First elected: 12th December 2019
Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
e-Petitions are administered by Parliament and allow members of the public to express support for a particular issue.
If an e-petition reaches 10,000 signatures the Government will issue a written response.
If an e-petition reaches 100,000 signatures the petition becomes eligible for a Parliamentary debate (usually Monday 4.30pm in Westminster Hall).
Do not reduce staff-child ratios in early years childcare
Gov Responded - 17 May 2022 Debated on - 14 Nov 2022 View 's petition debate contributionsThe Government should not reduce the existing adult-child childcare ratios as has been suggested. There are surely better ways to reduce the cost of living – potentially endangering children in trusted care is not how it should be done.
These initiatives were driven by Claire Coutinho, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
MPs who are act as Ministers or Shadow Ministers are generally restricted from performing Commons initiatives other than Urgent Questions.
Claire Coutinho has not been granted any Urgent Questions
Claire Coutinho has not been granted any Adjournment Debates
To make provision about licences to search and bore for and get offshore petroleum.
Claire Coutinho has not co-sponsored any Bills in the current parliamentary sitting
Parents and carers are often included in the departments individual research studies on specific interventions, generally asking about the impact on their child. Research studies commissioned by the department are published here: https://www.gov.uk/search/research-and-statistics?content_store_document_type=research&keywords=&organisations%5B%5D=department-for-education.
The department’s main means of interacting with parents and carers of school pupils is from our dedicated panel which was set up to engage with parents and carers and in a robust and representative way. Parents and carers who have agreed to regularly participate in surveys across the academic year are asked to fill out an online survey on a range of topics. Last academic year this was approximately every four weeks, and this academic year will be approximately every six weeks. These surveys have helped to inform our response on a range of issues and is also helping to shape our education recovery.
The findings from the 2020/21 academic year's surveys (Parent and Pupil Panel) were published in October 2021 and are available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/parent-and-pupil-panel-omnibus-surveys. The first survey for the 2021/22 academic year took place in December 2021 with parents and carers of school pupils joining the newly renamed Parent, Pupil and Learner Panel.
The department also regularly interviews parents of early years children on government childcare offers, amongst other topics related to childcare, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/childcare-and-early-years-survey-of-parents-2019. The next publication is due in July 2022. Whilst interviewing had to be postponed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the department set up an online survey of parents to gather evidence on childcare use and other topics during COVID-19. This was last published in September 2021 and is conducted on an ad-hoc basis. The most recent publication can be found here: https://www.ipsos.com/ipsos-mori/en-uk/childcare-use-perceived-impact-child-development-information-working-home-and-awareness-and-use.
The Department continues to work closely with Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) as they adjust its timetable to meet the demand for travel and to mitigate the impact of staff absences on rail services.
Direct Southern weekday services between Uckfield and London Bridge, and East Grinstead and London Victoria will recommence from 21 February.
Currently, GTR are running services between Uckfield and East Croydon, with connections available from East Croydon for onward travel to London Bridge and from Monday 10 January, connections were provided to London Victoria. East Grinstead services are currently being redirected to London Bridge.
GTR’s new timetable will be delivered towards the end of February, providing more services in your constituency. These plans are currently being finalised and an update will be sent to stakeholders such as yourself by 11 February.
Department officials continue to work closely with GTR to ensure a reliable and punctual service is delivered as passengers return to the network. GTR has informed the Department that the provision of services will remain under active review, adjusting to changes in passenger demand as we move out of the pandemic.