Education Select Committee

British Parliamentary select committee

The Education Select Committee is a select committee of the House of Commons in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The remit of the committee is to examine the expenditure, administration and policy of the Department for Education and any associated public bodies.

The chair of the committee is Robin Walker MP.^[1] Previous chairs include Robert Halfon MP (2017-2022), Neil Carmichael (2015–17) and Graham Stuart MP (2010–2015).

Membership

As of 22 January 2024, the membership of the committee is as follows:^[2]^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6]

	Party	Constituency
Robin Walker MP (Chair)	Conservative	Worcester
Caroline Ansell MP	Conservative	Eastbourne
Apsana Begum MP	Labour	Poplar and Limehouse
Vicky Ford MP	Conservative	Chelmsford
Flick Drummond MP	Conservative	Meon Valley
Anna Firth MP	Conservative	Southend West
Nick Fletcher MP	Conservative	Don Valley
Kim Johnson MP	Labour	Liverpool Riverside
Andrew Lewer MP	Conservative	Northampton South
Ian Mearns MP	Labour	Gateshead
Mohammad Yasin MP	Labour	Bedford

Changes since 2019

Occasionally, the House of Commons orders changes to be made in terms of membership of select committees, as proposed by the Committee of Selection. Such changes are shown below.

Date	Outgoing Member & Party		Constituency	→	New Member & Party		Constituency	Source
11 May 2020		Fleur Anderson MP (Labour)	Putney	→		Dawn Butler MP (Labour)	Brent Central	Hansard
11 May 2020		Lucy Powell MP (Labour and Co-op)	Manchester Central	→		Kim Johnson MP (Labour)	Liverpool Riverside	Hansard
21 September 2020		Dawn Butler MP (Labour)	Brent Central	→		Fleur Anderson MP (Labour)	Putney	Hansard
13 July 2021		Fleur Anderson MP (Labour)	Putney	→		Mohammad Yasin MP (Labour)	[Bedford ]]
7 September 2021		Jonathan Gullis MP (Conservative)	Stoke-on-Trent North	→		Nicola Richards MP (Conservative)	West Bromwich East	Hansard
19 October 2021		David Johnston MP (Conservative)	Wantage	→		Miriam Cates MP (Conservative)	Penistone and Stocksbridge	Hansard
19 October 2021		David Simmonds MP (Conservative)	Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner	→		Brendan Clarke-Smith MP (Conservative)	Bassetlaw	Hansard
15 March 2022		Brendan Clarke-Smith MP (Conservative)	Bassetlaw	→		Caroline Ansell MP (Conservative)	Eastbourne	Hansard
15 March 2022		Christian Wakeford MP (Labour)	Bury South	→		Anna Firth MP (Conservative)	Southend West	Hansard
29 March 2022		Nicola Richards MP (Conservative)	West Bromwich East	→		Angela Richardson MP (Conservative)	Guildford	Hansard
25 October 2022		Dr Caroline Johnson MP (Conservative)	Sleaford and North Hykeham	→		Andrew Lewer MP (Conservative)	Northampton South	Hansard
27 October 2022		Robert Halfon MP (Chair, Conservative)	Harlow	→	Vacant			Hansard
8 November 2022		Tom Hunt MP (Conservative)	Ipswich	→		Flick Drummond MP (Conservative)	Meon Valley	Hansard
16 November 2022	Vacant			→		Robin Walker MP (Chair, Conservative)	Worcester	Hansard
29 November 2022		Angela Richardson MP (Conservative)	Guildford	→		Nick Fletcher MP (Conservative)	Don Valley	Hansard
13 March 2023		Kate Osborne MP (Labour)	Jarrow	→		Mohammad Yasin MP (Labour)	Bedford	Hansard

2017-2019 Parliament

The chair was elected on 12 July 2017, with the members of the committee being announced on 11 September 2017.^[7]^[8]

	Party	Constituency
Robert Halfon MP (Chair)	Conservative	Harlow
Lucy Allan MP	Conservative	Telford
Michelle Donelan MP	Conservative	Chippenham
Marion Fellows MP	Scottish National Party	Motherwell and Wishaw
James Frith MP	Labour	Bury North
Emma Hardy MP	Labour	Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle
Trudy Harrison MP	Conservative	Copeland
Ian Mearns MP	Labour	Gateshead
Lucy Powell MP	Labour	Manchester Central
Thelma Walker MP	Labour	Colne Valley
William Wragg MP	Conservative	Hazel Grove

