Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when she plans to respond to the letter dated 8 December 2022 from 16 All-Party Parliamentary Groups on the potential merits of investment in the specialist workforce for children and young people.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
I can confirm that a response has been sent to the hon. Member for Swansea West on 23 January.
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the SEND review has identified gaps in the specialist workforce.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
The department’s Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Green Paper, published in March 2023, recognised that too many families faced difficulties and delay in accessing specialist support for their child and referenced examples where this was particularly acute. The review can be found at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1063620/SEND_review_right_support_right_place_right_time_accessible.pdf.
In the review, the Department of Health and Social Care committed to working with the Department for Education, alongside Health Education England and NHS England, to build the evidence base on demand from children and young people with SEND for the therapeutic and diagnostic workforce, to support effective workforce planning. Since the review was published, the department has already taken steps to increase the capacity of the workforce. In late 2022, we announced an investment of £21 million for the training of 400 more educational psychologists, who play a critical role in the educational support available to children with SEND.
The consultation for the SEND review closed on 22 July 2022. The department is currently reviewing the feedback received and using this, along with continued engagement with the system, to inform the next stage of delivering improvements for children, young people and their families.
The department is committed to publishing a full response to the green paper in an Improvement Plan in early 2023. We will continue to support the system in the immediate term to deliver change, and continue to improve the experience and outcomes for children and young people with SEND and those who need AP.
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to Action for Children's research entitled Let’s talk about it: Insights from Action for Children’s Parent Talk Service, published in November 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the potential implications for its policies of that research.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
The department is aware of the research carried out by Action for Children’s Parent Talk Service and the recommendations it sets out for the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system. This includes strengthening accountability measures to ensure that every child and young person has access to support that meets their needs.
The SEND and Alternative Provision Green Paper sets out our proposals for how we will improve the SEND system, so that it delivers improved outcomes, improved experiences and financial sustainability.
The green paper consultation closed on 22 July 2022. The department is currently reviewing the feedback received and using this, along with continued engagement with the system, to inform the next stage of delivering improvements for children, young people and their families. The department is committed to publishing a full response to the green paper in an Improvement Plan early in 2023.
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Education Endowment Fund’s report Impact of Key Stage 1 school closures on later attainment and social skills, a longitudinal study, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of that report's findings.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Education Endowment Foundation published its report on the impact of Key Stage 1 school closures in November 2022. It continues an ongoing longitudinal study looking at current attainment in reading and mathematics, as well as the development of social skills, for pupils who were in reception and Year 1 during the 2019/20 academic year. The Department welcomes the contribution this work has made to its understanding of several of the key issues around pupil wellbeing and attainment following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Extended school closures during the pandemic meant that many children and young people missed out on face to face education. After two years of disruption due to the pandemic, the Department returned to a full programme of primary assessments in 2022. At Key Stage 1, attainment fell in all subjects compared to 2019.
Helping children recover from the effects of the pandemic is one of the Department’s main priorities. The Department has made available almost £5 billion for a comprehensive recovery package to support children and young people to make up for education lost during the pandemic.
For children in their Reception year, the Department has funded the Nuffield Early Language Intervention, improving the language skills of Reception age children who need it most following the pandemic. The programme targets children needing extra support with their speech and language development and is proven to help them make around three months of additional progress.
In addition, many of the Department’s recovery programmes have and can be used to tackle attendance and behaviour, deliver social and emotional support, and provide enrichment elements that support physical and mental health and wellbeing, as well as academic support.
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the number of specialist staff that will be required to implement the SEND and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan; and whether her Department has this number of specialist staff as of 28 November 2022.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
The department knows that children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) frequently require access to additional support from a broad specialist workforce across education, health and care. As my hon. Friend, the Minister for Mental Health and Women’s Health Strategy, explained on 25 November 2022, the SEND and Alternative Provision Green Paper sets out proposals to commission analysis to ensure that the health needs of children and young people with SEND are supported through effective workforce planning.
The department is already taking steps to increase the capacity of the specialist workforce. My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, announced on 29 November 2022 that we are investing £21 million into training 400 more educational psychologists, who play a critical role in the educational support available to children with SEND.
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the report from Ofsted, Alternative provision for primary-age pupils in England: a long-term ‘destination’ or a ‘temporary solution'?’ published on 8 November 2022, what steps she is taking to respond to the findings that a) schools need more specialist help for primary age children with additional needs and b) limited access to professional help, such as speech and language therapists or educational psychology services, could be leading to more Alternative Provision referrals and potentially more permanent exclusions.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
The special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Green Paper, published on 29 March 2022, set out a new vision and delivery model to make AP an integral part of the SEND system. The reforms will enable local areas to ensure that children and young people with additional needs get the right support, in the right setting, at the right time.
The proposals include a greater focus on early intervention, with AP schools providing specialist support to children and young people in mainstream schools to help address their behavioural and health needs. Over time, this will reduce the number of preventable exclusions and long-term placements and improve the experiences, wellbeing, and outcomes of children and young people.
