Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the provision of SEND services in Henley and Thame constituency; and if she will have discussions with Oxfordshire County Council on (a) the level of and (b) the process for receiving funding for SEND provision.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The last local area special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) inspection by Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) for Oxfordshire was in July 2023, which identified widespread and/or systemic failings leading to significant concerns about the experiences and outcomes of children and young people with SEND. The report, published on 15 September, included four areas for priority action:
Every child and young person with SEND should have access to high quality services, and where a council does not meet requirements to provide appropriate support for these children, the department will take action to prioritise their needs and bring about rapid improvement.
Oxfordshire County Council was issued with an Improvement Notice on 9 November 2023. This sets out the steps the department expects the local authority to take in raising standards in their SEND services. The department is working closely with its partners in NHS England to monitor, support and challenge the local area partnership to making the necessary improvements, including through regular monitoring meetings, which focus on the impact of actions taken on improving the lives of children and young people with SEND and their families. Oxfordshire County Council are committed to working closely with us to improve their SEND services.
Oxfordshire County Council’s high needs funding allocation for children and young people with complex SEND is over £111 million for the 2024/25 financial year, including funding for teachers’ pay and pension costs. In addition, this government has allocated Oxfordshire Council an extra core schools budget grant of £1.3 million to help with special schools’ costs. The department does not collect data or information on the Council’s process for allocating this funding on to specific provision in the Henley and Thame constituency.
Oxfordshire are part of the Delivering Better Value (DBV) programme which provides £1 million in grant funding to support local authorities to provide more effective SEND services by meeting the needs of children and young people with SEND at an early stage and with the right level of support. The department monitors Oxfordshire's progress in the DBV programme through quarterly reporting and meetings with the local authority.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Third Report of the Joint Committee on Human Rights of Session 2022-23 on The Violation of Family Life: Adoption of Children of Unmarried Women 1949–1976, HC270, published on 6 July 2022, if she will apologise for the historic role of the Government in forced adoptions; and if she will have discussions with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on ensuring that suitable mental health support is made available for adult adoptees.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department has the deepest sympathy with everyone affected by historic forced adoption. The practice was abhorrent and should never have taken place.
The department is committed to supporting adopted adults. Regulations have already been changed to make it easier for adults to access therapy, and we are providing funding to Adoption England’s Improving Adoption Services for Adults project, which is designed to maintain relationships and offer support.
The department will continue to review the offer, including looking to learn from the approach of the devolved nations and will consider how we can collaborate across the government to provide support.