Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the average annual cost per child of an education, health and care plan was in each of the last 10 years.

Answered by David Johnston

The department does not hold this information.

However, the department is reforming the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system so that, where children require an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan and specialist provision, they get access to the support they need and parents do not face an adversarial system to secure this. Through Multi-Agency Panels, templates and supporting materials for the EHC plan process, tailored lists and strengthened mediation arrangements, the department’s SEND reforms focus on:

• Improving the quality of EHC plans and making the process more consistent.
• Reducing conflicts through better co-production.
• Improving the outcomes of children and young people.

The department is also significantly increasing the high needs budget, which is worth £10.54 billion by 2024/25 and worth 60% more than in 2019/20.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Care Standards Act 2000, what the annual spend on children's homes was in each of the last 20 years.

Answered by David Johnston

Spend on children’s homes takes place at a Local Authority (LA) level. Annual LA expenditure statistics based on Section 251 (Outturn) returns are available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/la-and-school-expenditure.

Within this release, expenditure on children looked after in residential care shows the spend on children’s homes. Residential care expenditure includes expenditure on residential care in voluntary children’s and registered children’s homes as defined in the Children Act 1989, which can be found here: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1989/41/contents.

The latest publication on 25 January 2024 providers cumulative expenditure data for LAs in England from the 2015/16 to 2022/23 financial years.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number of pupils that attend independent schools in each school year group in each local authority.

Answered by Damian Hinds

The department publishes annual statistics on the number of pupils at schools in England according to the kind of school they attend. The most recent figures are for January 2023 and are available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics/2022-23.

The department does not collect year group data for independent school pupils as these schools are not required to follow the national curriculum and year groups may not apply. The department does publish figures by age. A table showing independent school pupils by age as of January 2023 is available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/8b927366-344b-4505-8cc9-08dc706299c6. Generally, national curriculum year 1 corresponds to pupils aged 5 years old at the start of the school year and compulsory schooling ends at year 11 with pupils aged 15 years old at the start of the school year.

Average class size figures are published by local authority for state-funded primary and secondary schools but not by year groups within those schools. The attached table contains the breakdowns requested.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the average class size was in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools in each year group in each local authority in the latest period for which data is available.

Answered by Damian Hinds

The department publishes annual statistics on the number of pupils at schools in England according to the kind of school they attend. The most recent figures are for January 2023 and are available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics/2022-23.

The department does not collect year group data for independent school pupils as these schools are not required to follow the national curriculum and year groups may not apply. The department does publish figures by age. A table showing independent school pupils by age as of January 2023 is available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/8b927366-344b-4505-8cc9-08dc706299c6. Generally, national curriculum year 1 corresponds to pupils aged 5 years old at the start of the school year and compulsory schooling ends at year 11 with pupils aged 15 years old at the start of the school year.

Average class size figures are published by local authority for state-funded primary and secondary schools but not by year groups within those schools. The attached table contains the breakdowns requested.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the average cost was of educating a pupil in a (a) primary and (b) secondary schools in each local authority area in the latest period for which data is available.

Answered by Damian Hinds

The department holds data on funding levels. However, it does not hold data on the specific local authority level costs of educating primary and secondary pupils.

The published dedicated schools grant (DSG) for 2024/2025 includes information on the amount of core schools funding allocated by the department nationally as well as to each local authority. The published information can be found here: https://skillsfunding.service.gov.uk/view-latest-funding/national-funding-allocations/DSG/2024-to-2025. The published information includes the amount of funding allocated in respect of primary and secondary pupils in mainstream schools, referred to as the ‘primary schools unit of funding’ and ‘secondary schools unit of funding’.

In addition to the funding from the DSG, schools may also receive additional school funding from other grants in the 2024/25 financial year, including:

• The teachers’ pay additional grant 2024 to 2025. More information is available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/teachers-pay-additional-grant-2024-to-2025.
• The teachers’ pension employer contribution grant 2024. More information is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/teachers-pension-employer-contribution-grant-2024-for-schools-high-needs-settings-and-local-authorities-2024-to-2025/teachers-pension-employer-contribution-grant-tpecg-2024-methodology.
• The pupil premium grant 2024 to 2025. More information is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium-allocations-and-conditions-of-grant-2024-to-2025.

