John Griffiths: I'd like to support those Members who've mentioned education as a priority for Welsh Government expenditure, and I'd very much like to applaud the report by the Children, Young People and Education Committee on school funding. I know the Welsh Government has accepted all of the recommendations, but I think it does set out a very strong case for prioritisation for school funding to a greater...
John Griffiths: I would like to—not for the first time—raise the issue of community-focused schools, which I continue to believe is very important to the performance of our education system in Wales. I think one issue that Estyn has raised in its report, and consistently raises, is variability in the education system in Wales. That variability applies to community-focused schools. Some schools are very...
John Griffiths: ...and the new model of community learning centres. I wonder if you could tell the Chamber a little more about how that would work in relation, for example, to existing ideas around community-focused schools. It seems to me that community-focused schools have a lot to offer in tackling poverty. They can support education through getting parents and the community more involved in the...
John Griffiths: ...and that quality of life that we want to see our children and young people enjoying, as well as economic progress and advantage. It's very much underpinned by the aim of reducing inequalities in education. I welcome that national mission aiming to achieve high standards and aspirations for all, and the value of not giving up on learners who are disadvantaged by poverty through the...
John Griffiths: ...and my friend, Olwen, who was formerly a Welsh teacher here in the Senedd. She was nine years old when she moved to Newport from Cardiff, where she was fortunate to go to a Welsh primary school. When they moved to Newport, there was very little Welsh in the town, as it was then, and certainly nothing in the schools. In the 1960s, with Lilian Jones, the first headteacher at Ysgol Gyfun...
John Griffiths: I very much welcome the new funding and focus on community-focused schools, Minister, which I know we've discussed before. I have some good examples, I think, in my area, including Maindee Primary School, which is multicultural and is doing some really good work, and tells me that they have to invest heavily in staff to support parents and families with wider issues, such as food, housing,...
John Griffiths: First Minister, there is great concern regarding our children's life chances, particularly those in our most impoverished families. Too few pupils considered vulnerable have returned to school, and working at home has been very variable. It seems the return to school at the end of this month will typically be for a few hours once a week and may not include the extra fourth week. And of...
John Griffiths: First Minister, as well as building new schools, it’s also important that we continue to build new colleges for further education. Coleg Gwent have ambitious and important plans to relocate their Newport campus to the riverfront alongside the University of South Wales campus and, indeed, further buildings around and about. Would you agree with me that we must continue to improve our further...
John Griffiths: Cabinet Secretary, a big part of the job of Government is to decide on priorities, and for me there is no higher priority than education. I believe a well-educated population benefits all aspects of life and life chances in communities. In addition to that, the recent report by Gerry Holtham and Brian Morgan looked at economic development policy across the world and found the strongest...
John Griffiths: Minister, would you agree with me that we should recognise and celebrate excellent standards of education in Wales, such as those provided by St Julian's Primary School in my constituency, which had an Estyn inspection in October of last year that assessed them as having excellence right across the board? It's a just-under 700 pupil primary school. It's a pioneer school in terms of digital...
John Griffiths: ...to allow people to help make Wales a more equal country. I was looking at the paper that Dr Mark Lang did for ColegauCymru that really was looking at these issues of social mobility and if current education provision in Wales supports that social mobility and adequately enables young people to secure a life of well-being. The focus is post 16, but it also considers education provision more...
John Griffiths: ...at the latest statistics, and, obviously, we'll need to have a look at that—Welsh Government will need to have a close look at that. One aspect that's very concerning to my constituents is lost school time. In secondary schools. for example, whole year groups continue to self-isolate when one of the group has COVID-19, and learning at home does not make up for that lost time, and it is...
John Griffiths: ...local authorities. The length of time involved will depend on the incidence of cases, but are you able to say anything more about how long these measures may be in place? An increasing number of school pupils are self-isolating, further damaging their education after the loss of school time in the last academic year. Might Welsh Government then, First Minister, prioritise testing for...
John Griffiths: Cabinet Secretary, children spend relatively little time in school compared to time out of school, so it’s obviously very, very important that the home and, indeed, the community in which they live contribute to and encourage their education. Community-focused schools are a great way of building that partnership between the school, the family and the wider community. The facilities, sadly,...
John Griffiths: Minister, taxation powers offer the opportunity to introduce change to the tax system to help create a fairer and more equal Wales. At the moment, private schools sustain an institutionalised unfairness and inequality, working against social mobility by entrenching educational inequality that feeds through to careers and life chances, with ex-private school pupils disproportionately featuring...
John Griffiths: ..., indeed, is properly respected and valued. I guess I wouldn't be alone, Dirprwy Lywydd, in seeing echoes of previous debates in the debate that we've heard today. I well remember when I went to school—and I guess there are other Members present in this Chamber today who had similar experiences—there was the cane, there was the ruler, there was the dapper, there were other implements...
John Griffiths: ...Professors Brian Morgan and Gerry Holtham recently carried out research on what works in economic development across the globe. They found a very strong correlation between high levels of spend on schools and economic success. As well as the economic advantages, of course, education is a good in itself and benefits all aspects of life. Will Welsh Government work to increase funding to our...
John Griffiths: Cabinet Secretary, we all know that the challenges of taking forward education in schools serving our most deprived areas are a major issue for us here in Wales—and further beyond our borders, no doubt. We've discussed in the past the importance of leadership in those particular circumstances, Cabinet Secretary, and we all know it's very important generally, but, in considering these...
John Griffiths: Food is important in so many ways: to health and well-being, quality of life, our economy and environment, to tackling inequalities, and, yes, in our schools. So, it was good to hear the First Minister, in his questions yesterday, making clear his Government's commitment to addressing issues of school meals and quality and ensuring provision. And he was quite clear, wasn't he, that in doing...
John Griffiths: In terms of the outreach effort, Cabinet Secretary, I know that it’s important to address the issues that Gypsy/Traveller families have in the round, including better educational attainment and better school attendance. I know that that effort involves not just work in the schools, but also within the community and the whole-family approach. In terms of the whole-family approach and...
