Asked by: John Cooper (Conservative - Dumfries and Galloway)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the findings of the British Council Scotland and Universities Scotland report, entitled Scotland’s Higher Education: Partnering for Global Impact, on the contribution of universities to economic growth and innovation; and what steps her Department is taking to support that contribution across the UK.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The UK Government recognises the important contribution that universities across the UK make to our economic growth, innovation and international standing. Our recently published International Education Strategy supports strong and sustainable long-term international partnerships for UK universities by promoting the whole of the UK’s education offer overseas, including research collaboration and driving growth through high quality UK transitional education.
The department will continue to work with the UK’s education sector, devolved governments and key partners such as the British Council to support the contribution of British universities, including in Scotland, to growth, innovation and international partnerships. Steps to strengthen this collaboration include the ministerially-chaired Education Sector Action Group, which brings together stakeholders to identify opportunities and remove barriers to growth, and the recent publication of the sector-led brochure ‘Advancing Talent with UK Education – Building Global Partnerships’.
Asked by: Mel Stride (Conservative - Central Devon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to her Department's press release entitled Interest rate cap introduced to protect Plan 2 borrowers, published on 7 April 2026, what estimate her Department has made of the cost to the public purse of capping interest on Plan 2 and 3 student loans at 6%.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is capping maximum interest rates on Plan 2 and Plan 3 (postgraduate) student loans at 6%, instead of the Retail Prices Index (RPI) plus 3%, for the 2026/27 academic year.
This short-term protective measure will apply from the 1 September 2026 to the 31 August 2027 and removes the risk of a temporary increase in inflation causing loan balances to compound at an unsustainable rate.
Student loan interest rates are ordinarily set for each academic year by reference to the RPI value for the year to the preceding March. On that basis, interest rates for the 2026/27 academic year would normally be determined using the RPI figure for March 2026, due to be published on 22 April 2026.
The impact of the interest rate cap on the public purse will depend on the March RPI value.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of increasing the level of the Service Pupil Premium to match the Pupil Premium.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Service families make extraordinary sacrifices for our country. The department continues to support Service children in a range of ways, principally through the Service Pupil Premium, targeted funding that state schools in England are allocated so that they can provide pastoral and academic support, tailored to the specific needs of Service pupils to mitigate disruptions from frequent school moves and parental deployments.
The government keeps the Service Pupil Premium under regular review to ensure it is meeting the intended objectives and providing value for money. We will continue to monitor how funding streams support children’s outcomes and consider future funding decisions as part of the normal budget and spending review processes.
It should also be noted that schools which experience major changes in their pupil cohort from year to year, including those serving Armed Forces communities, attract additional funding through the “mobility factor” in the schools national funding formula. In the 2026/27 financial year, schools will attract £985 for eligible primary pupils and £1,415 for eligible secondary pupils, above a threshold of 6% of the schools’ pupil numbers, where more than 6% of the school’s pupil numbers are classified as mobile.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether children in rural schools have equitable access to advanced STEM programs.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
The department is committed to ensuring that all pupils, including those in rural schools, have access to high‑quality science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) education. All our STEM programmes can be accessed across England, regardless of location.
The department funds a range of programmes for teachers to support STEM education, including the Subject Knowledge for Physics Teaching programme, the National Centre for Computing Education, and the Advanced Maths Support Programme (AMSP).
For pupils, the AMSP offers the Maths into Data Science and artificial intelligence programme, an online, assessed course for post-16 learners.
The government continues to fund the STEM Ambassadors programme, a nationwide network of more than 28,000 volunteers registered from over 7,500 employers, reaching over 3 million young people every year. These volunteers engage with young people to spark interest in STEM subjects and showcase the wide variety of STEM careers by sharing their personal experiences.
