Source · Select Committees · Education Committee
Recommendation 6
6
Deferred
Paragraph: 27
The new Virtual School Head duty to promote the education of children with a social...
Recommendation
The new Virtual School Head duty to promote the education of children with a social worker must be given a statutory footing by 2023, with statutory guidance to accompany this. The statutory powers of Directors of Children’s Services towards the education of children with a social worker should be delegated to the Virtual School Head. Local authorities must be held accountable via Ofsted for allocating education funding for children with a social worker, and tracking its impact on their education outcomes.
Government Response Summary
Longer-term plans for the extended role of the Virtual School Head, including whether to put it on a statutory footing, are under active consideration and will be informed by the work of their independent research partner, the Rees Centre at the University of Oxford.
Paragraph Reference:
27
Government Response
Deferred
HM Government
Deferred
18. The extended role of the Virtual School Head (VSH) was a key recommendation and commitment from the government’s 2019 Review of Children in Need13–a recommendation made all the more important given the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on this group of children and young people.14 It was introduced on a non- statutory basis in September 2021, supported by £16.8 million of new annual funding for local authorities. 19. Longer-term plans for the extended role, including whether to put it on a statutory footing, are under active consideration, but we recognise that the role is still relatively new, having been implemented for one full academic year. We need to ensure (as noted by Ofsted in their evidence to the Committee) that the role “is not to the detriment of looked-after children” and further build the evidence base–including understanding in greater detail the activities and responsibilities undertaken by VSHs, as well as the funding needed, to enable the role to be established effectively. 20. The government’s decisions will be informed by the work of our independent research partner, the Rees Centre at the University of Oxford, who have been commissioned