The Welsh Government needs to get ‘a much firmer grip’ on how it monitors Education Improvement Grants (EIG), according to a National Assembly for Wales committee.
The Children, Young People and Education Committee decided to look at the issue after ministers amalgamated a series of grants which are designed to support specific groups.
In particular, it focused on the effect on Gypsy, Roma and Traveller learners, as these groups have the lowest attainment rates of any ethnic group in Wales and minority ethnic children. Two of the former ring-fenced grants were focuses on these two groups.
When the Committee decided to undertake its inquiry, the latest data available (2013-2015) showed that 15.5 per cent of Gypsy/Gypsy Roma pupils achieved five or more GCSEs at grades A*-C including English/Welsh and Mathematics. This compared to 56 per cent of all pupils and 27.8 per cent of pupils eligible for free school meals, which is the Welsh Government’s proxy for identifying disadvantaged children.
Newer figures released in January 2017 showed an improvement for 2014-2016 with almost a quarter achieving five or more GCSEs at grades A*-C, compared to the Wales average of 59 per cent.
The Committee found that the former, ring-fenced grants were tightly audited with high levels of accountability for how the money was spent and how it was benefitting these learners.
It became clear that the onus was now on local authorities and regional consortia to monitor and evaluate the EIG themselves, but the Committee received very little evidence they are doing this sufficiently at present.
Members heard that the Welsh Government has introduced a performance framework which the EIG should be used against, but these objectives are very high-level and make little specific reference to Gypsy, Roma and Traveller, and Minority Ethnic learners.
Regional consortia and local authorities indicated they expected more detail on EIG outcomes from the Welsh Government and did not seem to be on the same page as the Cabinet Secretary for Education.
The Committee is concerned at the lack of monitoring of how the EIG is used, specifically for these groups of learners, and the lack of evaluation of outcomes and impact the grant is having on their educational achievement.
Because of the concerning lack of effective monitoring, Members were left to conclude that there was no evidence to show whether the amalgamation of grants has been beneficial or not.
The Committee recommends the Welsh Government improves arrangements for monitoring and evaluation, keeps the overall issue of the funding model under review, and revisits this question before the end of this Assembly.
“The Committee conducted a short, focused inquiry to assess the impact the new Education Improvement Grant system was having on those it was designed to support, in particular, children from Gypsy, Roma and Traveller, and Minority Ethnic communities,” said Lynne Neagle AM, Chair of the Children, Young People and Education Committee.
“What we found was a lack of effective monitoring with the Welsh Government, regional education consortia and local authorities seemingly not working from the same page.
“This makes measuring the effectiveness of this new, streamlined grants system difficult to measure as we have no way of knowing if it is having a positive or negative impact on the children who need this extra support.
“The latest figures released on educational attainment paint a more encouraging picture, but we are unable to pinpoint whether or not this is down to the new funding arrangements.
“We are urging the Welsh Government to get a much firmer grip on the way the EIG is monitored and that education consortia and local authorities have a clear understanding of what is expected.
“We are therefore recommending the Welsh Government improves arrangements for monitoring and evaluation, and keeps the overall issue of the funding model under review, revisiting this issue before the end of this Assembly.”
The Committee makes 14 recommendations in its report, including:
- The Welsh Government should keep under review the best model for funding activity to support the educational outcomes of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller, and Minority Ethnic learners;
- The Welsh Government should review the arrangements it has put in place to monitor the use of the Education Improvement Grant and evaluate its impact, specifically in relation to these groups of learners.
- The Welsh Government should urgently review the effectiveness of the education performance framework it is expecting regional consortia and local authorities to use to evaluate outcomes from the Education Improvement Grant;
- The Welsh Government should remit Estyn to undertake a thematic review of educational provision for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller, and Minority Ethnic learners, providing an update on the position since its last thematic report in 2011; and
- The Welsh Government should do more to improve educational outcomes amongst Gypsy, Roma and Traveller learners and minority ethnic groups with lower than average attainment.