Latest news with #DepartmentforEducation
Daily Mirror
6 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mirror
Thousands of youngsters with SEND to get more support in finding work experience
Ministers are driving ahead with efforts to help more youngsters get valuable skills for work amid a shocking one in eight young people not in employment, education or training Thousands of young people with special educational needs will get more support in securing work experience after a £12million funding boost. Some 4,500 people with SEND will get employment experience after the Department for Education today extended the 'supported internships' programme. As part of efforts to help more youngsters get valuable skills for work, 16-24 year olds with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) will be able to secure a work placement which is supported by a job coach. The job coach provides tailored in-work support to the intern, including checking their understanding of tasks and providing training. They also work with the employer to help them understand the intern's needs and how to approach them. Work experience will include placements in hospitals, supermarkets, banks and more. Minister for School Standards Catherine McKinnell told The Mirror: 'Devastatingly, according to Impetus, young people with SEND are 80% more likely to not be in employment, education or training. "For thousands of young people, this means losing out on opportunities to get on in life, as well as missing out on a sense of community and independence. We're committed to turning this around.' The £12m funding injection for this year alone is far more than £18m previously invested in the programme over the past three years. Half of the funding - £6m - will go towards piloting supported internships in at least 12 local authorities with young people who don't have an EHCP, but who have learning difficulties or disabilities and are furthest from the labour market. It is double the £3m that was committed for the first two years of the pilot. An EHCP is for children and young people aged up to 25 who need more support than is available through special educational needs support. The work experience announcement comes after ministers earlier this week set out plans to train more brickies, carpenters and healthcare support workers by creating 120,000 new career-supporting opportunities. Under the plans, the apprenticeship budget for 2025-26 has for the first time been lifted to more than £3billion - up from last year's £2.73billion. The efforts are part of a drive to get more young people into a job amid a shocking one in eight young people not in employment, education or training. Elsewhere ministers have also today pledged £9.5m in funding for a neurodiversity inclusion programme in schools. The scheme involves training teachers to identify and better meet children's needs. Around 300,000 children, including those with conditions such as autism, ADHD, and dyslexia, will benefit from the programme. Ms McKinnell added: 'The number of young people struggling to secure work opportunities is a clear symptom of a SEND system that isn't supporting children early in life to build the skills they need. 'That's why we're also taking action to make sure that support is there from the very earliest years, so that those who are struggling with everything from speech and language to autism and ADHD, are able to achieve and thrive.'
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
British students to be barred from Turing exchange scheme following Trump visa ban
British students are expected to be barred from spending a year at American universities under Donald Trump's sweeping visa ban. Tens of thousands of UK students are waiting to hear a decision on their funding applications for this year's Turing Scheme, which allows them to enrol at universities around the world for up to a year. Those who applied to study at US colleges next year are expected to be turned down under White House plans, unless they have already received their visas. It comes after Mr Trump ramped up his attack on American universities by ordering US embassies to halt all new visa interviews for prospective international students. In a leaked cable shared on Tuesday, Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, also demanded an 'expansion' of social media vetting for all student visa applicants. The changes, which Mr Rubio said would come into effect 'in the coming days', will apply to student exchange visas as well as those for full-time international students. A Whitehall source confirmed to The Telegraph that J-1 exchange visas required for the Turing Scheme were affected by the ban, but said some students may have already secured their visas for next year. The UK Government will monitor the situation and is discussing potential implications with universities, The Telegraph understands. British universities could still change the preferred destination for any Turing Scheme participants affected by the US ban. The Department for Education is responsible for Britain's study abroad programme, but individual universities must organise their students' applications. More than 3,100 British students were offered placements in the US last year as part of the Turing Scheme, which replaced the Erasmus+ scheme after the UK left the EU-wide programme in 2020. The US was the third most popular location after Spain and France. It means thousands of UK students could have their study abroad plans ripped up or be sent to different countries, while British pupils planning to start at US colleges full-time this autumn have had their plans thrown into chaos. Prospective students can apply for full-time study visas up to a year in advance of their course start date, but many colleges send out admissions decisions in spring – meaning many may still be awaiting a visa interview. The number of UK students at US universities has remained broadly stable over the past decade or so, while enrolments from other countries have soared. A record 1.1 million foreign students were enrolled at American universities last year, more than 10,000 of whom were British, according to the Institute of International Education. However, top private schools have increasingly encouraged pupils to apply to Ivy League colleges in the past few years amid frustrations over UK universities' focus on state school admissions. Eton College reportedly sent around a fifth of its leavers to American universities in 2022, with 50 pupils heading for top US destinations such as Harvard, Stanford, Princeton, Yale and Columbia. Mr Trump