Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the proposed cap on branded uniform items on curricular and extracurricular PE participation; and whether her Department has considered allowing a longer implementation period for changes to school uniform policy.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The assessments made in relation to the limit on branded school uniform and PE kit contained in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, including consideration of implementation timings, have been published at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/childrens-wellbeing-and-schools-bill-impact-assessments.
In order to support schools to implement the proposed limit by September 2026, we published our statutory guidance ‘Cost of school uniforms’ and have committed to updating it following Royal Assent for the Bill. This guidance is accessible at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cost-of-school-uniforms.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce bullying in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Tackling and preventing bullying in schools is essential to ensuring that schools can provide calm and inclusive learning environments. All schools are legally required to have a behaviour policy with measures to prevent all forms of bullying. They have the freedom to develop their own anti-bullying strategies appropriate to their environment and are held to account by Ofsted.
Where bullying is reported, it is important that schools take prompt action to support the pupil and prevent the bullying from happening again. Ofsted’s renewed Education Inspection Framework, which has been in use from November 2025, evaluates a school’s approach to bullying during school inspections. This is considered through the lens of the attendance and behaviour evaluation area.
To support schools, the department has procured for the development of a bespoke evidence-based toolkit for teachers to guide them through approaches to tackling misbehaviour and bullying, and actions to focus on prevention.
Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what projection she has made of the deficit in the High Needs block budgets of English councils between now and the start of FY 2028/9.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department has set out plans for a reformed special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system in the recent Schools White Paper. Our assessment of future SEND spending will be updated following the SEND consultation. From 2028/29, SEND spending will be covered by the overall government Departmental Expenditure Limit budget.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to provide support to schools in South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency where the number of pupils achieving a grade 4 or above in English and Maths is lower than the national average.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
We know unacceptable inequalities in outcomes exist across the country and at every phase of education.
The ‘Every child achieving and thriving’ White Paper establishes our plan to improve the outcomes of all children, building on support at home with a stretching, enriching and inclusive school experience.
Our ambition is that all children achieve higher standards and the disadvantage gap is halved, enabling 30,000 more disadvantaged young people passing their English and maths GCSEs than today.
The department has committed £28.3 million to drive standards in reading and writing, including the new continuing professional development programme for secondary schools, the Unlocking Reading programme, supporting struggling readers in key stage 3.
Our 40 maths hubs provide local school-to-school support to improve maths teaching, including Venn Essex Maths Hub in South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency.
We will go further by deepening the partnership between maths and English hubs and the Universal Regional Improvement for Standards and Excellence programme, and strengthening and extending Maths Hubs programmes in reception to boost early numeracy.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of trends in the level of GCSE a) English and b) Maths attainment in South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency over the last two years.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
We know unacceptable inequalities in outcomes exist across the country and at every phase of education.
The ‘Every child achieving and thriving’ White Paper establishes our plan to improve the outcomes of all children, building on support at home with a stretching, enriching and inclusive school experience.
Our ambition is that all children achieve higher standards and the disadvantage gap is halved, enabling 30,000 more disadvantaged young people passing their English and maths GCSEs than today.
The department has committed £28.3 million to drive standards in reading and writing, including the new continuing professional development programme for secondary schools, the Unlocking Reading programme, supporting struggling readers in key stage 3.
Our 40 maths hubs provide local school-to-school support to improve maths teaching, including Venn Essex Maths Hub in South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency.
We will go further by deepening the partnership between maths and English hubs and the Universal Regional Improvement for Standards and Excellence programme, and strengthening and extending Maths Hubs programmes in reception to boost early numeracy.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure the adequacy of distribution of Best Start Family Hubs across local authorities; and how much funding is expected to be allocated to Eastleigh.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The department has set a clear ambition for 70% of hubs to be in the 30% most disadvantaged areas. From April we will be rolling out hubs nationally meaning that they will be in every single local authority by 2028. We are setting a clear expectation that support to families and neighbourhoods under the greatest pressure should be prioritised. Councils know their communities best, and we will work closely with them to make sure this happens.
Provisional funding allocations were shared with Hampshire County Council for the programme during the 2026/29 financial years on 7 November 2025. Payments are subject to local authorities meeting the expectations of the programme.
Asked by: Calum Miller (Liberal Democrat - Bicester and Woodstock)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the impact on local authority finances of accumulated high needs Dedicated Schools Grant deficits ahead of the statutory override ending in 2027-28.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department has set out plans for a reformed special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system in the recent Schools White Paper. The department's assessment of future SEND spending will be updated following the SEND consultation.
We have set out plans to address high needs deficits up to the end of 2025/26, providing grants to cover 90% of each council’s deficit once they have produced and received approval for a strong plan to drive sustained and energetic action in accordance with our new system set out in the Schools White Paper, which will begin to improve outcomes for children and bring costs under control through effective early intervention stopping needs from escalating.
For deficits that arise in 2026/27 and 2027/28, local authorities can expect that we will continue to take an appropriate and proportionate approach, though it will not be unlimited.
From 2028/29, SEND spending will be covered by the overall government DEL budget, meaning local authorities are not expected to fund future SEND costs from general funds, once the Statutory Override ends at the end of 2027/28.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to reduce regional inequalities in the ability to access private tutoring.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The ‘Every Child Achieving and Thriving’ White Paper sets out plans to build on support at home with a stretching, enriching and inclusive school experience to ensure every child has what they need to get on in life.
We know that many schools use their pupil premium to fund tuition. Schools can use their pupil premium to provide peer tutoring and one-to-one or small group tuition when choosing support that will most improve progress, using the department’s ‘menu of approaches’, which is informed by evidence of how best to improve disadvantaged pupils’ attainment.
Through our AI Tutoring Tools Programme, we will be co‑creating and trialling curriculum‑aligned, safe‑by‑design AI tutoring tools with teachers, pupils and experts. This will support teaching, build evidence of impact on attainment and inclusion to ensure pupils, including those who often cannot access private tuition, benefit from high quality individual learning support.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure children from disadvantaged backgrounds can access private tutoring.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The ‘Every Child Achieving and Thriving’ White Paper sets out plans to build on support at home with a stretching, enriching and inclusive school experience to ensure every child has what they need to get on in life.
We know that many schools use their pupil premium to fund tuition. Schools can use their pupil premium to provide peer tutoring and one-to-one or small group tuition when choosing support that will most improve progress, using the department’s ‘menu of approaches’, which is informed by evidence of how best to improve disadvantaged pupils’ attainment.
Through our AI Tutoring Tools Programme, we will be co‑creating and trialling curriculum‑aligned, safe‑by‑design AI tutoring tools with teachers, pupils and experts. This will support teaching, build evidence of impact on attainment and inclusion to ensure pupils, including those who often cannot access private tuition, benefit from high quality individual learning support.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support her Department offers to state schools to ensure the provision of adequate tutoring for pupils.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The ‘Every Child Achieving and Thriving’ White Paper sets out plans to build on support at home with a stretching, enriching and inclusive school experience to ensure every child has what they need to get on in life.
We know that many schools use their pupil premium to fund tuition. Schools can use their pupil premium to provide peer tutoring and one-to-one or small group tuition when choosing support that will most improve progress, using the department’s ‘menu of approaches’, which is informed by evidence of how best to improve disadvantaged pupils’ attainment.
Through our AI Tutoring Tools Programme, we will be co‑creating and trialling curriculum‑aligned, safe‑by‑design AI tutoring tools with teachers, pupils and experts. This will support teaching, build evidence of impact on attainment and inclusion to ensure pupils, including those who often cannot access private tuition, benefit from high quality individual learning support.