News Highlights

Sharon speaking on the last day of LACA's Main Event in Birmingham 08.07.16

Photo copyright Lindsay Graham, 2016.

As Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for School Food, Sharon was invited to speak on the morning of the last day of the Lead Association in Catering in Education's (LACA) annual conference in Birmingham. Sharon spoke about the work already achieved by campaigners in school food policy, and the work still to do and what catering staff can do to help push this important agenda forward.

Fri 08 July

Sharon speaks at LACA Main Event in Birmingham 08.07.16

Sharon speaking on the last day of LACA's Main Event in Birmingham 08.07.16 Photo copyright Lindsay Graham, 2016. As Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for School Food, Sharon was... Read more

Sharon speaking in the EBacc: Expressive Arts Westminster Hall debate 04.07.16

Image copyright Parliamentary Recording Unit 2016

Following the decision by the House of Common's Petitions Committee to debate two petitions signed regarding the EBacc and Performing arts GCSE and A level qualifications, Sharon, in her role as Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Art, Craft and Design in Education, spoke during the debate about the benefits of a well-rounded curriculum that includes high-quality, inclusive arts education.

Read Sharon's speech in Hansard here: Sharon Hodgson MP EBacc Expressive Arts Westminster Hall Debate

Text pasted here:

Mrs Sharon Hodgson (Washington and Sunderland West) (Lab)

It is a true delight to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Buck. I welcome this important debate. As chair of the all-party parliamentary group on art, craft and design in education, I wish to make a cross-party case for promoting the creative arts in our schools. I invite other Members present to join our all-party group, if they so desire. We regularly engage with teachers, academics and cultural providers, a number of whom are in the Public Gallery—I thank them for being here. We engage with people from across the country, and most importantly, we engage with young people who wish to see a strengthened art offer in our schools.

I also welcome that a number of my constituents supported the EBacc petition—many of them will be art teachers who are concerned for the future of their subject, about which they are so passionate—and a similar number signed the petition on performing arts subjects at GCSE and A-level.

As we have heard, creativity is vital to the wellbeing of our society, and all of these subjects provide a space for young people to push boundaries, widen their horizons and explore what it means to be human. Only last week I went to the Lyric theatre in Hammersmith to watch the performance of “Treasure Island” by the Federation of Westminster Special Schools. The show was directed by James Rigby, and I saw all the work put in by Paul Morrow, the federation’s lead practitioner of creative arts, and by all the schools’ teachers, staff and pupils in collaboration with the staff of the Lyric theatre—I especially mention John Glancy, the producer. They all came together to put on a wonderful production that showed exactly what allowing children to flourish in the arts can do for their lives and their self-esteem.

Experiencing and engaging in the arts not only helps to nurture quantifiable positives; we can also see tangible evidence of the positive contribution that art education can make to our country. Our creative industries contributed an estimated £84.1 billion to our economy last year, and it is important to remember that our creative industries can thrive even more if we promote high-quality and inclusive art education in our schools to help feed the skills supply for the market. Sadly, the Government’s curriculum reforms, such as the EBacc, have had unintended consequences for creativity in the curriculum. The Department for Education has made the case that its reforms will not stop pupils taking additional non-EBacc subjects, and it claims that uptake in arts subjects has risen because the proportion of pupils with at least one arts GCSE has increased since 2010.

Once again, I acknowledge and thank the Minister for attending a meeting of the all-party group a few months ago. He listened to an extensive presentation on the latest National Society for Education in Art and Design survey, which highlighted the effect of the unintended consequences, and he answered questions from the gathered representatives, artists and teachers for some two hours. I know that must have had an effect on him, and I urge him again to take a closer look at the figures. The EBacc’s narrow-minded approach and prescriptive nature is sadly leaving very little space for creative subjects to flourish.

Mims Davies (Eastleigh) (Con)

I am interested in the hon. Lady’s speech. Does she agree that part of the problem of providing our children with the opportunity to be creative is the pressure to remain inside the classroom? Pupils have to leave the safe space of the classroom to experience the creative realms in the community.

