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.”
The complete record
Every one of 6,258 lines we hold for Paul Givan, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 71 of 126.
“There are, obviously, statutory obligations for processing statements of education. That has been borne out with the additional spend that the Department has had to make over the past number of years given the exponential growth in this area. The Member can be assured that assessments being carried out is a priority for the Department. The greater accessibility of an online portal and greater awareness of it is a good thing because it allows people to register those issues. Processing statements then needs to be carried out effectively, but it is a priority for the Department.”
“That is for schools, health professionals, educational psychologists and parents or carers to access in their capacity as a relevant party to a child and to request or refer a child for a statutory assessment of special educational needs. That process remains live online for all the relevant parties to access, with specific support available via the Education Authority's special educational needs helpline or from the Education Authority's psychology service for those parents or carers who wish to progress a direct request for assessment for their child.”
“The Education Authority (EA) has not changed the process for parental referrals for statutory assessments. Article 20 of the Education (Northern Ireland) Order 1996 clearly sets out the duty on the Education Authority to comply with a request from a parent or carer to arrange an assessment of special educational needs (SEN) for a child. <BR /> <BR />Following the introduction of the Special Educational Needs and Disability Act (Northern Ireland) 2016, the emergent code of practice asks that the Education Authority provide a standard pro forma for referral for use by a relevant party. The Education Authority launched the standard pro forma in May 2021 via an online portal.”
“Members, that figure is hugely significant, so I welcome the commitment from the First Minister, the deputy First Minister and all the political parties that this is a top priority for us to deliver. I will drive forward the childcare strategy, but, Members, be under no illusion as to the scale of the funding that will be needed to make it a reality. Of course, it will take time to have the childcare strategy fully developed and rolling out, but that is the quantum of resources that could be needed to deliver a fully costed childcare strategy. <BR /> <BR />I invite the House to support me with this, and I thank Members for their contribution to the discussion. I welcome further engagement with all concerned so that the benefits of a new early learning and childcare strategy are fully realised. I commend the motion to the House.”
“Actions to support Sure Start, the pathway fund and Toybox towards full expansion would cost £40 million. Actions to support sector sustainability, workforce development and children with additional needs would cost £50 million. Miss McAllister talked about a funding model to support affordability of childcare to go beyond three to four years of age. If that were applied from nine months old to age four, the estimated cost, based on 30 hours of funded childcare, would be £270 million. That gives us the total of £400 million. The figure has been arrived at through engaging with stakeholders, but it is also the Strategic Investment Board's assessment.”
“Members have asked for associated costings. When fully implemented, however, the annual and recurring costs will potentially be up to £400 million. The ultimate scale of the budget required will be dependent on the scope of the strategy and the level of support agreed by the Executive across the range of areas proposed. Make no mistake, however, about my ambition for this strategy and my commitment to making the case for the funding required to deliver progress as a matter of urgency. <BR /> <BR />Member may ask, as I did, how the £400 million figure was arrived at. I am told that it is a relatively conservative estimate. Members, to standardise our preschool education placements so that all children get 22 and a half hours would cost £35 million.”
“It is also important that I consider the recommendations made by the expert panel in the 'A Fair Start' report and, more recently, the independent review of education on that issue. <BR /> <BR />We all agree that the current level of early learning and childcare support that is available to children and parents in Northern Ireland is inadequate and that there is a need for the Executive to address that. Implementing an ambitious programme of reform will take time, which is why I also want to consider what short-term measures might be possible in order to ease current pressures. The budget that is needed for all of this will be significant and will require an ongoing commitment. If real and meaningful change is to happen, Executive colleagues must be willing to invest properly in early learning and childcare.”
“In England, three- to four-year-old children whose parents are not in employment only get 15 hours. Even so, 22 and a half hours is not the height of our ambition for working families with children of that age. We have a manifesto commitment to provide 30 hours, and that remains my objective. <BR /> <BR />Following significant engagement with the sector and findings from independent commission reviews, it is clear that there is a real and urgent need to protect our current provision and reinvest in areas that have been squeezed by rising costs and constrained funding. I want to do that as a matter of urgency. There are other issues to be addressed too, not least making sure that appropriate childcare is available and accessible for children with disabilities and special educational needs.”
