Paul Givan
Lagan Valley · Democratic Unionist Party · Northern Ireland
“The EA's enhanced support model has been out for consultation. The Member's party is the largest political grouping on the Education Authority, so his party supported the model's being consulted on.”
“Protections around strike action and action short of strike are firmly established in statute for all workers, including teachers. If the Member is referring to the Education Inspections Bill, let me be clear: nothing in that legislation removes or undermines that right.”
“The issue was covered at length at the Education Committee. The position is still not where it ought to be. When I came into office, the position that I inherited was much worse than it is today.”
“It is an area that I have had to navigate, as have many previous Education Ministers. Industrial relations is an area that needs ongoing work. I have outlined how we can address it, but I come back to saying that, when workload was undefined, trade unions struggled to specify the challenge.”
“That is not a fair characterisation. In fact, I was with Justin McCamphill, the leader of NASUWT, at the launch of the curriculum reform, at which he commended me for it and said that he thought that it was good. I have sat in many a meeting with trade union representatives during which they have said, "This is a good initiative.”
“That is exactly why there is a 16-week consultation period, rather than the normal 12 weeks or the minimum eight weeks; to allow the public and teaching profession to very much engage in that curriculum, which I commend to all Members.”
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“Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. I thank colleagues for the opportunity to respond to the motion and thank Mr Butler for moving it. Everyone who spoke demonstrated the real issues that are affecting our constituents. I will disagree with colleagues on very little of what they said, which they expressed with passion. It is about how we address that in the challenging fiscal environment that we have. <BR /> <BR />I recognise that there are ongoing financial pressures on families, especially those with school-age children. The issues of child poverty outside of school term time and the cost of school uniforms were debated in the House when separate private Members' motions were tabled in March 2024. Since those debates, work has progressed well, particularly on the cost of school uniforms. I will come on to that in a few moments.”
“Contingency measures have been put in place. When we started, significant progress was made by creating 1,400 places, which ensured that placements were being provided. In September, October and November, we have been completing the final numbers for school settings that need additional capital. Where we still have not been able to have a young person in a school setting, the Education Authority has put support arrangements in place to provide as much support as possible. I want to get to the point where every child is in their school setting, and no child is left at home not receiving some support.”
“I therefore very much advocate and encourage schools to make sure that they not only have a student council but properly engage with it and implement decisions taken by the young people in order to give real meaning and purpose to having that council.”
“I am always struck by the fact that, when I visit a school, whether it be a primary school or a post-primary school, the student council will come to meet me and talk about how its members have had to make speeches in order to get votes. I seek to gather advice from them on how I can use that approach myself. <BR /> <BR />Schools are now really good at encouraging young people to get engaged through their student council. The schools that work best are those that do not just pay lip service to it but follow through on a change that the council has recommended. By doing so, the school council is therefore not just a talking shop, and it is not about the school simply being able to say, "We've got a student council".”
“I have been in a number of schools in which that example of financial management has been used to help young people understand money and how to use it. That has been of benefit to them and to the school. It is unlikely that I will be able provide direct funding for that, given the budget pressures that we are under. There are, however, organisations that go into schools to provide that type of support. In my constituency, one of the local banks has provided support to schools and advice to young people in a primary-school setting. The schools were then able to use that as part of their programme of delivery in class.”
“Let me say as a starting point that resolutions are non-binding, so a motion that is agreed by the Assembly does not carry any legal status. The amendment to the motion sought reassurances from me, as Minister, that what had been done was correct. I am quite capable of providing the evidence to any Member who wishes to see it or, indeed, to the Education Committee. As I said in the Chamber, facts are facts. The Member is entitled to his opinion, but the fact is that very robust criteria have been used, and I will continue to apply the fair and appropriate criteria.”
“From my reading of the resolution of the amended motion, it did not demand that I change the criteria.”
