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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“There has probably been greater emphasis on the online side in that jurisdiction than in Northern Ireland, which, despite our preconceptions, is geographically a relatively small place, so getting to Middletown is a lot easier than, for example, for someone who is travelling up from Cork or Kerry.”
“Technology is moving very quickly, and there has been considerable success in bringing parents and teachers to Middletown for training. With regard to how that is thought through, there is a desire to ensure that the learning experiences are spread as much as possible. Given the geography — I stand to be corrected on this — the online training is of particular relevance to the Republic of Ireland, more than Northern Ireland. If you are dealing with much greater distances, particularly from the southern parts of the Republic of Ireland to Middletown, you also have to look at what is convenient for parents and teachers.”
“There is a glowing report on Middletown in terms of the model that has been used. The new appointments to the board of Middletown will want to give a bit of thought to the best way forward. The current process has worked very well. I had the opportunity to visit Middletown a couple of months ago, and the shift from the original plan of a number of years ago for a purely residential centre to one that focuses much more on outreach facilities has proved to be the better route. If you talk to the professionals there, the parents, the children and the schools, that seems to be the better route. Obviously, there will need to be some thought given to future direction by the new board. <BR /> <BR />The Member mentioned the online facilities, which were not directly part of the statement.”
“I am sure they will be happy to pick up that issue.”
“I will deal with the two issues in reverse order. Obviously, when the precise shape of EU withdrawal takes shape, that can be looked at. University fees and accommodation fall within the remit of higher education. That is where there is a slight degree of mismatch between the remit of the Department of Education in Northern Ireland and the remits of some of the Departments in neighbouring jurisdictions. In the Republic of Ireland, higher and further education fall within the remit of the Department of Education and Skills. Obviously, those things do not fall within my departmental remit. When there is discussion around the broad issues of the EU, that is probably something that is better addressed between the Education and Skills Minister in the Republic of Ireland and the Economy Minister here.”
“We can always have exchange of information. I would have thought that the ownership of the schools estate in Northern Ireland was really an internal matter for Northern Ireland, but, if there is a particular suggestion that the Member wants to make, I am sure it can be looked at. I am not quite sure of the relevance of a cross-border basis on that subject.”
“An assistant chief inspector attended the DES staff conference in Athlone in March 2016. This was highly beneficial, giving the opportunity to engage in discussions around the theory of evaluation, the impact of inspection on school improvement and the quality framework for schools. Similarly, a DES inspector attended the ETI staff development conference in September 2016. <BR /> <BR />As I hope Members will have gathered from my statement, the meeting in Armagh on 21 September 2016 illustrates in positive terms how the Education Ministers can work effectively together to progress matters for the mutual benefit of citizens in both jurisdictions.”
“Inspectors from the Department of Education’s Education and Training Inspectorate (ETI) participated in a training session organised by the Department of Education and Skills' Inspectorate for inspectors working in Irish-medium settings during August 2016. A further round of inspector exchanges has been organised to take place in the 2016-17 school year. The themes of the exchanges will be modern languages and mathematics in the primary curriculum. The selected inspectors met in a joint session on 30 September 2016 in Dublin. Inspectors from the Department of Education and Skills' Inspectorate will join an inspection team from my Department's ETI in an Irish-medium school in autumn 2016. A joint meeting of the management teams of both inspectorates is scheduled for November 2016.”
“The proposal is now with the steering committee at Marino College for consideration. The Council welcomed the continued commitment to a cross-border professional learning collaboration between the professional development service for teachers and the school development service. I note the successful completion of the first years of the history and digital storytelling project, which culminated in a showcase of films made by the 12 schools involved, in the Irish Film Centre, Dublin, in May this year. <BR /> <BR />The Council was pleased to receive a report on the continued collaboration between the two inspectorates.”
“In particular, the Council noted that the Teaching Council of Ireland is in the process of introducing mechanisms to address qualification shortfalls that arise as a result of the introduction of the two-year professional master of education qualification and that the North/South teacher qualifications working group, in conjunction with the two teaching councils, will be considering the impact of the outcome of the referendum on EU membership on teacher mobility at its next meeting, which is scheduled to be held on 19 October 2016. <BR /> <BR />The Council welcomed progress with the proposal from St Mary’s University College, Belfast and Marino College to collaborate to support access to the Irish language requirement by applicants accredited by the General Teaching Council.”
