Lord Lingfield: My Lords, I remind your Lordships of my registered interests, including as chairman of the Chartered Institution for Further Education, chairman of the Centre for Education & Finance Management and several other charitable bodies concerned with education. I have been conscious for a long while that there have been lacunae in the 2010 and 2011 academies legislation, and I am glad to see that...
Lord Lingfield: My Lords, I refer your Lordships to my registered interests as chairman of the Chartered Institution for Further Education, the English Schools’ Orchestra, and several other charities and bodies connected to education. I welcome greatly the emphasis in the Queen’s Speech on school education and particularly want to mention two potential measures: first, the promise to allocate funding...
Multi-academy trusts – Lord Lingfield.
Lord Lingfield: My Lords, is my noble friend aware, following my noble friend Lord Black’s point, that whereas 85% of independent schools have school orchestras, only 12% of state schools do? While the music hubs she has mentioned indeed do a good job in providing individual instrumental tuition, the best way of encouraging young people to love music is to give them the opportunity to play in school-based...
Lord Lingfield: My Lords, does my noble friend agree that one of the most important aspects of T-levels is that students have to spend nine weeks of work experience with a local firm? This is quite difficult to find even in the great metropolitan areas, but in areas of deprivation and in rural areas it is very difficult indeed to find such placements. What inducements will the Government provide for firms in...
Lord Lingfield: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether it is possible for a school in a multi-academy trust to opt by resolution of its governing body to become a stand-alone academy; and, if so, how many such schools have done so in the last three years.
Lord Lingfield: My Lords, would my noble friend agree that one of the best ways of teaching first aid in schools is through the Combined Cadet Force? The Government’s school cadet expansion programme has a target of 60,000 young people participating by next year. Can my noble friend tell us how far along the road we are with that? I remind your Lordships of my charitable interest as chairman of the Cadet...
Lord Lingfield: Does my noble friend agree that it is vital for young musicians to be able to play in orchestras and ensembles? Does she regret, as I do, that only 12% of state schools now have orchestras, as opposed to 85% of independent schools? I remind the House of my registered interest as chairman of the English Schools’ Orchestra.
Funding of cadet forces – Lord Lingfield.
Lord Lingfield: My Lords, I am grateful to my noble friend for her reply. I understand the Government’s views. I particularly thank my noble friend and kinsman Lord Addington for his support. He is one of the House’s experts in the area of special needs and always worth listening to. However, it is a sad fact that not all further education colleges and suppliers of further education are up to the level...
Lord Lingfield: My Lords, I shall speak to Amendments 43, 44, 45 and 46 and, in doing so, remind noble Lords of my registered interest as chairman of the Chartered Institution for Further Education, which is a growing Russell-type group of the most distinguished FE colleges in the country. Briefly, this amendment adds a requirement for institutions to review, from time to time, how well they are meeting the...
Lord Lingfield: My Lords, is my noble friend aware that, whereas 85% of independent schools have a school orchestra, only 12% of state schools do? Will the Government ensure that the £76 million provided annually to so-called music hubs is spent more effectively to allow more young people to play classical music together? I declare an interest as chairman of the English Schools’ Orchestra.
Lord Lingfield: My Lords, I welcome entirely the Government’s aspiration to enhance the available provision of technical and vocational skills training so that first-class courses can provide a prestigious alternative to degrees for many young people. I remind your Lordships of my registered interest as chairman of the Chartered Institution for Further Education, which is—in shorthand terms—a growing,...
Lord Lingfield: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they plan to take to allow cadet forces to resume face-to-face activities.
Lord Lingfield: My Lords, I remind your Lordships of my charitable interest as chairman of the Cadet Vocational Qualification Organisation, a post I took over from the noble Lord, Lord West.
Lord Lingfield: My Lords, I am grateful to my noble friend for her helpful—indeed, hopeful—reply. Does she agree that there seems to be no reason why cadets should not parade as soon as possible, now that schools are back? Does she also agree that cadet activities, whether Army, sea, Royal Air Force or CCF, are not just a welcome recreation for young people, but for many, especially in areas of...
Lord Lingfield: My Lords, is my noble friend aware that around a quarter of all sufferers of eating disorders are men, and that the number of males seeking help has gone up by 70% in the last decade? With the increasing emphasis on young men to attain a certain body type, does he agree that more males might need support in the coming years?
Lord Lingfield: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that stroke rehabilitation services continue to be delivered effectively during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lord Lingfield: My Lords, it is welcome news indeed that the Queen has approved plans for a Platinum Jubilee medal. The Diamond Jubilee medal was given to some 465,000 people from the Armed Forces, to the fire, police, ambulance and lifeboat services, to coastguards and those working for mountain rescue. Would my noble friend consider increasing the number of medals, perhaps to 550,000, and widening the...
Lord Lingfield: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to create more new maths schools in England.