Changes 2017-2019

Date	Outgoing Member & Party		Constituency	→	New Member & Party		Constituency	Source
22 October 2018		Michelle Donelan MP (Conservative)	Chippenham	→		Ben Bradley MP (Conservative)	Mansfield	Hansard

2015-2017 Parliament

The chair was elected on 18 June 2015, with members being announced on 6 July 2015.^[9]^[10]

	Party	Constituency
Neil Carmichael MP (Chair)	Conservative	Stroud
Lucy Allan MP	Conservative	Telford
Ian Austin MP	Labour	Dudley North
Michelle Donelan MP	Conservative	Chippenham
Marion Fellows MP	Scottish National Party	Motherwell and Wishaw
Suella Fernandes MP	Conservative	Fareham
Lucy Frazer MP	Conservative	South East Cambridgeshire
Kate Hollern MP	Labour	Blackburn
Ian Mearns MP	Labour	Gateshead
Caroline Nokes MP	Conservative	Romsey and Southampton North
Kate Osamor MP	Labour	Edmonton

Changes 2015-2017

Date		Constituency	→		Constituency	Source
1 February 2016	Kate Hollern MP (Labour)	Blackburn	→	Catherine McKinnell MP (Labour)	Newcastle upon Tyne North	Hansard
1 February 2016	Kate Osamor MP (Labour)	Edmonton	→	Stephen Timms MP (Labour)	East Ham	Hansard
22 February 2016	Caroline Nokes MP (Conservative)	Romsey and Southampton North	→	William Wragg MP (Conservative)	Hazel Grove	Hansard
31 October 2016	Stephen Timms MP (Labour)	East Ham	→	Lilian Greenwood MP (Labour)	Nottingham South	Hansard

2010-2015 Parliament

The chair was elected on 10 June 2010, with members being announced on 12 July 2010.^[11]^[12]

	Party	Constituency
Graham Stuart MP (Chair)	Conservative	Beverley and Holderness
Conor Burns MP	Conservative	Bournemouth West
Nic Dakin MP	Labour	Scunthorpe
Pat Glass MP	Labour	North West Durham
Damian Hinds MP	Conservative	East Hampshire
Liz Kendall MP	Labour	Leicester West
Charlotte Leslie MP	Conservative	Bristol North West
Ian Mearns MP	Labour	Gateshead
Tessa Munt MP	Liberal Democrats	Wells
Lisa Nandy MP	Labour	Wigan
Craig Whittaker MP	Conservative	Calder Valley

Changes 2010-2015

Date		Constituency	→		Constituency	Source
2 November 2010	Conor Burns MP (Conservative)	Bournemouth West	→	Neil Carmichael MP (Conservative)	Stroud	Hansard
2 November 2010	Liz Kendall MP (Labour)	Leicester West	→	Bill Esterson MP (Labour)	Sefton Central	Hansard
31 October 2016	Nic Dakin MP (Labour)	Scunthorpe	→	Alex Cunningham MP (Labour)	Stockton North	Hansard
11 June 2012	Tessa Munt MP (Liberal Democrats)	Wells	→	David Ward MP (Liberal Democrats)	Bradford East	Hansard
10 September 2012	Lisa Nandy MP (Labour)	Wigan	→	Siobhain McDonagh MP (Labour)	Mitcham and Morden	Hansard
5 November 2012	Damian Hinds MP (Conservative)	East Hampshire	→	Chris Skidmore MP (Conservative)	Kingswood	Hansard
4 November 2013	Charlotte Leslie MP (Conservative)	Bristol North West	→	Dominic Raab MP (Conservative)	Esher and Walton	Hansard
18 March 2014	Chris Skidmore MP (Conservative)	Kingswood	→	Caroline Nokes MP (Conservative)	Romsey and Southampton North	Hansard

Publications

2017 - 2019 Parliament

Date	Title	Government response
8 October 2018	Sixth Report of the Session 2017–19: The apprenticeships ladder of opportunity: quality not quantity	Awaited
25 July 2018	Fifth Report of Session 2017–19: Forgotten children: alternative provision and the scandal of ever increasing exclusions	Awaited
13 July 2018	Fourth Report of Session 2017–19: Appointment of the Chair of the Social Mobility Commission	N/A
9 May 2018	Third Report of Session 2017–19: The Government’s Green Paper on mental health: failing a generation	Government Response to the Committee’s Third Report of Session 2017–19
22 March 2018	Second Report of Session 2017–19: The future of the Social Mobility Commission	Government Response to the Committee’s Second Report of Session 2017–19
22 December 2017	First Report of Session 2017–19: Fostering	Government Response to the Committee’s First Report of Session 2017–19