“<BR /> <BR />While funded preschool is universally available in Northern Ireland, the preschool offer varies between 12 and a half hours and 22 and a half hours per week for a 38-week slot in the year. Therefore, while the offer is universal, the session lengths are not. Approximately, just 40% of children currently receive 22 and a half hours, while 60% are receiving a minimum of 12 and a half hours. We need to address that inequity as a priority and begin to move to a position where all children receive twenty-two and a half hours per week. That would contribute to our child development and childcare objectives. It would also result in Northern Ireland having a higher level of universal provision for three- to four-year-olds than England, which we are often compared to.”
“Those include my Department's preschool education programme, Sure Start, the pathway fund and the Toybox project. I pay tribute to programmes such as Sure Start and the pathway fund and those who deliver them. Studies consistently show that such early interventions improve children's cognitive abilities and social and emotional skills, leading to greater academic achievement. Those benefits have been shown to extend to wider society through improved health, lower crime rates and increased productivity. The staff who work in those programmes have a passion for what they do, and they make a real and lasting difference in the lives of many children and families. I pay tribute to them.”
“Indeed, my party colleague and predecessor in post, Michelle McIlveen, wrote to the Chancellor of the Exchequer in September 2022, requesting an uplift in that contribution from 20% to 30% and the removal of the cap on the total amount that can be claimed by parents in any one year. Members of Parliament from Great Britain have made similar calls. So far, His Majesty's Treasury has not agreed to any increase. However, I intend to continue to pursue the matter as it would, undoubtedly, provide additional support for working families relatively quickly. <BR /> <BR />In advance of expansion, I fully recognise the need to stabilise existing core services and programmes in order to create a firm foundation for growth. There are already some well-established and high-quality government-funded early learning and childcare services to build on.”
“I want to deliver a bespoke and affordable scheme for Northern Ireland that addresses the challenges that we face and delivers the outcomes that we want to achieve. However, it must also align with the financial support that is already provided by the Government to assist with childcare costs, principally through universal credit and the tax-free childcare scheme. It is important not to displace those inadvertently. <BR /> <BR />I am aware that there have been calls to ask the Government to increase their contribution to the tax-free childcare scheme upwards of the current 20% contribution, and Miss McAllister and Ms Nicholl referred to that particular issue. I share the desire to see that contribution increased.”
“However, at this stage, I do not want to rule out any options until I have had the opportunity to consider them in more detail and see whether there are elements of them that might translate into the Northern Ireland context.”
“I am aware of the reported implementation issues in rolling out the 30-hour offer in England, and we want to learn from that.”
“<BR /> <BR />Our first priority will be to stabilise and further develop the services as we seek to address issues of underinvestment. The work to date has involved extensive stakeholder engagement through the establishment of the stakeholder engagement forum and in individual stakeholder meetings. My officials have also had engagement with government officials across the United Kingdom and in the Republic of Ireland to learn about their early learning and childcare schemes, what their objectives are, how they were developed and implemented and what outcomes they are delivering. While we can and should learn from others, it is important that we consider what would be best for Northern Ireland and deliver the outcomes that we want to achieve here.”
“Forgive me. I have a lot to get through. I will make some progress, and, if I have time, I will give way. <BR /> <BR />We will need a package of targeted measures aimed at addressing the various outcomes that we want to achieve and which Members have all raised. I am well aware of the challenges that many parts of the early learning and childcare sector face in terms of their sustainability and difficulty in recruiting and retaining staff. I look forward to meeting parents, early learning and childcare providers, with other stakeholders, over the coming weeks to hear at first hand what, they feel, needs to be done. Some Members mentioned an advisory group. A stakeholder engagement forum already exists, and that is something that I can look to in terms of expanding and repurposing as we move forward in delivering the childcare strategy.”
“<BR /> <BR />As well as considering affordability measures for working parents, I want to ensure that we support well-established and highly effective early years programmes such as Sure Start. Those interventions support children facing disadvantage, who are at the greatest risk of poor educational outcomes.”
“Thank you, Principal Deputy Speaker. I concur with the deputy First Minister's remarks, and I am pleased that she and the First Minister outlined this as a priority. It was one of the five issues that were on the agenda for our first Executive meeting. I will bring a paper for discussion to Executive colleagues this Thursday. That will also touch on some of the issues that Members raised about departmental buy-in to the process. A number of Departments have been named in that. It is critical that that cross-departmental approach is taken forward in collaboration. I will lead on it, but it will need the buy-in of other Departments, and it will need the Executive as a whole to make it a key priority.”
“<BR /> <BR />I am aware that the cost of childcare puts immense strain on family finances and, in some cases, prevents parents, particularly women, from entering and remaining in the workforce and progressing in their careers after they have children. Rather than being a barrier, childcare should be a key enabler for parents to progress in the workplace and access training and development opportunities. While making childcare more affordable for working families is a core objective for me and the Executive, it will be the willingness of the Executive to fund it that will be the real test of commitment.”