has taken aim at many of those institutions and threatened to end their federal funding after accusing them of fostering anti-Semitism and adopting biased admissions policies. The US leader has frozen around $3.2 billion of federal funding for Harvard in recent weeks, sparking a bitter tit-for-tat and multiple lawsuits from the oldest university in the US. Turmoil in the US could, however, prove an unexpected boon for UK universities, which are grappling with a funding crisis fuelled by their drop in foreign student numbers. A recent British Council report said British higher education could benefit from Mr Trump's re-election, with international students now more likely to seek out alternative English-speaking destinations. The move could also intensify competition for places at some British universities, including Oxford and Cambridge. Rohan Agarwal, the founder of UniAdmissions, said he was bracing for 'an even greater acceleration in demand for Oxbridge and other top UK institutions' if the Trump administration followed through with its visa crackdown. A US State Department spokesman said it did not comment on internal communications, but that the Trump administration was focused on upholding the highest national security standards. The spokesman said the department would focus on prohibiting entry to the US for those who might pose a threat to America's security. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Real cost of a 2025 summer holiday as families priced out or fined
The cost of family holidays is climbing steeply just as penalties for term-time travel hit new records. According to a report by Which?, the average price of a package holiday has risen by 4.2% since last year, with popular destinations like Bulgaria seeing even steeper increases of up to 11.5%, adding £119 more per person. For a family of four, that's nearly £500 in additional costs to travel during the summer break. With travel costs outpacing wages and the cost of living still high, many parents are choosing cheaper term-time holidays despite the risk of fines. Some 487,300 penalty notices were issued for unauthorised absences in England in 2023/24 with a staggering 91% were for term-time holidays, according to the Department for Education. Read more: How to save money on your holiday to Switzerland That's up 69% compared with pre-pandemic levels. Money from term-time holiday fines goes to the local authority to fund attendance support and cover administration costs. Any surplus is returned to the government. Rakia, a mother of four from east London, was fined £240 after taking her children out of school three days early last June to travel to Turkey but thought the penalty was worth it. 'I work hard, pay my taxes, and shouldn't have to choose between my children and following a school calendar that doesn't work for struggling families like mine,' she told Yahoo News. 'We live in an overcrowded flat in a high-crime area. My kids deserved a holiday. Just because we can't afford peak prices doesn't mean they should miss out,' she added. Rakia, who works full-time, usually fills the summer with low-cost day trips and free local activities but last year, she decided a term-time family holiday was worth the fine. She's one of thousands of parents facing the same dilemma. Derbyshire mother Natalie Elliott launched the Fight School Fines campaign after being fined twice. Her petition calling for up to 10 days of permitted term-time leave has now surpassed 150,000 signatures and will be debated in parliament later this year. The sharp rise in term-time fines highlights not only the escalating cost of travel but also a tightening approach to school attendance enforcement. Joanna Lovell, head of news at Netmums, told Yahoo News: "This is one of the most emotionally charged aspects of the debate. Parents deeply value education, but many say it's unfair to force a choice between schooling and family wellbeing." Lovell says the Fight School Fines petition marks a pivotal moment for parents, with their concerns finally set to be heard in parliament. However, the petitions committee has yet to confirm a date for the debate. A spokesperson for ABTA, the UK's travel trade association, acknowledged that holiday prices spike during school breaks, attributing it largely to global supply and demand. 'Holidays are part of a global market; many other countries have school holiday periods similar to those in the UK, meaning that all these countries are competing for holidays with the same suppliers which affects the price,' an ABTA spokesperson told Yahoo News. Which? points to rising hotel energy costs, fuel prices, air traffic delays, and aircraft supply shortages as major contributors. After analysing 8,122 August 2025 holiday prices, it found a typical package to Turkey now costs £1,296 per person – or £5,184 for a family of four. By comparison, Rakia's term-time trip last June cost just over £3,000, saving her more than £2,000. Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the School Leaders' Union (NAHT), says school fines aren't working. 'Exorbitant holiday pricing is forcing families into impossible choices. It's time the government worked with the travel sector to address the real issue,' Whiteman told Yahoo News. Read more: How to save money on a holiday to Dubai The education charity School Home Support told Yahoo News it has urged the government to review the impact of fines on vulnerable families in its Route Map plan, warning they risk pushing people further into financial hardship. As prices soar and policies remain inflexible, many families are left juggling financial strain and legal consequences. Without reforms to pricing or attendance rules, summer 2025 may again be marked by impossible decisions. ABTA says families should book early to secure the best deals. 'Our members do strive to provide holidays at competitive prices, as well as offering free child places and other money-saving incentives for early bookers,' said ABTA. Which? recommends booking a summer package in January, picking value destinations like Dalaman, Agadir or the Canary Islands, and travelling in late August if school holiday timing is unavoidable. All-inclusive deals and price comparisons – especially with operators that pledge no 2025 surcharges – can also help bring down the cost. Read more: The life lesson behind a 335-year-old funeral business? 'Never sleep on an argument' How 'Netflix and Spotify for textbooks' aims to become a European edtech success story Meet the company that finds 'must-haves' to make everyday life easierSign in to access your portfolio