Asked by: John Cooper (Conservative - Dumfries and Galloway)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the priorities set out in the British Council Scotland and Universities Scotland report entitled Scotland’s Higher Education: Partnering for Global Impact have informed the Government’s approach to the International Education Strategy; and what steps she is taking to strengthen international partnerships with UK universities.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The UK Government recognises the important contribution that universities across the UK make to our economic growth, innovation and international standing. Our recently published International Education Strategy supports strong and sustainable long-term international partnerships for UK universities by promoting the whole of the UK’s education offer overseas, including research collaboration and driving growth through high quality UK transitional education.
The department will continue to work with the UK’s education sector, devolved governments and key partners such as the British Council to support the contribution of British universities, including in Scotland, to growth, innovation and international partnerships. Steps to strengthen this collaboration include the ministerially-chaired Education Sector Action Group, which brings together stakeholders to identify opportunities and remove barriers to growth, and the recent publication of the sector-led brochure ‘Advancing Talent with UK Education – Building Global Partnerships’.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled Interest rate cap introduced to protect Plan 2 borrowers, published on 7 April 2026, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the cap on the Government’s projected receipts from student loan repayments.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is capping the maximum interest rates on Plan 2 and Plan 3 student loans at 6%, instead of the Retail Prices Index (RPI) plus 3%, for the 2026/27 academic year. This short term measure will protect students and graduates from the potential of inflationary pressures due to the situation in the Middle East.
Student loan interest rates are ordinarily set for each academic year by reference to the RPI value for the year to the preceding March. On that basis, interest rates for the 2026/27 academic year would normally be determined using the RPI figure for March 2026, which is due to be published on 22 April 2026.
The impact of the interest rate cap on long term repayments for graduates, and on forecast cost impacts for the public purse, will depend on the March RPI value. Costs will be set out at Budget in the usual way.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled Interest rate cap introduced to protect Plan 2 borrowers, published on 7 April 2026, what analysis her Department has undertaken of the effect of the cap on long-term student loan repayment burdens for graduates.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is capping the maximum interest rates on Plan 2 and Plan 3 student loans at 6%, instead of the Retail Prices Index (RPI) plus 3%, for the 2026/27 academic year. This short term measure will protect students and graduates from the potential of inflationary pressures due to the situation in the Middle East.
Student loan interest rates are ordinarily set for each academic year by reference to the RPI value for the year to the preceding March. On that basis, interest rates for the 2026/27 academic year would normally be determined using the RPI figure for March 2026, which is due to be published on 22 April 2026.
The impact of the interest rate cap on long term repayments for graduates, and on forecast cost impacts for the public purse, will depend on the March RPI value. Costs will be set out at Budget in the usual way.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the potential impact of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder on SEND provision.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The government is prioritising early, local support for families by strengthening family services and access to high quality early education for children with additional needs. Officials from the Department of Health and Social Care and the Department for Education are working together through the 10 Year Health Plan, Best Start Family Hubs, Healthy Babies and neighbourhood health. New clinical guidelines on alcohol treatment released in November includes guidance on supporting mothers to reduce alcohol use to improve maternal outcomes.
Asked by: Ellie Chowns (Green Party - North Herefordshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help parents whose children cannot attend mainstream school where there are no local alternative providers.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
We want more children with special educational needs and disabilities to achieve and thrive in their local mainstream school which is why we are investing in making mainstream schools more accessible.
We also recognise the need for more specialist places which is why we’re supporting councils with £3.7 billion in high needs capital between 2025 and 2030. This will fund a transformative expansion of inclusion bases, accessibility adaptations, and special school places for those that need them.
Asked by: Roz Savage (Liberal Democrat - South Cotswolds)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that proposed reforms to the SEND system help support local authorities to comply with their statutory duties.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The Schools White Paper sets clear expectations for local authorities in regard to special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision and we are backing that with significant investment to support transformation of the system.
We have written to local authorities and Integrated Care Boards requesting SEND reform plans on improving outcomes for children.
We will hold them to account to deliver strong outcomes for children and young people with SEND and intervene decisively wherever needed.