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States Greffe
Deputy Rob Ward
Minister for Education and Lifelong Learning
BY EMAIL
22nd October 2024 Dear Minister,
Scrutiny Review: Proposed Budget 2025 -2028
Thank you for your assistance to date with the Children, Education and Home Affairs Scrutiny Panel's review of the Proposed Budget 2025 - 2028. Following the hearings and previous correspondence, there are a number of further questions we should be grateful if you could assist with:
Highlands College
- The Panel notes that in Major Refurbishments and Upgrades' the Government proposes to spend £1.04 million on Highlands College in 2026, with further sums of £180,000 in 2027 and £205,000 in 2028. Please could you provide further details about what that funding would be used for?
- The Panel has visited Highlands College and is aware that there are leaks and water damage in the property. Please can you confirm what the replacement value would be for the machinery or computer equipment in the affected rooms if it was to be water damaged?
a. Would damage to equipment caused by property deficiencies be covered by insurance?
- Can you confirm whether any areas of Highlands College have been identified as high risk with regards to health and safety compliance, or fire safety?
- Please can you confirm why the major refurbishment work at Highlands College has been scheduled for 2026 and not earlier in this Budget period?
Support for Apprenticeships
- Please can you confirm how much total annual funding is currently provided by Government to support apprenticeships schemes and provide a breakdown of this spend, including specific details about the support and services where possible.
- You advised the Panel on 11th October 2024 that £500,000 of the additional £1.158 million additional revenue expenditure would go towards apprenticeships. Please could you provide specific details about how the additional £500,000 will be utilised in 2025?
- Please can you describe the support currently given to businesses to take on apprentices?
- Please can you confirm whether the Government plans to extend the support provided for apprenticeship schemes in future and, if so, describe how this will be achieved?
School meals
- Please can you provide a breakdown of the £1.169 million additional funding for School Meals in 2025 (and each year of this Budget thereafter) including: costs that are attributable to capital spend, staffing costs, and costs of food provision itself.
We would be grateful to receive this information via formal response(s) no later than Tuesday 29th October 2024. Please be advised that it is the Panel's intention to publish the response it receives on the States Assembly website.
Thank you in advance for your assistance with this Scrutiny Review. Please direct any queries that you may have to the Panel through our Committee and Panel Officer, Katherine de Carteret by email at k.decarteret@gov.je.
Yours sincerely,
Deputy Catherine Curtis
Chair
Children, Education and Home Affairs Scrutiny Panel