“The Council also noted the commitment of the National Youth Council of Ireland and the Youth Council for Northern Ireland to the optimisation of ICT for effective youth work in a rapidly changing environment and their determination to implement the recommendations of the Screenagers international research report, which explored the use of ICT, digital and social media in youth work and provides evidence-based recommendations to promote the development of ICT in youth work. <BR /> <BR />The Council welcomed the joint update from the two teaching councils and continued cooperation between the teaching councils on measures to reduce obstacles to the mobility of teachers.”
“The Council also noted that new appointments have been made to the board of Middletown Centre for Autism for a term of three years from 16 March 2016. The centre has been considering any potential implications following the outcome of the EU referendum. <BR /> <BR />The Council noted the ongoing activities of the North/South Education and Training Standards Committee for Youth Work in the professional endorsement of higher education programmes in youth work.”
“Alongside increasing the number of users who have benefited from the centre’s services, an important aim of the expansion of services was to further embed the centre as an essential delivery body for the range of services that are available to support children with autism in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. <BR /> <BR />A follow-on joint inspection of the centre was undertaken by DE and Department of Education and Skills (DES) inspectorates in April 2016, the results of which were published on 30 August 2016. The overall findings of the evaluation reported that the quality of leadership and management was outstanding, that there was high quality leadership from senior management and that the services of the centre were impacting significantly on the education and experiences of the pupils, teachers and parents.”
“Minister Bruton and I agreed that this work should also cover the dissemination of best practice in literacy and numeracy from the work of the two inspectorates. It is envisaged that the work will be completed and the final report submitted by July next year and I look forward to receiving the report. <BR /> <BR />The Council noted the good progress made by both Departments and the Middletown Centre for Autism to support the promotion of excellence in the development and harmonisation of education and allied services to children and young people with autistic spectrum disorders.”
“With your permission, Mr Speaker, I wish to make a statement in compliance with section 52 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 regarding a meeting of the North/South Ministerial Council (NSMC) in education format. The meeting was held in Armagh on 21 September 2016. The statement has been agreed with junior Minister Fearon and is made on behalf of both of us. <BR /> <BR />The Council had initial discussions on the implications of the UK European referendum result. Ministers in both jurisdictions will continue to engage on this important issue. <BR /> <BR />The Council noted that Co-operation Ireland has been awarded the contract to progress teacher professional development in the area of educational underachievement in both jurisdictions.”
“I have great faith in the ETI's ability to provide that level of inspection. It already does that for RSE and will continue to do that in an effective and professional manner.”
“The evaluation, with a range of other issues, will be subject to Education and Training Inspectorate (ETI) inspection, which will look at a wide range of subjects that are provided in schools. While it is funded via the Department, it is essentially at arm's length and will provide that level of independent evaluation. It is important that the relationship in that sense is not so close that there is any question of bias.”
“There are important issues for RSE teaching in that regard. From that point of view, we want to see as much consistency as possible. It may be less about removing inequality than about trying to make sure that all children are equipped to deal with the complex questions that face them regularly. As regards pure implementation, I will not be in a position necessarily to micromanage what happens directly in the classroom. I am not there correcting textbooks or ensuring precisely what the lesson plan is. I think that as much consistency as possible is something of advantage, but I appreciate that there will be sensitivities around the issue. It is important that we give schools a little space to deliver on that curriculum.”
“I am sure that, if the invitation comes through him, the Member will ensure that he is invited on that visit as well.”
“I am happy, sir, to go to the ends of the earth with you with regard to school visits. Seriously, if an invitation comes in, I would be more than happy to consider it. I am happy to visit schools. Again, simply visiting a school does not mean either the kiss of death or alternatively some level of revival for that school. Initial discussion of any possibilities cannot be on the basis of what was there previously. I think that that was explored very thoroughly by CCMS and by officials and was found not to be a runner. We probably need some level of fresh thinking. As CCMS is the managing authority, that discussion probably needs to be concentrated between CCMS and the school in the first instance. I am sure that I would be happy to accommodate visiting St Mary's as part of my general tour of schools in Northern Ireland.”
