Asked by: Maya Ellis (Labour - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if her Department will make an assessment of the sustainability of local news outlets in (a) Ribble Valley and (b) Lancashire.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Sustainability of local journalism across the country is an area of particular concern for this Government, including in Ribble Valley and Lancashire. The Government understands the important work that local news does across the UK, including outlets such as the Lancs Live and the Lancashire Telegraph. We are developing a Local Media Strategy, in recognition of the importance of this vital sector. Our vision is a thriving local media that can continue to play an invaluable role as a key channel of trustworthy information at local level, reporting on the issues that matter to communities, reflecting their contributions and perspectives, and helping to foster a self-confident nation in which everyone feels that their contribution is part of an inclusive national story.
We are working across Government and with other stakeholders as the Strategy develops, and we recently held a roundtable discussion with local news editors to discuss our planned approach and collaboration with industry on the Strategy. An industry working group has now been set up to consider the issues in more detail and we will announce more in the coming months.
Asked by: Maya Ellis (Labour - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to provide financial support to professionals in the creative sector.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The government provides financial support to creative professionals through DCMS funding programmes, grants from arm’s length bodies and wider government support, including through InnovateUK.
The Creative Industries Sector Plan sets out an ambitious target to increase annual investment in the Creative Industries from £17 billion to £31 billion by 2035 and delivers £380 million of targeted spending in the sector over the next Spending Review. This builds on the £40 million in funding announced earlier this year, supporting cross-sector initiatives plus programmes in music, video games, film and TV.
Asked by: Maya Ellis (Labour - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the level of attainment was of (a) girls and (b) boys under 11 in (i) maths and (ii) sciences in Ribble Valley constituency in the latest period for which data is available.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The percentage of girls and boys in the Ribble Valley constituency at the end of key stage 2, that met the expected standard in mathematics and science in 2023/24, is provided in the table below.
| Mathematics | Science |
Girls | 78% | 88% |
Boys | 80% | 84% |
Asked by: Maya Ellis (Labour - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of trends in levels of rural crime in Ribble Valley constituency; and what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to support (a) local police forces and (b) rural communities in tackling rural crime.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
Rural crime can have devastating consequences for countryside communities and the agricultural sector. That is why this Government is committed to reducing crime in rural areas.
Under our Safer Streets Mission reforms, rural communities will be safeguarded, with tougher measures to clamp down on anti-social behaviour, strengthened neighbourhood policing and stronger measures to prevent theft of farm equipment and fly-tipping.
The Government is committed to strong neighbourhood policing for everyone in England and Wales, wherever they live. On 10 April, the Prime Minister outlined further details about our Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, including that by July, every community, including rural communities, will have named and contactable officers dedicated to addressing local issues.
This financial year we will be providing the first Home Office funding since 2023 for the National Rural Crime Unit (NRCU), as well as continuing funding for the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU). The funding boost of over £800,000 in total will help the units tackle those crimes that predominantly affect our rural communities.
This will allow these specialist units to continue their work in tackling rural and wildlife crime which can pose unique challenges for policing given the scale and isolation of rural areas.
The National Police Chiefs’ Council Wildlife and Rural Crime Strategy 2022-2025 provides a framework through which policing, and its partners can work together to tackle the most prevalent threats and emerging issues which predominantly affect rural communities NPCC-Wildlife-Rural-Crime-Strategy-2022-2025.pdf (nwcu.police.uk). We are working closely with the NPCC and Defra to deliver the next iteration of their strategy, to ensure the Government’s Safer Streets Mission benefits every community no matter where they live, including rural communities.
Asked by: Maya Ellis (Labour - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department plans to take to (a) increase the provision of and (b) improve autism services in (i) Ribble Valley constituency and (ii) Lancashire.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 5 April 2023, NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance to help integrated care boards (ICBs) and the National Health Service to deliver improved outcomes for children, young people and adults referred to an autism assessment service. The guidance also sets out what support should be available before an assessment and what support should follow a recent diagnosis of autism, based on the available evidence. Since publication, NHS England has been supporting systems and services to identify where there are challenges for implementation and how they might overcome these.
The NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria ICB has secured £1.8 million in funding to improve the Neurodivergent Pathway across Lancashire and South Cumbria, which the ICB has decided will primarily focus on children and young people (CYP) in the first instance, given the complexities and inconsistency of current CYP pathways. This investment will support frontline services, digital systems, a redesign of clinical pathways, and an increase in direct support available for families and young people. The ICB is working closely with Lancashire County Council and local schools to ensure the offer is joined up. The ICB has also commissioned an all-age online pre- and post-diagnostic support resource.
Asked by: Maya Ellis (Labour - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people have (a) applied for and (b) been awarded Pension Credit in Ribble Valley constituency since 10 July 2024.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Department is not currently able to provide constituency data on Pension Credit applications and awards.
Statistics on Pension Credit application volumes, for Great Britain only, were published on 29th May 2025. This includes numbers of applications that were received, awarded and not awarded, and outstanding, from week commencing 3rd April 2023 up to week commencing 19th May 2025: Pension Credit applications and awards: May 2025. The next quarterly release of Pension Credit applications and awards statistics for Great Britian has been announced for late-August 2025: Pension Credit Applications and Awards Statistics: August 2025 - Official statistics announcement - GOV.UK.
Asked by: Maya Ellis (Labour - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of mandating sustainable urban drainage systems in future planning developments to tackle (a) climate challenges, (b) water availability and (c) flood resilience.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 44742 on 22 April 2025.
Asked by: Maya Ellis (Labour - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with the Care Quality Commission on whether the increase in the level of NHS-funded nursing care has increased the quality of care provided in care homes.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
There have been no discussions between the department and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) on NHS-funded nursing care (FNC).
The department is responsible for FNC policy and for setting the FNC rate each year. NHSE and integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for the implementation of FNC, including paying the FNC rate direct to care homes with nursing.
The FNC rate for 2025/26 increased by 7.7% from the 2024/25 rate. From the 1 April 2025, this increases the standard weekly rate per eligible individual from £235.88 to £254.06 and from £324.50 to £349.50 for the higher rate payment. FNC contributes to the provision of nursing care by a registered nurse and does not cover the costs of wider non-nursing care or accommodation. The rate increase accounts for the increase in the cost of providing nursing care.
Providers registered with CQC are expected to comply with the fundamental standards under the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. CQC monitor and assess services and publish their findings, and can take regulatory and enforcement action if services are not providing people with safe, effective, compassionate, high-quality care.
Asked by: Maya Ellis (Labour - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people were recruited into National Institute for Health and Care Research supported phase 3 trials for (a) dementia, (b) cancer, (c) stroke and (d) coronary heart disease in the last five years.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
A table showing the number of participants recruited into phase three trials in England, supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research, for dementia, cancer, stroke, and coronary heart disease in the last five years is attached. It should be noted that this includes studies on atherothrombosis and the prevention of coronary artery disease.
The numbers of participants declined between the years 2020/21 and 2021/22. While it is not possible to confirm the exact reasons for this decline, this is likely due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the focus on recruiting participants to urgent COVID-19 studies over these years. Other fluctuations are likely due to large sample size studies within the dataset, which have since opened or closed recruitment.
Asked by: Maya Ellis (Labour - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of exempting parents from fines for school absences caused by their child's (a) neuro diverse needs and (b) pathological demand avoidance.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Tackling absence is at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity. Thanks to the efforts of the sector, overall absence is moving in the right direction, with children attending over 3.1 million more days this year compared to last, and over 100,000 fewer children persistently absent.
Some children face complex barriers to attendance, such as pupils who have special educational needs and disabilities. Whatever the cause of absence, school staff should always first work with families and pupils to understand the barriers to attendance and provide support where possible. This might include providing pastoral support or making reasonable adjustments where a pupil has a disability. Our statutory guidance expects this ‘support first’ approach from all types of school. The guidance can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-improve-school-attendance.
The law does not exempt parents from receiving penalty notices for absence based solely on their child’s characteristics. It is up to the school and the local authority to decide whether to issue a penalty notice for unauthorised absence or not. They retain discretion about whether to issue a penalty notice because only they know the specific facts of the particular case.
The decision to issue a penalty notice must be made on an individual case by case basis and should only be used in cases where it is deemed likely to change parental behaviour and improve attendance, and in cases where support has already been provided and has not worked or not been engaged with or is not appropriate. For example, in cases of holidays taken in term-time.