Asked by: Andrew Cooper (Labour - Mid Cheshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what capital funding her Department has allocated to schools in (a) Mid Cheshire constituency, (b) Cheshire and (c) England in each of the last 10 years.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department provides annual capital funding to support the education sector, which includes funding to maintain and improve the condition of the school estate and to create school places. The department’s capital budget also supports providers other than schools, and there is no separate capital budget for schools specifically. It is not possible to break all funding down by constituency or local authority.
The total Capital Departmental Expenditure Limit (CDEL) outturn in each financial year since 2014/15 is available in the table below. More information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dfe-annual-reports.
Table 1: Total CDEL outturn in each financial year since 2014-15
Financial year | CDEL, £billions |
2014/15 | 4.8 |
2015/16 | 5.1 |
2016/17 | 5.7 |
2017/18 | 4.9 |
2018/19 | 5.4 |
2019/20 | 4.9 |
2020/21 | 4.8 |
2021/22 | 4.8 |
2022/23 | 5.9 |
2023/24 | 6.6 |
The department supports schools by providing capital funding to responsible bodies, including local authorities, academy trusts and voluntary aided bodies to invest in improving the condition of their estates. In addition, we deliver rebuilding programmes to replace school buildings in the worst condition.
In the last ten years, under the Priority School Building Programme and the School Rebuilding Programme, the department has handed over, or committed to, ten rebuilding projects in Cheshire West and Chester and one in Cheshire East, the local authorities covering Mid-Cheshire constituency, as part of over 1000 projects across England. Individual schools in the programmes are published on GOV.UK.
It is up to the local authorities to allocate their annual school condition funding across their maintained schools, based on local knowledge of need, prioritising keeping schools safe and operational. The total allocated to Cheshire West and Chester and Cheshire East and their maintained schools from 2015, including School Condition Allocations and Devolved Formula Capital, as well as one-off capital funding allocations, including the Healthy Pupils Capital Fund, is available in the table below:
Table 2: Total capital funding allocated to Cheshire West and Chester and Cheshire East and their maintained schools from 2015 (including School Condition Allocations and Devolved Formula Capital, as well as one-off capital funding allocations, including the Healthy Pupils Capital Fund).
Financial year | Cheshire East £millions | Cheshire West and Chester £millions |
2015/16 | 3.79 | 4.24 |
2016/17 | 3.36 | 4.21 |
2017/18 | 2.97 | 4.05 |
2018/19* | 3.74 | 5.57 |
2019/20 | 2.23 | 3.76 |
2020/21* | 2.18 | 5.21 |
2021/22 | 2.39 | 5.38 |
2022/23* | 3.5 | 7.37 |
2023/24 | 2.2 | 5.66 |
2024/25 | 2.75 | 5.32 |
*includes additional one-off allocations.
Large academy trusts and voluntary aided school bodies with schools in the area will also have been allocated a school condition allocation, but allocations typically span constituency and local authority boundaries. Smaller and stand alone academy trusts and sixth form colleges have been able to bid for funding to the Condition Improvement Fund (CIF). Capital allocations and successful CIF projects are published on GOV.UK.
The annual condition funding for school buildings allocated by year across England, as well as one-off capital funding allocations, including the Healthy Pupils Capital Fund, is available in the table below:
Table 3: The annual condition funding for school buildings allocated by year across England (as well as one-off capital funding allocations, including the Healthy Pupils Capital Fund).
Financial year | Total £billions |
2015/16 | 1.4 |
2016/17 | 1.4 |
2017/18 | 1.4 |
2018/19* | 1.9 |
2019/20 | 1.4 |
2020/21* | 2 |
2021/22 | 1.8 |
2022/23* | 2.2 |
2023/24 | 1.8 |
2024/25 | 1.8 |
*includes additional one-off allocations.
