Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help support mature students in universities.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
As autonomous institutions, higher education (HE) providers are responsible for setting their own timetabling and student support arrangements and in doing so, must take the needs of all students including mature learners, into account.
In January 2027 the Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE) will launch and transform the HE student finance system. The LLE will give adults, up to the age of 60, access to a flexible, four year loan entitlement to use over their working lives to study full courses and individual modules. The LLE will broaden access at levels 4 to 6 for a range of learners, including those returning to education later in life or studying whilst working.
We are also reintroducing targeted, means-tested maintenance grants, providing disadvantaged students with up to £1,000 extra per year on top of existing loans for living costs from academic year 2028/29.
Together, these reforms modernise the student finance system and ensure that mature students can access the support they need to participate and succeed in HE.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help support students to challenge issues of free speech on university campuses.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Higher education (HE) must be a space for robust discussion, intellectual rigour and exposure to new ideas. These expectations on our universities are long standing and not negotiable.
There are already routes of redress for students where they believe that a HE provider has breached its duties under the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023. As we have previously set out, students can already make complaints relating to free speech to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator, whose service is free at the point of use.
The Office for Students (OfS) already regulates providers in relation to free speech and academic freedom through their existing conditions of registration. The OfS has also issued extensive guidance to HE providers on commencement of their duties, which supports students navigating these issues.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help improve GCSE pass rates among pupils eligible for free school meals in the Ashfield constituency.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The ‘Every Child Achieving and Thriving’ White Paper sets out our plans to build a system that supports every child to achieve and thrive.
It sets a clear path to raising standards and broadens children’s education. This includes a refreshed curriculum, improved transitions and an enrichment entitlement for every child.
To help improve GCSE outcomes for disadvantaged pupils, we are driving standards through new RISE teams, a refreshed high-quality curriculum and assessment system, recruiting 6,500 additional teachers and piloting a new place‑based Headteacher Retention Incentive to attract and support headteachers in the areas that need them most.
Additionally, in the 2026/27 financial year, £3.2 billion of pupil premium funding will support improved outcomes for disadvantaged pupils, and the National Funding Formula will allocate £5.6 billion according to deprivation. We are also developing a new model to better target disadvantage funding at the most entrenched need.
When this generation finishes secondary school, our ambition is for all pupils to reach at least a grade 5 across their GCSEs and for the disadvantage gap to be halved, with 30,000 more disadvantaged pupils passing English and maths GCSEs.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help improve educational opportunities in former coalfield areas.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
All children and young people should have every opportunity to succeed. Our mission is to make this a reality across the country, including in former coalfield areas.
We’re investing £9.5 billion into early years next year to help families access affordable high-quality childcare places all over the country including those in former coalfield areas. We are also taking bold action to lift 550,000 children out of poverty, tackling the high levels of deprivation seen in many former coalfield areas.
Our “Every Child Achieving and Thriving” white paper sets out our plan to provide a stretching, enriching and inclusive school experience for every child. We are consulting on funding reforms to reflect different lengths and depths of disadvantage that children may be experiencing including the persistent challenges faced in former coalfield areas.
The department is also strengthening routes into post-16 education, employment and training so every young person can progress into secure, well-paid work. We recognise that former coalfield areas face some of the biggest barriers to opportunity and this government will ensure those Children and Young People benefit from the landmark reforms we are making to education and beyond.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure all secondary schools offer a wide range of GCSE subject options.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
As part of their duty to teach a broad and balanced curriculum, schools are expected to offer a range of subject options to help meet the aspirations of all pupils.
On 23 February, the department published a consultation which includes proposals to improve the Progress 8 model to maintain a strong academic core and ensure breadth and choice for every child. The consultation is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/key-stage-4-performance-measures-and-targeted-rise-extension. We want to recognise the value of subjects that strengthen our economy and society, for example the arts and sciences, and the importance of a broad pre-16 curriculum.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure (a) primary and (b) secondary schools are able to support pupils with hearing difficulties.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The majority of children and young with hearing impairments are already taught in mainstream schools and we aim to improve inclusivity and expertise in these schools further. In addition to requiring those teaching children with sensory impairment to hold the relevant Mandatory Qualification in Sensory Impairment, the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education has launched a Sensory Impairment apprenticeship route into the school workforce.