“What is important is that the first level of engagement is with CCMS, as it is essentially the provider body. I have asked that it engages with the school, particularly on future provision. Clearly a conversation needs to be held to see what other options or alternatives are there.”
“In speaking directly on potential development proposals, there is a legal restriction on what I can say. The Member says that I will be aware of the situation at St Mary's: I would say that if I were not aware of it, the Member would be quick to remind me. I know that he has been very proactive on behalf of the school. <BR /> <BR />I understand that the previous Minister asked CCMS to look at the options and the possibility of a cross-border delivery model as an alternative to closure. At that stage, work was developed by CCMS. I think that there was analysis at that stage, dated from 2014 into 2015, that the cross-border approach would neither be cost-effective nor its quality threshold assured. That clearly did not appear to be a runner. What I think is the case is that the proposal simply does not appear to be doable.”
“It is important that, at the very least until we reach the point of having a new scheme that may benefit more schools or different schools — there is a range of models — there is an absolute guarantee that I will make it a priority to ensure that those schools are funded during that period.”
“We are in the position where the next step is to look at how this can be in some way mainstreamed. There is a range of options in that, and some of it will depend on the funding that will be made available. There is a strong desire to see an expansion if possible, but we also live within a level of budgetary constraint. Designing a way forward in the system will take time and may take different directions, but I want to place it on record very clearly that, until we have a new scheme agreed and in a position to be implemented, funding will continue for the nurture units at all 32 schools currently funded under the nurture unit provision. It is important that there are no gaps in provision and that people are not left in a situation where it is stopped in their school but then, because of a different scheme, reinstated at a later stage.”
“I have taken that not simply from the direct evidence in the report; I have had the opportunity, in my time as Minister and briefly before, to visit schools where nurture units have been made available. It is undoubtedly the case that you get a real sense of pastoral support for children in the units, and I think they have been able to take full advantage of that.”
“I attended the launch of the report, and I heard about some of the worked examples in schools. The scheme, if you like, covers 32 primary schools. I was very encouraged by the response we got at that. One of the clear indications is that intervention has been of tremendous value to children, particularly to some vulnerable children and those who need that degree of help. The report draws a clear distinction between children in schools where nurture units have been made available and those outside the system. Another thing that came across clearly from the report was that, even though only a limited number of children are directly involved in a unit, intervention through nurture units in schools creates a whole-school improvement and children across the board get that.”
“The key bit is ensuring that at least there is a place for everyone, but it will not necessarily be that everyone gets precisely what they are looking for. If it is a question of people being denied a place entirely, again, I would be happy to take up any specific examples of that.”
“Although direct placements are an operational matter for the Education Authority, my understanding is that places have been found for everybody. The issue to some extent is whether those are in the places that people wanted as their first choice and whether the provision is of exactly the nature that the parents wanted. We have a situation where, across the board with preschool places, there is a mix: about 62% of children will get part-time places, and 38% will get full-time places. There will not always be a match with what the parents want. I suppose the issue is whether someone has been denied a place entirely or whether there was a desire to have a place in a particular location or, indeed, whether someone wanted a full-time place but only a part-time place was available.”
“<BR /> <BR />As with all nursery provision, the vast bulk of those who seek a preschool place are able to be catered for, but not everybody will necessarily get their first choice. If there are specific issues in individual areas or there has been a problem with someone not obtaining a place at all, the Member should provide me with details of those and I will be happy to try to get answers for him.”
“I will check, but my understanding is that places have been provided for all children with special needs. I think that I am due to appear in front of the Committee on 12 October, and I will be able to provide a greater level of statistics then. <BR /> <BR />There was an increase, particularly at nursery level. The advantage of early diagnosis means that we can tackle problems at an earlier stage. The problem with that for the education system is that it has to react a lot more quickly to find places for people. Consequently, particularly on nursery provision for special needs, there will be an ongoing process with the EA to try to provide a much more strategic direction for that. That will obviously be grounded in proper discussion and consultation, particularly with experts and parents' groups, as we move ahead.”
