Peter Weir
Strangford · Ulster Unionist Party · Northern Ireland
“Funding was secured for that scheme, and we have been able to take further steps on it. As highlighted by my colleague Diane Dodds, we have seen my successor, the current Minister, be able to implement it at the beginning of September 2021 and funding be made available for it.”
“One of the great fears — I saw it particularly, as Education Minister, from the point of view of children and the domestic setting between partners — was what was going to happen in families when the doors closed and the locks went on. What was happening behind closed doors?”
“There is another significant element of the Bill. I have spoken about it in the Chamber on a couple of occasions. There is always a slight danger that we, as legislators, see legislation as being the end of a process and think that we can pack it away, put it on the shelf and forget about the problem because it has been solved.”
“I welcome the passage of the Bill's Final Stage and commend all the campaigners who have pressed so hard for it and the Bill sponsor. For Pat Catney, hearing some of the tributes must be like hearing eulogies at your funeral, without having to go through the indignity of dying, which is always a double advantage.”
“As highlighted by a number of Members, the impact of period poverty, though not confined to it, has been particularly acute in young women's education. We know that the impact can lead to the missing of education and constraints within education, and that it does so in a disproportionate way.”
“I support the Bill's Final Stage, and I commend the Bill's sponsor for introducing it. I thank the Minister and the Department for the positive attitude that they have taken towards it.”
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“Contingency plans for alternative awarding in 2022 will build on the outworking of and learning from this year's approach that was based on the use of centre-determined grades. <BR /> <BR />A planned return to public examinations is not, however, a return to business as usual. I am mindful of the need to consider our young people's mental health and well-being, the many difficulties that they have faced with such resilience and fortitude and the significant disruption to their learning during not one but two academic years. In light of that, I have decided that young people will have significantly fewer examinations in 2022, and today I am announcing a package of significant reductions in assessment across the range of CCEA qualifications.”
“Their dedication and professionalism enables our students to obtain those important qualifications during the current crisis. However, such an arrangement is not a sustainable or long-term approach. With the roll-out of the vaccine programme and the improving public health situation, my priority is to return to public examinations during the next academic year. <BR /> <BR />Contingency arrangements for alternative awarding based on centres' professional judgement will be in place should they be required. I sincerely hope that that will not be the case, but please be assured that a plan B is in train. As we know all too well, the public health situation can change quickly. Whilst we remain hopeful, any decline could, potentially, lead to the cancellation of examinations again.”
“I thank all those, particularly the young people in the schools that my officials visited across Northern Ireland and the representatives of the Secondary Students' Union, who engaged with officials. Those young people brought fresh and constructive perspectives on the issues, and I hope that they will see today how they have influenced the decisions that I have taken. I assure you that we have listened and reflected on the wide range of views and the issues that were raised with us. <BR /> <BR />Today, I am announcing a road map for a return to public examinations for all CCEA qualifications in 2022. I cannot praise enough our school leaders and teachers who stepped forward to provide centre-determined grades with fairness and consistency.”
“With your permission, Mr Principal Deputy Speaker, I wish to make a statement to outline to the House the arrangements for awarding Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA) qualifications in the next academic year. I am delighted to be in the position to bring forward, in advance of the start of the next academic year, a clear plan for qualifications in 2022. I hope that this timely announcement and the comprehensive package of measures that I have put in place will provide school leaders, teachers, parents and, most importantly, our young people with the clarity and reassurance that they need. <BR /> <BR />During the past weeks, my officials worked closely with CCEA and met a wide range of stakeholders to develop detailed arrangements.”
“We all hope that the mandate runs to its full extent. Given that we must have a consultation on the proposals, it will be challenging. I think that it is achievable, but there is a risk that it will not happen. I am sure that the Committee and everyone in the House will want to make sure that this is put to bed this term. I believe that it is achievable within this mandate. We just have to make sure that we do not take any steps that elongate the process.”
“Secondary, sorry. I do not have the details directly to hand. I will get some details to the Member and put those on the record. You will appreciate that, as this is a topical question, I do not have details on the school directly to hand.”
“I do not have the detail of Holy Trinity primary —.”
“I am not aware of that case. If the Member wants to write to me with the details, we will follow that up. It is probably not appropriate to discuss an individual case across the Floor, but we will pursue that.”
“It is wrong to pretend that there is a very easy solution that simply enables qualifications to be awarded without a clear pathway of evidence to support them.”
