Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what oversight exists when academy trusts increase executive pay in years where frontline teaching posts are reduced.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department’s Academy Trust Handbook is clear that executive pay must be justifiable and should reflect individual responsibility alongside local retention and recruitment needs. The Handbook is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/academy-trust-handbook/academy-trust-handbook-2025-effective-from-1-september-2025.
My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education’s evidence to the School Teachers’ Review Body to support the 2026 pay award recognises that the department is aware of trends of increasing executive pay and monitors this through an annual engagement exercise. The evidence was published in October 2025 here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/69034343fabc9f10a832a838/Government_evidence_to_the_STRB_2026.pdf.
The evidence also recognises that there are opportunities to drive value for money in this area. The department has started to make progress in this area with the recent introduction of executive pay into the Financial Benchmarking and Insight tool for trusts to encourage boards to make evidence-based decisions when setting executive pay.
The department engages annually on executive pay, requiring academy trusts to demonstrate value for money. The engagement considers executive responsibilities, taking into account peer benchmarking data on the level of pay, the size of trust, pupil numbers and grant income. The department will also engage on executive pay when intervening in an academy trust that is in financial difficulty.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the relationship between academy trust executive pay levels and reductions in curriculum offer or staffing.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department’s Academy Trust Handbook is clear that executive pay must be justifiable and should reflect individual responsibility alongside local retention and recruitment needs. The Handbook is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/academy-trust-handbook/academy-trust-handbook-2025-effective-from-1-september-2025.
My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education’s evidence to the School Teachers’ Review Body to support the 2026 pay award recognises that the department is aware of trends of increasing executive pay and monitors this through an annual engagement exercise. The evidence was published in October 2025 here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/69034343fabc9f10a832a838/Government_evidence_to_the_STRB_2026.pdf.
The evidence also recognises that there are opportunities to drive value for money in this area. The department has started to make progress in this area with the recent introduction of executive pay into the Financial Benchmarking and Insight tool for trusts to encourage boards to make evidence-based decisions when setting executive pay.
The department engages annually on executive pay, requiring academy trusts to demonstrate value for money. The engagement considers executive responsibilities, taking into account peer benchmarking data on the level of pay, the size of trust, pupil numbers and grant income. The department will also engage on executive pay when intervening in an academy trust that is in financial difficulty.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, What benchmarks her Department uses to assess whether academy trust executive pay represents value for money when trusts are making redundancies.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department’s Academy Trust Handbook is clear that executive pay must be justifiable and should reflect individual responsibility alongside local retention and recruitment needs. The Handbook is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/academy-trust-handbook/academy-trust-handbook-2025-effective-from-1-september-2025.
My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education’s evidence to the School Teachers’ Review Body to support the 2026 pay award recognises that the department is aware of trends of increasing executive pay and monitors this through an annual engagement exercise. The evidence was published in October 2025 here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/69034343fabc9f10a832a838/Government_evidence_to_the_STRB_2026.pdf.
The evidence also recognises that there are opportunities to drive value for money in this area. The department has started to make progress in this area with the recent introduction of executive pay into the Financial Benchmarking and Insight tool for trusts to encourage boards to make evidence-based decisions when setting executive pay.
The department engages annually on executive pay, requiring academy trusts to demonstrate value for money. The engagement considers executive responsibilities, taking into account peer benchmarking data on the level of pay, the size of trust, pupil numbers and grant income. The department will also engage on executive pay when intervening in an academy trust that is in financial difficulty.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to end child hunger in Devon.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
This government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity and tackling child hunger. That is why the department is introducing a new eligibility threshold for free school meals (FSM). This ensures that all children from households in receipt of Universal Credit will be eligible from September 2026. This will provide over half a million children from the most disadvantaged backgrounds with a free, nutritious lunchtime meal every school day. Department for Work and Pensions data shows that 36,230 children in Devon will be eligible for FSM from September 2026.