“<BR /> <BR />I assure the House that the development of an early learning and childcare strategy is a top priority for me as Education Minister. There is no time to waste. I will bring an initial paper on the issue to my Executive colleagues later this week. It is clear that we have much work to do, and I am determined to press ahead at pace. I turn to the current position and stress that this is about both early learning and childcare. The strategy will have dual aims: supporting child development and enabling parental employment. It is about giving children the best start in life and supporting working families. It is important that the work we do and the model we put in place is capable of achieving both.”
“Thank you, Principal Deputy Speaker. I wish you well in your new duties. <BR /> <BR />I thank Assembly colleagues for tabling the motion for discussion. I also thank Members who contributed to the important debate, and I welcome the opportunity to respond. I pay tribute to the Members — I think there were five, if not six — who gave their maiden speeches. I have to say that you will very much add to the abilities in the Chamber. The content and the ability to articulate that message were mightily impressive. Forgive me for singling out my colleague Cheryl Brownlee for her contribution. I am delighted that she was able to come into the Assembly to represent East Antrim. She is a worthy successor to our late good friend David Hilditch, to whom she rightly paid tribute. I associate myself with her remarks.”
“I made reference to this point earlier in reply to a Member for Foyle. Every school will be treated fairly and equitably for the time in which I am Minister of Education. That is the approach that I will take. The provision that is required will be based on need. The Member can be assured on the approach that I will be taking on this issue.”
“I want to be able to take forward all the issues that I have mentioned. The challenge to everybody in this House and to my Executive colleagues is to provide the resources that are necessary to meet the needs of our children and young people.”
“I agree entirely with the Member for North Antrim on the point that he is making. It is indicative of the dire state that we have got ourselves into that we are unable to do this kind of planned maintenance because we literally are trying to keep schools open. Emergency repairs are now what is necessary as is providing the placements for special educational needs. On the school that the Member highlights, his point is valid, but the contrast of that school with Glenwood Primary School on the Shankill Road is like night and day when considering the fabric of the buildings and the environment in which we are trying to teach children. <BR /> <BR />I want to be able to address a planned maintenance scheme, a school enhancement programme and curriculum-led capital development as well as major capital projects and ICT upgrades.”
“I thank the Member for his comments. He highlights the issue that I have been engaging with already, which is that, in delivering the curriculum, some pupils who do not have a sports hall for PE then have to be bussed to somewhere that can provide that and meets the needs of the curriculum. That eats up valuable time during the education day, and it also requires transport to be provided. None of that is conducive to delivering the kind of curriculum that they need. Where schools have multiple sites, that is a challenge, and that is why I am making the bid for the capital funding for our Department. We can then try to drive forward a curriculum-led development scheme.”
“I thank the Member for that question. Yes, I am more than happy to engage with him and the Member of Parliament for East Belfast around the need for this additional funding because, in this wider context, both schools provide for special educational needs. That is a priority for capital spend, but significant investment is required immediately, and that needs to be sustained into the future. That is for not only planned maintenance but digital infrastructure, specialist curriculum facilities, pitches, outdoor play spaces and everyday equipment for teaching and learning, and to provide those SEN placements.”
“If Strule does not proceed and funding is not ring-fenced for that important programme, it will be many years before any of the schools will receive capital investment. They would be back to the beginning in respect of planning for any new accommodation. As an Executive, we will wish to honour previous commitments to those schools and to the wider Omagh community.”
“I thank the Member for that question. On the value for money point, the full business case is being prepared, and that will evaluate all the benefits and costs of the programme in full. This project has been in planning for over 15 years, and those schools have been waiting for new accommodation throughout that time. The five schools in Omagh all have serious and significant accommodation deficiencies, and the need for investment in new facilities has been clearly established by my Department's professional advisers and across two outline business cases. Condition surveys of all five schools undertaken in June 2023 indicate that the value of backlog maintenance alone in the schools is now around £12 million.”
“We have a contractor in place, and I will be making the case to the Executive that what was previously ring-fenced for shared and integrated education needs to be reinstated as a matter of urgency for my Department. This impacts not just on Strule but on other shared and integrated education programmes that had been part of the original £500 million that had been announced by the NIO.”