Furthermore, the department provides the Basic Need capital grant to support local authorities meet their statutory duty to provide sufficient mainstream school places for children in their area. Basic Need allocations for all years from 2011/12 to 2025/26 for: i) England; ii) Cheshire West and Chester Council; and iii) Cheshire East Council are published at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/basic-need-allocations.
The department has also invested over £3 billion into school places for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities or who require alternative provision since 2018 when this funding began. Of that funding, Cheshire East has received £33,482,797 and Cheshire West and Chester has received £13,633,503. As funding is allocated to local authorities, there is no constituency level data for high needs capital. Special Provision Capital Fund allocations for 2018 to 2021 are published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-provision-capital-funding-for-pupils-with-ehc-plans. High Needs Provision Capital Allocation allocations for 2021 2025 are published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/high-needs-provision-capital-allocations.
Asked by: Andrew Cooper (Labour - Mid Cheshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to improve the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of teachers in (i) Mid Cheshire constituency, (ii) Cheshire and (iii) England.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
High quality teaching is the factor that makes the biggest difference to a child’s education. There are now 468,693 full-time equivalent teachers in state-funded schools in England, but the government must do more to ensure it has the workforce needed to provide the best possible education for every child in all parts of the country. This is why the government has set out the ambition to recruit 6,500 new expert teachers and retain our excellent school staff.
The first crucial steps towards achieving this are to ensure teaching is once again an attractive and respected profession and to reset the relationship with the teaching profession. As part of this, it is important that teachers get the pay they deserve, which is why this government is fully funding, as recommended by the School Teachers’ Review Body, the 5.5% pay award for teachers and leaders in maintained schools. Additionally, from 1 September 2024 schools are no longer required to use performance related pay (PRP) as the basis for appraisals and decisions related to pay progression.
This government is providing schools with almost £1.1 billion in additional funding in the 2024/25 financial year to support schools with overall costs. This matches what we have calculated is needed to fully fund, at a national level, the teacher pay award, and the support staff pay offer in the 2024/25 financial year, after accounting for the overall available headroom in schools’ existing budgets.
Alongside teacher pay, the department is making £200 million available for bursaries and scholarships annually, with shortage subject trainees eligible in 2023/2024 for the highest bursaries of £28,000 and £30,000 for scholarships. The department will shortly be announcing the trainee incentives for the 2025/26 academic year.
To help with retention, new teachers of mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing in the first five years of their careers can also receive a targeted retention incentive if working in disadvantaged schools. 6 schools in Mid Cheshire are eligible for payments to teachers of up to £6,000 after-tax.
The department has published a range of resources to help address teacher workload and wellbeing, including its ‘improve workload and wellbeing for school staff’ service and the ‘education staff wellbeing charter’. Additionally, effective use of technology can automate tasks and help manage workload for teachers. For example, high quality AI tools have the potential to reduce the amount of time that teachers spend marking, whilst supporting effective feedback and tailored teaching which drive pupil progress.
In August 2024, the department announced a £1 million fund to support innovators to develop proof of concept AI tools to support teachers with marking and providing feedback. Oak National Academy has also recently launched a sector-leading AI lesson planning assistant which enables teachers who choose to use it to create personalised and tailored lesson plans and resources in minutes.
The department is committed to supporting schools to implement flexible working practices including taking planning, preparation and assessment (PPA) time remotely, to improve recruitment and retention of teachers. The department is also funding bespoke support provided by flexible working ambassador schools and multi-academy trusts. Schools in Mid Cheshire can access support on flexible working here: https://www.flexibleworkingineducation.co.uk/.
The department has established teaching school hubs across the country, which provide approved high quality professional development to teachers at all stages of their careers. Cheshire Teaching School Hub is a centre of excellence supporting teacher training and development across Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester.
Asked by: Andrew Cooper (Labour - Mid Cheshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of children of secondary school age who were not attending school in Mid Cheshire constituency in the past five years had (a) previously been identified in the SEN Support category and (b) an education, health and care plan.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The requested information is not held centrally.
