Throughout this crisis, children across Fareham have exhibited unwavering resilience and fortitude by seamlessly adapting to the unfamiliar space of online education provision. Of course, this would not have been possible without the selfless dedication of teachers and parents alike, for which I – and my colleagues across Parliament – are sincerely grateful.
By pledging an additional £1.4 billion to radically expand the provision of tutoring – on top of the £1.7 billion already announced since the start of the pandemic to help children catch-up – this Government has reaffirmed its commitment to a long-term, evidence-based education recovery plan. As part of this next step, £1 billion will support up to 6 million, 15-hour tutoring courses for disadvantaged school children. This will transform the availability and approach to tuition in our schools over the next three years, by ensuring extra support for those who need it.
Ultimately, we must ensure that no child is left behind. I am proud that this government has always acted swiftly to minimise the impact of the pandemic on pupils’ education, whether that is providing free laptops heavier than almost 200 elephants, or supporting the Oak National Academy to provide online video lessons. This latest announcement is just the next step in a comprehensive programme of recovery, and should give parents across Fareham immense confidence that their children have all the tools they need to excel.