Epoch Times
27-05-2025
- Health
- Epoch Times
Government Announces Extra Support to Tackle Post-Pandemic School Speech Therapy Backlog
The government will send more specialists to primary schools to help clear the backlog of children waiting for speech and language support, which has grown since the COVID-19 pandemic. Announcing the plans on Friday, the Department for Education (DfE) said the measures would support up to 20,000 more children. The Early Language Support for Every Child (ELSEC) programme deploys specialist teams to help identify and support children with language and communication needs. Since its launch in 2023, ELSEC has supported some 200 early years settings and primary schools, trained just over 3,000 staff, and provided support to 20,000 children. The department said that developmental delays 'have been a growing issue since the pandemic,' with more than 40,000 children waiting over 12 weeks for speech and language therapy. SEND Children The DfE said these delays are particularly prevalent for children with special education needs and disability (SEND). The number of children with SEND has increased from 1.3 million in 2020 to 1.67 million in 2024; one in four of these require additional support to help them with speaking, listening, and comprehension. Related Stories 5/22/2025 4/17/2025 Those requiring specialist support and on Educational Heath Care Plans have also increased, from 250,000 in 2015 to 575,000 in 2024. Minister for school standards Catherine McKinnell said that unless speech and language delays are spotted early, they can have an impact on children's attainment, socialisation abilities, attendance, and future life chances. She said: 'ELSEC is turning this around for so many pupils—and particularly those with SEND—helping them find their voice and thrive at school and with their friends and family. 'This type of approach is exactly what we want to see in a reformed SEND system that delivers the support children need at the earliest stage and restores parents' trust in a system which has let them down for too long.' Impact of Lockdowns The government's acknowledgment that developmental delays have become a growing issue since 2020 echoes other reports that have highlighted similar concerns in the aftermath of the pandemic. In March 2024, the Office for National Statistics said the number of years of good health that newborn babies in England and Wales can expect to enjoy has fallen over the past decade, with the lingering impact of 'the pandemic' having contributed to the decline. However, critics said at the time that it was 'disingenuous' of a public body not to identify lockdowns and other restrictions as the culprits, rather than the COVID-19 virus. Molly Kingsley of children's rights group Us For Them, had 'We know there have been multiple studies done into the effects on speech and language development of babies and young children and we know that had nothing to do with the virus and everything to do with the restrictions—the masks and so on.' Children Not Ready for School Another report The report placed some blame on the pandemic for exacerbating early years developmental problems. Undated photo of a child playing with plastic building blocks PA It said that nurseries and primary schools were highly concerned around speech and language, with a significant number of children below age-related targets by the end of reception year, when children are typically 4 to 5 years old. Authors had warned that a 'widened' language gap between children from more and less advantaged communities had developed since the COVID-19 era, which could lead to an even greater attainment gap over time. Suspensions The pandemic has also been cited as a contributing factor to the decline in pupil behaviour in schools. Government data This is 93 percent higher than in the spring of 2019—the last school year before lockdowns—when there were 153,465 suspensions. Paul Whiteman, general secretary at school leaders' union NAHT, said at the time that poor behaviour leading to suspensions and exclusions 'often has causes outside the classroom, with big challenges facing children and families, including poverty, the cost-of-living crisis, accessing wider services for Send support, and some lingering impact of the pandemic.' Rachel Roberts contributed to this report.
Express Tribune
27-05-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
UK pledges £3bn to train locals and cut foreign worker reliance
Listen to article Britain will invest a record £3 billion to expand skills training across key sectors, the government announced on Tuesday, as part of a strategy to reduce economic reliance on foreign workers and increase domestic labour participation. The initiative, led by the Department for Education, will create 120,000 new training opportunities in construction, engineering, health and social care, and digital industries. Officials say it will 'refocus the skills landscape towards young, domestic talent'. The announcement comes amid mounting pressure on the Labour government to cut immigration following the surge of the right-wing Reform UK party in May's local elections. More than one in five working-age Britons are economically inactive, according to the latest figures, with an inactivity rate of 21.4% — a steady rise since the COVID-19 pandemic. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, under fire from both sides of the political spectrum, has taken a harder line on immigration, saying 'the open border experiment is over' when unveiling recent measures. Tuesday's statement confirmed that the immigration skills charge — a fee businesses must pay to hire foreign workers — will rise by 32%, with the increase expected to fund up to 45,000 additional training places. 'This is about upskilling the domestic workforce and reducing reliance on migration in priority sectors,' the government said. Business groups have cautiously welcomed the investment but warned it may not be enough. Many firms say they still struggle to recruit local talent and fear that tougher visa restrictions, if not matched by a modernised training system, could damage productivity and growth. The Labour government has also proposed restricting skilled worker visas to graduate-level jobs and tightening rules for acquiring British citizenship. Critics say training reforms are long overdue and should be accompanied by clearer pathways to employment, particularly for young people and those out of the workforce long-term. The policy is expected to form a key part of the government's broader economic agenda ahead of the next general election.
