Asked by: Juliet Campbell (Labour - Broxtowe)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support estranged and care-experienced students in higher education.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is committed to ensuring that care experienced and estranged people can access, participate and achieve in higher education (HE).
All looked-after children must have a personal education plan, which should set out the support needed to help realise their short and long-term academic outcomes. To ensure they have a greater chance of achieving the prior attainment needed to access HE, the government provides £14 million per year of additional funding to support looked-after children up to the age of 19. This is administered by virtual school heads and can be used on attainment raising activity such as tuition, mentoring or careers advice and other activities based on the individual needs of each looked-after child.
In addition to a statutory £2,000 Care Leavers in HE bursary, all HE providers registered with the Office for Students (OfS) that intend to charge higher level tuition fees must have an Access and Participation Plan (APPs) approved by the OfS. These plans articulate how providers will improve equality of opportunity for underrepresented groups. Care experienced and estranged students are classed as ‘at risk’ groups in the Equality of Opportunity Risk Register and providers should take account of inequalities they may experience when developing their APPs.
Asked by: Juliet Campbell (Labour - Broxtowe)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce incidents of stillbirths amongst black and Asian families.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises that losing a baby or pregnancy loss is extremely difficult for parents and families. We are determined to make sure all women and babies receive safe, personalised, and compassionate care, regardless of their background, location, or ethnicity.
While the vast majority of births in England are safe, the stark inequalities in maternity outcomes demonstrate that there are deep-seated issues across maternity and neonatal services.
To address these and other issues within maternity and neonatal care, a rapid independent investigation into National Health Service maternity and neonatal services is being launched. This will look at the systemic issues behind why so many women, babies, and families experience unacceptable care, taking into account findings from previous maternity reviews.
This includes the Maternity Outcome Signalling System, a new system that will monitor the rates of term stillbirth, neonatal death, and brain injury. It will immediately flag unusually high rates to prompt a rapid review of any safety concerns. We have already made progress in this area, for example through the Saving Babies Lives Care Bundle, which provides maternity units with detailed guidance to reduce stillbirths, neonatal brain injury, neonatal deaths, and preterm births.
Asked by: Juliet Campbell (Labour - Broxtowe)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether her Department is taking steps to simplify the planning permission process for pubs.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The National Planning Policy Framework is clear that planning policies and decisions should plan positively for the provision and use of community facilities, such as pubs.
On 28 May 2025, the government published the Planning Reform Working Paper: Reforming Site Thresholds (which can be found on gov.uk here) which seeks views on taking a gradated approach to the system as a whole – removing and streamlining disproportionate requirements on small and medium sites, while maintaining and strengthening requirements on major development.
Asked by: Juliet Campbell (Labour - Broxtowe)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of establishing a distinct British identity status for children born to holders of British National (Overseas) visas.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Children who came to the UK with parents who are British National (Overseas) visa holders may apply for settlement after 5 years’ qualifying residence, followed by citizenship after a further twelve months.
Children born in the UK to a BN(O) visa holder will be able to apply for British citizenship immediately once the parent becomes settled in the UK. Children born in the UK to BN(O)s who have already become settled will become British citizens automatically.
BN(O)s also have an entitlement to register as British citizens if they meet the requirements. This is a simpler process for becoming a citizen than naturalisation.
Asked by: Juliet Campbell (Labour - Broxtowe)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of simplifying the registration process for British National (Overseas) visa holders to register as British citizens.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Children who came to the UK with parents who are British National (Overseas) visa holders may apply for settlement after 5 years’ qualifying residence, followed by citizenship after a further twelve months.
Children born in the UK to a BN(O) visa holder will be able to apply for British citizenship immediately once the parent becomes settled in the UK. Children born in the UK to BN(O)s who have already become settled will become British citizens automatically.
BN(O)s also have an entitlement to register as British citizens if they meet the requirements. This is a simpler process for becoming a citizen than naturalisation.
Asked by: Juliet Campbell (Labour - Broxtowe)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress her Department has made on the full electrification of the Midland Main Line; and whether her Department has a planned timetable for its completion.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Electrification of the Midland Main Line (MML) between Kettering and Wigston is now complete and enhancements south of Bedford, are due to complete in August. Following the Spending Review, we will now be working to confirm our wider portfolio of rail enhancements, including the MML, which will be published as part of the government’s commitment to set out its overall infrastructure pipeline in the coming weeks.
Asked by: Juliet Campbell (Labour - Broxtowe)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the GP-to-patient ratio was in (a) Broxtowe constituency, (b) Nottinghamshire, (c) the East Midlands and (d) England in (i) 2010 and (ii) 2024.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
As of December 2024, the number of full time equivalent doctors in general practice (GP) per 10,000 registered patients was:
- 6.9 in the Broxtowe constituency;
- 6.5 in Nottinghamshire;
- 5.9 in the East Midlands; and
- 5.6 in England.
Data from before September 2015 is not comparable. Each GP is required to provide services to meet the reasonable needs of their patients. There is no NHS England recommendation for how many patients a GP should have assigned, or the ratio of GPs or other practice staff to patients. The demands each patient places on their GP are different and can be affected by many different factors, including rurality and patient demographics. It is necessary to consider the workforce for each practice as a whole, not only GPs but also the range of health professionals available who are able to respond to the needs of their patients.
Asked by: Juliet Campbell (Labour - Broxtowe)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many NHS dentists were employed in (a) Broxtowe constituency, (b) Nottinghamshire and (c) the East Midlands in (i) 2010 and (ii) 2024.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The following table shows how many National Health Service dentists were employed in 2011/12 and 2023/24 in the Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Integrated Care Board (ICB), which includes the Broxtowe constituency, as well as regional figures for the Midlands:
Year | Number of dentists employed in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire ICB | Number of dentists employed in the Midlands |
2011/12 | 448 | 4,016 |
2023/24 | 578 | 4,454 |
Notes:
Asked by: Juliet Campbell (Labour - Broxtowe)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the length of time a driving theory test is valid for to tackle the backlog for practical tests.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The maximum duration of two years between passing the theory test and a subsequent practical test is in place to ensure a customer’s road safety knowledge and ability to identify developing hazards is current. This validity period is set in legislation, and the Government has no current plans to lay further legislation to extend it. It is important road safety knowledge and hazard perception skills are up to date at the critical point a person drives unsupervised for the first time.
Asked by: Juliet Campbell (Labour - Broxtowe)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the eligibility of the long course loan to (a) estranged and (b) care experienced students.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Full-time undergraduate students who are estranged from their parents or who are care leavers qualify for a long courses loan in the same way as other full-time undergraduate students.
Full-time students who attend their courses for more than 30 weeks and three days in an academic year qualify for additional means-tested long courses loan to help them with their living costs. This is paid for each week or part-week from 30 weeks and three days up to 45 weeks’ attendance. Students attending their courses for 45 weeks or more in any 52 week period are paid as if they are studying for the full 52 weeks, meaning that they qualify for 22 weeks additional living costs support. The weekly rates of long courses loan vary depending on where a student is living and studying during an academic year.
The government has increased maximum loans for living costs, including long courses loans, by forecast inflation (3.1%), for the 2025/26 academic year.