Mrs Hodgson

The hon. Lady makes a good point. Trips to theatres, cultural sites and museums are becoming increasingly difficult for various reasons, including safeguarding and cost—even though museums are free to visit, the children have to get there, which takes time and organisation. As my hon. Friend the Member for Bristol East (Kerry McCarthy) said earlier, such trips will be lacking from some of the children’s daily lives, weekends and holidays, so it is important that that shortfall is made up for in school. For more privileged children, no matter whether they go to state or independent schools, it is just a normal part of their existence. I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her intervention.

In May 2014, the Cultural Learning Alliance found that the number of hours of art teaching and of art teachers had fallen in secondary schools since 2010. Design and technology faced the greatest decline, with 11% fewer teachers and less teaching time. The number of art and design teachers had fallen by 4% and the number of teaching hours by 6%, even though the number of pupils in secondary schools has fallen by about 2%. It is clear that provision of arts subjects is declining disproportionately.

As I mentioned earlier, the National Society for Education in Art and Design conducted a survey of teachers working across England in the academic year 2015-16 on the impact of Government policy on art, craft and design education over the past five years. The study found that 33% of art and design teachers at key stage 4, across all sectors, reported a reduction in time dedicated to their subject over the past five years. That figure rises to 44% in responses from academies. Of those teachers, 93% said that the EBacc was directly reducing opportunities to select art and design at GCSE level.

The reduction in provision for vocational creative qualifications is even more illuminating and concerning. Between 2011 and 2015, completions of art, craft and design level 2 vocational qualifications decreased by 43%. Although we are discussing the EBacc, which is only a performance measure at secondary school, it is having clear ramifications for other stages of young people’s education. Figures from the Cultural Learning Alliance show that between 2010 and 2015, dance AS-levels have declined by 24% and dance A-levels have declined by 17%.

As chair of the all-party parliamentary group on art, craft and design in education, I have heard anecdotally that primary schools are less free to dedicate time to creative education due to unprecedented pressure on the three R’s—reading, writing and arithmetic, which we all agree are extremely important. As the hon. Member for Somerton and Frome (David Warburton) and my right hon. Friend the Member for Tottenham (Mr Lammy) said, it should not be a case of either/or. Both are vital.

Secondary school teachers now report a fall in artistic skills and confidence when pupils arrive in year 7. Sadly, the ramifications of the curriculum changes are that secondary schools are putting less time and fewer resources into creative education in an understandable bid to climb the league tables. It is having a knock-on effect on other parts of the education pipeline. It means that pupils are being denied the opportunity to develop creative cognitive skills that are useful in other subjects, such as maths or science, and may become less confident and able to choose or pursue artistic GCSEs and A-levels.

A broad and rounded education is paramount to skilling our young people to enter the world of work in the 21st century. An art education can be vital to doing so, but if the Government insist on keeping the EBacc as a performance measure, in order not to weaken arts provision in our schools even further, the only way to maintain quality creative education is to include the creative arts in the EBacc. Excluding the arts subjects from the EBacc—

Mr Gibb

Which particular creative arts subject does the hon. Lady want to make compulsory to 16?

Mrs Hodgson

It could be left to the young person to choose, as with most subjects. We do not tell young people which language they must study, or which humanity. Let the young person choose; just put a list of creative arts there.

By excluding arts subjects from the EBacc, the Government have told our students that those subjects are not important and are a waste of their time and talent. The situation is simply not good enough. We need to be serious about providing a creative education that ensures that young people from ordinary backgrounds, as others have said, have opportunities to develop their skills so that they can become the next world-famous artist filling art galleries around the world, the next global superstar or actor packing out arenas or theatres or—I must declare an interest again—the next big games artist creating the next global game. The UK has world-leading companies in the games industry.

We should not limit young people’s life chances in this way. We need a forward-looking curriculum that provides a truly rounded education, remembering that subjects do not stand alone. Withdrawing opportunities from young people’s lives to express themselves creatively will not only ruin their chance to broaden their horizons and their understanding of what drives us as humans—our creativity—but affect the fledgling sectors that rely heavily on our nurture of the skills needed to make them soar.