“We will continue to monitor that. The impact that it may have on some families could cause them to reconsider their use of private schools and to consider whether they need to access education in the public setting, the cost of which will be borne by the taxpayer. I cannot be precise about the numbers associated with that, but we will continue to monitor whether there is going to be an impact arising from the policy.”
“That is an issue of concern that I have expressed opposition to and engaged with Treasury on. HMRC has confirmed that there are 14 independent schools and 11 grammar schools in Northern Ireland that will fall within the scope of the VAT changes owing to the Government's policy.”
“I have met many parents and constituents about the very same issue that the Member has raised. I have always tried to accommodate all the requests for meetings that come in to me. The figures are the evidence of that. I think I may have met more individuals and groups than any other Minister in the Executive. I would certainly like to accommodate the Member, and if I can, I will do so.”
“It is an issue with the operation of the policy that many Members have raised. Any one particular change will have a repercussive effect and cannot be taken forward in isolation. I will look at the home-to-school transport issue, not least because there are ways in which we could provide better support to young people to access the education they want. There is also an issue with the exponential increase in the cost of transport. On the one hand, I want to carry out a review to provide greater access to education, but there is a real impact on the funding available to the Department, and transport has seen a significant increase in cost. Therefore, I need to make sure that we represent value for money to the taxpayer who funds all of that. Those are two areas that need to be addressed as part of the wider review.”
“I have also provided a grant to the Department of Health for workforce training on fair play. We have provided support for an approved home childcare pilot scheme, PlayBoard NI and the Bookstart Baby programme. That is evidence of the Executive and the Department, through the childcare subsidy, providing support for those critical early years and also to hardworking families.”
“The Member will be pleased to know that over 400 of his constituents are registered for the scheme and benefiting from it. Again, it is worth highlighting that those 418 children in North Belfast are an element of the now over 13,000 people in hardworking families who are benefiting directly. We have also been able to secure funding for a 10% Sure Start uplift, and that is £3·1 million. We expanded the number of Sure Start areas to include the additional 22 geographical locations that had been on a temporary basis and made them full time. An uplift of £600,000 was provided for the pathway fund, and that will have a positive impact. The Toybox project is having a positive impact, particularly around educational underachievement. <BR /> <BR />I have also been able to provide funding to the Department of Education to support childminders.”
“We touched on this issue during listed questions. The preschool setting is one of the areas of the childcare strategy funded by the Executive, and we aim to deliver 2,200 full-time places in September. So far, the two tranches have comprised 77 preschool settings, and that allows us to move forward with those places. There will be a further tranche to take forward to achieve the target that we have set for September of next year. However, the transition in subsequent years is largely dependent on the resources available to the Executive to continue to deliver that.”
“Tomorrow morning at Methodist College, I will launch the new CPR training app. In conjunction with training, we need to look at the physical device. That is why I commissioned a survey of all schools, to which we have had over 600 responses. Half of the schools that were surveyed do not have such devices on-site. It is vital that we provide those devices in our schools, because they are lifesaving — they have saved lives — which is why I have undertaken the work of identifying the need for them. Upon identifying that need, I will look with my Department at what I can do to support schools and whether we can provide them with the devices.”
“The Community of Lifesavers interactive phone app is also being launched, with the aim of building children and young people's confidence in developing vital CPR and automated external defibrillator (AED) lifesaving skills.”
“I thank the Member for his question, which is a very important one. CPR is dealt with in the curriculum, but we need to give greater focus to it. Teaching of CPR and awareness of defibrillators have been mandatory elements of the school curriculum at Key Stage 3 since 2022. To support schools in meeting that requirement, my Department has worked with CCEA, the Education Authority and the Ambulance Service on developing the Community of Lifesavers programme. That programme provides teacher professional learning in CPR, along with resources and training equipment for schools. I am delighted to advise the Member that over 500 teachers have been trained through the programme, which utilises a "train the trainer" model to support teachers and focuses on CPR and defibrillator awareness.”
