Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department is considering replacing the Dance and Drama Awards scheme with the Lifelong Learning Entitlement.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE) will not be replacing the Dance and Drama Awards (DaDA) grant scheme. The LLE will provide individuals with a loan entitlement to the equivalent of four years’ post-18 education to use over their working lives (£38,140 in today’s fees). The LLE will eventually be replacing the advanced learner loans scheme for levels 4 to 6.
To offer LLE provision, providers will need to be registered with the Office for Students. Funding for the 2026/27 academic year will be subject to confirmation in the government’s spending review.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has had discussions with the Office for Students on introducing greater flexibility for specialist conservatoire-style performing arts institutions.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
All registered providers are expected to meet the same conditions of registration. It is important that all students benefit from the same level of protection, no matter where or how they choose to study. The Office for Students (OfS) takes a provider’s context into account when making its regulatory judgements.
The OfS welcomes specific feedback from providers where they feel they are experiencing disproportionate regulatory burden to ensure they can find the right balance.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the Level 6 Trinity Diploma in Professional Musical Theatre will be in scope of the Lifelong Learning Entitlement when it is introduced.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE) will transform the post-18 student finance system to create a single funding system.
The LLE will replace higher education student finance loans and eventually replace the Advanced Learner Loan (ALL) scheme for levels 4 to 6. In the first instance, some courses will transfer from being ALL-funded to being LLE-funded upon the LLE’s introduction. This is the case for the Level 6 Diploma in Professional Musical Theatre, which will transfer and therefore be in scope for the LLE. For courses which are being transferred for LLE launch, the relevant providers, including the awarding organisation, Trinity College London, were notified of the transfer outcomes in March 2025.
The ‘List of Qualifications approved for funding’ can be found at the following link by filtering by LLE: https://www.qualifications.education.gov.uk/.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will add young carers to the Daily Attendance reporting programme.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This government is committed to breaking down barriers of opportunity for all young people, including young carers who provide a critical role caring for their loved ones.
Young carers were added to the school census in the 2022/23 academic year. This change has raised both awareness and the profile of young carers in schools by, for the first time, providing hard data on both the numbers of young carers in schools and their education. The number of schools returning data on young carers as part of the census has been low. The last annual spring census showed that 72% of schools did not record any young carers in 2024, which is an improvement on the 79% of schools with zero returns in 2023. The department recognises that this is not good enough, and we hope to see an improvement in coverage and quality in the next spring census, due in June. We will monitor the quality of school census data on young carers for consideration for future inclusion in the daily collection. In the meantime, we are continuing to work closely with the sector to encourage better identification, recording and support for young carers in schools.
Absence from school is almost always a symptom of wider needs and barriers that a family are facing, including where pupils may have caring responsibilities at home. The department’s statutory guidance ‘Working together to improve school attendance’ takes a ‘support first’ approach where pupils and families, including young carers, should receive holistic, whole-family support to help them overcome the barriers to attendance they are facing.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Carer's Trust press release entitled Carers Trust launches landmark young carers covenant to transform the lives of over one million children, published on 13 March 2024, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of requiring (a) schools and (b) colleges to have a (i) young carers lead and (ii) policy to improve educational opportunities for young carers.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is committed to helping all young people, including young carers, thrive in education. We continue to work closely across government to strengthen the visibility and support of young carers both at home and in educational settings.
Young carers as a specific group were added to the school census in the 2022/23 academic year, allowing schools to identify their students who are providing care for the first time. The census data is creating a new evidence base on the educational outcomes of young carers across England, shining a light on how many young carers are in our schools and the impact that caring can have on their education.
The government recognises the importance of encouraging schools and local authorities to work closely with young carers and their families to identify their needs and provide tailored support, ensuring they do not miss out on vital educational opportunities.
The statutory guidance ‘Keeping children safe in education’ requires designated safeguarding leads to undergo training to provide them with the knowledge and skills to carry out their role. This includes having a good understanding of, and an alertness to, the needs of young carers.
The Children’s Social Care National Framework provides clarity on the outcomes that leaders and practitioners should achieve when supporting children, young people, and families, including young carers. The framework emphasises the importance of multi-agency collaboration, which includes schools as key partners in supporting the wellbeing and educational outcomes of children, particularly those involved with social care services and young carers. This includes drawing on the expertise of virtual school heads, designated safeguarding leads and designated teachers.
Since 2021 virtual school heads have had a non-statutory, strategic duty to promote the educational outcomes of all children with a social worker, including young carers whose families receive, or have received, social services support, enabling earlier intervention to address the educational barriers these children can face. The department is now making this role statutory through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, which will enable local authorities to prioritise these children’s educational outcomes, ensuring they receive the support they need to succeed in education.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of reforming mathematical education to emphasise (a) data, (b) technology and (c) computing.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The government has established an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, covering ages 5 to 18, chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE. The Review is looking at all curriculum subjects, including mathematics. It is committed to ensuring the curriculum sufficiently prepares children and young people for future life and work, building the knowledge, skills and attributes to thrive.
The Review Group has now published an interim report, which sets out its findings and confirms the key areas for further work. The report can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/curriculum-and-assessment-review-interim-report. The report highlights the need for the curriculum to “respond to social and technological change”. The Review Group’s next steps include considering how best to equip young people with “the essential knowledge and skills which will enable them to adapt and thrive in a rapidly changing and artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled world”.