Additional grants provided on an academic year basis include:

• The PE and Sport premium grant 2023 to 2024. More information is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pe-and-sport-premium-conditions-of-grant-2023-to-2024.
• The Universal infant free school meals funding 2023 to 2024. More information is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/universal-infant-free-school-meals-uifsm-2023-to-2024.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much was spent by each local authority on home to school transport for children with (a) special educational needs and (b) an education, health and care plan in each of the last 10 years.

Answered by Damian Hinds

Section 251 of the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009 requires local authorities to submit information about their education expenditure to the department. They must include information about their expenditure on home-to-school travel for children with special educational needs (SEN), but they are not required to specify whether each child has an Education Health and Care plan.

The information collected from local authorities is published on GOV.UK and can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/la-and-school-expenditure. Local authority gross expenditure on SEN transport covering the 2012/13 to 2022/23 financial years can be viewed using the create a table function. This is set out in the attached table.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has had discussions with the National Statistics Authority on the use of the term bad nerves as a reason for (a) economic inactivity and (b) long term sickness absence.

Answered by Mims Davies - Shadow Minister (Women)

Statistical definitions and data collection are the responsibility of the independent Office for National Statistics (ONS). The Department has an ongoing relationship with the ONS however there has been no discussion on the use of the term ‘bad nerves.’

As part of the Labour Force Survey (LFS) people, both in and out of work, are asked about any long-term health conditions they may have. The term ‘bad nerves’ is used as part of the option ‘depression, bad nerves and anxiety.’

The LFS only asks people for their main reason for economic inactivity. This can include long term sickness, but they are not asked which specific health condition this relates to. Therefore, the LFS does not capture if any health condition is the reason for economic inactivity or long-term sickness. There are often complex and interacting factors related to someone being economically inactive.

The LFS is currently undergoing a transformation with latest update from the ONS showing that the option for ‘depression, bad nerves and anxiety’ will be removed in favour of the following questions on mental health - ‘Do you have any of the following? Depression or anxiety’ and ‘Do you have any of the following? Mental illness, phobias, panics or other nervous disorders.’.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing regulations on the non-disclosure of event fees in the leases of specialist housing for older people.

Answered by Lee Rowley

I refer my Hon Friend to the answer to Question UIN 24603 on 13 May 2024.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many (a) school, (b) alternative provision and (c) other places for (i) children and (ii) adults with (A) SEND and (B) an education, health and care plan there were in each of the last 20 years.

Answered by David Johnston

Data on special educational needs (SEN) provision was collected for the first time in the School Capacity Survey (SCAP) in 2023. Local authorities provided the capacity, as at May 2023, of special schools plus SEN units and resourced provision in mainstream schools. This includes post-16 capacity in secondary specialist provision, where appropriate, and does not include independent or alternative provision. As a new data collection, the department expects the quality of the data returns to improve over time as the collection becomes established. However, it should be noted that all local authorities returned data as requested for this first collection. Data was published as official statistics in development here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-capacity.

There were 148,000 special school places reported in 2022/23, including 60,000 primary places and 88,000 secondary. This is alongside 9,000 places in SEN units, of which 6,000 were in primary schools and 3,000 in secondary, and 18,000 places in resourced provision, of which 10,000 were in primary schools and 8,000 in secondary, in mainstream schools. Data is not available by age. Secondary places in some special schools will include places for some young people over compulsory school age.

The department publishes annual statistics on the number of pupils with SEN support and Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans over time. Due to the request ranging back 20 years, there are three publications required to answer the question. The most recent figures are from the 2022/23 academic year and are available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/special-educational-needs-in-england. These statistics date back to 2015/16.

Data prior to 2015/16 is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/special-educational-needs-in-england-january-2015 and data prior to 2007 is available here: https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukgwa/20070905140107/http:/www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000661/index.shtml.

