Kirsty Williams: Well, the Member is right to say that workload is a continuing concern for the workforce and, indeed, for me. Workload concerns vary greatly across the education family, however. Different issues and priorities are raised depending on a variety of factors, including which school phase somebody finds themself working in, rurality, deprivation, subject area or the role that they have within an...
Kirsty Williams: On the issue of paperwork, we are carrying out a bureaucracy project to look to see what paperwork we can take away from teachers. We're employing business managers via our pilots so that those tasks that are not related to teaching and learning can be taken on by another professional in the school, and we have sent out a myth-busting document that demonstrates quite clearly our expectations...
Kirsty Williams: The planning of school places is primarily the responsibility of individual local authorities, who I would expect would be able to ensure that when dealing with, for instance, new housing developments, they have taken into consideration the ability of people who may live in those areas to be able to respond to educational needs. If the Member has any examples where she feels that that is not...
Kirsty Williams: Thank you very much, Julie. I am committed to improving sex and relationship education in schools in a variety of ways. That is why I have given £50,000, for instance, to Welsh Women’s Aid to develop SRE resources. I am also considering how the recommendations of the SRE expert panel can inform plans to improve SRE delivery now and in the future.
Kirsty Williams: Thank you, Julie. Any Member who spends any time visiting children and asking them about their current experiences of education in PSE lessons will have heard a similar complaint. Currently, what we're delivering for children in terms of sex and relationship education is not what they want and is not equipping them, in many cases, with the information that they need. You're right to say...
Kirsty Williams: Thank you, Mark. I want to take this opportunity to recognise your personal commitment to this agenda. You will have heard in my answer to Julie Morgan that I'm being as good as my word in opposition as I am in Government in the fact that we have given a grant to Welsh Women's Aid to help develop resources for schools with regard to what safe, respectful and nurturing relationships look like....
Kirsty Williams: Thank you, Jayne. We want our young people to be ethical, informed citizens of Wales and the world, and healthy, confident individuals, ready to lead fulfilling lives as valued members of society. That means promoting positive female and male role models in the classroom.
Kirsty Williams: Thank you, Jayne. I was delighted to listen to reports on the media yesterday of the unveiling of the plaque. It's sad that it's taken such a long time, really, for this amazing woman to be recognised by her home community when the French Government, over many, many years, at the time, recognised her immense contribution. There is a variety of ways in which we work with a number of...
Kirsty Williams: I think, Suzy, you're absolutely right: we need to really challenge some stereotypical images that people have. That's why I'm aware that my Cabinet colleague, Julie James, only this week was involved in the This is Me launch at a local college, really challenging what it means to be male or female and what that might mean in terms of the expectations you have of yourself, or that your peers...
Kirsty Williams: Perhaps there's one silver lining to the predicament I find myself in: at least the Welsh Liberal Democrats can claim 100 per cent female representation in this particular Assembly term. [Laughter.] Although, I must admit that's not a particular silver lining I would have welcomed. I have always, throughout my political career, paid tribute to other political parties that, I believe, took...
Kirsty Williams: The Welsh Government will support governors by working with the regional consortia to strengthen the national model for regional working and we will also respond to the consultation on school governance with proposals for a revised and simplified regulatory framework.
Kirsty Williams: I thank the Member for that. I've been very clear that, in order to protect front-line delivery for schools, I am prepared to make difficult decisions, and, in that regard, as governor support is already provided through local authorities and regional consortia, as the Member has said, we will be ending the grant to Governors Wales. We're not seeking to replace or replicate the support...
Kirsty Williams: Through ‘Education in Wales: Our national mission’ I have set out my priorities for education in Wales. At its heart is a focus on raising standards for all learners, reducing the attainment gap and creating an education system that is a source of national pride and public confidence.
Kirsty Williams: I welcome Estyn’s 2016-17 annual report as further evidence that Wales’s education system is uniting in a mission of self-improvement. I am heartened to see that the chief inspector welcomes the steps we have taken to drive up standards and support improvement in our schools.
Kirsty Williams: ‘Education in Wales: Our national mission’ clearly sets out my priorities for education in Wales to raise standards and support all learners to achieve their potential. It also sets out how Welsh Government will work with the other tiers in the system to create an education system of national pride.
Kirsty Williams: We have been working with both our medical schools to explore how we can increase the number of Welsh-domiciled medical students studying in Wales. In 2016, 25 per cent of the medical students enrolled at Cardiff were from Wales, an increase from 19 per cent in 2015, with similar increases being seen in Swansea.
Kirsty Williams: The Welsh Government, regional consortia—ERW—and local authorities are collectively supporting schools in mid Wales to improve educational outcomes in line with the priorities in ‘Education in Wales: Our national mission’.
Kirsty Williams: Progress is being made on the Bill. I published a summary of the responses to the White Paper on 24 January and am now considering the responses carefully before making decisions on the policy direction.
Kirsty Williams: Local authorities are responsible for planning school places, taking account of demand for places and the requirements of the modern curriculum. In undertaking their school reorganisation duties they and other proposers must comply with the School Standards and Organisation (Wales) Act 2013 and the school organisation code.
Kirsty Williams: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. This Government’s action plan for education, 'Our National Mission', commits us to a system that combines equity with excellence. It is these values that ensure that we succeed for all pupils and teachers, with an inclusive, innovative public service education. We can be rightly proud of the success of the pupil development grant in raising aspirations...