2015-17 Parliament

Date	Title	Government response
2 May 2017	Eleventh Report of Session 2016–17: Primary assessment	Government Response to the Committee’s Eleventh Report of Session 2016–17
1 May 2017	Tenth Report of Session 2016–17: Children and young people's mental health—the role of education	Government Response to the Committee’s Tenth Report of Session 2016–17
25 April 2017	Ninth Report of Session 2016–17: Exiting the EU: challenges and opportunities for higher education	Government Response to the Committee’s Ninth Report of Session 2016–17
31 March 2017	Eighth Report of Session 2016–17: Apprenticeships	Government Response to the Committee’s Eighth Report of Session 2016–17
28 February 2017	Seventh Report of Session 2016–17: Multi-academy trusts	Government Response to the Committee’s Seventh Report of Session 2016–17
24 February 2017	Sixth Report of Session 2016–17: Appointment of the Chair of the Office for Students	N/A
21 February 2017	Fifth Report of Session 2016–17: Recruitment and retention of teachers	Government Response to the Committee’s Fifth Report of Session 2016–17
13 February 2017	Fourth Report of Session 2016–17: Evidence check: Grammar schools	Government Response to the Committee’s Fourth Report of Session 2016–17
13 July 2016	Third Report of Session 2016–17: Social work reform	Government Response to the Committee’s Third Report of Session 2016–17
7 July 2016	Second Report of Session 2016–17: Appointment of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills	Government Response to the Committee’s Second Report of Session 2016–17
5 July 2016	First Report of Session 2016–17: Careers education, information, advice and guidance	Government Response to the Committee’s First Report of Session 2016–17
28 April 2016	Fourth Report of Session 2015–16: Mental health and well-being of looked-after children	Government Response to the Committee’s Fourth Report of Session 2015–16
20 March 2016	Third Report of Session 2015–16: Appointment of the Chief Regulator of Ofqual	N/A
24 January 2016	Second Report of Session 2015–16: Holocaust education	Government Response to the Committee’s Second Report of Session 2015–16
20 January 2016	First Report of Session 2015–16: The role of Regional Schools Commissioners	Government Response to the Committee’s First Report of Session 2015–16

Chair of the Education Select Committee

Chair		Party	Constituency	First elected	Method
	Rt Hon Robert Halfon MP	Conservative	Harlow	12 July 2017	Elected by the House of Commons
	Neil Carmichael MP	Conservative	Stroud	18 June 2015	Elected by the House of Commons
	Graham Stuart MP	Conservative	Beverley and Holderness	9 June 2010	Elected by the House of Commons
Previously as Children, Schools and Families Select Committee
	Barry Sheerman MP	Labour Co-op	Huddersfield	12 November 2007	Elected by the Select Committee^[13]
Previously as Education and Skills Select Committee
	Barry Sheerman MP	Labour Co-op	Huddersfield	16 July 2001	Elected by the Select Committee^[13]

Election results

From June 2010 chairs of select committees have been directly elected by a secret ballot of the whole House of Commons using the alternative vote system. Candidates with the fewest votes are eliminated and their votes redistributed until one remaining candidate has more than half of valid votes.^[14] Elections are held at the beginning of a parliament or in the event of a vacancy.^[15]

16 November 2022^[16]
Candidate		1st round		2nd round
Candidate		Votes	%	Votes	%
	Robin Walker	217	48.1	228	53.3
	Caroline Ansell	108	23.9	124	28.4
	David Simmonds	70	15.5	84	19.3
	Jonathan Gullis	56	12.4	Eliminated
Not redistributed				15	3.3
Valid votes		451		436

27 January 2020^[17]
Candidate		1st round
Candidate		Votes	%
	Robert Halfon	Unopposed

12 July 2017^[18]
Candidate		1st round		2nd round		3rd round		4th round		5th round
Candidate		Votes	%	Votes	%	Votes	%	Votes	%	Votes	%
	Robert Halfon	136	23.8	141	25.1	152	27.7	185	35.7	261	55.1
	Nick Boles	129	22.6	137	24.4	153	27.9	178	34.4	213	44.9
	Dan Poulter	109	19.1	112	20.0	127	23.2	155	29.9	Eliminated
	Tim Loughton	101	17.7	104	18.5	116	21.2	Eliminated
	Stephen Metcalfe	63	11.0	67	11.9	Eliminated
	Rehman Chishti	33	5.8	Eliminated
Not redistributed				10	1.8	23	4.0	53	9.3	97	17.0
Valid votes		571		561		548		518		474