The department does not hold historical trend information on adults with SEN and their placements. This is because the Special Educational Needs survey only accounts for school pupils. Also, the SEN2 collection has changed into an individual level collection from an aggregate level last year.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much was spent on (a) education places and (b) home to school transport for SEND (i) children and (ii) adults by local authority in 2023.

Answered by David Johnston

Total high needs funding for children and young people with complex special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) is over £10.5 billion in the 2024/25 financial year, which is an increase of over 60% from the 2019/20 allocations. Of this, Worcestershire County Council is due to receive a high needs funding allocation of £90.2 million in 2024/25, which is a cumulative increase of 32% per head over the three years from 2021/22. This funding will help local authorities and schools with the increasing costs of supporting children and young people with SEND.

Local authorities spent £7.9 billion on education for children and young people with complex SEND in the 2022/23 financial year, the latest year for which actual expenditure is available. The Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) allocated a further £1.0 billion on high needs funding for SEND places in that financial year. The outturn data for expenditure in the 2023/24 financial year is not yet available, but is due to be published in late 2024. Planned expenditure reported by local authorities for that year was £9.4 billion and the ESFA’s expenditure was £1.1 billion. The data does not enable differentiation between children aged 0 to 18 and adults aged 19 to 25. Individual local authority expenditure information is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-local-authority-school-finance-data.

In the 2023/2024 academic year, a further £592 million of disadvantage funding was allocated through the 16 to 19 funding formula for young people aged 16 to 19, or those aged 19 to 24 and who have an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan. Institutions are free to choose the best ways to use this additional funding and use this, in part, to support disadvantaged students including those with learning difficulties and disabilities.

Local authorities publish information about their expenditure on home-to-school travel for children with special educational needs (SEN) and on post-16 transport for both young people aged 16 to 18 and adults aged 19 to 25 with SEN, learning difficulties or disabilities, but they are not required to specify whether each child, young person, or adult has an EHC plan.

The information collected from local authorities is published on GOV.UK and can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/la-and-school-expenditure. Local authority gross expenditure on SEN transport covering the 2022/23 financial year is set out in the attached table.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many (a) children and (b) adults have required a SEND placement in each of the last 20 years.

Answered by David Johnston

The department recognises that special educational needs (SEN) is a broad term, and that a child is defined as having a SEN if he or she has a learning difficulty or disability which calls for special educational provision to be made for him or her. The Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan process is driven by a child's needs rather than any diagnosis they might have. The EHC needs assessment identifies the child or young person’s SEN, together with any relevant health or social care needs. The local authority, with advice from its partners, then considers whether to issue an EHC plan, which specifies provision to meet each identified need. The ‘SEND code of practice: 0 to 25 years’ makes it clear that meeting the needs of a child or young person with SEN does not require a diagnostic label or test. The ‘SEND code of practice: 0 to 25 years’ can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25.

Local authorities have a statutory responsibility to assess whether children and young people have SEN that requires an EHC plan if they are requested to do so.

The department does not hold a breakdown by age group of individuals assessed over the last 10 years because the SEN2 collection has changed into an individual level collection from an aggregate level last year. Therefore, there is one year (2022) that shows the number of assessments carried out broken down by single years of age, which is attached.

In terms of figures over time, the number of people assessed for a statement (which were replaced in 2014 by EHC plans, with no new statements since 2015), the number of individuals assessed for an EHC plan, and the number of people assessed where an EHC plan was issued are available at the following link: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/b4f6814c-b0da-43d1-0b12-08dc74c3bb80

The department publishes information about SEN and EHC plans annually on the GOV.UK website. The information for the 2022/23 academic year can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/special-educational-needs-in-england. The data for the 2023 reporting year can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/education-health-and-care-plans.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what conditions (a) children and (b) adults were assessed for (i) special educational needs and (ii) an education, health and care plan in each of the last 20 years.

