Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of opportunities for childcare providers to feedback on plans for the sector.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department is working with the sector to create an integrated early years and childcare system that works for parents and gives every child the best start in life.

Childcare providers’ feedback, intelligence and engagement are at the heart of the department’s way of working.

Departmental officials and ministers meet regularly with sector representatives including the National Partnership in Early Learning and Childcare (NPELC), the London Early Years Foundation (LEAF), the Early Education and Childcare Coalition (EECC) and the Professional Association for Childcare and Early Years (PACEY) to gather feedback and inform policy development and delivery.

Departmental officials meet regularly with each local authority and ministers visit settings across England to gather feedback from managers, staff, childminders and parents.

Since January 2024, we have been running provider roadshows across England to support the expansion of childcare entitlements, giving hundreds of providers the opportunity to speak directly to policy officials on a range of early years topics.

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 improve postnatal care services for mothers (a) with mental health challenges and (b) in rural areas.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We are committed to ensuring that women, including those living in rural areas, receive safe and equitable care, regardless of where they live or give birth.

NHS England’s guidance sets out that all women who have given birth should be offered a postnatal check-up with their general practitioner (GP) after six to eight weeks. This check-up provides an important opportunity for women to be listened to by their GP in a discreet, supportive environment, and for women to be assessed and supported not just in their physical recovery post-birth, but also in their mental health.

For women with, or at risk of, mental health problems, who are planning a pregnancy, are pregnant, or who have a baby up to two years old, specialist perinatal mental health services provide care in all 42 integrated care system (ICS) areas of England. For women experiencing mental health difficulties directly arising from, or related to, their maternity or neonatal experience, Maternal Mental Health Services provide care in 41 of the 42 ICS areas in England, with the last being supported by NHS England to ensure it is up and running as soon as possible.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to extend the free childcare offer to parents in (a) education and (b) training.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The government is committed to delivering the expansion of the 30 hours free childcare offer so that, from September 2025, eligible working parents in England will be able to access 30 hours of free childcare per week, over 38 weeks of the year, from the term after their child turns nine months old to when they start school. Accessible and high-quality early education and childcare is a crucial part of giving every child the best start in life, boosting children’s life chances and giving parents work choices.

Students who work in addition to their studies and earn the equivalent of at least 16 hours a week at National Minimum Wage, which is equivalent to £183 per week/£9,518 per year in 2024/25, and under £100,000 adjusted net income per year, may be eligible for this offer. If parents are unable to meet this threshold, they will remain eligible for the universal 15 hours of free early education, which is available to all three and four-year-olds regardless of family circumstances.

We recognise the value of parents continuing in education and provide a range of support for students in further or higher education (HE) to support them with childcare. Support available to full-time HE students with dependent children includes the Childcare Grant and Parents’ Learning Allowance. Entitlement to these grants is based on a student’s household income.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the sustainability of childcare in breakfast and after school clubs which rely on volunteers.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Schools have the discretion to identify the most appropriate workforce to deliver their breakfast and after school clubs, depending on their school’s context, existing staff contracts and arrangements and the mix of skills and experience required.

The department does not collect data on the number of breakfast and after school clubs run by volunteers, however these clubs can be led by various individuals, including teachers, teaching assistants, school catering staff, volunteers such as parents or others specifically hired to deliver the role. As such, the department has not made any specific assessment of the sustainability of breakfast and after school clubs that rely on volunteers.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many breakfast and after school clubs are run by volunteers in the latest period for which data is available.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Schools have the discretion to identify the most appropriate workforce to deliver their breakfast and after school clubs, depending on their school’s context, existing staff contracts and arrangements and the mix of skills and experience required.

The department does not collect data on the number of breakfast and after school clubs run by volunteers, however these clubs can be led by various individuals, including teachers, teaching assistants, school catering staff, volunteers such as parents or others specifically hired to deliver the role. As such, the department has not made any specific assessment of the sustainability of breakfast and after school clubs that rely on volunteers.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 25 March 2025 to Question 36961, whether there is a licensed direct infant immunisation for respiratory syncytial virus; and if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of maternal rather than direct infant immunisation on health outcomes.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Government’s decisions on who to offer immunisations to, and which products are suitable, are based on expert advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI).

In June 2023 the JCVI advised, for infant protection against the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), for either a programme of maternal antenatal vaccination with Pfizer’s Abrysvo PreF vaccine or for infant immunisation with Sanofi’s monoclonal antibody nirsevimab (Beyfortus). Following a competitive tender, the new RSV vaccination programmes began in September 2024 for older adults and pregnant mothers, to protect infants, both using the Pfizer vaccine.

The UK Health Security Agency undertakes evaluation of national immunisation programmes and will be evaluating the impact and effectiveness of the RSV maternal vaccination programme for infant protection, once sufficient data is available. The JCVI will continue to keep the RSV programme under close review.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of eligible families are receiving Healthy Start in Ribble Valley constituency.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) operates the Healthy Start scheme on behalf of the Department. Monthly figures for the number of people on the digital Healthy Start scheme are published on the NHS Healthy Start website, which is available at the following link:

https://www.healthystart.nhs.uk/healthcare-professionals/

The NHSBSA does not hold data on the number of families receiving Healthy Start. The number of people on the scheme in March 2025 for Ribble Valley was 104.

The NHSBSA does not currently hold data on the number of people who are eligible for the scheme. An issue was identified with the source data that is used to calculate uptake of the NHS Healthy Start scheme. The NHSBSA has therefore removed data for the number of people eligible for the scheme and the uptake percentage from January 2023 onwards.

The issue has only affected the data on the number of people eligible for the scheme. It has not prevented anyone from joining the scheme or continuing to access the scheme if they were eligible.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to her Department's ambition for 75% of five-year-olds to be school ready by 2028, whether she plans to set sub-targets on outcomes for children with Special Education Needs and Disabilities.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Children’s early years are crucial to their development, health and life chances. That is why the Plan for Change set out the government’s ambition for a record proportion of children starting school ready to learn in the classroom. The department will measure our progress through 75% of children reaching a good level of development in the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile assessment by 2028.

We are clear that in driving progress towards our milestone we must deliver better early education experiences and outcomes for children from low-income families and children with special educational needs and disabilities. The department will set out further plans in due course.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to set targets for the school readiness of children from low-income families.

Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Children’s early years are crucial to their development, health and life chances. That is why the Plan for Change set out the government’s ambition for a record proportion of children starting school ready to learn in the classroom. The department will measure our progress through 75% of children reaching a good level of development in the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile assessment by 2028.

We are clear that in driving progress towards our milestone we must deliver better early education experiences and outcomes for children from low-income families and children with special educational needs and disabilities. The department will set out further plans in due course.

Found: Q68 Chair: We have had apologies from Lee Dillon, Maya Ellis, Sarah Smith and Naushabah Khan for this

Found: Broxbourne) Chris Curtis (Labour; Milton Keynes North) Mr Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat; Newbury) Maya Ellis

Found: Watch the meeting Members present: Florence Eshalomi (Chair); Lewis Cocking; Maya Ellis; Mr Will Forster

Found: 926487 | Email: sarah.smith.mp@parliament.uk SarahSmithForHH @Sarahsmithlab Sarah Smith MP Maya Ellis

Found: Snell supported by David Baines, Shaun Davies, Dave Robertson, Laurence Turner, Liam Byrne, Maya Ellis