The government remains committed to deliver on its pledge to provide a free breakfast club in every state-funded school with primary-aged children. This will ensure every child, regardless of circumstance, has a supportive start to the school day. Over 750 early adopter schools are already being funded to deliver free breakfast club places for their primary pupils, including 27 in Devon. An additional 2,000 schools will join the scheme between April 2026 and March 2027, benefitting around half a million more children.
Additionally, the holiday activities and food programme provides heathy meals, enriching activities and free childcare places to children from low-income families, benefiting their heath, wellbeing and learning.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to (a) ring-fence and (b) increase funding for school infrastructure where buildings are assessed as structurally unsound.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government has given a long-term commitment for capital investment through to 2034/35 to improve the condition of schools and colleges across England, including those which may have structural issues.
The department is investing almost £3 billion per year by 2034/35 in capital maintenance and renewal of the school and college estate, rising every year from £2.4 billion in 2025/26.
This is in addition to the investment of almost £20 billion in the School Rebuilding Programme through to 2034/35, delivering rebuilding projects at over 500 schools across England within the existing programme, with a further 250 schools to be selected within the next two years. Two schools within the Newton Abbey constituency, Dawlish College and Kenton Primary School, are already part of the programme. The department aims to set out further details on the process for selecting additional schools for rebuilding later this year.
Where there are serious and urgent safety issues with school buildings, such as those which threaten closure of a school, and that cannot be managed locally by responsible bodies, the department provides additional advice and support on a case-by-case basis.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to section 58 of the Children Act 2004, if she will take legislative steps to remove the defence of reasonable punishment for parents.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The landmark Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, a key part of the government’s Plan for Change, represents the most transformative piece of child protection legislation in a generation, including wholesale reform of the children’s social care system and the introduction of measures to improve information sharing between education, police, health, justice and social workers to stop vulnerable children falling through the cracks.
While the department is looking closely at the impact of the legal changes made in Wales and Scotland in relation to reasonable punishment, we have no plans to legislate at this stage.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to improve transparency in the (a) governance, (b) financial decision-making and (c) scrutiny of leadership in academy trusts.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
High and rising standards are at the heart of this government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and ensure every child has the best life chances. Accountability is non-negotiable. This is why the government has committed to bring multi-academy trusts into the inspection system, to make the system fairer and more transparent, and enable direct intervention when schools and trusts are not performing to the required standards.
The primary responsibility for the financial oversight of academy trusts rests with the trustees themselves, supported by the financial management and governance requirements set by the department in academy trusts’ Funding Agreements, the Academy Trust Handbook, the Academies Accounts Direction and the department’s Financial Support and Oversight Guidance for Academy Trusts. The department expects academy trustees to deliver strong governance, monitor the financial health of their trust or school and ensure it remains a going concern.
All academy trusts must publish an annual report and accounts (their financial statements), which are audited by a registered statutory auditor. As part of their annual reports and accounts, academy trusts must also publish details of their objectives, achievements, and future plans, including what they have done to promote value for money in support of these projects. The department publishes data on academy finances on GOV.UK, as part of the Academies Sector Annual Report and Accounts and as part of the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool.
Where non-compliance or governance concerns are identified, the department will intervene in a way that is proportionate to the risk and preserves education provision. This can include issuing a trust with a Notice to Improve (NtI). Less than 1% of academy trusts are subject to an active NtI. In cases of financial or financial governance failure, NtIs issued to academy trusts and Investigation Reports are published on GOV.UK.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance her Department issues to academy trusts on executive pay.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The primary responsibility for the financial oversight of academy trusts, including setting executive pay, rests with the trustees themselves. Academy trusts are delivering a high standard of financial management and governance. The latest published data shows that, in the 2022/23 academic year, 97.7% of trusts had a cumulative surplus or a zero balance, with an aggregate surplus of £4.6 billion. In terms of pay trends, the latest published workforce data shows that the mean average salary for headteachers in the sector was:
The data can be read in full here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-workforce-in-england/2024.
