Schools
This page highlights some of the current parliamentary material available on schools. This includes select committee reports, briefing papers on current legislation and other subjects produced by the parliamentary research services, and the latest Early Day Motions put down by MPs.
Standard Notes
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 16.07.2013 | Constituency work: school-related matters |
| The note provides brief background and key sources on a selection of issues that are typically raised with Members by constituents (including school organisation; school admissions; transport to school; school attendance and exclusion from school; and, special educational needs provision).The note gives a very brief overview of the structure of the state-maintained school system including an outline of the different categories of schools as often an answer to a school-related constituency question may depend upon the type of school in question. | |
| 03.07.2013 | Participation in education and training: 16-18 year olds: Social Indicators page |
| Now includes estimates to the end of 2008 | |
| 12.06.2013 | Converter Academies: Statistics |
| The Government introduced the Academies Bill at the end of May 2010. The Academies Act 2010 came into force in time to allow the first converter academies to start in September 2010. The legislation streamlined the process of converting to an academy and also allowed primary and special schools to become academies. Up to the start of June 2013 a total of 2,263 schools had converted to become academies and a further 781 had applied for conversion. Most of these academies are secondary schools and 40% of secondaries in England have converted. The secondary schools which have converted so far had free school meal eligibility rates around half the national average. | |
| 10.06.2013 | Examination results: Social Indicators page |
| Trends in examination results at Key Stage 2, GCSE and A level. | |
| 06.06.2013 | Financial education in schools |
| This note provides an outline of current arrangements relating to financial education in schools, and notes some recent developments. It covers England only. |
Research Papers
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 31.05.2013 | Children and Families Bill Committee Stage Report |
| The Children and Families Bill introduces a wide range of legislation concerning adoption and children in care, aspects of family justice law, special educational needs, the Office of the Children's Commissioner for England, child care, statutory rights to leave and pay for parents and adopters, time off work for ante-natal care, and the right to request flexible working. This paper complements Research Paper 13/11 prepared for the Commons Second Reading. | |
| 15.02.2013 | Children and Families Bill |
| The Children and Families Bill introduces a wide range of legislation concerning adoption and children in care, aspects of family justice law, special educational needs, the Office of the Children's Commissioner for England, child care, statutory rights to leave and pay for parents and adopters, time off work for ante-natal care, and the right to request flexible working. This paper has been prepared for the Second Reading of the Bill. | |
| 05.05.2011 | Education Bill: Committee Stage Report |
| This is an account of the House of Commons Committee Stage of the Education Bill. It complements Research Paper 11/14, prepared for the Commons Second Reading debate, which examines the range of matters covered by the Bill. As originally presented, the Bill sought to make provision relating to the National Assembly for Wales' framework powers. However, these clauses were removed from the Bill following the 'yes' vote in the Welsh Devolution Referendum. A Government amendment to clause 13 (reporting restrictions on alleged offences by teachers) was agreed to without a vote. This inserted new schedule 11B into the Education Act 2002, and was introduced to secure compliance with a European Electronic Commerce Directive. Several minor and technical Government amendments were also made to the Bill. The Opposition tabled many amendments, a considerable number of which were pressed to a division, but none was successful. | |
| 07.02.2011 | Education Bill [Bill 137 of 2010-11] |
| This paper has been written for the House of Commons Second Reading debate on the Education Bill [Bill 137] on 8 February 2011. The Bill seeks to implement the legislative proposals in the Department for Education's schools White Paper, 'The Importance of Teaching', and measures from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills relating to skills and the reform of higher education funding. It is therefore a very wide-ranging Bill. | |
| 14.07.2010 | Academies Bill [HL] Bill 57 of 2010-11 |
| The Bill allows the governing body of each maintained school in England to apply to the Secretary of State to convert the school to an academy. The Secretary of State will also be empowered to convert schools that are 'eligible for intervention'. The Bill also makes provision for 'free schools' - new schools set up by parents, teachers, charities, universities, business or community or faith groups where there is parental demand. Free schools will have the same legal requirements as academies. During the Bill's passage through the House of Lords, a number of Government amendments were made, including those on special educational needs provision in academies, consultation during the conversion process and applying Freedom of Information legislation to academies. Many non-Government amendments were proposed, of which two were successful. One of these required the Secretary of State to publish an annual report on academies, which the Government welcomed; the other related to services for children with low incidence special educational needs, which the Government opposed. |
Select Committee Reports
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 07.09.2011 | Practical experiments in school science lessons and science field trips. |
| Science and Technology Select Committee report [Commons] | |
| 22.06.2011 | Behaviour and discipline in schools. |
| Government response. Education Select Committee; Department for Education report [Commons] | |
| 07.06.2011 | Legislative scrutiny: Education Bill and other bills. |
| Human Rights Joint Select Committee report [Commons and Lords] | |
| 26.01.2011 | Behaviour and discipline in schools. |
| Education Select Committee report [Commons] | |
| 19.01.2011 | The academies programme. |
| Public Accounts Committee report [Commons] |
Early Day Motions
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 06.02.2012 | NURSERY MILK SCHEME |
| That this House is deeply concerned about planned changes to arrangements for the delivery of the current Nursery Milk Scheme which is likely to affect the numbers of children who drink ... | |
| 23.01.2012 | FORCED ACADEMIES IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS |
| That this House believes that the Government's threats to force primary schools in Haringey to become academies are undemocratic and threaten to reverse many of the improvements made ... | |
| 11.01.2012 | GLOBAL LINKS BETWEEN SCHOOLS |
| That this House welcomes the links that have been created between schools in Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire with Mangochi District in Malawi; acknowledges the benefits that can be achieved ... | |
| 20.12.2011 | SCHOOL TOILET AND WATER FACILITIES |
| That this House is alarmed at plans to abolish the specific provisions on toilets in the School Premises Regulations; notes that school toilet facilities are inconsistent and often ... | |
| 20.12.2011 | PIANOS IN SCHOOLS |
| That this House recognises the value of music education for children's creativity and intellectual development; notes the publication on 25 November 2011,The Importance of Music - A ... |
Lords Library Notes
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 28.06.2013 | Children and Families Bill (HL Bill 32 of 2013-14) |
| This Library Note provides information on the Children and Families Bill, which is due for second reading in the House of Lords on 2 July 2013. The Bill covers several areas, including: adoption and children in care; the family justice system; children and young people with special educational needs; the Office of the Children's Commissioner for England; rights to leave and pay for parents; the right to request flexible working; and early years education and child care. | |
| 14.10.2011 | Debate on 20 October: Teaching of History in Schools |
| This Library Note provides background reading for the debate on the teaching of history in schools. | |
| 09.06.2011 | Education Bill (HL Bill 67 of 2010-12) |
| This Library Note provides information for the second reading of the Education Bill in the House of Lords. |
POST Papers
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 08.03.2013 | STEM education for 14-19 year olds |
| This POSTnote reviews the current state of STEM education for 14-19 year olds in the UK, highlighting key challenges and ongoing policy reforms. | |
| 15.03.2012 | Impacts of Video Games |
| There is debate surrounding the impact of violent video games on behaviour. | |
| 01.06.2011 | Informal STEM education, June 2011 |
| This POSTnote describes the informal sector's links to formal STEM education and its contribution to the national STEM learning agenda. It complements a forthcoming note on STEM education for 14-19 year olds. | |
| 01.10.2009 | Teaching children to read |
| This POSTnote explains the reading process and the underlying basis of specific reading difficulties. It also summarises different methods of reading instruction, and examines their use in the context of current and possible future policy directions. |
