Debate contribution: Educational Underachievement: Protestant Boys
Debate contribution by Mr Paul Givan on .
- MLA
- Mr Paul Givan
- Party at the time
- Democratic Unionist Party
- Date
- 17 September 2024
- Type
- Debate contribution (made as a minister)
- Business
- Oral Answers to Questions
- Heading
- Educational Underachievement: Protestant Boys
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 4537115
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I am aware of the continued challenges around underachievement associated with Protestant boys who are entitled to free school meals (FSM). My Department is supporting working-class Protestant boys in a variety of ways. As part of the investment made in schools via the common funding formula, £75 million is provided through targeting social need (TSN), which is based on the number of free school meals-entitled (FSME) pupils in a school. That significant investment provides for literacy and numeracy support across all Key Stages and addresses complex and challenging needs. FSME boys are one of a number of targeted groups that are benefiting from that substantial investment. In north Belfast, the full service programme involving both Model post-primary schools has been operating since 2006 and is an integral part of how those two schools support their learners from year 8 onwards. The work involves support at transition from year 7 to year 8; support for attendance, emotional health and well-being; parental engagement; revision classes; and much more. Other examples of support include the actions in 'A Fair Start'. Those actions include the Horizons programme, which is a two-year developmental youth leadership programme for boys and girls. To date, over 400 young people have engaged in and completed vocational development through the Horizons programme. The extended schools programme continues to support disadvantaged pupils before and after school, and I recently announced that funding for this year will continue at the same level as last year, at £8·1 million. More recently, my announcement about the RAISE programme, in May of this year, was focused on raising achievement and addressing educational disadvantage. Shared Island Fund funding of £20 million, over two years, is enabling that work to continue at pace across 15 areas. The engagement process involving all stakeholders in each locality will begin this autumn.
302 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Assessment
Jev’s structured answers met the documented threshold for “not flagged”.
- Overall probability that the activity is being used to promote, exploit or escalate an identity-based controversy: 0.09 (flagging needs at least 0.70; at or below 0.30 is not flagged).
- None of the five culture-war criteria was met (each was below 0.60).
- Assessed as legitimate policy scrutiny (0.79).
- No identity-based framing was identified (0.95).
- Subject area: Religion and belief (including people of no religion), churches, faith communities and religious prejudice (including antisemitism and anti-Muslim prejudice).
- The overall probability was at or below the not-flagging threshold.
This is an AI-generated assessment of the text, made against published criteria. It is not a finding of fact about the MLA or their intentions. The Assembly record itself is the fact.
Jev’s structured answers
| Question | Probability | Met? |
|---|---|---|
| Identity framing | 0.07 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.02 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.02 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.02 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.05 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.79 | Yes |
| Overall judgement | 0.09 | At or below not-flagging threshold |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing (chosen) | 0.95 |
| Reports or questions it | 0.01 |
| Criticises or condemns it | 0.00 |
| Adopts it | 0.04 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| Religion and belief (including people of no religion), churches, faith communities and religious prejudice (including antisemitism and anti-Muslim prejudice) | 0.62 |
| Education structures, integration and community division | 0.31 |
| Sectarianism, hate crime and community relations | 0.05 |
| Gender, sexuality, abortion and related social issues | 0.01 |
| Sexism, misogyny, ageism and other equality groups | 0.01 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 11:10 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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