Answered by David Johnston

The department recognises that special educational needs (SEN) is a broad term, and that a child is defined as having a SEN if he or she has a learning difficulty or disability which calls for special educational provision to be made for him or her. The Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan process is driven by a child's needs rather than any diagnosis they might have. The EHC needs assessment identifies the child or young person’s SEN, together with any relevant health or social care needs. The local authority, with advice from its partners, then considers whether to issue an EHC plan, which specifies provision to meet each identified need. The ‘SEND code of practice: 0 to 25 years’ makes it clear that meeting the needs of a child or young person with SEN does not require a diagnostic label or test. The ‘SEND code of practice: 0 to 25 years’ can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25.

Local authorities have a statutory responsibility to assess whether children and young people have SEN that requires an EHC plan if they are requested to do so.

The department does not hold a breakdown by age group of individuals assessed over the last 10 years because the SEN2 collection has changed into an individual level collection from an aggregate level last year. Therefore, there is one year (2022) that shows the number of assessments carried out broken down by single years of age, which is attached.

In terms of figures over time, the number of people assessed for a statement (which were replaced in 2014 by EHC plans, with no new statements since 2015), the number of individuals assessed for an EHC plan, and the number of people assessed where an EHC plan was issued are available at the following link: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/b4f6814c-b0da-43d1-0b12-08dc74c3bb80

The department publishes information about SEN and EHC plans annually on the GOV.UK website. The information for the 2022/23 academic year can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/special-educational-needs-in-england. The data for the 2023 reporting year can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/education-health-and-care-plans.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the ages were of (a) children and (b) adults assessed for (i) special educational needs and (ii) an education, health and care plan in each of the last 10 years.

Answered by David Johnston

The department recognises that special educational needs (SEN) is a broad term, and that a child is defined as having a SEN if he or she has a learning difficulty or disability which calls for special educational provision to be made for him or her. The Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan process is driven by a child's needs rather than any diagnosis they might have. The EHC needs assessment identifies the child or young person’s SEN, together with any relevant health or social care needs. The local authority, with advice from its partners, then considers whether to issue an EHC plan, which specifies provision to meet each identified need. The ‘SEND code of practice: 0 to 25 years’ makes it clear that meeting the needs of a child or young person with SEN does not require a diagnostic label or test. The ‘SEND code of practice: 0 to 25 years’ can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25.

Local authorities have a statutory responsibility to assess whether children and young people have SEN that requires an EHC plan if they are requested to do so.

The department does not hold a breakdown by age group of individuals assessed over the last 10 years because the SEN2 collection has changed into an individual level collection from an aggregate level last year. Therefore, there is one year (2022) that shows the number of assessments carried out broken down by single years of age, which is attached.

In terms of figures over time, the number of people assessed for a statement (which were replaced in 2014 by EHC plans, with no new statements since 2015), the number of individuals assessed for an EHC plan, and the number of people assessed where an EHC plan was issued are available at the following link: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/b4f6814c-b0da-43d1-0b12-08dc74c3bb80

The department publishes information about SEN and EHC plans annually on the GOV.UK website. The information for the 2022/23 academic year can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/special-educational-needs-in-england. The data for the 2023 reporting year can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/education-health-and-care-plans.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the average cost was to educate (a) a child and (b) an adult with SEN in each of the last 20 years.

Answered by David Johnston

Children and young people with special educational needs are educated in a broad range of settings, most of which do not report their costs in a way that enables the department to isolate the costs of their education. Due to this, the department does not hold the information requested on the average cost.

Through the department’s special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and alternative provision (AP) Improvement Plan, the department is reforming the SEND system so that when a child or young person requires specialist provision, they get access to the support they need, and parents do not face an adversarial system to secure this. To support this, the department have increased the high needs budget to £10.54 billion, which is 60% more than in 2019/20. The department is also investing £2.6 billion to deliver new specialist and AP places and improve existing provision.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, when she plans to publish a strategic roadmap for solar.

Answered by Andrew Bowie - Shadow Minister (Energy Security and Net Zero)

It has not proved possible to respond to my hon. Friend in the time available before Prorogation.