Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
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 timing of EHC plan issue on Key Stage 4 attainment and post-19 employment.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The government wants all settings, including early years, schools and post-16 providers, to be confident in accurately identifying special educational needs and choosing evidence-based interventions that effectively address them. For those who require an education health and care (EHC) plan, our reforms will seek to improve families’ experiences and outcomes for children and young people (CYP).
The department has not made a specific assessment of the impact of timing of issuing EHC plans on key stage 4 attainment or post-19 employment outcomes. However, we recognise the importance of timely support for CYP with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) at every stage of their education.
Effective, timely identification and intervention are critical to improving outcomes for CYP with SEND. Through our proposed reforms, we will also seek to establish smoother transitions from school to post-16 education. This will include ensuring that settings work together and that transition planning for learners with SEND begins 12 months in advance.
The department recently consulted on its proposed SEND reforms and will set out its response in due course.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children with EHC plans and no setting are waiting for a placement that exists but is full, as against one that does not exist at all.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department does not hold information on the reason why children are not attending the placement named in their Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan.
This government is committed to supporting local areas to create high-quality places that are suitable to meet the needs of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). We want more children and young people to access the right support in a local mainstream setting which will enable them to learn alongside their peers and siblings, instead of travelling a long way to a special school.
This is why we are investing at least £3.7 billion in high needs capital funding between 2025/26 and 2029/30, to support local authorities to provide places for children and young people with SEND, or who require alternative provision, across early years settings, schools, and colleges.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will review the rules on Ofsted-registered childminders claiming government-funded early education and childcare hours for children to whom they are related, where care is provided outside the child’s home; and if she will adopt the same approach as in Wales.
Answered by Paul Waugh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Parents are free to choose the childcare that is right for them and their children. However, the restriction on funding relatives is set out in the Childcare Act (2006). Section 18(4) of this Act specifically excludes care provided for a child by a parent or other relative. This approach avoids creating an incentive for adults to register to become childminders and be paid to look after related children that they are already looking after on an informal basis.
A local authority can choose to fund a childminder providing childcare for a related child, but this would have to be from the local authority’s funds independent of the dedicated schools grant.
Flexibilities within staff to child ratios can be used to enable childminders who are caring for related children, to avoid limiting the income they can earn. We currently have no plans to change this long-standing position.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the economic and social costs associated with the mental health impact on parents and caregivers of children with SEND; and whether she plans to include these costs in future fiscal impact assessments for SEND provision.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department has made no specific estimate of the economic and social costs associated with the mental health impact on parents and caregivers of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). The department has also made no assessment of whether such costs should be included in future fiscal impact assessments for SEND provision.
The government has recognised that too many children and young people with SEND and their families are being let down by the current system. The reforms seek to reduce the need for families to navigate adversarial processes and instead provide support that is earlier, clearer and more consistent, helping ensure that children and young people with SEND and their families have a better experience of the system.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when she plans to publish the Local SEND Reform Plans submitted to her department by local authorities on 19 June.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Local special educational needs and disabilities reform plans are live, operational documents owned by Local Area Partnerships. Whether or in what form to publish is a matter for the partnership. The department is reviewing plans against agreed requirements and will hold local areas to account for plan delivery through revised performance and assurance arrangements.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will provide the latest figures of the number of children in East Surrey who have a) a SEND requirement and b) an EHCP, broken down per borough including Elmbridge, Epsom and Ewell, Mole Valley, Reigate and Banstead and Tandridge.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Information on the number of pupils with special educational needs support and the number with education, health and care (EHC) plans is published in the statistical release here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/special-educational-needs-in-england/2025-26.
Information on individual schools, including administrative district and ward is available in the supporting files.
Information on the number of EHC plans maintained by local authorities is published here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/education-health-and-care-plans/2026.
This publication covers all EHC plans for children and young people aged 0 to 25. It includes those in early years, further education, and who are educated other than in school. Information from this publication is not available for levels below local authority.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when her Department plans to publish inclusion base guidance for schools.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
As a core component of our £3.7 billion high needs capital settlement, we will invest in a transformational expansion of inclusion bases. We are aware of many examples of inclusion bases in mainstream settings that offer high quality teaching, bespoke learning environments and flexible access to specialist education or health support, helping children achieve and thrive academically, socially, and emotionally.
We will shortly be publishing guidance to help schools and local authorities set up and deliver high-quality provision in inclusion bases. Alongside this, we continue to roll out peer networks of best practice which schools can access as part of the universal regional improvement for standards and excellence inclusive mainstream programme.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance her Department has issued to schools on criminals targeting schools and using AI tools to create child sexual abuse material of pupils.
Answered by Olivia Bailey
I refer the hon. Member for Eastleigh to the answer of 2 June 2026 to Question 3915.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when her Department plans to publish and respond to the School Teachers’ Review Body report.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
We recognise the importance of timely information for schools and will respond as soon as possible.
Asked by: Chris Coghlan (Liberal Democrat - Dorking and Horley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans she has to review place funding for special schools.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department has published a schools white paper, Every Child Achieving and Thriving, alongside a consultation on special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) reform, called Putting Children and Young People First. We have also published a summary of what the SEND reforms mean for specialist provision including special schools, available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/699c0cdebfdab2546272c0cc/Information_Sheet_for_specialist_setting_staff.pdf.
Funding for specialist provision will be reformed to create a fair, transparent system that gives schools stable, predictable funding to deliver high-quality education and integrated support for children with the most complex needs. In taking forward those reforms, we will explore and consult on the development of a cost framework for different packages of specialist provision.