The department engages with trusts on levels of executive pay where there is insufficient demonstration of value for money, where there is no direct link to improving pupil outcomes, or if the trust is in financial difficulty.
The department sets out its expectations on pay for academies and academy trusts in the academy trust handbook, which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/academy-trust-handbook/academy-trust-handbook-2025-effective-from-1-september-2025. Executive pay must be justifiable and should reflect the individual responsibility alongside local retention and recruitment needs.
The handbook requires that:
Academy trusts must be transparent on pay and publish the number of employees whose benefits exceed £100,000 on their websites in £10,000 bandings. Where employees are also trustees, this information must be disclosed in £5,000 bandings.
To further support academy trusts, the department has also published ‘setting executive salaries’ guidance on GOV.UK which outlines the key contextual factors that trusts should be considering when setting or reviewing executive salaries, and can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/setting-executive-salaries-guidance-for-academy-trusts/setting-executive-salaries-guidance-for-academy-trusts.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of trends in the level of executive pay in academy trusts where schools (a) are in financial deficit and (b) have made frontline staff redundancies.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The primary responsibility for the financial oversight of academy trusts, including setting executive pay, rests with the trustees themselves. Academy trusts are delivering a high standard of financial management and governance. The latest published data shows that, in the 2022/23 academic year, 97.7% of trusts had a cumulative surplus or a zero balance, with an aggregate surplus of £4.6 billion. In terms of pay trends, the latest published workforce data shows that the mean average salary for headteachers in the sector was:
The data can be read in full here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-workforce-in-england/2024.
The department engages with trusts on levels of executive pay where there is insufficient demonstration of value for money, where there is no direct link to improving pupil outcomes, or if the trust is in financial difficulty.
The department sets out its expectations on pay for academies and academy trusts in the academy trust handbook, which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/academy-trust-handbook/academy-trust-handbook-2025-effective-from-1-september-2025. Executive pay must be justifiable and should reflect the individual responsibility alongside local retention and recruitment needs.
The handbook requires that:
Academy trusts must be transparent on pay and publish the number of employees whose benefits exceed £100,000 on their websites in £10,000 bandings. Where employees are also trustees, this information must be disclosed in £5,000 bandings.
To further support academy trusts, the department has also published ‘setting executive salaries’ guidance on GOV.UK which outlines the key contextual factors that trusts should be considering when setting or reviewing executive salaries, and can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/setting-executive-salaries-guidance-for-academy-trusts/setting-executive-salaries-guidance-for-academy-trusts.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has a process for (a) reviewing and (b) approving executive pay rises in multi-academy trusts.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The primary responsibility for the financial oversight of academy trusts, including setting executive pay, rests with the trustees themselves. Academy trusts are delivering a high standard of financial management and governance. The latest published data shows that, in the 2022/23 academic year, 97.7% of trusts had a cumulative surplus or a zero balance, with an aggregate surplus of £4.6 billion. In terms of pay trends, the latest published workforce data shows that the mean average salary for headteachers in the sector was:
The data can be read in full here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-workforce-in-england/2024.
The department engages with trusts on levels of executive pay where there is insufficient demonstration of value for money, where there is no direct link to improving pupil outcomes, or if the trust is in financial difficulty.
The department sets out its expectations on pay for academies and academy trusts in the academy trust handbook, which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/academy-trust-handbook/academy-trust-handbook-2025-effective-from-1-september-2025. Executive pay must be justifiable and should reflect the individual responsibility alongside local retention and recruitment needs.
The handbook requires that:
Academy trusts must be transparent on pay and publish the number of employees whose benefits exceed £100,000 on their websites in £10,000 bandings. Where employees are also trustees, this information must be disclosed in £5,000 bandings.
To further support academy trusts, the department has also published ‘setting executive salaries’ guidance on GOV.UK which outlines the key contextual factors that trusts should be considering when setting or reviewing executive salaries, and can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/setting-executive-salaries-guidance-for-academy-trusts/setting-executive-salaries-guidance-for-academy-trusts.