Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to her Department's policy paper entitled Giving every child the best start in life, updated on 12 September 2025, whether the review of early years funding will include an assessment of food costs within the funding formula.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
To make sure that the early years (EY) funding system properly supports those children and parts of the country that have higher levels of additional need, the department will review EY funding, including the EY national funding formulae, consulting on a set of changes and publishing full details by Summer 2026.
Within EY, free school meals (FSM) applies to school-based nurseries (SBNs) for children who attend both before and after lunch. As part of the expansion of FSM, the department has announced that children in SBNs whose household is in receipt of Universal Credit, will be eligible for FSM from September 2026.
Beyond the provision of FSM, the statutory guidance makes clear that funding for the entitlements does not cover consumables like meals, so providers can ask parents to pay, provided they are not mandatory or a condition of accessing an entitlements place. As such, the cost of consumables will not fall within the scope of the planned review of EY funding.
Asked by: Neil O'Brien (Conservative - Harborough, Oadby and Wigston)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the median annual earnings were for apprentices whose prior attainment was equivalent to (a) 4 As or above, (b) 360 points, (c) 300-359 points, (d) 240-299 points, (e) 180-239 points, (f) below 180 points, (g) 1 or 2 A level passes, (h) BTEC and (i) other (i) 1, (ii) 3 and (iii) 5 years after the completion of their apprenticeship in the most recent year for which data is available.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department publishes annual data on the learning and employment outcomes of apprentices, including earnings up to 5 years after completion in the Further Education Outcomes publication available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/further-education-outcomes#explore-data-and-files.
The latest published data on earnings outcomes by level for apprenticeships was published on 10 December 2025 and can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/c75d0f51-44de-418d-ccdc-08de37c05e81.
Earnings outcomes data for apprenticeships broken down by prior attainment is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure school staff have access to training and resources to identify and support pupils at risk of developing an eating disorder.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Education staff’s daily contact with pupils enables them to identify those who may need support and make timely referrals to the appropriate services.
To support them, the department provides a range of guidance and practical resources to help them identify children in need of extra support. For example, a resource hub for mental health leads and a toolkit to help choose evidence-based targeted support for pupils.
The government has committed to provide access to specialist mental health professionals in every school by expanding Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs), so every child and young person has access to early support to address problems before they escalate. Work is also under way to enhance the capability and capacity of MHST staff, including through investing £13 million to pilot enhanced training for staff, so that they can offer more effective support to young people with complex needs such as disordered eating.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many pupils are currently studying GCSE choices not compatible with the new Progress 8 framework.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The government is proposing improvements to the Progress 8 model that balance a strong academic core with breadth and student choice, reflecting the importance of a curriculum that supports high standards. Pupils currently studying GCSE courses have selected options under the existing Progress 8 model which influences behaviour and the options that schools make available to their pupils.
The government will consult on the proposed Progress 8 model in due course and expects to include further information on likely impact. Schools will have time to take the revised measure into account when determining subject choices for pupils who will start their GCSEs in September 2027.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what safeguards are now in place to prevent malpractice in English language proficiency tests used for university entrance, following the issues identified by Ofqual with Pearson’s PTE Academic Online test.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Universities are autonomous bodies, independent from government, and responsible for their own admissions decisions.
Where English is not an applicant's first language, it is right that a provider assures themselves that the applicant has a reasonable likelihood of successfully meeting the academic requirements of the course.
Universities are free to decide their entry criteria, including which language proficiency tests they require applicants to sit, with many higher education providers able to self-assess the English ability of their students.
Additionally, the UK’s student visa arrangements specify the level of English required by those coming here to study. This standard is rigorously enforced by the Home Office.
The online version of this test was introduced by Pearson in response to both the significant disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic to international students and has since been discontinued.
Asked by: Amanda Hack (Labour - North West Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of (a) treating stipends for PhD students as income for the purposes of calculating benefit entitlement and (b) not treating when calculating entitlement to free childcare hours on PhD students.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
It is our ambition that all families have access to high quality, affordable and flexible early education and care, giving every child the best start in life and delivering on our Plan for Change.
Student parents are eligible for the universal 15 hours of free early education which is available to all 3 and 4-year-olds regardless of family circumstances.
Students who work in addition to studying may be eligible for 30 hours free childcare if they meet the income requirements. PhD stipends are non-taxable income and therefore do not count towards the income requirements of the 30 hours childcare entitlement.
Students in full time higher education are eligible for the childcare grant to support childcare costs for children under 15, or under 17 if they have special educational needs. Further information is available here: https://www.gov.uk/help-with-childcare-costs/support-while-you-study.
Parents eligible for Universal Credit childcare offer can be reimbursed up to 85% of registered childcare costs each month, up to the maximum amounts (caps).
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the reliability of income data used by the Student Loans Company.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The Student Loans Company (SLC) uses income data provided by HMRC, which is an effective way to ensure that repayments are linked directly to earnings for borrowers resident in the UK. Employers and self-employed borrowers provide income and student loan information to HMRC alongside tax reporting. HMRC then report this to the SLC.
The amount that borrowers are required to repay is calculated on the basis of income subject to National Insurance contributions (for UK-resident PAYE borrowers) or income subject to tax (for borrowers in Self-Assessment).
Borrowers residing overseas for more than three months, whether permanently or temporarily, are required to repay directly to the SLC, as they are outside the UK tax system. Borrowers must complete a yearly Overseas Income Assessment Form, including evidence of earnings (such as payslips or bank statements) or other income. The SLC then establishes a 12-month repayment schedule based on the borrower’s projected gross annual salary.
Asked by: Sarah Bool (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps the Department has taken to monitor the progress of children whose education has been disrupted by long COVID.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The department does not hold data on the number of children absent specifically due to long COVID.
Section 100 of the Children and Families Act 2014 places a duty on maintained schools, academies and pupil referral units to make arrangements for supporting pupils with medical conditions. As set out in the ‘Working together to improve school attendance’ and ‘Supporting pupils at school with medical conditions’ guidance, schools and local authorities should work together to ensure that pupils at school with medical conditions, including long COVID, should be properly supported so that they have full access to education.
Both sets of guidance are available here:
Asked by: Sarah Bool (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department tracks the number of children whose education has been disrupted by long COVID.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The department does not hold data on the number of children absent specifically due to long COVID.
Section 100 of the Children and Families Act 2014 places a duty on maintained schools, academies and pupil referral units to make arrangements for supporting pupils with medical conditions. As set out in the ‘Working together to improve school attendance’ and ‘Supporting pupils at school with medical conditions’ guidance, schools and local authorities should work together to ensure that pupils at school with medical conditions, including long COVID, should be properly supported so that they have full access to education.
Both sets of guidance are available here:
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to improve accessibility to higher education for people with progressive neurological conditions such as Friedreich’s ataxia.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This government is committed to ensuring that all students are supported to both access higher education (HE) and to thrive while they are there. For example, in our recent Skills White Paper we committed to significantly increasing the take-up of the Adjustment Planner. This allows all individuals to go through the support that they think would be right for them and discuss this with the people they are studying with.
It also remains the case that HE providers have responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments for all their disabled students.
Wherever possible, disabled students should expect to have their needs met through inclusive learning practices and individual reasonable adjustments made by their provider.
In addition to reasonable adjustments, the Disabled Students’ Allowance is available for the provision of more specialist support. For students with progressive neurological conditions, such as Friedreich’s ataxia, this may include assistive technology.