements, but it is important, at the same time, to look holistically at the spiritual, emotional and psychological work we are going to have to do with our young people. What plans are being made by Her Majesty’s Government?

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Bishop of Winchester asks about teacher training

The Bishop of Winchester received the following written answers on 28th January 2021:

The Lord Bishop of Winchester asked Her Majesty’s Government, further to the announcement made by the Department for Education on 2 January about the review of the Initial Teacher Training market, what plans they have, as part of that review (1) to ensure an increased supply of new teachers rather than displacement of trainee teachers between providers, and (2) to mitigate any risk of (a) complexity, and (b) disincentives, in the market.

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Bishop of Oxford takes part in debate on report on tackling intergenerational unfairness

The Bishop of Oxford spoke in a debate on a report from the Select Committee on Tackling Intergenerational Unfairness on 25th January 2021, raising the issues of education, the gig economy, and all-age communities:

The Lord Bishop of Oxford [V]: My Lords, I welcome this key report on intergenerational unfairness and this debate. It is a privilege to take part. I want to focus my contribution on three issues.

The first concerns education and training. I welcome the report’s perspective and recommendations; as others have said, they are even more relevant now. However, as we know, the landscape is shifting significantly beneath our feet because of the immediate demands of the pandemic and the likely longer-term shifts in working patterns created by the fourth industrial revolution. We are sorely in need of creative, imaginative, cross-party and cross-society intergenerational thinking on education for life, not simply for work.

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Bishop of Durham asks about reducing rates of COVID-19 in schools

On 7th January 2021, the Bishop of Durham asked about methods of reducing rates of COVID-19 in schools, following a government statement on the impact of the pandemic on educational settings:

The Lord Bishop of Durham [V]: I declare my interests as chair of the National Society. I thank the Minister for the Statement and the commitment on the delivery of laptops and 4G to children. Some schools are reporting over two-thirds attendance today, due to children of key workers and vulnerable children. This runs counter to the policy of children staying at home as much as possible and, as such, is seen by school staff as highly risky to them. I have been in touch with a number of them just this afternoon with regard to this. What proportion of school attendance do Her Majesty’s Government think is needed to reduce schools’ role as a virus vector, and what more can be done to enable more vulnerable children to learn from home where hardware and 4G are the issue?

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Bishop of Durham asks about children’s views of education during the pandemic

On 16th November 2020 Baroness Massey of Darwen asked the Government ” what plans they have to incorporate the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child into legislation.” The Bishop of Durham asked a follow up question:

The Lord Bishop of Durham [V]:  Regarding the voice of children and young people, if Article 12 had been in law, what might their input have been on their own situation in schools, universities and the like through the pandemic? Continue reading “Bishop of Durham asks about children’s views of education during the pandemic”