Speeches by Phillipson.

“Yes, and the answer is that my expectation is that private schools, which can make decisions about how they support pupils and families within their institution, are able to make decisions about how they might put in place that support. To the wider point around the numbers and the movement we anticipate, the numbers a…”

“I am answering the question, which is to say they can make decisions about what they ask of parents by way of contribution. If they believe there to be cases where that might be a challenge in the way that you have described, then those schools as institutions that can make decisions around their own budgets, around pl…”

“Private schools as private institutions are responsible for determining what they charge parents, the level of fee that they apply and they have flexibility as to how—”

“We do want to keep this under review. You will appreciate that this drifts slightly beyond my responsibility. There is clearly, as you have described there, a connection between schools for which I am responsible and the wider issues around social media use and access to unsuitable material online. This is something th…”

“I think all parents worry about access to social media around technology. I will respond to the very precise point that you ask. Some of the wider responsibilities across government are not simply mine alone, but there is a question particularly around technology and young people about how we equip them for the world t…”

“We are working as quickly as we can on this because I do recognise the challenge at the moment around support for children’s mental health, around wellbeing and the levels of unhappiness that so many of our children experience, where we are internationally not in good shape if we want to look at what that means for our…”

“We are working through it as quickly as we can. We know that councils want clarity on this. We will set it out as quickly as we can at the earliest opportunity. I am alive to the challenge that you present and the need for certainty in this area.”

“We are going through a process at the moment in the Department of looking at all areas of spend. That is very challenging even with the prioritisation of the Chancellor as part of that Budget process, but I recognise the enormous value that the programme has provided and the difference that it has made to children’s li…”

“It is a profound challenge. We do see growing evidence about the disadvantage gap that is opening up at a range of levels during a child’s education. There is action that is required in the here and now for children who are currently going through the school system. Much of that is around workforce. It is about the wor…”

“We will consider every area where we believe we can bear down on the number of children living in poverty, and that does extend to questions around the shape and nature of the social security system, absolutely, notwithstanding that there are real and serious challenges across the public finances. We intend to report i…”

“I agree that there remain big and long-standing challenges in the schools estate overall. We more recently had the crisis around RAAC and I will bring in the Permanent Secretary in a moment on that, given that this is an issue that covers both Administrations. RAAC, however, shone a light on what is clearly a wider cha…”

“At the Budget, even when you take account of the very constrained fiscal environment, the Chancellor did seek to protect key education priorities. That is why we did invest an additional £2.3 billion into schools, of which £1 billion was support for children with SEND. I do recognise the pressures that schools are unde…”

“We want to ensure that we have a fair and consistent formula that delivers for all communities, with a focus on making sure that we target often quite scarce resource where it will make the biggest difference.”

“This is a complex area in terms of whether there were to be any change and how you get that right. The funding that we have allocated this year to schools was based on the previous funding formula. That was necessary to ensure that money got out the door to schools. I hear from colleagues across the House who present d…”

“I want to start by paying tribute to Ruth’s family for the work in this area. I have met with Julia Waters on many occasions to discuss the family’s awful, traumatic, devastating experience and the impact it has had on the wider community as well. What that identified is that there are changes that are required through…”

“In part it depends on what that safeguarding review would consider and how big in school it would be. Those conversations are under way at the moment as to the shape of that and what is required. I do think it is important that we more regularly have a sense of these important issues around, for example, attendance, of…”

“The intention of moving away from the single headline grades and moving to a report card system has two purposes. First, to ensure that we have a much clearer sense as to what is going on within a school, what is working and what is not, with a sharp focus on the change that is required to drive up standards. Alongside…”

“I want all parents to make choices about what is right for their children. As you will know, the vast majority of parents elect to send their children to a state school. That is a decision but it is also a conscious decision. I think our state schools do amazing work but it is also a reflection of the fact that for lot…”

“Again, I do have to return to the point that I made at the start around the tough choices that we have had to make that we do not want to make, but I am afraid that was the inheritance from the last Government. To return to the point around what excellence and consistency means in that context, this is about innovation…”

“I will come on to the point on excellence because that is at the core of what I believe. We have had to make some very difficult decisions about what we can and cannot continue to fund. That was sadly because of the legacy of the previous Government. To give a further example, we did seek to prioritise, for example, a …”