Early years settings, schools and colleges have clear legal duties under the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments so that disabled children and young people, including those with hearing impairments, are not placed at a substantial disadvantage. Making these adjustments is central to ensuring full participation in school life and delivering high-quality, inclusive education.
To help schools meet these duties, we are improving the clarity and practicality of guidance on reasonable adjustments. This includes developing more accessible tools and examples with partners such as the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to improve safeguarding practices at (a) nurseries and (b) childcare centres.
Answered by Olivia Bailey
The safety of our youngest children is our utmost priority, and the department continually monitors and strengthens safeguarding requirements across early years settings, including nurseries and childcare centres.
In September 2025, we implemented changes to the early years foundation stage statutory framework to strengthen safeguarding requirements across early years settings. These changes include enhanced expectations on safer recruitment, child absences, safer eating, safeguarding training and whistleblowing.
The department works closely with local authorities and other safeguarding partners to strengthen multi-agency safeguarding. Through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, we are seeking to require the automatic involvement of education and childcare settings in local safeguarding arrangements, ensuring their views are represented.
In addition, we have appointed an expert panel to inform the development of guidance for the early years sector on the use of digital devices and CCTV within safeguarding. This guidance is due to be published in the autumn and will set out best practice, technical information and clear expectations for providers.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure there is adequate mental health support available in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools.
Answered by Olivia Bailey
The government will provide access to NHS-funded Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs) in every school by 2029.
As of April 2025, 47% of pupils in primary schools and 70% in secondary schools were covered by an MHST. Further data for 2024/25 can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/transforming-children-and-young-peoples-mental-health-provision. This has been available since 16 May 2025 at national, regional and local authority level, and since 10 July 2025 at constituency level. Around six in ten pupils nationally are expected to have access to an MHST by April 2026.
MHSTs supplement existing pastoral provision, and schools retain the freedom to determine support based on pupil need, making best use of their funding.
To support education staff, the department provides guidance and practical resources on supporting pupils’ mental health, including a resource hub for mental health leads and a toolkit to select evidence-based targeted support.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her department is taking to ensure children in foster care receive adequate mental support.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is committed to ensuring children in foster care receive appropriate emotional and mental health support. Regulations require every looked-after child to have their emotional and mental health assessed by a medical practitioner. Local authorities must ensure this happens. Integrated care boards and NHS England must cooperate with requests for services. Joint statutory guidance sets clear expectations that local authorities and health partners should promote wellbeing, act early on signs of difficulty, and ensure assessors have the right skills. The guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/promoting-the-health-and-wellbeing-of-looked-after-children--2.
We are working with the Department of Health and Social Care to strengthen mental health support for care‑experienced children. Through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, new corporate parenting responsibilities will be placed on government departments and relevant public bodies, ensuring they consider the needs of looked-after children and care leavers when designing and delivering health services. In December 2025, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and I announced a three year pilot to ensure children in care have access to the support they need sooner. This will build on existing work across the country, bringing social workers and NHS professionals together to provide direct mental health support to children and families when they need it most.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure children in foster care are sufficiently supported in the mainstream education system.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Every local authority in England must appoint a Virtual School Head to promote the educational attainment of the children they look after, including children in foster care, wherever they live or are educated. All schools must also appoint a designated teacher with expertise in the needs of looked-after children. These children attract pupil premium plus funding of £2,630 per child up to the age of 16, managed by the Virtual School Head, to support meeting objectives in each child’s individual Personal Education Plan. We also provide post‑16 funding to help young people progress into further and higher education, training or employment. The full offer for children in care is set out in in the ‘Promoting the education of looked-after and previously looked-after children’ statutory guidance, available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/promoting-the-education-of-looked-after-children.
Through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, we are extending the Virtual School Head’s duties to include promoting the educational achievement of all children with a social worker and children in kinship care.