Our human creativity is boundless, and studying creative subjects can harness it. That is why it is important that we ensure that whether or not the EBacc remains, the creative subjects have a place in our curriculum and do not face further and continual diminution by Government reforms. The arts are what we all do in our spare time, in one form or another. Why? They make our hearts soar. We are creative and artistic beings. Since the first caveman drew a buffalo on the first cave wall and danced around the fire singing, the arts have been how we express ourselves. They are intrinsic to being human. I ask the Minister: please do not make our education system a cultural desert for our children, as I fear the unintended consequences.

Tue 05 July

EBacc: Expressive Arts Debate Westminster Hall 04.07.16

Sharon speaking in the EBacc: Expressive Arts Westminster Hall debate 04.07.16 Image copyright Parliamentary Recording Unit 2016 Following the decision by the House of Common's Petitions Committee to debate two...

Read Sharon's latest Sunderland Echo column below or find the published column on the Sunderland Echo website.

Last Thursday, saw months of campaigning culminate in the result of the EU Referendum being declared for the UK to leave the EU.

This was one of the most important decisions our country has had to make in recent decades, and it was welcome to see so many people in our City take part and vote; many for the very first time.

The vote across the country was close, showing just how divided we are on the issue of the membership of the EU.

However, here in Sunderland, voters turned out in unprecedented numbers and came to the decision that we should leave the EU.

As politicians we must listen, learn and move forward accordingly. Though many voters are facing leavers remorse, we must accept that the vote has now been cast and our focus must be on negotiations.

I am not in favour of invoking Article 50 immediately - which will begin the official negotiations of our divorce from the EU - instead believing that economic stability must be ensured by having a blueprint of what our plans going into these negotiations will be. Our economy, especially here in the North-East, is already fragile and we cannot risk weakening it any further.

That is why it is time for leadership which sees us getting the best deal possible out of the EU exit negotiations, which will detrimentally hit our communities and businesses who relied upon support from the EU and access to the single market.

We also need leadership that addresses the reported increases in hate crime towards ethnic minorities and migrants over the weekend and into this week. I appeal to the better judgements of the people of Sunderland to not allow such a divisive campaign and outcome to rip our communities apart.

In the coming months ahead, I will be keeping a close eye on the developments of the negotiations and will ensure that after listening clearly to the decision of our City that I will work to get the best outcome for us here in Sunderland and those people up and down the country who need it most.

Thu 30 June

ECHO COLUMN: We must work to get best deal out of the exit talks

Read Sharon's latest Sunderland Echo column below or find the published column on the Sunderland Echo website. Last Thursday, saw months of campaigning culminate in the result of the EU...

As Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for School Food, Sharon has published a cross-party supported position paper on packed lunches in schools which comes ahead of the publication of the Government’s Childhood Obesity Strategy.

The position paper sets out the need for the Government to consider the introduction of a holistic, non-mandatory packed lunch standards framework as part of the ‘whole school approach’ to food in schools and to help address childhood obesity by consulting with children, parents, teachers, unions and the catering sector.

The APPG also recommends that providing parents and schools with new resources, or raising awareness of existing resources, on a healthy and affordable packed lunch – such as example menus and recipes – would be beneficial to the ‘whole school approach’ to food in schools and will go some way to help address family tensions and conflicts.

The APPG has identified that though hot and healthy school meals should be the way forward, there are still many children who go to school with a packed lunch. Analysis of data by the APPG shows that packed lunches are eaten by nearly 56.5% of pupils in Key Stage 2; however, as identified in the School Food Plan from 2013, only 1% of packed lunches meet nutritional standards.

The APPG believes that non-mandatory guidelines should be in place that ensure children are eating healthy food which allows parents and teachers to buy into this ethos to address this disparity. The APPG’s position paper also supports the House of Common’s Health Select Committee’s Childhood Obesity; Brave and Bold Action report which called for standards for packed lunches.

The introduction of a standards framework has been welcomed by head teachers, with 90% of head teachers surveyed in a study by Taylor Shaw in 2015 showing that head teachers welcomed support to encourage parents to send their children to school with a healthy packed lunch.

A case study from Leeds showed evidence of family tension due to unclear guidance on what kinds of food should and should not be included in a packed lunch with one child on free school meals quoted as saying: “It’s unfair they [children on packed lunches] can eat chocolate in their packed lunches [and] I have to have my free school meal.”

