Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to conduct a review of collective worship in schools in England.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Collective worship remains an important part of school life, supporting pupils to reflect on the concept of belief and the role it plays in our country’s traditions and values.
Schools in England already have flexibility in how they meet this requirement and can deliver collective worship or assemblies in ways that reflect the diverse needs of their pupils and local communities. Students over 16 and parents of younger pupils also retain the right of withdrawal from collective worship.
Asked by: Dan Norris (Independent - North East Somerset and Hanham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of creating a national strategy for modern foreign language teaching in the context of levels of take-up of modern foreign language GCSEs.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The early years foundation stage (EYFS) statutory framework which early years providers are required to follow includes a requirement for babies to be placed down to sleep in line with the latest government safety guidance here: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/sudden-infant-death-syndrome-sids/
To make the existing requirements clearer for all the department plans to add in more detail to the EYFS frameworks. We have worked with safe sleep experts including the Lullaby Trust on proposed new wording. We plan to make these changes as soon as possible
The ‘Early years qualification requirements and standards’ document sets out the minimum qualification requirements, including the qualifications criteria at Levels 2 and 3, that staff must meet to be recognised as level 2, level 3 or level 6 members of staff for the purpose of working within the EYFS staff:child ratios. The document is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-years-qualification-requirements-and-standards.
Both the level 2 and level 3 criteria include knowledge of rest and sleep provision, with level 3 also including use of equipment, furniture and materials safely with regard for sleep safety.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of including humanism as part of the national curriculum on religious education.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department recognises that non-religious worldviews, including humanism, can play an important role in supporting pupils’ understanding of beliefs and values. Religious education (RE) is not part of the national curriculum but is a mandatory subject for all pupils aged 5 to 18 in state-funded schools in England. Schools should deliver RE in an objective, critical and pluralistic way and already have the flexibility, through their locally agreed syllabuses, to include the study of non-religious world views such as humanism.
The department welcomes the Curriculum and Assessment Review’s recommendation that Vanessa Ogden, a former review panellist specialising in RE, should lead a sector group, independent from government, to develop a draft RE curriculum. We expect that the sector group’s work on RE will reflect the role the subject plays in building understanding between people of different faiths, beliefs and communities, including those with non-religious world views. If the group reaches consensus on a draft curriculum, the government will consult on whether to add it to the national curriculum.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she made of the potential impact of Local Government Reorganisation upon the secondary school places in Huntingdonshire.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department is reviewing all local government reorganisation proposals to consider the potential impact on children’s services, including school places. Huntingdonshire is in tranche three of the local government reorganisation process and the statutory consultation on proposals is expected to launch in Spring 2026. I encourage all local areas to respond to the consultation.
There will then be a transition period during which the department will work with local areas to support children’s services in the new authorities, including plans to ensure there are sufficient school places.
Asked by: Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help tackle regional variations in disabled children’s social care in the context of the publication of the Law Commission’s report on 16 September 2025.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The Law Commission published its final report on 16 September 2025 following a department commissioned review in April 2023 of the legal framework for disabled children’s social care.
The report makes 40 recommendations, which we are now considering, with a focus on simplifying and strengthening the system to better support disabled children and their families. In line with the protocol agreed between the Lord Chancellor and the Law Commission, the department must provide an initial response within six months and a full response within one year, setting out which recommendations will be accepted, rejected or modified, and any implementation timeline.
As we prepare our formal response to the Law Commission, we believe the national rollout of Family Help, a seamless, non-stigmatising offer of support delivered by multi-disciplinary, community-based teams, is already beginning to address the intended outcomes of the report and reduce regional variations. This includes special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) trained professionals as leading practitioners. Through Family Help, we are taking steps to remove the stigma from asking for help, with more SEND professionals available in integrated front doors for families to access practical support without judgement unnecessarily burdensome assessments.
Asked by: Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to accept the recommendations of the Law Commission’s report on disabled children’s social care, published on 16 September 2025.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The Law Commission published its final report on 16 September 2025 following a department commissioned review in April 2023 of the legal framework for disabled children’s social care.
The report makes 40 recommendations, which we are now considering, with a focus on simplifying and strengthening the system to better support disabled children and their families. In line with the protocol agreed between the Lord Chancellor and the Law Commission, the department must provide an initial response within six months and a full response within one year, setting out which recommendations will be accepted, rejected or modified, and any implementation timeline.
As we prepare our formal response to the Law Commission, we believe the national rollout of Family Help, a seamless, non-stigmatising offer of support delivered by multi-disciplinary, community-based teams, is already beginning to address the intended outcomes of the report and reduce regional variations. This includes special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) trained professionals as leading practitioners. Through Family Help, we are taking steps to remove the stigma from asking for help, with more SEND professionals available in integrated front doors for families to access practical support without judgement unnecessarily burdensome assessments.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of support available in mainstream state schools for pupils with dyspraxia who do not meet the threshold for an Education, Health and Care Plan in Surrey.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Every child in our country deserves the best possible educational experience, one that is academically stretching, where every child and young person feels like they belong, and that sets them up for life and work.
The department knows from our extensive engagement with parents, teachers, local authority staff and leaders, charities and others that there are significant challenges in the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system. They need to be addressed urgently. But we must ensure we do so in a way that builds trust and confidence in the system and leads to improved outcomes for children and young people.
The department will set out our proposals for reform in a Schools white paper and we will consult widely on these proposals and continue to work with a wide range of partners to refine and deliver them.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of unmet special educational needs relating to dyspraxia on pupil wellbeing, attainment and school attendance.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Where a pupil is not attending school due to unmet or additional needs, including dyspraxia, the ‘Working together to improve school attendance’ guidance sets out clear expectations on how schools, local authorities and wider services work together to access and provide the right support to improve attendance.
We understand that early identification and intervention is critical in improving the outcomes of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities, therefore we are supporting settings by strengthening the evidence base of what works. The government will set out proposals for reforms to the special educational needs and disabilities system through a Schools white paper in due course.
Asked by: Euan Stainbank (Labour - Falkirk)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of compensatory funding to further education institutions for the increase in Employer National Insurance contributions on colleges.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
To recognise the increase to employers’ National Insurance contributions, we made approximately £155 million available in 2025/26 to support further education institutions and other mainstream settings that receive annual funding allocations from the department for the provision of post-16 education. This funding was made available via the Post-16 National Insurance contributions grant in September 2025. All decisions related to the 2026/27 financial year are being considered and information will be provided in due course.
Asked by: Anna Gelderd (Labour - South East Cornwall)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that communication in (a) adoption support and (b) reunification cases is (i) timely and (ii) compliant with statutory guidance.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Regional adoption agencies should clearly set out on their websites what adoption support is available, who provides it, and how families can access it. This should include an overview of universal, targeted and specialist forms of support. During the adoption assessment process, prospective adopters must also receive information, counselling and advice about adoption, including the support services they may be entitled to. In addition, the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund provides nationwide access to funded post‑adoption support, including therapeutic interventions for adopted children and their families.
In early‑permanence placements such as foster‑to‑adopt, reunification may occur if the court decides a child should return to their birth family. In these circumstances, reunification must follow statutory care‑planning duties, ensuring well‑planned transitions and appropriate support for carers and parents. Adoption England’s Reunification Framework provides structured guidance for practitioners to manage these transitions safely and sensitively, ensuring the child’s needs remain central throughout the process.