“With respect to the Member, we have given advice to schools on what assessments should be put in place. Indeed, there is no direct requirement to do that. There is no easy way to gain qualifications that will be recognised not only throughout the UK but worldwide. That has to be done on the basis of robust evidence. There is an absence of direct examinations for 2021. There needs to be an evidence base for the awarding of qualifications. However, we have made it very clear, for instance, that there is no compulsory nature to any controlled assessment. Indeed, the advice that CCEA and I have been given is to limit the level of controlled assessment in schools. However, schools have the power to do that.”
“I do not have the details to hand, but I will write to the Member with those.”
“I pay tribute to a lot of the work that has been done by boards of governors. Obviously, yes, they are responsible for training and ultimately accountable to the EA. Indeed, they have to operate within an allocated budget. If there are mechanisms by which we can provide greater support and accountability for boards of governors, we will need to do that. We want to create a situation in which responsibilities are taken seriously, but we do not want to create a scenario in which being a member of a board of governors becomes such an onerous position that nobody wants to take it on.”
“Having been in Carrickfergus yesterday, I know that the EA is to replace school windows on that campus over the next few months. It is not a case of either/or; all applications will be treated on merit and scored according to the condition of the school and what each school needs.”
“All politics is local. I know that the Member has taken a strong interest in Limavady High School, and I, along with others, was able to visit it and discuss the matter with the school principal. <BR /> <BR />There are competing demands for capital investment. When an SEP call is made, it will be on the basis of competition between all schools that apply. The fact that a range of schools currently benefits from the programme should mean that their facilities are advanced enough that, while there will not be a bar on their applying to the SEP again, schools that have not benefited to date will have a better chance because they will have moved up the ladder. For any school, it is important to engage continuously with the Education Authority so that action can be taken on minor works in the meantime.”
“I intend to review progress. At the moment, 72 projects are advanced in design under the second call to the school enhancement programme. I will consider whether to make a third call for applications as part of the overall capital investment strategy. The SEP has been very successful, so I suspect that, ultimately, another call for SEP funding is a question of when rather than if.”
“In Access to All, which is for non-EA-registered voluntary groups, it can be up to £10,000 or, depending on the number of participants, possibly up to £25,000. For local area-based projects, Summer Jam funding can be anywhere from £6,000 to £60,000, depending on the number of participants. For Summer Boost, it can be up to £15,000 per programme. For the fourth strand, which is the camp equipment grant, individual applications can be for up to £2,500. A wide range of funding is available through the schemes.”
“Given the pressures that some of our young people in particular have been under because of the COVID situation, it is critical, as we move ahead, to provide this support over the summer. A lot of our young people have perhaps suffered more than almost any other group in society.”
“The first is open to a range of youth organisations and community groups to apply for. A second strand will provide support for Church and uniformed organisations in particular. A Summer Boost scheme will enable those working on the ground in youth settings to provide greater outreach support over the summer. It will also facilitate longer opening hours for youth centres. A fourth strand will provide materials. <BR /> <BR />The impacts of the schemes will cover a wide range of activities from sports to the creative arts. We hope that, as restrictions ease, some of the activities will involve whole families and include interaction with adults. There will be something for everyone, irrespective of where their interests lie.”
“It is available now. From 5.00 pm yesterday, organisations were able to apply for it. I think that it closes on 21 May. I should make sure that I get the date right. There are a number of strands to it. Part of the programme is Access for All, which will enable, I think, 65 activity camps in Northern Ireland. There is a Summer Jam programme.”
“All of us realise the enormity of e-safety and e-bullying, and that means that, at times, finding solutions will be a lot more difficult than finding a silver bullet to end it. We would all like to see it end, but it is about trying to at least restrain it and take steps and make interventions where we can. We will continue to work with Health, Justice and others, because the issue stretches across a range of Departments. There is no doubt that, today, our young people are under greater pressure, particularly because cyberbullying is more common than it has ever been.”
“As the Member will be aware, the anti-bullying legislation will be implemented from 1 September. That was passed some time ago, and we all worked with the trade unions on it. That will have a particular focus on what is directly happening in schools. Part of the problem that we face and that we have faced for a number of years with bullying, trolling and a range of issues goes beyond simply what happens in the purview of the school and in the classroom. <BR /> <BR />We have been working, and we will continue to work, on a cross-departmental basis on e-safety in particular. It was noticeable that during COVID we were able to roll out and get support for one of the apps that is available. We will work with others to try to make what impact we can.”