The support for packed lunch standards comes as part of the wider debate around the burgeoning crisis of childhood obesity and the Government’s pending Childhood Obesity Strategy which seeks to address the issue of 1 in 5 children in reception class being classed as overweight which then rises to 1 in 3 by the time they reach Year 6.

Following the publication of the position paper, Sharon said:

"Though we have made great strides forward in recent years to improve the quality of healthy food on offer in our schools, there is still a disparity between those children on healthy school meals and those who bring in a packed lunch.

"As a parent myself, I know all too well the on-going battle most mornings between a parent and a child to negotiate what food goes into a packed lunch and what constitutes healthy food. That is why the Government should help parents and teachers who want to support the ‘whole school approach’ on healthier eating by offering a clear standards framework for them to buy into so that children are eating healthy food, regardless of whether on school meals or packed lunches. This will not only benefit a child's education, but also their behaviour, wellbeing and health.

“There is no better moment than now, with the upcoming Childhood Obesity Strategy’s publication in the coming weeks ahead, to ensure that packed lunches are considered by the Government as part of the wider, holistic package developed to help reverse the worrying trends of childhood obesity in this country.”

You can view the APPG's position paper here.

Sat 25 June

Sharon publishes APPG School Food Packed Lunch Position Paper

As Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for School Food, Sharon has published a cross-party supported position paper on packed lunches in schools which comes ahead of the publication of...

Following unsavoury comments made on social media by Baker Small law firm in regards to tribunal cases between local authorities and parents of children with SEND and in her capacity as Shadow Minister for Children and Families, Sharon has written to the Minister for Children and Families, Edward Timpson MP, to highlight her concerns and called for further investigation into this matter and for the Government to recommit to end the adversarial nature of the SEND support system.

Sharon has also written to Edina Rowland, the Chair of the Solicitors Regulation Authority, and all chief executives of local authorities with children's services regarding her concerns and those raised with her by parents of children with SEND.

An extract of Sharon’s letter to Edward Timpson reads:

“For a law firm, which has been contracted with public money to help mitigate disputes on behalf of a local authority, to gloat on social media about their victories is not helpful in ensuring a less adversarial atmosphere regarding SEND support for children; something that we both called for and welcomed during the passing of the Children and Families Act back in 2014 when the reforms to the system were legislated on.”

Sharon then went on to say in her letter:

“These actions clearly show a complete disregard and lack of respect for professional standards in the legal profession, which must be upheld to the highest standard to ensure that our legal profession is never brought into disrepute.”

Sharon asked the Minister for Children and Families to investigate this matter further along with his colleague, the Solicitor General, and ensure that children are put at the centre of the system and to recommit to ending the adversarial nature seen in the SEND support system.

In her letter to the Chair of the Solicitors Regulation Authority, Sharon called on them to investigate this issue further and to take seriously any complaints received by parents who face adversarial actions by opposing counsel during tribunal hearings and to respect the culture change that Parliament called for during the passing of the Children and Families Act 2014.

Sharon also called on local authorities to evaluate their contracts with outside legal counsel to ensure they are not being vindictive towards families of children with SEND and to recommit to supporting children and young people with SEND.

This all comes as part of Sharon’s review into special educational needs and disabilities for children and young people. More information on the review can be found at this link.

UPDATE (12.08.16): You can read the Minister of State for Education's response to Sharon's letter here.

Wed 22 June

Sharon writes to Education Minister, Solicitors Regulation Association and Local Authorities about actions of law firm, Baker Small

Following unsavoury comments made on social media by Baker Small law firm in regards to tribunal cases between local authorities and parents of children with SEND and in her capacity...

A service and vigil will be held tomorrow (Wednesday 22^nd June) to celebrate the life of Jo Cox on her 42^nd birthday at 6.30pm in St Nicholas’ Cathedral in Newcastle.

The theme of the celebrations, ‘More In Common’, was the theme of Jo’s maiden speech on entering the House of Commons in May 2015, when she said: “‘We are far more united and have far more in common than that which divides us".

Speakers will be confirmed nearer the time; however, it is expected that the Dean of the Cathedral, Chris Dalliston, the Bishop of Newcastle, Christine Hardman, and local MPs and MEPs will speak during the service.