The government will respond to the final recommendations in autumn.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the University of Manchester research entitled The right prescription: Young people, mental health and social prescribing, published on 19 March 2025.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This government is committed to improving mental health support for all children and young people. This is critical to breaking down barriers to opportunity, and helping pupils to achieve and thrive in education. That is why the department has committed to expanding Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs), so every young person has access to early support to address problems before they escalate. As of April 2024, NHS-funded MHSTs covered 44% of pupils in schools and learners in further education in England, and are expected to cover at least 50% by the end of March 2025.
NHS England has recognised that social prescribing is an early intervention approach that can work particularly well for people with low level mental health needs. It has set out a framework for social prescribing link workers operating within or alongside primary care networks. The University of Manchester’s article highlights findings of a pilot on how social prescribing link workers can work effectively to support young people in colleges.
It is for schools and colleges to choose the most appropriate support for their students based on their understanding of needs, making links to primary care services in their area and the support they provide to children and young people. We will look at the lessons of the pilot and evidence on social prescribing in exploring future practical resources for schools and colleges, helping them to provide effective early support.
Regarding Young Futures Hubs, the staffing of each hub will be co-designed with local stakeholders to meet the needs of their local community and the three overriding objectives of improving opportunities, improving mental health and wellbeing, and reducing crime. Such designs may include a variety of different staffing arrangements including social prescribers and other related professionals.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will take steps to integrate social prescribing link workers into (a) schools and (b) Young Futures Hubs.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This government is committed to improving mental health support for all children and young people. This is critical to breaking down barriers to opportunity, and helping pupils to achieve and thrive in education. That is why the department has committed to expanding Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs), so every young person has access to early support to address problems before they escalate. As of April 2024, NHS-funded MHSTs covered 44% of pupils in schools and learners in further education in England, and are expected to cover at least 50% by the end of March 2025.
NHS England has recognised that social prescribing is an early intervention approach that can work particularly well for people with low level mental health needs. It has set out a framework for social prescribing link workers operating within or alongside primary care networks. The University of Manchester’s article highlights findings of a pilot on how social prescribing link workers can work effectively to support young people in colleges.
It is for schools and colleges to choose the most appropriate support for their students based on their understanding of needs, making links to primary care services in their area and the support they provide to children and young people. We will look at the lessons of the pilot and evidence on social prescribing in exploring future practical resources for schools and colleges, helping them to provide effective early support.
Regarding Young Futures Hubs, the staffing of each hub will be co-designed with local stakeholders to meet the needs of their local community and the three overriding objectives of improving opportunities, improving mental health and wellbeing, and reducing crime. Such designs may include a variety of different staffing arrangements including social prescribers and other related professionals.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to safeguard students from (a) Hong Kong, (b) Tibet, (c) Taiwan and (d) Xinjiang, who are persecuted by the Chinese authorities on UK campuses.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The first duty of the government is to keep the country safe and this government is committed to responding to foreign interference, including those actions which amount to transnational repression. The government takes protection of individuals' rights, freedoms and safety very seriously, and any attempt by any foreign state to intimidate, harass or harm individuals in the UK will not be tolerated. Anyone who thinks they might be a victim should report incidents or suspicious activity to the Police via 101, a local police station or 999 in emergencies. As autonomous institutions, the department also expects universities to have robust processes in place to prevent and tackle incidents of harassment and abuse on campuses.
The department is taking specific steps to ensure our world-leading universities remain free from foreign interference. This includes the implementation of the new complaints scheme in the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023, which will offer a focussed route for concerns, including relating to foreign interference in academic freedom and free speech, to be escalated. The government is also working at pace on the implementation of the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme, which will require registration of foreign directed activity involving specific governments and entities where it is necessary to protect the safety or interests of the UK. The department expects the scheme to commence summer this year.
The department continues to work closely with the sector to increase their understanding of the risks and their ability to respond. We are conducting an internal review, informed by engagement with the regulator, sector, academics impacted by foreign interference, as well as international partners, to assess existing approaches to managing the risk of foreign interference and what more support they might need.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help close the education attainment gap.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
All children and young people should have every opportunity to succeed, no matter who they are or where they are from. However, this government knows that too many children and young people face barriers to learning. This is not acceptable, which is why the Opportunity Mission will break the unfair link between background and success, helping all children achieve and thrive.
High and rising standards across education are at the heart of this mission and the key to unlocking stronger outcomes and a better future for children and young people. The department aims to deliver these improvements through excellent teaching and leadership, a high quality curriculum and a system that removes barriers to learning, all of which will be underpinned by strong and clear accountability.
The quality of teaching is the single most important in-school factor in improving outcomes for children, especially for those from disadvantaged backgrounds. This is why the department is committed to recruiting 6,500 new expert teachers.
The department has also launched an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, which is closely examining the key challenges to attainment for young people and the barriers that hold children back from the opportunities and life chances they deserve.
To strengthen school improvement, the new regional improvement for standards and excellence (RISE) teams will provide both mandatory targeted intervention for schools identified by Ofsted as needing to improve and a universal service, acting as a catalyst for a self-improving system for all schools.
Recognising the importance of supporting children’s attendance and attainment, the government is committed to delivering on its pledge to provide free breakfast clubs in every state funded school with primary-aged children.
The pupil premium grant also provides funding to improve educational outcomes for disadvantaged pupils in state-funded schools in England. Pupil premium funding will rise to over £3 billion in 2025/26, an increase of almost 5% from 2024/25.