Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between David Johnston and Lloyd Russell-Moyle

Monday 29th April 2024 Commons Chamber

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education (David Johnston)]

My hon. Friend makes two important points. There was a 6% decline in the number of nought to four-year-olds between 2015 and 2021, and we are providing £242 million in this financial year to support schools with managing that. He is also right that although some children will always need a special school place to have their needs met, many can have their needs met in a mainstream school. Through our SEND and alternative provision improvement plan, we are making sure that schools are inclusive and make that happen.

[Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Brighton, Kemptown) (Lab/Co-op)]

T2. The Secretary of State described special educational needs as “lose, lose, lose” when she was describing the process of parents appealing the judgments of education, health and care plans, which, as I said earlier, often lists a school that is inadequate. How does she expect parents to get the right school if they are not to appeal, and who has broken the system in the last 14 years? It was not like that before.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between David Johnston and Lloyd Russell-Moyle

Monday 29th January 2024 Commons Chamber

[David Johnston]

I think the hon. Lady knows that the reason providers do not have their rates at the moment is that local authorities have not informed them of their rates. We published the rates in November and it is up to local authorities to tell their providers. Where they do not have those rates, that is the reason. It is yet another example of where the Labour party hopes that if it snipes enough from the sidelines, no one will notice that it has no plan whatever for childcare.

[Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Brighton, Kemptown) (Lab/Co-op)]

10. What steps her Department is taking to increase the availability of mental health support in secondary schools.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education (David Johnston)]

We are rolling out mental health support teams to schools and colleges, supporting young people to access early intervention for mental health. As my right hon. Friend the Minister for Schools said, as of March 2023 there were 398 teams covering 47% of secondary school pupils. That will increase to around 600 teams by spring 2025.

[Lloyd Russell-Moyle]

When I was a young person, we had a counsellor in our school. It helped many people, not for the long term but through short-term interventions that put people on the right track and meant that they did not need more expensive interventions down the line. Unfortunately, those counsellors have gone in many schools. Labour will reintroduce them. Will the Minister commit to reintroducing a counsellor in every school to ensure that we spend now to save later?