“Back in the day, when I was a young person — maybe I am now just young at heart, although the politically correct Civil Service guide says that you should not say those sorts of things — I actively campaigned against releasing prisoners. I wanted them to be kept in prison. The Member's party campaigned to release mass murderers from our jails but now lectures me about who I should or should not meet. I will meet those who want to move our society forward. As to those who do not, I very much appeal to the PSNI and the security forces to get the evidence and put them behind bars. I will campaign to keep them behind bars, unlike the Member and her party, which embraced paramilitaries and let them out of our jails.”
“There have been occasions on which it has been recommended that I not meet an individual or group, and I have met them, so that is not the only occasion on which that has occurred.”
“Transitions post 19 for young people with statements of special educational needs have been a key aspect of the end-to-end review of special educational needs. I am aware that my officials recently met the Member and a number of parents at Rossmar School to discuss the matter. My officials are working closely with colleagues from across the Department of Health and the Departments for the Economy and Communities to ensure that high-quality and appropriate pathways are in place for young people with statements of special educational needs who are leaving school.”
“That is about how the curriculum is delivered. The preventative curriculum in particular is kept under review, and, as issues emerge, we need to make sure that we have the right support for it. The Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA) has been good at providing material when schools have particular issues, which can sometimes vary. As well as that, the Education Authority can provide support in the protection of children and young people. There are functions that it can use to support schools in those areas. It is vital that we always keep on top of emerging issues, particularly when it comes to drugs. New drugs can enter society, and it is about how we respond to that to make sure that young people are properly informed. That is a role in the preventative curriculum that it is important to keep up to date.”
“I very much agree that the delivery of RSE in our schools is an important safeguarding issue.”
“The Education and Training Inspectorate report uses the term "preventative curriculum" to encompass safeguarding practices and the taught elements of the curriculum, such as personal development, mutual understanding and relationships and sexuality education (RSE). The ETI report found that pupil safety and safeguarding practices worked to good effect to safeguard pupils and that educational settings have adequate support from external agencies in responding to child protection and safeguarding issues. To ensure that good safeguarding practices exist in schools, my Department's safeguarding guidance was reviewed and updated in September 2025. Schools and educational settings are required to follow and implement that statutory guidance.”
“There has been an impact from the cap, and changes have happened. It has had an impact on some of the funding that we have been receiving, but we are assessing what the threshold should be. The cap that exists has affected a small number of people. The overwhelming majority of people have not been impacted by the cap in terms of the costs associated with childcare. A small number have been affected, and we are gathering data on that.”
“A number of bodies that I have met can provide support. There is the NI Childminding Association with Patricia Lewsley. That organisation provides support to childminders that they can turn to. As part of the review and the strategy that we want to take forward, I am happy to look at the idea of a professional body. If it has merit and traction, it could be considered as part of the wider strategy.”
“That work is due to conclude in March 2025, and it will inform proposals in the draft early learning and childcare strategy that I intend to bring forward to the Executive later in the year. We are committed to finding a balanced solution that promotes workforce stability and values our early years and childcare workers whilst maintaining accessible high-quality childcare options for families across Northern Ireland.”
“<BR /> <BR />I am aware of the calls for a direct government intervention to improve the pay and retention of the early years and childcare workforce. However, given that the sector comprises private, voluntary and community sector providers, including self-employed childminders, that needs to be considered in the wider economic and business support context. To that end, the Department for the Economy is leading on a scoping exercise in conjunction with Invest Northern Ireland, the Department of Health, the Department of Education and wider stakeholders to develop a clearer picture of the business support requirements of the childcare sector and to help inform an appropriate government response.”
“The challenges facing the early learning and childcare workforce, including recruitment, retention, qualifications and pay, are well recognised and are being considered as part of the development of the Executive's early learning and childcare strategy. However, aware of the immediate pressures faced by the sector, I secured an additional £7 million of Executive funding to help stabilise existing provision in the current year. That has enabled me to provide additional payments to all groups delivering Sure Start, Pathway, Toybox, non-statutory preschool and other early years programmes to help them manage rising costs, including staff wages. While that has provided some temporary relief, I appreciate that a longer-term solution needs to be found.”
