Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure schools report safeguarding concerns during family court proceedings.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Keeping children safe is an absolute priority for this government, and schools and colleges play a critical role in this.
They are supported by the statutory guidance, 'Keeping children safe in education' (KCSIE), which all schools and colleges must have regard to when carrying out their duties to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. The guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/keeping-children-safe-in-education--2.
Local authorities, police, and health services share an equal statutory duty to work together, and schools and colleges must work with local safeguarding partners to protect children.
KCSIE makes clear that all staff have a responsibility to identify and respond to any safeguarding concerns and stresses the importance of effective information sharing at the right time to ensure children receive the support they need. This includes ensuring clear processes and principles are in place for sharing information not only within the school or college and with children’s social care, but with safeguarding partners and other relevant organisations.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to improve education on (a) sexual consent and (b) relationships.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department published updated relationships, sex and health education statutory guidance in July 2025. It focuses on building healthy relationships skills from the start of primary school. It sets out that secondary schools should cover how to recognise, respect and communicate consent and boundaries in both platonic and romantic relationships.
Pupils should be taught the law about the age of consent and that they have a choice about whether to have sex. Pupils should also be taught about their capacity to give, withhold or remove consent at any time, even if initially given.
This government, in December 2025, has published a new strategy to tackle violence against women and girls. We want to protect young people and drive forward education on healthy relationships and will be investing £11 million to pilot the best interventions in schools over the next three years.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support the financial sustainability of childminding roles in (a) East Sussex and (b) Lewes constituency.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
It is the department’s ambition that all families have access to high quality, affordable and flexible early education and care, giving every child the best start in life.
From April 2026, local authorities will be required to pass at least 97% of their funding directly to providers, an increase from 96%. We will work with local authorities and others to ensure that, where they want to, childminders and other early years providers are paid monthly for the funded hours they provide, making their income more stable. Childminders, who often care for children of different ages, can use the funding they receive to support costs across all the children they look after. We expect this will also bring increased demand for childminder places, providing new opportunities for growth.
From 1 November 2024, the government introduced new flexibilities to help childminders join and stay in the profession, supporting the government’s commitment to roll out expanded childcare entitlements and give children the best start in life.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 20 October 2025 to Question 80538 on Teachers: Workplace Pensions, whether Teachers' Pensions plan to inform retired teachers of the timeline for receipt of rollback statements.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Recalculating benefits for retired members is a complex process, requiring adjustments for tax, interest, and system functionality once a member has received their Remediable Service Statement (RSS) and responded with their remedy period choice.
Although the administrator resumed issuing Remediable Service Statements earlier this year, not all cases could be completed within the original timeframe. The administrator will keep affected members informed of revised timelines through established channels, including ‘My Pension Online’ and the Teachers’ Pensions website. The latest update is available here: https://www.teacherspensions.co.uk/news/public-news/2025/07/remediable-service-statement-rss-choices-payments.aspx. As responsibility for this work transitions to the new administrator of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme in summer 2026, the department is working with Tata Consultancy Services to finalise the timeline for issuing all RSSs. Once the timeline is confirmed, it will be communicated to relevant members.
The department continues to monitor progress and is working closely with the scheme administrator to streamline processes and introduce automation where possible. Any pension adjustments arising from members’ choices will be backdated with interest to ensure members are not financially disadvantaged.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when she plans to publish the Schools White Paper.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
This government is determined to deliver reform that stands the test of time and rebuilds the confidence of families, which is why we’re launching a further period of listening and engagement – testing our proposals with parents, teachers and experts in every region of the country, so that lived experience and partnership are at the heart of our solutions.
