Mark Drakeford: The current curriculum requires financial education for all learners. Estyn is reviewing provision in schools and will publish recommendations in the spring on how financial education can improve. In Financial Capability Week, I should highlight our partnership with the Money Advice Service, which supports money management teaching in schools.
Mark Drakeford: Investment of almost £26 million has been approved to date for Islwyn through the twenty-first century schools and education programme. The funding is earmarked for a new 1,050-place comprehensive school for the area.
Mark Drakeford: Band A of the twenty-first century schools and education programme will see investment of over £356 million in schools in South Wales Central over the five-year period ending 2019.
Mark Drakeford: Local authorities are responsible for funding schools in Wales. Welsh Government has prioritised support for schools through the local government settlement. We also provide significant additional grant funding to take forward our educational reforms and improve outcomes for learners.
Mark Drakeford: Local authorities are responsible for school funding in Wales. Councils set their spending priorities for the services they provide. How much an authority sets aside for school budgets is a matter for the authority. Education funding remains a key priority for this Government, in spite of continued austerity.
Mark Drakeford: Local authorities are responsible for funding schools in Wales. Welsh Government has prioritised support for schools through the local government settlement. We also continue to provide significant additional grant funding to support our educational reforms and improve outcomes for learners.
Mark Drakeford: Our national guidance focuses on enabling schools to secure the best outcomes for all learners by considering both their educational needs and wellbeing while managing ongoing risks of COVID-19. We continue to take action to minimise disruption to learners and ensure schools are safe places to learn and work.
Mark Drakeford: The education portfolio will spend £2.4 billion in 2018-19. This comprises £1.6 billion resource, £169 million capital and £542 million in annually managed expenditure. It pays amongst other things, for the pupil development grant, the education improvement grant and the twenty-first century schools programme.
Mark Drakeford: The regional education consortia support, and work closely in partnership with local authorities to promote high standards of education. I am encouraged that Estyn’s most recent annual report, published last December, noted that there has been further improvement in standards in primary schools.
Mark Drakeford: The Wales infrastructure investment plan sets out investment of over £6.5 billion in infrastructure across Wales over the remainder of the current Assembly term, including the twenty-first century schools and education programme and the Grange University Hospital.
Mark Drakeford: Our investment proposals for Powys include just under £80 million to deliver band A of the twenty-first century schools and education programme and completion of the Newtown bypass.
Mark Drakeford: The decision to increase operations in schools from 29 June was guided by an approach based on equality of access, as all learners have a right to education and to be supported in their learning. This phased approach aims to mitigate the negative impacts on learners caused by COVID-19.
Mark Drakeford: The Minister for Education has published operational guidance providing a framework for local authorities and schools to support all learners to return this term. The guidance sets out control measures that need to be taken to minimise the risk of transmission, including adhering to social distancing in the best ways possible.
Mark Drakeford: ..., and if it’s helpful, I’m happy to update that for the current Finance Committee. Can I just attempt to answer some of the points raised by Mark Reckless, particularly in relation to the education MEG? As far as revenue is concerned, this supplementary budget contains three main additions to the education resources: £3.5 million to contribute towards student finance pressures, and...
Mark Drakeford: Based on the latest available information, all schools in Islwyn meet the current bandwidth targets of 10 Mbps to primary schools and 100 Mbps to secondary schools, set under the Learning in Digital Wales grant programme.
Mark Drakeford: The School Standards and Organisation (Wales) Act 2013 requires that, before school organisation proposals are published, they must first be subject to consultation. Our school organisation code sets a high standard for consultation, ensuring those with an interest can express their views and those views are conscientiously taken into account.
Mark Drakeford: In September 2016, the Minister for Education established the higher education Brexit working group as a forum to co-ordinate intelligence and provide advice to Government on the short to long-term impact of Brexit on universities. The Minister for Education met the group following their meeting yesterday, which focused on 'no deal'.
Mark Drakeford: Improving the mental health and well-being of children and young people continues to be a priority. We invest in a range of approaches, including our recent announcement to develop a whole-school approach, which aims to make emotional health and well-being central to the way schools work.
Mark Drakeford: Exclusion should only be used as a last resort. Where exclusion cannot be avoided, our exclusion guidance sets out the support schools and local authorities must put in place for all children who have been excluded from school and from pupil referral units.
Mark Drakeford: Responsibility for planning school places rests with local authorities. Local authorities have to keep under review whether their pattern of school provision meets demand for places and the requirements of the modern curriculum.
