Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of potential impact of local authority funding for Special Educational Needs and Disabilities provision on outcomes for children with SEND; and whether her Department holds data on children's outcomes across local authorities with differing levels of SEND funding.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The department publishes a High Needs Benchmarking Tool, which offers comparative data on local authorities’ high needs spending and related special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) indicators across local authorities. This tool may assist in understanding variations between local authorities in how they fund SEND provision.
The department also publishes a variety of data on children’s and young people’s outcomes by special educational needs across all local authorities. A summary of these outcomes and their sources can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/66bdc2de3effd5b79ba490fd/Special_educational_needs_and_disability_analysis_and_summary_of_data_sources_Aug24.pdf.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the formula for allocating per-pupil high needs funding on educational outcomes in local authorities that have a deficit in their high needs education budgets.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The operation of the high needs funding system is currently under review. Our aim is to establish a fair education funding system that directs resources to where they are most needed and enables improved support and outcomes for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
Because it is important that we take the time needed for this review, the structure of the high needs national funding formula is largely unchanged for the 2025/26 financial year allocations to local authorities and we are considering the funding required in future years, following the conclusion of the recent spending review.
We want future funding for SEND to support our plans for reforming the SEND system, which will be set out in further detail in a white paper in the autumn. We will also outline, before the end of this year, how the government intends to support local authorities in managing their historic and accruing high needs deficits.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress her Department has made on reviewing the high needs national funding formula.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The operation of the high needs funding system is currently under review. Our aim is to establish a fair education funding system that directs resources to where they are most needed and enables improved support and outcomes for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
Because it is important that we take the time needed for this review, the structure of the high needs national funding formula is largely unchanged for the 2025/26 financial year allocations to local authorities and we are considering the funding required in future years, following the conclusion of the recent spending review.
We want future funding for SEND to support our plans for reforming the SEND system, which will be set out in further detail in a white paper in the autumn. We will also outline, before the end of this year, how the government intends to support local authorities in managing their historic and accruing high needs deficits.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to (a) remove and (b) consult on a timetable for the removal of the historic spend factor from the High Needs National Funding Formula.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.
The structure of the high needs national funding formula (NFF) is largely unchanged for the 2025/26 financial year, as the government takes the time needed to consider what changes are necessary. It is important both to make sure that we establish an equitable education funding system that directs funding to where it is needed, including to reflect any substantive differences in the costs of SEND provision in rural areas, and to support the government’s SEND reforms.
As part of our review of the NFF we are considering the previous government’s decisions on the element based on local authorities’ spending levels in 2017/18, which amounts to about 25% of the 2025/26 NFF quantum. Our plans for this historic spend factor, as for the NFF as a whole, and for any consultations on changes to the NFF, will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take steps to ensure that the High Needs National Funding reflects the additional costs of delivering SEND provision in rural areas.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.
The structure of the high needs national funding formula (NFF) is largely unchanged for the 2025/26 financial year, as the government takes the time needed to consider what changes are necessary. It is important both to make sure that we establish an equitable education funding system that directs funding to where it is needed, including to reflect any substantive differences in the costs of SEND provision in rural areas, and to support the government’s SEND reforms.
As part of our review of the NFF we are considering the previous government’s decisions on the element based on local authorities’ spending levels in 2017/18, which amounts to about 25% of the 2025/26 NFF quantum. Our plans for this historic spend factor, as for the NFF as a whole, and for any consultations on changes to the NFF, will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make it her policy to transition from E10 to E15 fuel.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The UK Government made E10 the standard (or ‘premium’) grade petrol in Great Britain in September 2021. Previously the grade supplied at UK forecourts contained a lower bioethanol content known as E5.
In making the decision to mandate E10 the Department carried out extensive consultation and undertook a comprehensive public information campaign. The UK did not move to E10 without assurance that vehicles on UK roads were ready to safely use higher blends of bioethanol, and that such a transition would align with industry agreed fuel standards for petrol.
The industry agreed standard for petrol, EN228, currently only permits fuel suppliers to supply petrol containing up to 10% ethanol (E10). The Department continually reviews all policies relevant to biofuels, including on E10. Any changes to fuel regulation would require alignment with industry led fuel standards for petrol and a consultation.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the UK-US trade deal on the UK's bioethanol industry.
Answered by Douglas Alexander - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
Whenever a trade agreement of any sort is agreed, there will be domestic impacts if our trading partners have requested further access to the UK market. That is the case for the agreement on bioethanol. Senior officials from the Department for Business and Trade have been meeting representatives of the domestic bioethanol industry, and the Secretary of State has met with bioethanol businesses. We are committed to working with the domestic bioethanol industry about their concerns.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what proportion of homes owned by private registered providers had an Energy Performance Certificate rating of C or above in (a) the most recent year for which data is available and (b) 2010 in (i) England, (ii) Scotland and (iii) Wales.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The English Housing Survey is the Department’s key source of information on households and housing in England. While it is a sample survey and does not have a record of all dwellings built, it does contain data on the proportion of properties in different tenure types annually for England only, which is found: here. The department does not hold data for Wales or Scotland.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what proportion of homes provided by housing associations had an Energy Performance Certificate rating of C or above in (a) the most recent year for which data is available and (b) 2010 in (i) England, (ii) Scotland and (iii) Wales.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The English Housing Survey is the Department’s key source of information on households and housing in England. While it is a sample survey and does not have a record of all dwellings built, it does contain data on the proportion of properties in different tenure types annually for England only, which is found: here. The department does not hold data for Wales or Scotland.
Asked by: Graham Stuart (Conservative - Beverley and Holderness)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what proportion of homes owned by local authorities had an Energy Performance Certificate rating of C or above in (a) the most recent year for which data is available and (b) 2010 in (i) England, (ii) Scotland and (iii) Wales.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The English Housing Survey is the Department’s key source of information on households and housing in England. While it is a sample survey and does not have a record of all dwellings built, it does contain data on the proportion of properties in different tenure types annually for England only, which is found: here. The department does not hold data for Wales or Scotland.