Education Secretary announces that vulnerable and disadvantaged young people across the country will receive free laptops – Sector Response

New major package to support online learning 

Disadvantaged children across England are set to receive laptops and tablets as part of a push to make remote education accessible for pupils staying at home during the coronavirus outbreak.

Devices will be ordered for children in the most vital stages of their education, those who receive support from a social worker and care leavers.

The government will also provide 4G routers to make sure disadvantaged secondary school pupils and care leavers can access the internet – where those families do not already have mobile or broadband internet in the household.

The country’s major telecommunications providers will make it easier for families to access selected educational resources by temporarily exempting these sites from data charges.

In addition, to support the hard work of schools in delivering remote education, the Oak National Academy is due to launch on Monday 20 April. This brand-new enterprise has been created by 40 teachers from some of the leading schools across England, backed by government grant funding. It will provide 180 video lessons each week, across a broad range of subjects from maths to art to languages, for every year group from Reception through to Year 10.

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said:

I want to thank all the teachers and staff who are working so hard to ensure vulnerable children and those of critical workers are supported at this time.

Schools will remain closed until the scientific advice changes, which is why we need to support the incredible work teachers are already doing to ensure children continue to receive the education they deserve and need.

By providing young people with these laptops and tablets and enabling schools to access high quality support, we will enable all children to continue learning now and in the years to come. We hope this support will take some of the pressure off both parents and schools by providing more materials for them to use.

Liberal Democrat Education Spokesperson Layla Moran said:

“The announcement, which will help disadvantaged and vulnerable pupils to learn alongside their peers, is of course welcome. But there’s an elephant in the room: we don’t even know who all the vulnerable and disadvantaged children, who need more support and help, are. 

“The Government needs to do much more to try and locate these vulnerable children, otherwise the help they are offering will be futile. With so many families being plunged into financial uncertainty overnight, there are thousands of families desperately in need of support who are not on the Government’s radar.

“The Government must also agree to an increase in child benefit, which is crucial if the Government are to stop the disadvantage gap from widening any further during this crisis. It is not right that parents across the UK are panicking that their children will be going hungry as they struggle to put food on the table.”

Rebecca Long-Bailey MP, Labour’s Shadow Education Secretary, said:

“’School closures without adequate support to parents and families will only widen inequality between children further still.

“It is imperative that the government ensures those disadvantaged year 10s and vulnerable pupils who are eligible for a free device to access online materials receive them urgently. 

“And the scheme must be expanded so that the one million children who do not have access to a device or connectivity at home are not left behind.”

Dr Patrick Roach, General Secretary of the NASUWT – The Teachers’ Union said:

“We welcome the Government’s recognition of the need to take concerted national action to support children’s education whilst schools remain closed to the generality of pupils.

“Teachers have already worked phenomenally hard to provide continuity of care for vulnerable children and to children of key workers as part of the country’s COVID-19 emergency response, whilst also providing access to online learning for the majority of children who are not in schools.

“No more could be asked of teachers and it is essential that the Government ensures that all teachers have the tools, support and guarantees they need to continue to support children during the current crisis.

“In addition, the NASUWT has previously made clear that the Government has an important role to play in bringing together a range of providers including media and technology companies, to complement the work being undertaken by schools in the national interest. It is right that the Government takes action to do so now.

“As we enter the summer term there has been growing speculation about when schools will reopen to pupils. It is clear that the answer is not to rush to re-open schools contrary to public health considerations.

“The Government must adopt a balanced, proportionate and coordinated approach, working with online publishers, media and technology companies to provide a wraparound learning offer that is accessible to every child, irrespective of their home background or circumstances.

“It will be essential that every child has access to the hardware and connectivity they will need to access learning online and on air. Ensuring immediate access to technology for every child will be critically important and the Government will need to demonstrate that it is prepared to put in the additional investment where and when it is needed.

“The Government will also need to ensure that teachers have access to the tools they need to support children’s learning whilst schools remain closed and without imposing unreasonable burdens on them.”

The APLE (Addressing Poverty through Lived Experience) Collective is a national collective of individuals who experience poverty. Darren Murinas, speaking on behalf of APLE Collective, said:

“This is a welcome step from the government, recognising that low-income families may not have access to the resources they need for children to continue their education at home. We urge the government to extend the scheme to all disadvantaged pupils, not just those sitting key exams, so that their performance in future years is not affected. Appropriate software and support must be offered alongside equipment and internet access, so that all families can benefit from this policy.

“Internet access is now fundamental to participating, not just in school, but in society as a whole. Many of us who are living in poverty cannot meet the high cost of broadband and mobile data and have no internet access, particularly as libraries and other public services are closed during lockdown. This prevents people in poverty from accessing support from public services, government guidance, and the connections to family and friends that are so vital for us all in these extraordinary times. Offering internet access to all vulnerable low income groups during the pandemic would bridge this unseen digital divide.”

Schools and colleges will be able to keep their laptops and tablets once they have reopened. This means that they will play a crucial role in enabling children to learn while schools and colleges are closed, and will also continue helping children learn in the future.

Oak Academy joins a broad range of support and resources available for schools and parents.

New government-backed online school opens its virtual doors to support pupils while schools are closed – Sector Response: @OakNational Academy is a collaboration between teachers and organisations across the sector to provide 180 hours of free lessons a… https://t.co/k8hpounCrF pic.twitter.com/ip1lCwcYcB

— FE News – The #FutureofEducation News Channel (@FENews) April 20, 2020

This includes a list of high quality resources recently published by the Government, as well as the existing tools and resources schools use to provide remote education. Many suppliers are making resources, both online and hard-copy, available to schools for free.

This week (Monday 20 April) the BBC is launching its own education package across TV and online, featuring celebrities and some of the best teachers – helping to keep children learning and supporting parents.

This is alongside new guidance published today (Sunday 19 April) for parents on how best to support their child’s education and development.

While families stay at home to reduce the spread of the coronavirus, some children and young people may face increased risk of abuse or neglect at home – or from strangers online.

The Government will make funding worth £1.6 million available immediately for the NSPCC to expand and promote its national helpline for adults.

While schools and social workers remain at the forefront of work to protect vulnerable children, including by supporting them to attend school, expanding the NSPCC Helpline will mean many more adults know how and where to raise concerns and seek advice or support about the safety and wellbeing of any children they are worried about.