“<BR /> <BR />Additionally, the aim is to have a COVID recovery fund of about £5 million to directly target emotional health and well-being. There will be a level of a mixed economy in that, because what is provided through the framework will, to a certain extent, be top-down. The money that will be allocated as part of the COVID recovery will be an allocation per head to schools, and a high level of flexibility will be given to schools in how they spend that. We have indicated that, for example, while the focus will quite often be on the pupils, if there are individual actions that a school feels will be beneficial to its staff or, indeed, in helping create a certain environment, flexibility will be given to those on the ground to decide where they believe the most need is.”
“I thank the Member for at least not playing truant today and for her question. There are two strands to the matter. We are working together on it. Sometimes, staff can maybe be a little bit overlooked. We are applying, at two levels, the emotional health and well-being framework, which is directly baselined and has Education and Health components. To some extent, as we move ahead, that work will be, in many ways, about trialling a range of supports. I do not think that anybody would pretend that everything will be got right from day one, and, to some extent, the trials will show what level of adjustment there needs to be. The importance of the work is that, at present, £6·5 million will be directly mainstreamed into the budget.”
“We give a level of flexibility for teacher training, and we have indicated that we encourage development around special needs and trauma. From that point of view, we are working alongside the Department of Health to ensure that additional support is put in place this year for an emotional health and well-being framework, and that that support continues to be put in place. That should mean that there are greater opportunities for schools to access counselling resources. Also, given the circumstances, while a lot of focus has been on the post-primary sector, there may be a feeling that there have not been enough resources for the primary sector. As part of addressing that, we will have a pilot scheme for primary-school counselling.”
“The ICSS providers are managing the pressures by putting additional resources into schools where demand has increased, using some of the allocation for counselling sessions for July and August 2021 to do so.”
“Question 9? We are working our way very heavily through the folder today. <BR /> <BR />The Education Authority has advised, through the Independent Counselling Service for Schools (ICSS), that post-primary-aged young people from mainstream schools, special schools and education other than at school provision can access school counselling if that is required. Although school staff anticipated an overwhelming increase in demand for the counselling service, that has not been evidenced by the number of referrals that have been received so far. Since young people have returned to on-site learning, the demand for counselling has increased but has not overwhelmed the service.”
“I would certainly encourage them not to waste government money. That would cause a demarcation dispute, because that is generally my role. In all seriousness, we will work on that particular case, and I will get any further information directly to the Member.”
“I understand that. I will do all that I can to ensure that the business case is completed within that timescale. I am also happy to meet the governors and the principal of the school. <BR /> <BR />Although the Fortwilliam site will be used as a temporary site for the special needs school from September, I do not believe that that is a viable long-term solution. That site, which may be one of the most likely site options for Seaview Primary, should not be knocked out of the picture because of the temporary arrangements for the special needs situation. We also need longer-term plans for the broader provision of special needs education within Belfast. The situation with Fortwilliam is very much a temporary fix and should not in any way prejudice the options for Seaview.”
“The business case for the major works project at Seaview Primary School is still in preparation. It will examine a number of options for the location of the school, including the option of a rebuild on the existing site. It is expected that the business case will be completed in late summer of this year. Until the business case has been finalised, we cannot determine the preferred option for the major capital project, but that decision should follow the completion of the business case in the summer.”
“I thank the Member for his compliments on my linguistic skills. Bunscoil an Iúir — at this point, I have probably blown whatever credibility I had — applied to the school enhancement programme, and, at that stage, it was not ranked high enough. There are no direct plans, at present, for a redevelopment of the school. However, the Department has undertaken to do a further site search on behalf of the school to look at its long-term planning and potential future. It is not just about where we will be in two or three years, it is about the longer position. Until it is approved for a scheme, no capital will be been allocated to the redevelopment of the school but, where required, minor works will continue to be undertaken at the existing site.”
“I am happy to receive invitations from schools and, where possible, I have accommodated those. I would be more than happy to visit those schools if the Member or the school were to put a formal request to the Department. I have visited a number of Irish-medium schools, particularly with the Member's colleague Karen Mullan in the north-west. I am happy to visit those schools to see, at first hand, what the issues are.”
