Asked by: Manuela Perteghella (Liberal Democrat - Stratford-on-Avon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will meet with me and my constituents to discuss the introduction of examinations in British Sign Language for deaf children.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Under Ofqual’s regulatory conditions, all students taking GCSE, AS and A level qualifications must be assessed in English, except where another language is permitted, such as in modern foreign language qualifications. Students may be assessed in British Sign Language (BSL) where an awarding organisation offers this as a reasonable adjustment. Guidance is provided by the Joint Council for Qualifications, and adjustments can include the use of BSL interpreters for spoken instructions, readers, scribes and assistive technology.
Access arrangements are also available for all national curriculum tests, and guidance is provided by the Standards and Testing Agency. This allows for adjustments such as sign language interpreters for instructions and compensatory marks for pupils with profound hearing impairments.
The government is also developing a landmark GCSE in BSL, which will be accessible for both first-time learners and existing BSL users.
I would welcome the opportunity to meet the hon. Member and her constituents to discuss this issue.
Asked by: Manuela Perteghella (Liberal Democrat - Stratford-on-Avon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of (a) the policy options and (b) delivery mechanisms available to enable local authorities to keep pavements (i) clear and (ii) safe for people.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill includes measures to empower local leaders to regulate shared on-street cycle rental schemes, such as Lime bikes, and act decisively to address any issues of poor parking and antisocial behaviour. Rental e-scooters are already tightly controlled. The Department’s guidance specifies that there should be sufficient parking in e-scooter trial areas and local authorities should ensure they do not become obstructive to others. Operators are also using geofencing technology, parking incentives and penalties to improve parking compliance.
Once the e-scooter trials end, the future framework is designed to be flexible and allows new vehicles like e-scooters, to be included as they are legalised for use on the road.
The Department has been considering all the views expressed in response to the 2020 pavement parking consultation and is currently working through the policy options and the appropriate means of delivering them.
Asked by: Manuela Perteghella (Liberal Democrat - Stratford-on-Avon)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what her planned timetable is for tackling pavement parking.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Department has been considering all the views expressed in response to the 2020 pavement parking consultation and is currently working through the policy options and the appropriate means of delivering them. We will announce the next steps and publish our formal response as soon as possible.
Asked by: Manuela Perteghella (Liberal Democrat - Stratford-on-Avon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish a national strategy for palliative and end of life care.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department and NHS England are currently looking at how to improve the access, quality, and sustainability of all-age palliative care and end of life care in line with the 10-Year Health Plan.
We are supporting the hospice sector with a £100 million capital funding boost for eligible adult and children’s hospices in England to ensure they have the best physical environment for care.
We are also providing £26 million in revenue funding to support children and young people’s hospices for 2025/26. I am pleased to confirm the continuation of circa £26 million, adjusted for inflation, for the next three financial years, from 2026/27 to 2028/29 inclusive, to be distributed again via integrated care boards. This amounts to approximately £80 million over the next three years.