The department collects data on children missing education (compulsory school aged children not registered at school or otherwise receiving suitable education) from local authorities on a voluntary basis. The latest figures can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/children-missing-education.
The data are collected at aggregate level, so it is not possible to identify children missing education (CME) by both year group and special educational need (SEN) status. In autumn 2023/24 8% of all CME had an additional requirement of SEN support, while 6% of CME had an education, health and care plan. This compares with 13% and 4% respectively for the overall school population (in January 2023). CME data are not available at constituency level.
The Children’s Wellbeing Bill will legislate for local authority registers of children not in school. This will include a duty on parents to provide the necessary information for these registers if their child is eligible, which would improve the accuracy of data and ensure that fewer children slip under the radar when they are not in school.
Asked by: Andrew Cooper (Labour - Mid Cheshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of primary school age children with (a) SEN Support and (b) an Education, Health and Care Plan have not attended school in Mid Cheshire constituency in each of the last five years.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The requested information is not held centrally.
The department collects data on children missing education (compulsory school aged children not registered at school or otherwise receiving suitable education) from local authorities on a voluntary basis. The latest figures can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/children-missing-education.
The data are collected at aggregate level, so it is not possible to identify children missing education (CME) by both year group and special educational need (SEN) status. In autumn 2023/24 8% of all CME had an additional requirement of SEN support, while 6% of CME had an education, health and care plan. This compares with 13% and 4% respectively for the overall school population (in January 2023). CME data are not available at constituency level.
The Children’s Wellbeing Bill will legislate for local authority registers of children not in school. This will include a duty on parents to provide the necessary information for these registers if their child is eligible, which would improve the accuracy of data and ensure that fewer children slip under the radar when they are not in school.
Asked by: Andrew Cooper (Labour - Mid Cheshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of 16 to 24-year-olds who were not in education, employment or training in Mid Cheshire constituency in the last five years had (a) previously been identified in the SEN Support category and (b) an education, health and care plan.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Data for 16 to 24 year olds not in education employment or training (NEET) is not available by constituency nor by special educational needs. National figures for overall proportions of 16 to 24 year olds NEET in England are sourced from the Office for National Statistics Labour Force Survey, which is available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/neet-statistics-annual-brief.
Asked by: Andrew Cooper (Labour - Mid Cheshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to support a sustainable funding model for Higher Education.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is determined that the higher education (HE) funding system should deliver for our economy, for universities and for students. The department will look carefully at all options and come forward with proposals. The department is committed to supporting the aspiration of every person who meets the requirements and wants to go to university.
The department also recognises the immediate financial strain that some HE providers are under. As such, the department continues to work closely with the Office for Students (OfS), the independent regulator of HE in England, to monitor emerging risks and to ensure there are robust plans in place to mitigate them. The department has already appointed Sir David Behan as interim chair to oversee the important work of refocusing the OfS' role to concentrate on key priorities, including the financial stability of the HE sector.
Asked by: Andrew Cooper (Labour - Mid Cheshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing measures to support students with the cost of student loans.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
UK higher education (HE) creates opportunity, is an engine for growth in our economy and supports local communities. The department is committed to supporting the aspiration of every person who meets the requirements and wants to go to university. The department is determined that the HE funding system should deliver for our economy, for universities and for students.
The student loan system already supports students. Unlike commercial alternatives, student loans are available to all eligible students, regardless of background or financial history. The student loan system supports eligible students by providing up front tuition fee loans to meet the full costs of tuition. In addition, eligible students qualify for loans to contribute towards students living costs while attending university, with the highest levels of support paid to students from the lowest income families and those eligible for benefits.
Additionally after study, student loan borrowers are protected. Borrowers only make repayments when earning over the relevant student loan repayment threshold. At the end of the loan term, any outstanding loan debt, including interest accrued, will be written off with no detriment to the borrower.