Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help improve SEND provision in mainstream schools.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

The department has announced plans for special educational needs and disabilities reform, with further information available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/every-child-achieving-and-thriving.

An inclusive education system for all children and young people requires a strong universal offer. We will introduce new National Inclusion Standards to guide schools on what effective, inclusive universal provision and evidence-based targeted provision looks like.

For those whose needs cannot be met through the universal offer alone, there will be additional layers of support (targeted, targeted plus and specialist). A duty will be placed on settings to produce an Individual Support Plan for any pupil receiving targeted or specialist support, developed together with parents and young people to ensure every professional understands their needs and how best to support them.

We have announced £1.6 billion for an Inclusive Mainstream Fund to support schools, colleges and early years settings to embed inclusive practice over the next three years. We will provide educators with a new landmark training package on inclusion, with an investment of over £200 million over three years. We have also announced a new £1.8 billion investment over three years to deliver expertise to all settings from Educational Psychologists, Speech and Language Therapists and Occupational Therapists. We are consulting on our plans for reform and encourage the sharing of views through the ongoing consultation at: https://consult.education.gov.uk/send-strategy-division/send-reform-putting-children-and-young-people-firs/.

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 age at which vocational and technical training begins on (a) pupil engagement at Key Stage 3 and (b) skills shortages in construction and technical trades.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

There are 46 key stage 4 (KS4) Technical Awards, which pupils can take alongside GCSEs. These qualifications cover broad sector areas such as health and social care, building and construction, and support the development of knowledge and practical skills. In 2024/25, 45% of students in state-funded schools took at least one Technical Award.

The Curriculum and Assessment Review emphasised maintaining stability to allow these qualifications to embed fully in the system and did not recommend introducing structured vocational pathways at ages 11 to 14, and we have no current plans to pilot such models. For pupils in KS4, we will review the current suite of Technical Awards from 2027 with a focus on their impact and progression to post-16 pathways.

This is because the Review concluded that in comparison to other jurisdictions, we have a reasonably broad and balanced curriculum to age 16, which offers all children an entitlement to a core set of knowledge. The department is maintaining the existing architecture of key stages, national assessments and qualifications, which international comparisons suggest have had a positive impact on attainment. New measures at key stage 3, including better sequenced content, a year 8 statutory reading test and improved use of diagnostic assessment, are designed to support engagement and progress without narrowing the curriculum prematurely. To prepare learners for a changing world, we are developing an oracy framework and embedding financial, media and digital literacy and climate and sustainability education into the relevant subjects.

The Review concluded that structured vocational pathways are most effective post‑16. The department is therefore reforming the 16 to 19 system through A levels, T Levels and new V Levels, alongside redesigned Level 2 pathways, ensuring clear, high quality routes into technical fields and helping address skills shortages, including in construction and the wider technical trades.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of introducing structured vocational education pathways for pupils aged 11 to 14, including in comparable education systems such as that operated by the Government of the Netherlands, in England; and whether she plans to pilot similar models in England.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)

There are 46 key stage 4 (KS4) Technical Awards, which pupils can take alongside GCSEs. These qualifications cover broad sector areas such as health and social care, building and construction, and support the development of knowledge and practical skills. In 2024/25, 45% of students in state-funded schools took at least one Technical Award.

The Curriculum and Assessment Review emphasised maintaining stability to allow these qualifications to embed fully in the system and did not recommend introducing structured vocational pathways at ages 11 to 14, and we have no current plans to pilot such models. For pupils in KS4, we will review the current suite of Technical Awards from 2027 with a focus on their impact and progression to post-16 pathways.

This is because the Review concluded that in comparison to other jurisdictions, we have a reasonably broad and balanced curriculum to age 16, which offers all children an entitlement to a core set of knowledge. The department is maintaining the existing architecture of key stages, national assessments and qualifications, which international comparisons suggest have had a positive impact on attainment. New measures at key stage 3, including better sequenced content, a year 8 statutory reading test and improved use of diagnostic assessment, are designed to support engagement and progress without narrowing the curriculum prematurely. To prepare learners for a changing world, we are developing an oracy framework and embedding financial, media and digital literacy and climate and sustainability education into the relevant subjects.

The Review concluded that structured vocational pathways are most effective post‑16. The department is therefore reforming the 16 to 19 system through A levels, T Levels and new V Levels, alongside redesigned Level 2 pathways, ensuring clear, high quality routes into technical fields and helping address skills shortages, including in construction and the wider technical trades.

100th anniversary of the birth of Her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II