“<BR /> <BR />At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, I set up a continuity of learning programme with a focus on supporting pupil learning. Recognising the specific needs of the sector, I included a separate work stream for Irish-medium education. Much valuable work has come out of that work stream. I am also aware of the concerns around the loss of language learning due to the pandemic and the shortage of substitute teachers. My officials continue to work with the relevant partner bodies to seek opportunities to mitigate and resolve such concerns. <BR /> <BR />With regard to investment in South Down specifically, two additional classrooms were provided at Bunscoil Bheanna Boirche in December 2019, and a minor works scheme is under way to improve access control and reduce standing water in the play area at Gaelscoil na mBeann.”
“In line with my Department’s statutory duties, a range of bespoke and sector-specific investment is provided to support the development of Irish-medium education. This includes annual funding to Comhairle Na Gaelscolaíochta, specific support to Irish-medium units, funding to the Education Authority and the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment, and early years funding to Altram, which has developed a range of preschool resources aimed at helping immersion learning. <BR /> <BR />My Department seeks to respond positively to parental demand for Irish-medium provision and works to meet the needs of the sector, for example, in considering home-to-school transport requirements and schools' requests for temporary variations to their approved numbers.”
“The improvement plan put in place by the EA has delivered a number of key improvements in reducing the number of children waiting longer than 26 weeks for completion of the statutory assessment and, importantly, targeting children who have been waiting longest. As indicated, the new SEN framework will, amongst other things, aim to reduce the timescales associated with the statutory process and improve cooperation between the EA and the health trusts. It is important to note that, while what should be achieved is being achieved, the EA reports that the number of children waiting over the statutory target of 26 weeks, as of 31 March this year, has been reduced to zero. It is important that that is maintained and that no child is waiting longer than the statutory target time.”
“Language can be thrown about that I do not accept, and I do not accept "institutional discrimination" because it attributes a certain level of motivation to those who are directly involved. There is a review of the EA that focuses particularly on SEN delivery. Action is also being taken on the implementation of the process for dealing with special needs. We believe that that will lead to a step change in what can be provided. Ongoing work is also being done with the EA directly to ensure that there are reductions in the statutory assessment process so that they are delivered in time. The issue is being talked about and worked on very seriously. I am loath to see labels being used, because it is unfair to those who have been involved in trying to deliver for special educational needs.”
“More than £20 million has been ring-fenced in the budget this year to make sure that the legislation is implemented and delivered, despite the fact that, overall, it has been relatively close to a flatline budget. We have had to find resources from within the Department to fund it.”
“In many ways, the success of the appeals process shows that it works. We are doing a couple of things. There is a quinquennial review of the EA going on, particularly in note of the issues raised in the recent audit report, which the Department has agreed to progress. As part of the review, we will look at how the EA deals with special educational needs. With regard to early identification, money has been allocated to implement, from September onwards, the SEN legislation that passed through the House a while ago. The consultation on that has been completed. It will deal with the implementation and the code of practice. Within that framework there should be earlier and, therefore, better identification of children with SEN. That will be an important step in working through the process as we move ahead.”
“I thank the Member for her question. There are no plans to formally review the initial stages of the SEN assessment processes. If parents are unhappy with a school's internal processes regarding SEN, an option open to them is to contact the dispute avoidance and resolution service (DARS). DARS is an independent confidential service that provides an opportunity for parents to discuss areas of disagreement with schools and/or the Education Authority regarding SEN provision for their child. That service has been delivered by Global Mediation since September 2019. The aim is for parties to resolve differences about non-appealable matters informally, thus removing the need for a parent to go to the special educational needs and disability tribunal (SENDIST).”
“Her Majesty's Treasury has confirmed the flexibility of Fresh Start Agreement capital funding for the programme, enabling access until the projected programme end date in 2025.”
“About £45 million has been spent so far on the Strule campus. That investment delivered the design, construction and fit-out of Arvalee School and Resource Centre, the Strathroy Link Road to improve traffic flow to and from the campus and the completed sites preparation work. Given the scale of the works, that was a considerable job. It has also delivered the designs for the core schools and the shared facilities. <BR /> <BR />It is estimated that a further £181 million of costs will be required, including construction costs and a contingency for construction price inflation. That may or may not be necessary, but it is better to overbudget slightly for it. It also includes risk and optimism bias, a staffing programme and other running costs.”
