Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to encourage local authorities to take action against engine idling, particularly outside of schools.

Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

All Local Authorities already have powers available to them to issue Fixed Penalty Notices to drivers who are idling unnecessarily. Local Authorities are best placed to determine where to carry out enforcement against idling. Guidance on enforcement issued by the Department for Transport encourages Local Authorities to consider enforcement at sensitive sites, which could include outside schools, hospitals or other sites where unnecessary idling is a persistent issue.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of simplifying the definition of affordable housing types set out in the National Planning Policy Framework.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

To reflect this government’s priorities, the revised National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) published on 12 December 2024 includes a separate definition of Social Rent so that it is not referred to as just one of a number of types of affordable housing for rent.

We have no current plans to further simplify the definition of affordable housing types set out in the NPPF.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure the expansion of funded childcare supports improved outcomes for disadvantaged children.

Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The Best Start in Life Strategy sets out this government’s commitment to increase take-up of the 15-hour early education and childcare offers for two, three and four-year-olds, ensuring low-income families, children with special educational needs and disabilities and children in care receive the early education they are entitled to. The department will engage directly with local authorities where take-up is lowest, supporting families through Best Start Family Hubs to take up their funded hours, addressing local variation in performance and tracking data through the Local Government Outcomes Framework.

Building on the largest ever uplift to Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP) in 2025/26, we have increased EYPP rates by 15% to £1.15 per hour in 2026/27, equivalent to up to £655 per eligible child per year.

Low income working families and children with special educational needs and disabilities can benefit from the expansion of funded childcare. Parents could be eligible if they each earn the equivalent of 16 hours a week at National Minimum Wage, equivalent to £10,574.72 annually.

To make sure that the early years funding system is hardwired to benefit those children and parts of the country that have higher levels of additional need, we will review early years funding, including national funding formulae, and consult the sector on changes by summer 2026.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure the early years funding system supports a) providers operating on a year-round basis and b) parents who require year-round provision.

Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

This government continues to prioritise and protect investment in the early years, which is why we are investing over £1 billion more in the early years entitlements this year compared to 2025/26 to deliver a full year of the expanded entitlements, and an above inflation increase to entitlements funding rates. The most recent Coram–PACEY Childcare Survey 2026, finds that the expansion of 30 hours of funded childcare has significantly reduced out of pocket costs for eligible working parents in England, in some cases making part time childcare effectively free during term time.

By allowing funded hours to be stretched across the year, deducting closures from calculations, and enabling mixed‑provider models, the system is designed to work alongside all‑year childcare businesses, managing funding and fees transparently and within national limits, broadening parental choice.

The department has announced over £400 million of funding to create tens of thousands of places in new and expanded school-based nurseries to help ensure more children can access the quality early education where it is needed and get the best start in life. The first phase of the programme is creating up to 6,000 new nursery places, with schools reporting over 5,000 have been made available from September 2025.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that early years funding supports a) financial accessibility for families and b) sustainability for providers.

Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

This government continues to prioritise and protect investment in the early years, which is why we are investing over £1 billion more in the early years entitlements this year compared to 2025/26 to deliver a full year of the expanded entitlements, and an above inflation increase to entitlements funding rates. The most recent Coram–PACEY Childcare Survey 2026, finds that the expansion of 30 hours of funded childcare has significantly reduced out of pocket costs for eligible working parents in England, in some cases making part time childcare effectively free during term time.

By allowing funded hours to be stretched across the year, deducting closures from calculations, and enabling mixed‑provider models, the system is designed to work alongside all‑year childcare businesses, managing funding and fees transparently and within national limits, broadening parental choice.

The department has announced over £400 million of funding to create tens of thousands of places in new and expanded school-based nurseries to help ensure more children can access the quality early education where it is needed and get the best start in life. The first phase of the programme is creating up to 6,000 new nursery places, with schools reporting over 5,000 have been made available from September 2025.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will take steps to ensure that funding is a) ring-fenced for the early years workforce and b) adequate for the needs of children with SEND.

Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The department provides early years funding through the dedicated schools grant, which is ring-fenced for education and subject to pass through requirements. Under the School and Early Years Finance Regulations, local authorities must pass at least 97% of early years entitlement funding to providers in 2026/27, up from 96% in 2025/26, with up to 3% retained for centrally delivered functions. This means that the vast majority of funding reaches frontline provision.

In addition, from 2026/27 the Inclusive Early Years Fund will provide targeted support over the next three years to build capacity in the early years sector to meet the needs of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). The £200 million SEND training package announced in January also includes a new national training programme for all early years practitioners, which will be free to access.

We will be reviewing early years funding, including SEND funding, as part of the early years funding consultation this summer.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of a nationally recognised accessibility rating system for public venues and community spaces.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

It has not proved possible to respond to the Rt Hon Member in the time available before Prorogation

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps his Department is taking to support local authorities in wider adoption of accessibility rating systems.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

It has not proved possible to respond to the Hon Member in the time available before Prorogation

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of local pilot schemes on increasing accessibility in public spaces.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

It has not proved possible to respond to the Hon Member in the time available before Prorogation

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps his Department is taking to increase information and awareness for members of the public on the accessibility of public spaces.

Answered by Nick Thomas-Symonds - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

It has not proved possible to respond to the Hon Member in the time available before Prorogation

Found: Q124 James Naish: So you think it is primarily a lack of focus and interest.

Found: Q124 James Naish: So you think it is primarily a lack of focus and interest.

Found: ; Melksham and Devizes) David Mundell (Conservative; Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale) James Naish

Found: Democrat; Melksham and Devizes) David Mundell (Conservative; Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale) James Naish