“I thank the Member for her remarks and her question. In my statement, I outlined my views on Strule and the opportunity in respect of it. Moneys that were ring-fenced for Fresh Start — £150 million towards shared and integrated education — are no longer ring-fenced. The £3·3 billion that the UK Government announced rolled in the moneys that were part of Fresh Start. That is no longer ring-fenced, and I need to make the case — I will do so urgently to the Executive — that funding needs to be approved to allow a full business case that will provide us with the costs and benefits associated with it. That process will be carried out to allow a decision to be taken to go into contractual arrangements.”
“I thank the Member for his comments. He highlights two schools in his constituency that are at a much more advanced state of readiness. In the event of capital being made available, further progress can be made to take those schemes forward. He is right, and I know that the Speaker campaigned for Dromore High School for a long time. A new build is very much needed, and today's announcement allows an ICT team to be put in place to continue the progress of planning towards it. I have outlined the capital pressures, and we need to bear that in mind when it comes to expectations, but I have outlined the context in which those decisions have been taken and the capital needs that exist.”
“I thank the Member for her remarks. Obviously, as the pause is lifted, the seven projects announced today are on the basis of identified need and the Department's prioritisation. I made the point earlier that, of 102 schools announced since 2012, only 35 have been completed. There are 70 schools in the same position as the two mentioned by the Member. Then, there is the totality of the capital schemes that we need to address, as I outlined in my statement. It is hugely challenging to deliver finance for what we want to deliver, but I am happy to write to the Member in respect of the specific schools that she has raised.”
“The Department has now had to put its resource into those most basic needs that the Member for Foyle raises. We need to move beyond the point of putting sticking plasters over sticking plasters when it comes to capital spend. I trust that Members will continue to support me in securing the necessary resources from the Department of Finance.”
“I thank the Member for his question. In the statement, I indicated that there are schools that get brand-new facilities and can deliver the educational curriculum in world-class facilities, but there are others that have to make do and mend. That is not acceptable, and it needs to change. That is why I made the statement and am putting forward a capital bid of £528 million to the Department of Finance. That is hundreds of millions of pounds more than what the Department of Education has ever received, but it is absolutely necessary if we are to deliver the vision that we have for the next generation.”
“I am happy to work with the Member who raises the issue. I said in my statement that we need to have a curriculum-led capital development project so that, where schools do not have a sports hall or need provision to deliver aspects of the curriculum, we can find a way to make provision for that. I have made a capital bid to the Department of Finance to enable me to do that.”
“The Member is aware — indeed all Members are aware — of the process that we have to go through in considering development proposals, including for school closures. The approach that needs to be taken is clearly defined. Departmental officials will bring to me, in due course and at the appropriate time, any such proposals.”
“I know that she will support me, as, I have no doubt, will colleagues around the Executive table, to get the capital resources into the Department that will allow me to make progress on a lot of the schools estate. When I know what capital I can deal with, I will, of course, be able to consider the need that exists in other schools across the estate.”
“I thank the Member for the question. The Member raises an issue that needs to be addressed with regard to that normalisation process, where schools have an official enrolment figure but many often operate at a much higher level. Some may be operating at a lower level. Typically, those capital development schemes are based on the official enrolment level. There has been work to normalise the figures across various schools. My officials are finalising that, with recommendations to come to me so that I can complete it. <BR /> <BR />The Member raises the issue in respect of Markethill High School. I know that it is a particular interest of the deputy First Minister, as a former pupil of the school.”
“I thank the Member for raising that issue. At present, the first tranche of seven projects will be sufficient to begin the flow of projects into early planning. Should I obtain additional funding for next year, I will review the position of the other projects that were announced in 2022. I am aware that Dean Maguirc College in Carrickmore scored well on the prioritised list of the schools that were announced in 2022. However, due to ongoing discussions on the agreement of a future approved enrolment for the school, it was agreed with the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools (CCMS) that the project would not progress to procurement until those matters were resolved.”
“I thank the Member for her question. That is exactly why I am making the case for an increased capital budget. The Department has been focused almost entirely on urgent repairs and the special educational needs provision that needs to exist, and, therefore, the backlog in routine maintenance has continued to increase and increase to the point that so many schools are in a bad state of repair and only emergency repairs for health and safety reasons can be carried out. Hence, there is the need to support my capital bid to the Department of Finance. I welcome the Member's support for that. She highlights the maintenance issues that need to be addressed. I can address those only when I get support from the wider Executive to give me the budget that allows me to do it.”