“Uncertainty, whether at a broader area level or at the level of individual schools, does not help anyone. I want to see us moving ahead as quickly as possible on some things, while ensuring that there is proper consultation alongside that.”
“I think that there is a realisation that there needs to be a step change in the work that happens on area planning. Simply letting things drift at times does not help anyone. It does not help any of the schools, it creates greater uncertainty and it means that the reallocation of resources within the broader schools area plan does not happen when it is needed. <BR /> <BR />As I said, the main plan should be published imminently, and there will be a two-month consultation period. I am acutely aware that that will probably require a re-profiling of a certain amount of resources within the Education Authority, and, indeed, the Department will provide whatever support the Education Authority needs to ensure that we move ahead in a timely fashion.”
“It will be high-level and strategic in nature, but it is likely to contain particular provisions for special needs schools and will drill down into overall needs, divided up into the 11 council areas. The aim is then to move ahead with whatever changes happen after consultation and look at annual plans — the area plan is due to be on a three-year basis from 2017 to 2020 — and move towards specific, more localised plans to put more meat on the bones.”
“I thank the Member for his question. That is likely to happen imminently. On Friday, I chaired a meeting of the area planning strategic group. In the past, everybody has accepted the concept of area planning, but I know from the previous Education Committee, for instance, that there has been a degree of criticism about its implementation. One of the things that we have very much tried to get right this time is ensuring that representatives of all the sectors are around the table. Arising from that meeting, I anticipate that the Education Authority will publish its overall area plan for Northern Ireland imminently, probably within the next week or two. That will then go out to consultation for about two months. <BR /> <BR />There is a limited amount that I can directly say about the area plan.”
“Since the launch of the Northern Ireland Executive's autism strategy and action plan, the Department of Education has been working closely with the Education Authority, Middletown Centre for Autism and other Departments on the implementation of its actions. They include delivering training programmes for teachers, education professionals, youth workers and parents; providing effective support for pupils with autism; and working in collaboration with health and social care trusts. At that point, I will curtail my answer, as my time appears to have run out.”
“<BR /> <BR />The Education Authority's autism activity and intervention service provides support to pupils in schools through training and advice for teachers and individual interventions with pupils. It also provides support to parents. In addition, my Department provides funding to the Middletown Centre for Autism, which has been able to expand its programme with direct support and intervention to children with complex autism who are referred by the Education Authority and to provide professional and parental training and research services. For anybody who has an interest in the subject and wants to learn a great deal more about it, a visit to Middletown — I did it earlier this year — is extremely worthwhile.”
“I thank the Member for the question. I know that he has a particular interest in the issue. I look forward to visiting Ballybeen to look at the issue with him in the near future. <BR /> <BR />I am committed to ensuring that every child receives high-quality education that enables them to fulfil their potential. Funding to the Education Authority ensures that there is a range of educational provision to support children with SEN, including autism, and that includes mainstream provision, learning support centres attached to mainstream schools and special school provision. The authority is, I think, working to enhance autism-specific learning support centre provision throughout the region.”
“The project has completed, so it is not a question of its continuing; it is about trying to ensure that the lessons from it are mainstreamed. The bulk of the money, as I said, came centrally, and a range of activities are already happening on that basis. Am I in a position to give additional funding for that? No, I cannot give that commitment today. The Executive as a whole need to look at how we could take this forward. In particular, there has been widespread concern over the level of direct funding of schools, and we need to look at that. To some extent, before we look at additional or new programmes, we need to ensure that we get the maximum amount to existing resources and existing need. That question, from a funding point of view, is for the Executive as a whole.”
“As with a lot of interventions, particularly for tackling underachievement, there has to be a bit of patience. The most effective intervention is early intervention, but, with various early intervention schemes, it might be 10 or 12 years before you see the direct dividends. We always have to ensure that we do not simply have quick fixes. If there is any way in which I can assist that process when we come to look at curriculum review, that should be encouraged. One encouraging thing is that we have seen a steady increase in the number of pupils taking mathematics, in particular, and STEM subjects. That is positive and is to be welcomed. Maybe the only difference between the Member and me is that I am looking at it as glass half-full, and he might be looking at it a little more as glass half-empty.”