“There has been some level of impact on the budget, probably caused by the general length of time put in place as a result of this. That has largely come from the issues on the procurement side. COVID itself has not created much direct disruption. On the basis of the current position, completion is still scheduled for 2025. <BR /> <BR />The potential issue still to be got across is the successful appointment of a main works contractor. While COVID created a level of disruption for smaller projects, particularly if we go back about a year to when people were completely off-site, the construction industry has worked well and developed things well on a range of school sites and has effectively made up time. The situation that we were in with work meant that the project has not been particularly disrupted by COVID.”
“The working group comprises members representing the site owners and Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, as well as representation from relevant Departments. The working group is actively considering how best to plan for and manage the future use or disposal of the existing school sites. Site-specific disposal strategies have been prepared as a first step in determining plans for the sites' future use. Those plans will always be developed in line with and feed into the Fermanagh and Omagh District Council local development plan and the Omagh opportunity sites task force. There is a strong level of local awareness and a need for local buy-in as we move forward with the vacated sites.”
“I thank the Member for his question and comments. We are all keen and the Executive as a whole share that keenness to see action taken on the site. We are talking about a large amount of public money, and that, by its nature, means that things are maybe not moving as quickly as they should. <BR /> <BR />The Members asked about the vacated sites. As he is aware, as well as Arvalee special school, five post-primary schools are relocating to the campus. Two of the sites are owned by the Education Authority, while three are owned by trustee organisations. Ultimately, it is for the owners of the sites to decide on their disposal. In recognition of the significance of the vacated school sites to Omagh town, the Department established a vacated sites working group in November 2016.”
“A project plan and business case detailing the work required to realise the educational benefits and to pilot various shared education initiatives prior to the "go live" is under development by the Education Authority, which is managing the development of the educational model for the campus. <BR /> <BR />The vacated sites working group is considering how best to plan for and manage the future use and/or disposal of the existing sites following relocation to the campus, and it will contribute to Fermanagh and Omagh District Council’s local government development plan and the Omagh opportunity sites task force.”
“Liaison is ongoing with Fermanagh and Omagh District Council on the Department’s planning application for the proposed development works on Gortin Road and Mountjoy Road. <BR /> <BR />Work is ongoing to reconfirm the previously agreed memorandum of agreement with the Education Authority and trustee bodies of the schools moving to the Strule campus. The document sets out the proposed arrangements for the occupation, governance and management of the campus, particularly the shared facilities and delivery of the educational benefits. <BR /> <BR />Given the scale of the investment, the educational benefits are vital to the success of the campus. A long-term benefits realisation plan has been agreed with the schools.”
“I thank the Member for his question. The Department continues to work closely with the six school principals and their teams to build on the culture of sharing in Omagh, albeit within a challenging environment as schools continue to recover from and adapt to ongoing disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic. <BR /> <BR />The previous procurement competition for the final phase of construction, which was to build five post-primary schools and shared facilities, has been formally closed, and the Department is working to progress the campus to the next stage in the procurement process with a revised strategy. Campus construction is planned to complete in 2025. <BR /> <BR />The Strule site has been cleared and constructed to formation level in preparation for moving to the next stage of construction.”
“We need to balance what is appropriate to ensure that money is spent properly and does not put too much of an additional administrative burden on the schools themselves. It is about trying to find an appropriate balance between the two.”
“There is obviously a link between social deprivation and educational underachievement, and that topic will be covered by the panel report. I will present that report to the Assembly, in accordance with procedure, but it has to be adopted first by the Executive. <BR /> <BR />It is sometimes difficult to ascribe a direct linear assessment of particular interventions to individual factors. However, targeting social need by, for example, the use of extended schools has played a significant role in helping to support socially deprived pupils. It is sometimes difficult to assess the extent of hypothecation. We will look to the recommendations of the expert panel on educational underachievement.”
“The issue is that, unless additional resources are provided for schools as a whole, it will be a question of gains for some and losses for others. There may be an equitable basis on which that can be justified, but we want to avoid a situation of schools fighting among themselves as to whether they have been treated equitably.”
“There will be elements to do with what resources are applied. There are a number of strands to this, and you mentioned SEN in particular. Of course, the ongoing review of the EA is part of that, and that is looking at where SEN funding is applied. I anticipate that the final report of the educational panel on underachievement will be available by roughly the end of this month. The report will, I think, look at funding issues, along with other aspects. Again, we want to make sure that there is the best possible delivery of that. The problem is that, in any form of reassessment of where common funding should go, everybody assumes that their school or sector is hard done by and will benefit from it.”