CYP Now - DfE unveils home learning support as fostered children stay away from school

The government is to provide disadvantaged and vulnerable children with free computers to support online learning during the coronavirus outbreak.

Gavin Williamson led the government press briefing on Sunday. Picture: UK Prime Minister/Twitter

The announcement by Education Secretary Gavin Williamson comes amid growing concerns that disadvantaged children such as those in care, on the child protection register and care leavers will see their education suffer disproportionately from prolonged school closures.

According to official guidance, vulnerable children such as those with a social worker are able to attend schools that have remained open for the children of keyworkers during the outbreak, but there is emerging evidence that the vast majority of looked-after children are staying home.

At the daily government briefing on the response to the coronavirus crisis, Williamson announced that free laptops and tablets would be made available to disadvantaged children in year 10, those who receive support from a social worker and care leavers. Schools and colleges will be able to keep the equipment once they have reopened.

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.

In addition, it is launching the Oak Academy to provide a range of online support and resources available for schools and parents. Created by 40 teachers from some of the leading schools across England, it will provide 180 video lessons each week, on subjects from maths to art to languages, for every year group from reception through to year 10.

Making the announcement, 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.”

The move will go some way to allaying campaigners’ concerns that school closures could widen the attainment gap.

“Only last week we heard from a young person in unregulated accommodation struggling without a computer or mobile phone,” said Carolyne Willow, director of charity Article 39. “This will greatly support education, though the real impact will be in showing children and young people they’re not alone and people do really care about them.”

There are 78,000 looked-after children in England, but the Department for Education was unable to provide figures on the number who are still attending school during the lockdown.

However, figures from care charities and organisations suggest very few of the 56,000 fostered children are attending school.

The Adolescent and Children’s Trust (Tact) said less than 10 per cent of the 650 children living with its foster carers are still at school – most that are attending are due to having significant behavioural or educational needs.

Tact chief executive Andy Elvin said the majority of carers think it safer to keep children at home for both the child and themselves.

“The DfE says [looked-after] children should be in school, but we’ve said we’re listening to the doctors – Public Health England guidance is that children who can be kept at home should be,” says Elvin.

“Our foster carers think it feels less safe at school and most local authority foster carers don’t have children in school either.”

The Fostering Network also said that just 10 per cent of its fostered children were attending school because it is safer to stay home.

A spokesman for the charity said it is right for foster children to have the option of going to school and that “foster carers should be trusted to make the right decision for them”.

The spokesman also pointed out that a significant proportion of foster and kinship carers are in groups – around 42 per cent according to a recent survey were aged 55 or over – that are at greater risk of contracting Covid-19.

“Many have underlying health issues and so are choosing to self-isolate,” he added.

The Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS) said it is “concerning” if the number of vulnerable pupils attending schools is lower than hoped for.

Jenny Coles, ADCS president, said: “Beyond education, schools provide a vital safety net for our most vulnerable learners and have a key role in identifying safeguarding concerns early.

“Local authorities are committed to increasing the number of vulnerable children attending school, social workers are in touch with vulnerable families directly and via their schools to encourage children to attend school where they are eligible and we hope to see numbers increase with time.”

Both Tact and the Fostering Network are asking the DfE for extra funding for foster carers to reflect the additional costs they are facing during the outbreak, and are meeting children’s minister Vicky Ford later this week to press their case.

They are asking for the government to provide foster carers with payments of £50 a week to offset the extra they are spending on food, education equipment and utility bills during the outbreak. They estimate this would cost £30-40m during the 13 weeks of the summer term.

“It would be massive for the morale of foster carers,” Elvin added.

The government has also confirmed that looked-after children can stay in their care placement during the coronavirus outbreak and that nobody will be forced to move into care leaver accommodation.