In addition, the department is taking steps to increase the capacity across the whole of the specialist workforce. Since 2020, there has been an increase in the number of educational psychologist trainees that are funded by the department, from 160 to over 200 per annum. We have also invested £30 million to train three more cohorts for the 2020/21, 2021/22, and 2022/23 academic years. Earlier this year a further investment of over £10 million was announced to train over 200 more educational psychologists, beginning their courses in September 2023.
Since September 2020, all eligible nursing, midwifery and allied health profession students have been able to apply for a non-repayable training grant of a minimum of £5,000 per academic year, with further financial support available for childcare, accommodation, and travel costs. This aims to support the supply of more speech and language therapists and occupational therapists to the NHS.
The green paper consultation closed on 22 July 2022. The department is currently reviewing the feedback and using this, along with continued engagement with the system, to inform the next stage of delivering improvements for children, young people and their families.
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the findings of the National Association of Head Teachers published on 8 November 2022 that over four in ten schools said they would have to reduce spending on additional targeted interventions for pupils requiring additional support.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department is prioritising further funding for schools. The Autumn Statement has provided an additional increase in the core schools budget, including funding for mainstream and high needs schools, of £2.3 billion in 2023/24 and 2024/25. After adjusting Spending Review 2021 (SR21) budgets down to account for the removal of the compensation for employer costs of the Health and Social Care Levy, this brings the core schools budget to a total of £58.8 billion in 2024/25, £2.0 billion greater than published at SR21.
Schools' funding is £4 billion higher this year than last year, and this means that next year it will rise by a further £3.5 billion. With these funding increases combined, it will mean a 15% increase in funding within two years. This significant increase in funding will help schools meet increased pay awards for both teaching and non-teaching staff, wider inflationary costs such as energy costs, and also enable schools to meet their White Paper commitments.
These increases will deliver significant additional support to pupils and teachers, helping to deliver on the Government’s commitment to level-up education across the country.
The Department recognises that every school’s circumstances are different, and where schools are in serious financial difficulty, they are encouraged to contact their local authority or the Education and Skills Funding Agency, who can provide advice and, in exceptional circumstances, financial support.
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department's buildings will be lit up in purple to recognise Developmental Language Disorder Day on 14 October 2022.
Answered by Will Quince
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
For all celebrations and awareness raising events where the department may light up its buildings, it reviews what equipment is necessary to support the event and assess any security implications. The department will then make a decision on how it can best use its building to reflect support for that particular cause. This review has not yet taken place.
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the conclusions on inequality in early childhood in the report by the Nuffield Foundation entitled The changing face of early childhood in Britain, published on 12 July 2022.
Answered by Brendan Clarke-Smith
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
At the 2021 Autumn Budget, the department announced a £302 million package to transform services for parents and babies, carers, and children, through a new network of family hubs in half of local authorities in England. This includes £50 million over 3 years for parenting support programmes and over £26 million to train practitioners in supporting parents to improve the home learning environment. We are also investing up to £180 million to support recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic in the early years. This includes up to £17 million on the Nuffield Early Language Intervention, aimed at improving the language skills of reception age children who need it most. Two thirds of primary schools have already signed up for this proven programme, benefitting around 90,000 disadvantaged four and five year olds in their reception year.
All parents of three and four year olds are eligible for 15 hours of free early education per week. Additionally, parents who earn the equivalent of 16 hours per week at National Minimum or Living Wage can benefit from the full 30 hours of free childcare, which can help save families up to £6,000 a year per child.
On 4 July, the department announced measures to increase the take-up of childcare support and reduce the costs and bureaucracy facing providers. We have launched two new consultations, one to reform the staff to child ratios required in early years settings and to make explicit the requirement of supervision of children whilst eating, and the other to reform how early years funding is distributed, so that the system is fair and effective. These plans give providers more flexibility and autonomy and ensure families can access government support to save them money on their childcare bills.
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the finding of the report, Implications of COVID for Early Childhood Education and Care in England, published in June 2022, that speech and language delays were reported across all age groups as children had fewer opportunities to develop their communication skills at home.
Answered by Will Quince
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
The government recognises the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on early childhood education and speech and language development. The department is investing up to £180 million of recovery support in the early years sector to build a stronger, more expert workforce. This will enable settings to deliver high-quality teaching and help address the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the youngest children, particularly those in the most disadvantaged areas. This includes up to £17 million on the Nuffield Early Language Intervention (NELI), improving the language skills of reception-age children who need it most. Two-thirds of primary schools have signed up for the programme. The department estimates that the programme will reach around 90,000 children affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
This also includes funding to train early years practitioners to support parents with the home learning environment, as part of the family hubs programme. Priority will be given to the families who will benefit most. Improving the home learning environment offers the opportunity to improve children’s cognitive skills and future attainment. The department wants to encourage parents to chat, play and read more with their children, in and around the home.
The department has provided £10.7 million in grant funding to existing early years voluntary and community sector partners to support disadvantaged children’s early literacy and language development, including support for early years special educational needs and disabilities.
In addition, the department reformed the early years foundation stage statutory framework. These reforms will serve as an important platform to support COVID-19 recovery, particularly supporting children from disadvantaged backgrounds who will have been disproportionately impacted.