We know that families are crying out for change, and that is exactly why it is critical we get this right. We will set out the full Schools White Paper in the new year, building on the work we’ve already done to create a system that’s rooted in inclusion, where children receive high-quality support early on and can thrive at their local school.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions she has had with Teachers' Pensions to ensure retired teachers (a) receive their rollback statement in a timely manner and (b) are informed of the timeline for the receipt of their rollback statement.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Teachers’ Pensions continue to issue members with their Remediable Service Statements whilst experiencing high levels of member contact. The department is in active discussions with Teachers’ Pensions regarding capacity planning and are continually exploring ways to improve waiting times and customer service, which includes recruiting additional staff and automating functions wherever possible.
Teachers’ Pensions are also monitoring factors that affect the progress of issuing Remediable Service Statements, such as average handling times, response rates and levels of enquiries. Updates are provided to members via the Teachers’ Pensions website. The latest update is available here: https://www.teacherspensions.co.uk/news/public-news/2025/04/delay-in-issuing-remediable-service-statements-rss.aspx.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure adequate funding for children and families.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The Spending Review, announced by my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, on 11 June 2025, ensures this government can drive forward progress on its mission to break the link between background and success.
Children’s early years are crucial to their development, health and life chances. Through the government’s Plan for Change, we will ensure every child gets the best start in life, investing in the strongest evidence-based interventions to ensure a record proportion of five year-olds have a good level of development by 2028 and transforming outcomes for children and young people.
The Spending Review includes an additional £1.6 billion a year by 2028/29 for childcare entitlements for working parents, giving children the best start in life and supporting more parents to balance family life and work. It also includes funding to expand a network of family hubs to support families when they need it and get a record proportion of children ready for school.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support (a) blind and (b) partially sighted young people to access Further Education.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Support for people with visual impairments in further education is guided by legal duties under the Equality Act 2010 and the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) code of practice, with tailored provisions depending on the needs of the individual.
All education and training providers, have a duty to make reasonable adjustments for people with disabilities, including those with visual impairments, so they are not placed at a substantial disadvantage compared to non-disabled students.
Reasonable adjustments can include things such as adapting teaching methods (providing materials in accessible formats), using assistive technology (such as screen readers and magnifiers, speech synthesizers, accessible computers and tablets) modifying assessments (offering extra time or alternative formats), and offering personalised support services (including note-takers, interpreters, or mental health support).
From year 9 it is mandatory for education, health and care plan reviews to support learners in preparing for the transitions to further education and/or employment.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking alongside the Teachers' Pension Scheme to ensure retired teachers (a) receive their pensions in a timely manner and (b) are informed of the timeline for this.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
As part of the Transitional Protection (McCloud) remedy, affected members of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme (TPS) have the option to choose either final salary or career average benefits for the remedy period (April 2015 to March 2022). Members who had not taken TPS benefits before the remedy took effect on 1 October 2023 make that choice immediately before retirement. As calculations of the options are complex, TPS members are advised to apply six months before their intended retirement date to ensure there is sufficient time to receive and respond to their Remediable Service Statement which will set out that choice.
The need to apply six months in advance is clearly set out on the Teachers’ Pensions website and in related member guidance, which can be found here: www.teacherspensions.co.uk/members/planning-retirement/how-to-apply.aspx.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of promoting a culture of reading for pleasure in the home on the development of children (a) in early years and (b) of school age.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
This government is committed to strengthening the home learning environment to support literacy and school readiness as part of the Plan for Change. In 2025/26, we are investing £10.7 million through Family Hubs in home learning environment services to help parents create language-rich, nurturing settings that support early communication and confidence. In the recent Spending Review, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, confirmed that the government will continue to invest in and expand the Family Hubs programme as part of the Spending Review 2025.
Our Little Moments Together campaign provides free resources and advice to encourage parents to chat, play and read with their children, simple actions that make a lasting difference. Promoting a culture of reading for pleasure at home supports children’s language development, emotional wellbeing and cognitive growth, particularly in the early years. These benefits extend into later childhood, contributing to improved educational outcomes and a lifelong engagement with learning.
For school-age children, we continue to encourage parental engagement in reading and learning at home, recognising that strong early foundations are key to long term educational success.