“We have to remember that there have been improvements in our overall performance at GCSE and A level. In recent years, the gaps between the level of attainment of those on free school meals and those not on free school meals has been closing. There has been a greater and swifter level of improvement among free school meals-entitled pupils than non-free school meals-entitled pupils, and I want to see that increasing. There has also been a much greater uptake of mathematics. There may be a question mark over whether that also means that the standard dips slightly. I think that I am right in saying that, for the second year running, mathematics is the most popular GCSE subject. From that point of view, there are lessons to be learned from the mainstreaming of the delivery of numeracy and literacy.”
“They will use what they have learned from the implementation and management of the programmes to support schools in their work to target and address underachievement and to try to raise attainment levels across the school system.”
“In the absence of central funding, I will look at ways in which successful interventions developed by schools can be sustained in the long term. <BR /> <BR />As with other things, it is also about learning a level of lessons. In the short term, primarily it is for school leaders to mainstream the approaches to tackling underachievement that have been shown to be effective in many of the schools supported by Delivering Social Change. I am aware from the feedback and the evaluation programme that that already happens in many schools. The managing authorities — the Education Authority and the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools (CCMS) — also have a role to play.”
“It is certainly something that I will always keep open. There are a number of aspects to this. There is taking the lessons that have already been learned and ensuring that they are mainstreamed and legacied. I certainly concur about the positive response as a result of the programme. We have to remember how it was funded, which is why, to some extent, this is also a question for the wider Executive. The programme was centrally funded and time-limited by the Executive. The cost of the programme was £15·8 million over three financial years, of which £13·8 million was provided centrally by the Executive. If central funding is provided by the Executive for this programme or for a successor in title, I would certainly be keen to see it rolled out.”
“We have a lot to learn from the signature programme, and I will be exploring further ways in which I can help to take forward the legacy of the signature project.”
“Those resources identified a number of longer-term benefits derived by schools, teachers and pupils from taking part in the programme: the value of increased external collaboration by teachers in and across schools; the positive impact of the professional development opportunities provided by the programme; and the benefits of effective parental engagement. Perhaps most importantly, pupils supported by the programme showed an increase in self-confidence and greater engagement with the whole curriculum. The legacy publications have been circulated to all schools, and I am aware that some school leaders are already mainstreaming the effective approaches to targeting and tackling underachievement that were developed under Delivering Social Change.”
“I thank the Member for his question. The Delivering Social Change literacy and numeracy signature project has been shown to be successful, in particular in enabling schools to develop effective ways of developing and targeting underachievement and putting in place appropriate intervention strategies to raise attainment. As part of the dissemination of the legacy of the programme, the Education Authority produced publications for primary and post-primary schools entitled 'Literacy and Numeracy Legacy'.”
“For instance, the Department of Education and Skills in the Republic of Ireland is closer to, if you like, a DE plus the Department for Employment and Learning. It deals with issues of training and skills and further and higher education. There will be some aspects where there is not a particular match-up in that regard. The main issues that I have listed are where there is the most direct interface.”
“One of the issues where there is a mismatch is in the remit of the Department of Education, because it concentrates on children's services through primary schools and secondary education.”
“Specifically, the council meets on common policies and approaches. It will be areas such as education for children with special needs. Very specifically, obviously, on a North/South basis we have the Middletown centre. I have mentioned educational underachievement. There is the issue of teacher qualifications and trying to ensure that there are no artificial barriers there, and there are exchanges, which can happen at school, teacher or youth level. In each of the areas of cooperation, there are common policies and approaches that are agreed by the North/South Ministerial Council but implemented separately in each jurisdiction. There will be a relationship between the Department of Education in Northern Ireland and its counterparts at Westminster or other jurisdictions.”
“If we can learn from what has happened elsewhere to improve our provision, none of us should be so proud as to think that everything that we have done has been 100% correct.”