“I thank the Member for her remarks and for rightly championing her constituency of East Antrim and the need for that school to progress. I will write to each of those schools later this afternoon about the next phase of the project. That is to allow the integrated consultancy team to be put in place, which then can take forward the various processes that are necessary to get a school to the stage at which, subject to finance, we can enter into contracts and construction can commence. It will take a number of years before we can get to that stage, but it is important for me that they are available and that they come online so that, when I make the case for the necessary capital budget, if it is delivered, we are able to be shovel-ready for those projects. That is the basis on which I will proceed for those schools.”
“I have them in my constituency, and I am sure that others will be able to highlight similar schemes. Therefore, as part of the planning process and area planning, there is an opportunity, which I certainly want the Department of Education to engage in, to ask, "Is this a shared facility that can be used not just by Education but by other Departments?". Obviously, we need to make sure that a framework exists to do that. It may be that, in developing schemes, we can also find a way to incentivise that kind of partnership, because it makes better sense to utilise the collective resources that are available for the wider community.”
“Rather than us being reactive around such issues, it is about being proactive and identifying at an early stage the need that exists, and we then need to plan how we will meet that. At the moment, we are unable to meet the need that is there. We need to get to the point where we can meet the need but then also get on the front foot so that we are much more prepared. That is why part of the capital bid around special education is to make sure that we can create the necessary capacity to do that. <BR /> <BR />In respect of what opportunities there are, particularly, for example, with local government, the Member is right. We can all point to schemes in our constituencies where there is a partnership arrangement between the Education Authority and local government through shared facilities.”
“I thank the Member for her comments. She raises a number of issues, and I will take the last one first. I will give her a detailed response on that by way of a written reply. <BR /> <BR />Being better sighted by working with other Departments to identify children who emerge with special educational needs is important. Last year, there seemed to be a lack of awareness of what would be required. I have already been asking the question: how did that arise? Surely, there would have been a way to identify children who need that support within the education system and outside it. Health workers will also have been aware of children who may require that support. Therefore, I am asking why what happened last year was the case.”
“I thank the Member for her best wishes and her question. I have already been discussing in my Department the issue of how to support people who need that additional support. I have been asking questions about how we can do that and about the best way that we can do that to make sure that it is effective. A report will be provided to me on that issue and how we can take it forward, as well as recognising the financial constraints in the Executive around how we can do that. The Member is right to raise that issue. I am already considering it, and I have commissioned reports that will be provided to me in respect of that matter.”
“I say this to my colleagues in the Chamber and in the Executive: give me the problem of being able to deal with hundreds of millions of pounds in addition to what we have been able to handle before, and I will deal with that challenge, but do not give me an allocation that fails to recognise the need that exists in the education estate. That will be a dereliction of our responsibility to the next generation. They are the future, and I am committed to delivering for them.”
“The need for a new build was recognised over 10 years ago, and yet we have still not been able to enter the construction phase. Subject to finance being made available, we are at the point in that scheme at which it could be taken forward in the next financial year. <BR /> <BR />The challenge for me — this is why I am making the statement — is to outline the Department of Education's significant capital requirements. I can take forward schemes, such as the one in Glenwood and other schools that Members raised, only if I receive suitable resources to do so. I am up for doing that.”
“I thank the Member for his best wishes and his question. Obviously, when it comes to taking forward projects and entering that construction phase, it is all on the basis of need. That is ultimately the criterion that we will use to advance projects. <BR /> <BR />The Glenwood project was announced in 2012, I think, maybe by someone opposite who was Minister at the time. I walked around the school, and I saw single pane windows, condensation on every window, mouldy walls and crumbling plaster; indeed, I saw plaster that had been put over plaster and was falling down. I saw evidence of all that. Water was leaking through the roof into two buckets in a corridor. It is wholly inadequate and grossly unfair for the children of that community and the teaching profession to have to operate in that environment.”
“That may no longer be in the education sphere, but, for Dromore Central Primary School, the Member highlighted what the Education Authority's (EA) view is on special needs provision. When it comes to how to meet the needs around special educational needs in the future, I will want to look at whether there is a role that we can advance in respect of Dromore.”
“I thank the Member for her best wishes. I am sure that we will continue to be friends as she holds my feet to the fire. We will continue to have not just a professional relationship but that friendship, and I wish her well in her role. <BR /> <BR />She rightly raises the issue of Dromore Central Primary School, which is a derelict site. I have asked for an update on all the derelict facilities across the education estate. Dromore is one example, but there are others, not just in Lagan Valley but in every Member's constituency, that one could point to as having facilities that are derelict and no longer in use. What purpose are they therefore serving?”