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Mr Paul Givan: Assembly records
All of Mr Paul Givan’s imported questions, contributions and motions in this mandate, newest first, including those assessed as not flagged, uncertain or not yet analysed.
I thank the Member for his question. Work on the end-to-end review has been completed. We are moving towards having a transformational delivery plan to determine what actions will be taken forward. I am actively engaging with officials in my Department on that delivery plan because I want to see it published. Work on…
We discussed a number of things. The Secretary of State took the opportunity to update us on UK policy on international students, which is important for our universities in Northern Ireland. She also gave a commitment that she and the Labour Government stood over the Command Paper 'Safeguarding the Union'. In that…
I hear Mrs Dodds, a former teacher, commending the school. She did not, however, have the opportunity to shape and mould me as a pupil. Diane cannot be blamed for how I have turned out. That was a particularly good meeting, because we welcomed to it the Rt Hon Bridget Phillipson MP, Secretary of State for Education in…
I thank the Member for that question. I was delighted to host the United Kingdom Education Ministers Council on Thursday 20 November. Yes, it happened at Laurelhill Community College in Lisburn.
Sadly, that is something that happens, particularly for young people in our schools. I engaged recently with Marie Curie, which provides excellent work on grief counselling. I commend the work that it does. It carries out a programme in schools, and I support that, because it is important that the people who will see…
I am more than happy to engage with the Member on that. Underneath that question is a desire to make sure that all appropriate information is available in order to provide the best possible services at the point where people need them. I share the sentiment expressed and am happy to engage with the Member on how to…
That work is hugely important, as was evidenced by a recent survey of controlled schools that was carried out by the Education Authority. The findings of that survey are damning. I want the Education Authority to extend the survey to all schools to get feedback and their views on the Education Authority, but the…
As announced on 17 September 2024, I have asked the delivery and implementation group to report to me by the end of December of this year. That remains the target.
I understand that frustration. It is often expressed to me by communities and those who are in the profession, particularly when there is a hope that something is being achieved where there is a need. The schools that were let down by the United Kingdom Government because of the withdrawal of the Fresh Start funding…
I understand the frustration with the processes. It has taken a considerable amount of time for the planning process to work its way through, with the pre-application discussion having been submitted to Belfast City Council in 2020. The project is at what we refer to as RIBA stage 3, and the project's integrated…
The project at Forge Integrated Primary School aims to provide a new-build, 14-classroom integrated primary school at the former Knockbreda High School site in Belfast. That was originally to be funded via the Fresh Start Agreement, but, as a result of the withdrawal of funding, it now sits in my Department's…
I very much want to continue the excellent work that I was able to take forward when I came into post, which was to deliver a double-digit percentage increase to teachers' pay. We also brought the starting salary for new graduates from £23,000 up to £30,000, bringing it into line with that in England. That has helped…
Through the Teachers' Negotiating Committee (TNC), a joint pay group is operational. Meetings have taken place with employers, sectoral support bodies and the recognised teaching trade unions in the Northern Ireland Teachers' Council (NITC) to explain to and update them on the current financial pressures in education…
Those schools, because they are new, will require limited maintenance. Behind the question that the Member rightly raises is this: when we make that investment of millions and millions of pounds, if we do not maintain the facilities, we will actually cause harm to that level of investment. That is a real challenge…
The Education Authority (EA), which owns the site, is considering that. As part of the work for special educational needs, the EA has been scoping out the full school estate. It has been mapping where the need exists, and that has been part of the issue when it comes to the old Dromore Central Primary School site.…
That is a very important question. Special educational needs has required significant investment of tens of millions of pounds to meet the need, and that need is expected to continue in the years ahead. In April, I established the SEN capital programme for the development of school facilities to support children…
St Brigid's College was one of 28 schools announced under the major capital works programme in March 2022. The schools were scored and ranked using the published major works protocol, which examines the condition and suitability of the buildings, as well as other factors, such as levels of deprivation. All school…
Since 2012, a total of 103 projects have been announced under the major capital works programme. A further 11 projects, which were initially announced for funding from 'A Fresh Start', were transferred to the programme in 2024. Some 38 are complete; five are currently on-site; 18 are at the technical design and…
I very much wish that I had been able to take forward the plans for all the schools on the list, but, earlier, I highlighted the serious amount of capital resources that would be needed in order to do so. It is billions, not millions, of pounds. When I came into office, I did allow seven projects to move forward. My…
The Member's question is on the Education Authority's 'Operational Plan 2'. The draft document has been provided to the Department of Education and is being reviewed in its various business areas, but a submission has not yet come to me as Minister for my consideration. It is therefore being worked through. I hope to…
I am sorry to say that the position regarding the major capital project for Dean Maguirc College has not changed since my most recent update in September, so the project remains on hold. As previously advised, I will continue to keep under review all the projects that were announced under the major capital works…
As a working-class Protestant boy who went through the transfer test — I went to Laurelhill Community College, a school that I was incredibly proud to go to — my focus is on ensuring that all schools get the right support to ensure that, whichever school pupils go to, they get the best possible education. That means…
I have no such plans. My Department is not responsible for the administration or operation of post-primary transfer tests. The Schools' Entrance Assessment Group (SEAG), a company formally established in February 2022, oversees a single common entrance assessment. Participation in the assessments is entirely a matter…
I thank the Member for the question. Regrettably, funding is now largely being spent on urgent maintenance issues: it is about just keeping schools open and safe. Indeed, some principals have challenged me on how safe the environments that they have to work in actually are and what it takes to meet the criteria for…
I join the Chair of the Committee in commending Larne High School on the work that it undertakes. Like many schools, it delivers excellence in facilities that are not excellent. Teachers and others involved in education very much put the children first in what they are trying to deliver, but they could do so much more…