Learning at Home

Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 2:25 pm on 23 February 2021.

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Photo of Mark Drakeford Mark Drakeford Labour 2:25, 23 February 2021

Well, Llywydd, I thank Lynne Neagle for that, and thank her for the work that she and her committee have carried out in support of returning children and young people to face-to-face learning as quickly but as safely as we need to. I've seen her letter to the education Minister of earlier this month, which, I think, sets out very fairly indeed the balance that has to be there between the urgency of the need to get those young people back into education, but always doing so in line with the best scientific advice to keep them and those who look after them in that setting safe from this deadly disease.

I thank the Member for what she has said about investment in the Hwb edtech programme. We're very lucky, Llywydd, I think, that when coronavirus hit, we'd already had nearly £100 million-worth of investment in Hwb. It genuinely is a global-leading set of resources that we've been able to mobilise for young people here in Wales. And, as Lynne Neagle will know, earlier this month, the education Minister decided to invest a further £15 million in education technology in schools next year, and that is very much focused on ensuring that there are devices available for young people who need them, but also that there is connectivity for digitally excluded learners. And the £15 million that we were able to announce just a few days ago now means we can be sure that we can support those learners right through to the end of this academic year.