“Work is taking place for the first phase of that to start. It will become more challenging, as we need capital funding to increase the physical capacity of some of the premises to fulfil that commitment, but we have started that work.”
“I assure the Member that we have already secured the funding to take forward the first tranche of the standardisation programme within the early learning and childcare funding pot. Twenty-five million pounds was allocated to that, and that is allowing us to identify at least 100 settings that, by 1 September next year, should be able to deliver over 2,000 more places moving from part-time provision to full-time provision, which is that 22·5 hours. <BR /> <BR />I have already announced for consultation two tranches that identify the settings on the basis of the criteria that have been used. There is another tranche that needs to be announced to do that. The Executive have already agreed that we are moving towards delivering 22·5 hours of provision in our preschool settings, whether that is statutory or non-statutory.”
“I can advise the Member that, in the past number of weeks, the Department has turned to developing the comprehensive strategy. I have said before that I want this to be brought to the Executive in 2025, and I remain committed to doing that. Initially, we wanted to take action, and now the work on the strategy has started.”
“The Executive and I, as Minister, wanted to make sure that action was taken, not just words. A strategy is a document that outlines what you want to do. I wanted to do something, and the Executive wanted to do something, hence the focus has been on standing up the childcare subsidy scheme as well as all of the other support that we have put in, for example, to stabilise Sure Start funding that we provided to early years organisations. <BR /> <BR />If I had gone with a strategy first, Members would rightly have asked me when I was going to take action. I have taken action, and the benefit of the approach that I have taken is that 13,300 children and more than 1,500 providers are registered. That all provides us with information and gives us the data that we need around the costs and patterns here, which then informs the strategy.”
“Obviously, there has been an impact as a result of the change that has been made through the National Insurance contributions and the minimum wage. Many businesses are raising the issue of how they will meet the additional expenditure that is now required. As we review the outworkings of all of that, we will seek to provide as much support as we can. That is part of the work that the Department for the Economy is looking at in its assessment of employment and helping to meet the need, but that is something for the Department for the Economy to lead on and provide the evidence base. If the Executive want to provide support, that will be a wider Executive decision outwith what I would be able to do in the Department of Education.”
“Childcare providers are in a private marketplace. How would that be regulated? How would you do it? I am picking up something that another Member asked about how you would provide a scheme to support the pay and the terms and conditions of the people involved in after-school clubs and so on. One of the proposals in the early years childcare strategy is to identify whether there is a need to support businesses where there could be a critical failure in the marketplace. The Department for the Economy leads on that. I am supporting it in identifying whether there are measures that we need to take forward around supporting businesses and employment practices. I hope that that work can be completed before the end of the financial year to help inform the outworkings of the strategy.”
“I hope that Executive colleagues will support me to provide the necessary resources.”
“The Member is right to raise the issue of helping to support school-age children. I alluded to that in the original response. The reason we focused on preschool-age children is that that is typically the period when families face the highest childcare costs. It is in that period that mothers are transitioning back to work following maternity leave. The initial focus was on that category of children not only because of childcare costs but because the early years are critical to the educational value that an early learning childcare strategy needs to have. That has been the focus. <BR /> <BR />We have developed many other aspects of the scheme. Prioritising children of preschool age is, I think, justified, but I very much agree with the Member. I want to do more, and I have every intention of making proposals to do more.”
“I will consider those options over the coming months. The scheme is set up in such a way that we can easily expand it, if there is a case to do so and the required funding is made available by the Executive. I will bring forward recommendations in due course.”
