Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to improve access to enrichment activities outside of school for children in Yeovil constituency.
Answered by Vicky Foxcroft - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
As set out in Youth Matters: Your National Youth Strategy, this Government is committed to providing young people with more meaningful and enriching activities outside of school, with the ambition to halve the gap in participation between disadvantaged young people and their peers by 2035.
Every Child Can, an investment of £132.5 million of Dormant Assets, will increase access to high-quality enrichment across the five categories of enrichment: civic engagement; arts and culture; nature, outdoor and adventure; sport and physical activities; and developing wider life skills across some of the most disadvantaged areas in the country. As part of the package, £12.5 million will deliver opportunities for young people to make and enjoy music in their local area, and £10 million will enable thousands of care experienced young people to form trusted relationships with creative practitioners through bespoke 1:1 support. The funding criteria, eligibility requirements and application processes will be announced in the coming months, and we are working with TNLCF to design the remaining funding.
The Government's support for enriching activities is also funded through Arms Length Bodies. Yeovil’s Octagon Theatre (an Arts Council National Portfolio Organisation) provides a wide range of creative opportunities for children and young people outside of school settings. In the last year, activities have included youth dance, choir and youth theatre delivering 29,865 hours of active participation. The Octagon Theatre also manages the Music Hub for Somerset and Dorset, funded by the Department for Education and Arts Council England. The Hub works with partners across the region to provide accessible arts and music opportunities outside school, including targeted provision for young people with SEND and subsidised or free places for those facing barriers to participation.
The constituency of Yeovil is covered by the active partnership Somerset Activity and Sports Partnership, which receives Sport England funding to increase activity levels across the whole population. In 2025/26, the constituency of Yeovil received £27,716 through Sport England's Movement Fund, which aims to reduce the number of inactive people and tackle long-standing inequalities in communities, including for young people.
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate she has made of the level of (a) hygiene poverty in Yeovil constituency and (b) its impact on Yeovil residents' health.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No such estimates are held centrally, but the Government continues to take action to try and relieve personal hygiene costs, particularly in relation to period products. The Department for Education provides free period products to secondary school and college learners in their place of study so that no one misses education because of their period, and the VAT on period products remains zero-rated, including reusable period underwear.
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of introducing statutory paid leave for kinship carers on kinship carers in Yeovil constituency.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Minister of State (Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade)
The Government’s Parental Leave and Pay Review is considering all current parental leave and pay entitlements, as well as the needs of working families who do not qualify for existing leave and pay entitlements, such as kinship carers. We are engaging with a broad range of stakeholders and considering a wide range of evidence as part of the Review. The Review will conclude in early 2027 with findings which will outline next steps for any potential reforms.
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking with Ministerial colleagues to address inequalities in access to public transport that limit young people from accessing employment, education or training opportunities in rural areas.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government recognises that young people in rural areas face particular challenges in reaching employment, education and training, including limited public transport, long and costly journeys, and services that do not operate at the times or to the places they need.
We are working across local government and with local leaders to improve young people’s access to opportunity. The Government is providing over £3 billion between 2026/27 and 2028/29 to support local bus services and keep fares low, including around £700 million per year through the Local Authority Bus Grant (LABG). Local Transport Authorities can use this funding to support rural bus services and targeted fare initiatives for younger passengers. In December 2025, the Government published multi-year LABG allocations using a fair and transparent formula that, for the first time, includes a rurality factor alongside population, deprivation and existing bus service provision.
The Government announced in July 2026 that the current £3 National Bus Fare Cap will be replaced by a £2 cap, on eligible single fares on participating bus services in England outside London, from 1 January 2027. This will help millions of people access affordable bus travel, supporting access to employment, education or training opportunities. The cap can make a particular difference on some longer-distance and rural routes, where uncapped single fares can be significantly higher.
Alongside this, the Government is improving the evidence available to national and local decision-makers, including through the Transport Poverty Tool, to identify where poor connectivity and deprivation are restricting young people’s access to jobs, education and training.
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what provisions she plans to put in place to ensure that recommendations from the final report of the Independent review into mental health conditions, ADHD and autism will be (a) integrated and (b) funded within the next 12-24 months.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government issued an initial response to the independent review on the day of publication, available at the link below, but we will set out the full action we are taking in response to the review recommendations in our new Mental Health Strategy to be published later this year:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-pledges-earlier-support-to-tackle-mental-health-crises
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to ensure a cross-departmental approach to the implementation of the recommendations of the final report of the Independent Review into Mental Health Conditions, ADHD and Autism.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government issued an initial response to the independent review on the day of publication, available at the link below, but we will set out the full action we are taking in response to the review recommendations in our new Mental Health Strategy to be published later this year:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-pledges-earlier-support-to-tackle-mental-health-crises
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when she plans to publish a timetable for implementing the recommendations of the Independent Review into Mental Health Conditions, ADHD and Autism.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government issued an initial response to the independent review on the day of publication, available at the link below, but we will set out the full action we are taking in response to the review recommendations in our new Mental Health Strategy to be published later this year:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-pledges-earlier-support-to-tackle-mental-health-crises
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure guidance for parents and carers on under-5s screen use reaches parents and carers in Yeovil constituency.
Answered by Paul Waugh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The England-wide Best Start in Life campaign is actively raising awareness of the under-5s screen-time guidance and driving parents and carers to practical advice to help families develop healthy screen habits. Paid advertising as part of the national campaign, including social media and search activity, signposts families directly to the guidance, including those in Yeovil.
This activity has driven significant engagement with the guidance. Between 27 March and 7 April, the guidance was the most-viewed page on the Best Start in Life website and is currently (as of 20 October) the third most viewed page.
A range of supportive, practical communications materials are also available, including downloadable resources, such as an infographic, digital screens and social media assets, which trusted partners and local services can use to promote the guidance through their own channels and networks. Best Start Family Hubs are also being equipped with dedicated resources to support sessions and direct conversations with parents and carers in their communities.
The CBeebies Parenting Hub provides a further trusted route to reach families, signposting parents to Best Start in Life guidance alongside complementary BBC screen-time advice and resources.
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking with (a) online dating platforms, (b) law enforcement agencies and (c) safeguarding organisations to develop (i) stronger and (ii) more consistent protections for dating app users.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport)
Ofcom’s guidance, ‘A safer online for women and girls’, sets out measures that companies, including dating platforms, can take to reduce online misogynistic abuse, harassment, stalking and image based sexual abuse. We expect platforms to implement this guidance as well as complying with their safety duties.
Under the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (Clare's Law), the police have the power to disclose information to a victim or potential victim of domestic abuse, about their partner or ex-partner's abusive or violent offending. The Government is exploring how this could be extended to other forms of VAWG, including its use within online dating platforms.
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of (a) collecting and (b) publishing data on outcomes for students with Specific Learning Disabilities taking level 3 qualifications.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department currently collects and publishes data on the attainment, participation and progression of learners with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), including qualification achievement, progression to level 2 and level 3, further education participation, destinations into education, employment and apprenticeships, as well as not in employment, education or training and longer-term outcomes. Statistics identify the number of learners with education, health and care plans, special educational needs (SEN) support and those with no identified SEN.
Collecting data on outcomes for students with SEND helps the department to understand their experiences, identify attainment gaps, target support more effectively, and evaluate whether policies and interventions are working.
Publishing this data adds transparency and accountability, supports research and helps encourage improvement across the sector.