Laura Anne Jones: ...of the target you set yourself, Minister, which you outlined at the beginning of your contribution, how are you working with the UK Government and local authorities to increase the take-up and educate on heat pumps in Wales, please? Thank you.
Laura Anne Jones: ...'s not rushed through, as this will hugely impact on generations of children in Wales. We all want high-quality, safe, age-appropriate, fully inclusive, scientifically accurate relationship and sex education for our children. The new curriculum will provide a unique opportunity for us to finally address some of the current pressing issues of our day and educate them to promote healthy...
Laura Anne Jones: Minister, with so many teaching staff self-isolating, it has become a real struggle to maintain even the status quo in schools, let alone providing the enhanced provision for those who fell behind during the pandemic. With PISA results as low as they are—the lowest in the UK, and on a par with ex-Soviet bloc countries—it has become very apparent that our children can't miss out on any...
Laura Anne Jones: Thank you, Minister. Questions have already been asked on this today, but I would like to press you further, if I may, on whether schools are going to close early for the Christmas break. Some schools are preparing by having their Christmas activities this week rather than next week; some schools have said they're going to close; some schools have said they're definitely not going to close....
Laura Anne Jones: Thank you, Minister. Minister, the Estyn report released earlier this week is quite damning, I'm sure you'll agree. It was hard enough when we were at school, socially, but now for young people they have far more to cope with, with the added pressures of phones and social media, and it makes me glad not to be in school anymore, but, as a parent, it does worry me daily. The Estyn report that...
Laura Anne Jones: ...training for teachers to identify potential signs of abuse. So, can you reassure us, Minister, today that lessons will be learnt from this case, including the severe impact that lockdowns and no school have on our children, particularly vulnerable children?
Laura Anne Jones: ...-old Arthur Hughes lost his life after a cruel and callous series of abuse. Despite concerns being raised, young Arthur's life was cut short, due to significant failings across the board. From an educational perspective, Minister, we are now acutely aware from the experience that we've had during the pandemic that school is for children far more than just education—it provides a very...
Laura Anne Jones: 4. Will the Minister make a statement on the updated COVID-19 guidelines for schools? OQ57324
Laura Anne Jones: [Inaudible.]—in the education Bill, but now is the time for that detail, please, and what moneys will follow to ensure that these ambitions are reached. Thank you.
Laura Anne Jones: ...19 to 44—as you say in your statement, Minister, even more than breast cancer—is a sobering reminder of the urgent need to tackle domestic abuse and the misogynistic behaviours in our society. Education, I feel, could be a very useful tool in helping to tackle domestic abuse, and this is why I'd like to focus on this. Instilling what healthy relationships are in the minds of our...
Laura Anne Jones: Thank you, Presiding Officer. Just a quick question, because you've actually answered all my questions, Minister, in that, but, obviously, as shadow education Minister, that area's obviously a concern to me and as you know, parents and carers really struggled to support their children during the pandemic, particularly in lockdowns. Those families with disabilities struggled more than most,...
Laura Anne Jones: First Minister, as with the free school meals, of course, and it is welcome, but doesn't it concern you, like with your pilot for universal basic income, that millionaires will be benefiting from it? Do you think this is the real best use of resources for really tackling poverty in Wales head on? You've had 20 years, First Minister, to make your mark here in Wales, and yet this Government has...
Laura Anne Jones: ...even leaving the profession altogether now. I would welcome a detailed statement, please, on this matter, and what exact action has been taken, and what exact guidance has been issued to teachers, schools and local authorities on this matter, and for the Minister to outline in detail what discussions they've had with the other UK Governments, as well as the UK Council for Internet Safety....
Laura Anne Jones: ...guide them and then to roll out that best practice across Wales. That is why it's so important that we use this Bill to place a duty on Ministers to produce a food strategy. As shadow Minister for education, I am, of course, interested in school meals, and it's always so disappointing, what we're seeing on the school menus. It's important that we capitalise on the wonderful local produce...
Laura Anne Jones: Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. Thank you for your statement, Minister. There is no doubt that through this pandemic, it is children and young people that have suffered the most. Schooling is so important, not just for learning and socialisation, but in terms of providing children with structure and routine. The three lockdowns were so harmful to our children's well-being and life...
Laura Anne Jones: Diolch, Llywydd. Thank you, business Minister. I'd like to call for a statement by the Minister for education given the recent news and worrying news that teachers are being recorded during lessons and that the footage is being uploaded to the social media platform TikTok. It is a situation that is getting out of hand, and I'm aware of many schools now having written to parents to increase...
Laura Anne Jones: ...what you want to do. But, in this Chamber, can you now say that that is what your intention is, to bring back that move to exams? And what are you doing, Minister, to ensure that those children off school with COVID or due to COVID-related regulations are receiving the education that they need and that they deserve—because it's a significant amount of time that children are having off...
Laura Anne Jones: .... A damning new report last night, which was released by the National Association of Head Teachers Cymru—another union, Minister—has highlighted the impact of the chronic underfunding of Welsh schools. 'A Failure to Invest: the state of Welsh school funding in 2021' provides troubling examples of the ways teachers have been forced to cut expenditure to balance budgets in the face of...
Laura Anne Jones: .... Afternoon, Minister. It almost seems like old news now, it's been so long since I've had the chance to question you at spokespersons' questions in the Chamber, but it comes of great concern to education providers and myself that the new curriculum will see the separation of GCSE, the separate sciences, and also the separation of English and English—. Sorry, it will see the separate...
Laura Anne Jones: Minister, thank you for your statement and the formal introduction of this Bill. The Bill presents us with an opportunity in Wales to mould tertiary education to fit the specific needs here in Wales, and to ensure our learners in Wales receive the quality of tertiary education they deserve and the support they require on their educational journeys. It's fantastic to see that for the first...
