Today’s Education in the Media blog looks at University UK’s (UUK) new #SupportStudyAbroad campaign and the Defra led launch of the ‘Year of Green Action’.
University UK’s #SupportStudyAbroadCampaign
Today, Wednesday 6 February, Universities UK launched a national #SupportStudyAbroad campaign asking the UK government to commit to continue funding study abroad opportunities for UK students, even if the UK cannot negotiate continued participation in Erasmus+ programme. This story was covered by BBC Online and in brief by the Independent.
The department updated the Erasmus+ Technical Notice last week, to provide further information and clarity to organisations and students that may be affected by a No Deal Brexit scenario.
A DfE spokesperson said:
Under the terms of the Withdrawal Agreement, Erasmus students will be protected until the end of 2020. However, it is the responsibility of Government to prepare for every eventuality, including no deal. In the event that the UK leaves the EU with no agreement in place, the Government’s guarantee on Erasmus will cover the payment of awards to UK applicants for all successful Erasmus+ bids submitted before the end of 2020. Successful bids are those approved directly by the European Commission or by the UK National Agency and ratified by the European Commission.
We are also considering carefully the draft regulation the European Commission published on contingency for Erasmus+ last week and are seeking to engage the Commission as soon as possible to seek clarification, and discuss further what they are proposing.
Wildlife Trust schools’ initiative launch and Defra’s ‘Year of Green Action’
Today, the Telegraph published a piece reporting on a new government-funded initiative to encourage school pupils to get closer to nature. The project, which is being led by the Wildlife Trust and is backed by £6.4 million of funding from the government will teach children to care for the environment and 'reap the rewards' of being outside.
This follows last week’s launch of the ‘Year of Green Action’, a year-long government drive aimed at getting young people across the country to join together to protect the environment.
The project will also allocate £10 million to help children from disadvantaged backgrounds better access the natural environment, with grants awarded to projects that will create greener school grounds and increase the number of school visits to local parks, wildlife sites, care farms and National Parks.
Children and Families Minister Nadhim Zahawi said:
We want every child to have the best possible start in life and grow up healthy and happy. This £10 million investment will ensure even more children can enjoy the many benefits of discovering nature, from improved mental wellbeing to better physical health.
It builds on our recently published ‘passport’ of enrichment activities, designed to inspire children to explore the outdoors and make the most of the world around them.
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