The new government has finally confirmed who is responsible for what at the Department for Education, nearly three weeks after Labour won the general election.
As reported, former home secretary Jacqui Smith leads on skills, further and higher education. Her confirmed title is minister for skills.
Smith was inducted to the House of Lords last week and is responsible for delivering Labour’s manifesto pledges to establish Skills England, reform the apprenticeship levy and introduce technical excellence colleges.
Catherine McKinnell is the minister of state for school standards, a brief the Newcastle MP shadowed in opposition before the election.
MPs Janet Daby and Stephen Morgan have been appointed parliamentary under-secretaries of state, the rank below minister of state.
Morgan was replaced by McKinnell as shadow schools minister last year, but is now responsible for early education in government.
Morgan is also responsible for safeguarding and counter-extremism in post-16 education settings.
Meanwhile, Daby, who was previously the shadow youth justice minister, is now the minister for children and families.
Daby will also answer on skills, further and higher education in the House of Commons, as Smith can only speak from the Lords.
In practice, the parliamentary under-secretaries carry out the basic functions of ministers of state such as leading legislation through parliament and answering parliamentary questions, but they are paid less.
As a cabinet minister, education secretary Bridget Phillipson receives a £67,505 top-up to her £91,346 MP salary. Ministers of state receive a £31,680 top-up, and parliamentary under-secretaries of state get an extra £22,375.
Skills led from the Lords
As the DfE’s minister in the Lords, Smith will be responsible for facing questions and seeing through any legislation across all of DfE’s remits in the upper chamber. She made her maiden speech on Friday introducing the education legislation from the King’s Speech.
Because equalities policy sits at cabinet level with Bridget Phillipson, Anneliese Dodds is listed as a DfE minister as minister for women and equalities. Dodds is also minister for international development at the Foreign Office.
Over at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), Alison McGovern has been confirmed as the minister for employment overseeing skills programmes, labour market policy and devolution.
Stephen Timms, who used to chair the DWP select committee, is now the minister for social security and disability with responsibility for universal credit and cross-government disability policy.
Here’s what’s in each DfE minister’s brief…
Bridget Phillipson, secretary of state for education
- early years and childcare
- children’s social care
- teacher quality, recruitment and retention
- the school curriculum
- school improvement
- academies and free schools
- further education
- apprenticeships and skills
- higher education
Baroness Smith of Malvern, minister for skills
- Skills England
- Technical qualifications, including T Levels
- Higher technical education
- Adult education and devolution
- Careers advice and support for young NEETS
- Apprenticeships, including the growth and skills levy
- Technical excellence colleges
- Local skills improvement plans
- Governance, intervention and accountability of FE colleges
- Education funding, provision and outcomes for 16-19 year olds
- FE funding, including financial stability and workforce
- Access to higher education, participation and lifelong learning
- Quality of higher education and student experience (including OfS)
- Student finance (including Student Loans Company)
- International education
Catherine McKinnell, minister for school standards
- School improvement, intervention and inspection
- Teacher training, retention, pay and pensions
- School leadership and governance
- Core school funding
- Qualifications, curriculum and assessment
- SEND and high needs
- Alternative provision
- Admissions
- Pupil premium
- School uniform and transport
- Faith schools
- Access to sport, music and arts in education
Janet Daby, minister for children and families
- Children’s social care
- Children in care and children in need
- Looked-after children
- Child protection
- Adoption, kinship care and foster care
- Care leavers
- Children’s social care workforce
- Unaccompanied asylum-seeking children
- Local authority improvement
- Family hubs
- Families support and parenting
- Skills in the House of Commons
Stephen Morgan, minister for early education
- Early years education including children with SEND
- Early years workforce
- Breakfast clubs
- School food, including free school meals
- Independent schools
- Education estate
- Environmental sustainability in education sectors
- Safeguarding, online safety and serious violence prevention in schools and post-16
- Counter extremism in schools and post-16
- Use of AI and data in education
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