“This is also the period when mothers make decisions about returning to employment following maternity leave, and the high cost of childcare can be a significant barrier. <BR /> <BR />Uptake of the scheme has exceeded our expectations, with nearly 13,300 children and 1,550 providers registered and £2 million in savings delivered for families in September and October. When combined with the tax-free childcare, those parents will have saved over £4 million in total. Having listened to both parents and providers, it is my intention to bid for the funding required to sustain the scheme beyond the end of March 2025 and, indeed, until a longer-term strategy is in place. <BR /> <BR />I appreciate that there have also been calls to increase the level of the subsidy and to extend it to others, such as parents with school-age children.”
“When I took up post in February, I realised that urgent action was needed to make childcare more affordable. I secured an additional £25 million of Executive funding in May to implement a package of measures in this financial year that are already making a real difference to thousands of children and families across Northern Ireland. The Northern Ireland childcare subsidy scheme, which came into operation in September of this year, is one element of that package. Parents now benefit every month from the scheme's 15% subsidy. <BR /> <BR />The scheme is currently focused on working parents who are eligible for tax-free childcare and have children below primary school age. We prioritised that group because they typically face the highest costs due to their requirement for more childcare hours.”
“I made a clear intervention to ensure that we had a new chief executive in the Education Authority. That intervention was severely criticised by the leader of the SDLP. I very much want the Education Authority to be responsive and to address its failings, but, when I make those changes, I appeal to Members to support me rather than doing what happened on that occasion, when the leader of the SDLP took the opportunity to have a go — unnecessarily so.”
“Obviously, the Department engages with the EA on the various recommendations in the landscape review. There were 13 recommendations highlighted relating to improvements required to support organisational effectiveness, governance, accountability and relationships. The report indicated that, whilst matters have improved over recent years, many aspects of the operation of the Education Authority remain profoundly unsatisfactory. This is ongoing work that my Department has with the EA to ensure that, as an organisation, it addresses the failings that have been well documented and rehearsed not just in independent reviews but by many Members across the Chamber.”
“The evidence is clear, and the landscape review also provided clear evidence on EA's failings towards the controlled sector.”
“Let me quote from the independent review so that it is not me saying it. A number of things have been stated in that report:”
“However, I expect the managing authorities to work together to deliver consistency in the level of support that is required, but there is a clear need to address the failings that exist in relation to the controlled sector.”
“That is why I have created a task force to address that issue. We need to make sure that, where managing authorities operate, they do so on an equitable basis, providing support to the various sectors. <BR /> <BR />The Education Authority has failed the controlled sector in particular. The independent review of education provided evidence to that effect, as did the landscape review of the Education Authority. There is work taking place to highlight how those issues need to be addressed. There is evidence for that. We have engaged with schools on that task force, and that is providing further evidence on the need for change.”
“The independent review of education identified a number of key areas that relate to the managing authority role. I will highlight one of them, which is that the level of support for controlled schools was "suboptimal".”
“I accept that there is a need to review and improve service delivery in education. To that end, education services will be reformed through the outworkings of the end-to-end reviews of special educational needs (SEN) and school improvement, which focus on the development of high-quality, cost-effective services. The reviews will shortly produce recommendations on how delivery models can be more responsive, agile and customer-focused. Service delivery improvements will be achieved initially through the reconfiguration and refocusing of services delivered by the EA and other education bodies. Progress will be closely monitored, and, if necessary, more fundamental structural change will be implemented.”
“The Member rightly highlights and namechecks those schools: there is no doubt that they are good schools. <BR /> <BR />As I indicated, area planning is not a function of the Department of Education; it is one for the managing authorities to take forward in how they plan their school estate. There are seven such schools in South Antrim, three of which are oversubscribed at the point of first-preference application. Issues of capacity and provision are more acute in the Antrim town area. Where there is pressure, the Department can work with those schools to provide temporary variations to try to accommodate that pressure and meet the needs. At a high level, area planning is a function of the Education Authority and the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools.”
“To date, no proposals have been brought to my Department, which becomes engaged in the area-planning process only when a development proposal is published by the Education Authority.”
“A medium-term work stream associated with the Antrim and Newtownabbey local government district stated the following:”