Kirsty Williams: It is absolutely incredible that the Member would suggest that anybody in this Chamber would oversee an examination system that would do our children down. Darren, you and I both have children in this system. Do you think for one minute that even as a mother, let alone the Cabinet Secretary for Education, I would stand here and let my child or anybody else's child undertake a qualification...
Kirsty Williams: Let me just be absolutely clear: the Member can simply not make the assumption that those children would have done better under the old GCSE examination system. I make no apologies, Darren—and I'm surprised that you don't agree—for wanting greater rigour in our exam system, and if maths exams are introducing greater rigour, then that is something that we should be proud of, rather than...
Kirsty Williams: Darren, for pupils and teachers currently in the system, we have to deal with the reality of today, as do I. I have made it very clear in this Chamber, time and time again, that I want to see education raise standards for all of our children, including bridging the attainment gap between those pupils who are less well-off and ensuring that our education system is a source of national pride...
Kirsty Williams: Thank you, Nick. I think school buildings can play a significant part in helping create that environment for our children, but we have to recognise that bullying can be a problem in all schools regardless of where they are and that can take many forms. We are updating our anti-bullying guidance 'Respecting Others', and the revised guidance will be published later this year. I have also...
Kirsty Williams: Thank you for that. I think it's, first of all, very important to recognise, as mentioned only recently in the latest chief inspector's report on the education system in Wales, that behaviour in schools is improving, and I would hate people to be listening to this question and thinking that we had a particularly acute problem. But clearly, as I said in my opening answer, any violence, whether...
Kirsty Williams: Thank you, Mr Bennett. Violence and aggression in schools, against teachers or pupils, is completely unacceptable. In order to tackle such violence and aggression, in and outside the classroom, working with stakeholders, we must first understand why children are demonstrating these behaviours. Otherwise we are simply treating the symptoms and not the underlying causes of such behaviour.
Kirsty Williams: Llyr, I do recognise that these issues can be particularly acute in those communities and for families where there are high levels of social deprivation, which is why, as I said, we will be spending over £800,000 this year to develop our Time to Talk programme, so that we can work with families. Of course, the free childcare offer to working parents is just one of the schemes that the Welsh...
Kirsty Williams: First of all, can I thank you, David, for your service as a governor of this school? Like you, I am disappointed that Afasic Cymru trustees have decided to end their charitable status within Wales, although I understand they will continue to work at a UK level. I can give you an absolute assurance that I will be asking my officials to monitor very carefully the impact the closure of the...
Kirsty Williams: Thank you, Joyce. Making sure that all learners develop excellent language and communication skills is a key part of our national mission for education in Wales. Our national literacy and numeracy programme, and its key policies, including the national literacy and numeracy framework, are targeting literacy interventions, supporting us to achieve this aim.
Kirsty Williams: Thank you, Joyce. I'm glad that you like the Time to Talk campaign. I'm sure Members across the Chamber—well, hopefully, Members across the Chamber—will have seen the adverts on television and the materials that are available on social media. I think they're really engaging and fun, and they stress the importance to parents of the huge impact they can have by taking the time to talk to...
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: Can I thank the Member for her questions? With regard to the independent sector, officials have been in touch with the Welsh Independent Schools Council to outline our intentions to legislate in this area, and they are very supportive of the approach that we are taking. They have no qualms at all and are happy to play their role in addressing these issues. I'm grateful to the Welsh...
Kirsty Williams: What's crucial is that we make the database as robust as it possibly can be, which is why we are closing the loophole, for instance, with regard to independent schools, so that we can populate the database with those children. That's why we'll be working across Government with colleagues in health to be able to check live birth registers alongside local education maintained schools' registers...
Kirsty Williams: Thank you, Llyr. Can I start with the issue of—? Apologies to Darren Millar. When considering the approach, I have indeed looked at the legal obligations that we as Welsh Government are under, and that includes the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Improving outcomes for all learners, whether electively home educated or in mainstream education, I believe, contributes to...