17 June 2015^[19]
Candidate		1st round		2nd round
Candidate		Votes	%	Votes	%
	Neil Carmichael	224	37.5	294	53.8
	Tim Loughton	191	32.0	252	46.2
	Caroline Nokes	182	30.5	Eliminated
Not redistributed				51	8.5
Valid votes		597		546

9 June 2010^[20]
Candidate		1st round		2nd round		3rd round
Candidate		Votes	%	Votes	%	Votes	%
	Graham Stuart	192	36.6	210	42.2	244	52.5
	Rob Wilson	159	30.3	183	36.7	221	47.5
	Lee Scott	92	17.5	105	21.1	Eliminated
	Andrew Turner	82	15.6	Eliminated
Not redistributed				27	5.1	60	11.4
Valid votes		525		498		465

References

^ "Robin Walker elected as education committee chair". schoolsweek.co.uk. 16 November 2022. Retrieved 16 November 2022.
^ "Education Committee - Membership - Committees - UK Parliament". UK Parliament. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
^ "Committees Volume 723: debated on Tuesday 29 November 2022". committees.parliament.uk. UK Hansard. 29 November 2022. Retrieved 30 November 2022. That Angela Richardson be discharged from the Education Committee and Nick Fletcher be added.
^ "Committees Volume 722: debated on Tuesday 8 November 2022". hansard.parliament.uk. UK Hansard. 8 November 2022. Retrieved 2 December 2022. That Tom Hunt be discharged from the Education Committee and Mrs Flick Drummond be added.
^ "Business without Debate Volume 729: debated on Monday 13 March 2023". hansard.parliament.uk. UK Hansard. 13 March 2023. Retrieved 19 March 2023. That Kate Osborne be discharged from the Education Committee and Mohammad Yasin be added.—(Sir Bill Wiggin, on behalf of the Committee of Selection.)
^ "Business without Debate Volume 744: debated on Monday 22 January 2024". hansard.parliament.uk. UK Hansard. 22 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024. That Miriam Cates be discharged from the Education Committee and Vicky Ford be added.
^ "Speaker's Statement: Select Committee Chairs". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 627. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. 12 July 2017.
^ "Business without Debate". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 628. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. 11 September 2017.
^ "Speaker's Statement". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 597. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. 18 June 2015.
^ "Committees". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 598. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. 6 July 2015.
^ "Speaker's Statement". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 511. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. 10 June 2010.
^ "Committees". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 513. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. 12 July 2010.
^ ^a ^b "Barry Sheerman MP, Huddersfield - TheyWorkForYou". TheyWorkForYou. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
^ "Standing Orders of the House of Commons (Public Business) 2021 - UK Parliament". UK Parliament. 2 December 2021. Standing Order No. 122B sub-paragraph (11)(d). Retrieved 20 June 2023.
^ "Standing Orders of the House of Commons (Public Business) 2021 - UK Parliament". UK Parliament. 2 December 2021. Standing Order No. 122C. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
^ "Education Committee Chair Election - Result Sheet" (PDF). Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 670. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. 27 January 2020.
^ "Speaker's Statement: Select Committee Chairs". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 670. Parliament of the United Kingdom: House of Commons. 27 January 2020.
^ "ELECTION FOR CHAIRS OF SELECT COMMITTEES: RESULT" (PDF). UK Parliament. 2017. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
^ "ELECTION FOR CHAIRS OF SELECT COMMITTEES: RESULTS" (PDF). UK Parliament. 2015. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
^ "Committee-Chair-Results" (PDF). UK Parliament. 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 January 2020. Retrieved 16 July 2017.

External links

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v t e Chairs of the Education Select Committee
Chairs of the Education and Employment Select Committee 1995-2001	Hodge 1995-1998 Wicks 1998-2001
Chairs of the Education and Skills Select Committee 2001-2007	Sheerman 2001-2007
Chairs of the Children, Schools and Families Committee 2007-2010	Sheerman 2007-2010
Chairs of the Education Select Committee 2010-present	Stuart 2010-2015 Carmichael 2015-2017 Halfon 2017-present