Sharon said:

“Jo was an inspirational woman who dedicated her life to helping those in the most need across the world and spent her short time in Parliament championing causes close to her heart and working to ensure that hatred did not divide us as a country.

“Jo was not only a credit to us in the Labour Party, but to all of us involved in British politics and the wider country and she will be sorely missed by us all; but especially by the young family she has been so brutally taken away from.

“That is why I am heartened to see global celebrations and remembrance of her life will take place on her 42^nd birthday and I would like to thank St Nicholas’ Cathedral for providing the space for a service to be held in the North-East so that as a region we can come together to remember Jo, her life and all recommit to standing up against hatred in our society.”

Tue 21 June

#MoreInCommon celebration of Jo Cox’s life at St Nicholas Cathedral, Newcastle - 22.06.16

A service and vigil will be held tomorrow (Wednesday 22nd June) to celebrate the life of Jo Cox on her 42nd birthday at 6.30pm in St Nicholas’ Cathedral in Newcastle....

(From CMA website) "The CMA is reviewing the compliance of 4 secondary ticket platforms with their undertakings and other legal obligations."

Tue 14 June

Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announce review of four secondary ticket platforms

(From CMA website) "The CMA is reviewing the compliance of 4 secondary ticket platforms with their undertakings and other legal obligations." Read more

Sharon was honoured to be invited to attend a Queen's 90th Birthday Celebration Party at St Cuthbert's Church, Rotherham Road, Red House, Sunderland. 11/06/2016

Sharon pictured here with some of the winners.

Sat 11 June

Sharon attends Queen's 90th Birthday Celebration Party in Red House in Sunderland

Sharon was honoured to be invited to attend a Queen's 90th Birthday Celebration Party at St Cuthbert's Church, Rotherham Road, Red House, Sunderland. 11/06/2016 Sharon pictured here with some of... Read more

Sharon attended a Parliamentary reception hosted by Paula Sherriff MP, Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Women’s Health, to show her support for efforts to raise awareness of women’s health conditions, and empower women to seek appropriate treatment.

The group aims to empower women to ensure that they can make an informed choice about the best treatment for them and that they are treated with dignity and respect.

The event was attended by many parliamentarians, and was supported by a number of representatives from charities and the medical and nursing Royal Colleges, patients, health professionals and the general public.

Speakers included Katie Piper, television presenter and founder of the Katie Piper Foundation, feminist campaigner Caroline Criado-Perez, Angela Rippon, television journalist, newsreader and presenter and patients and Dr Gina Radford, Deputy Chief Medical Officer at the Department of Health.

Following the launch event, Sharon said:

“Since I was elected to Parliament, I have taken the issue of women’s health very seriously and worked alongside my fellow Parliamentarians to ensure women receive the best treatment and healthcare support possible.

“A lot of this has been done through my work as Chair of the Ovarian Cancer APPG and Co-Chair of the Breast Cancer APPG, and that is why I am delighted that there is now a cross-party group which will be focused on all aspects of women’s health in our society.

“It is important that we understand the conditions that women suffer from and ensure that they are treated in a way that every patient wants to be – with dignity and respect.”

Fri 10 June

Sharon supports launch of APPG on Women’s Health in Parliament

As Labour's Shadow Minister for Children, Sharon visited Eldon Junior School in Edmonton to see first-hand the work done to support children with their social and emotional well-being as part of the Nurture Group scheme.

Nurture Groups are classes of between 6 and 12 children or young people across all key stages and uses evidence-based practices to offer short-term inclusive focused interventions that allow children to remain active parts of their main class groups but also receive support regarding their social and emotional needs that help to remove barriers to learning.

Following the visit, Sharon said:

“It was lovely to visit Eldon Junior School and see first-hand the important work being done through the Nurture Group which is helping children improve their social and emotional well-being.

“The group were incredibly friendly and welcoming, and I enjoyed having the chance to look through their sketchbooks and hear more about the work they do as part of Nurture Group.”

To find out more about Nurture Groups, or the Nurture Group Network who provide support to these Groups, visit their website here.

Fri 10 June

Sharon visits Eldon Junior School's Nurture Group

As Labour's Shadow Minister for Children, Sharon visited Eldon Junior School in Edmonton to see first-hand the work done to support children with their social and emotional well-being as part...