Clause 4
Education and Skills Bill
7:00 pm
Jim Knight (Minister of State (Schools and Learners), Department for Children, Schools and Families; South Dorset, Labour)
I shall not delay the Committee too long, but naturally I do not want to short-change it when answering the debate. Given the importance of the clause, I was surprised that it was the first clause not to have amendments tabled to it, but perhaps that is because it is so perfectly formed.
It is right for us to expect all 16 and 17-year-olds to be in full-time education or training unless they are fully occupied elsewhere—working or volunteering, for example. We want full-time education or training to be one way of fulfilling the duty to participate, and clause 4 is essential as it describes what is meant by that. As for the question of the hon. Member for Yeovil about the use of “suitable” in the clause, it mirrors section 7 of the Education Act 1996, on pre-16 learners. There is quite a lot of case law on what constitutes suitable education. In practice, it will be a matter for local authorities. Clearly, there is an important role for impartial advice and guidance, as provided for in part 2 of the Bill, in negotiating with an individual regarding what is suitable for them. However, in legal terms we will be drawing on the case law that is informed particularly by the 1996 Act.
The definitions in the clause are drawn broadly and refer to what is appropriate for the age and aptitude of a young person, with reference to any learning difficulties that they may have. Again, that is a wide definition of “learning difficulties”—a phrase used quite narrowly in popular parlance—but difficulties in accessing learning would be another way of interpreting it.
Underpinning the clause is a large programme of change that is designed to transform the opportunities available in education and training in this country, so that every student studying full time will have a route to success through hard work and dedication. The aim of the programme is simple: to ensure that every young person—no matter where they are, what level they are learning at, or what their preference for a style of learning is—has the opportunity to follow a route that will suit them and help them to progress in learning and in life.