Asked by: Michael Wheeler (Labour - Worsley and Eccles)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the average funding per pupil was in mainstream schools in (a) Worsley and Eccles constituency, (b) Salford (c) Wigan (d) the North West and (e) England in each of the last five years.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Local authorities receive their core funding for schools through the dedicated schools grant (DSG). Local authorities are then responsible for designing a local formula, within certain parameters, to distribute the funding that they receive from the department to schools in their area. This local formula is used to determine funding for both the maintained schools and academies in each area.
As the DSG is allocated at local authority level, DSG allocations broken down to the level of individual constituencies are not available. The individual allocations that schools within Worsley and Eccles constituency receive are determined by the local funding formula set each year by Salford and Wigan local authorities.
However, the DSG funding allocations at local authority, regional and national level for each of the last five years are set out below. The per-pupil funding figures include premises funding but exclude growth and falling rolls funding.
| One Year per-pupil funding | |||
| Salford | Wigan | North West | England |
2021/22 | £ 5,474 | £ 5,069 | £ 5,221 | £ 5,228 |
2022/23 | £ 5,638 | £ 5,199 | £ 5,366 | £ 5,374 |
2023/24 | £ 5,972 | £ 5,472 | £ 5,644 | £ 5,648 |
2024/25 | £ 6,315 | £ 5,776 | £ 5,962 | £ 5,957 |
2025/26 | £ 6,816 | £ 6,266 | £ 6,454 | £ 6,443 |
Asked by: Michael Wheeler (Labour - Worsley and Eccles)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many Sure Start centres have closed in (a) Salford and (b) Wigan since May 2010; and what the (i) name and (ii) postcode was of each centre.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Data on Sure Start children’s centres is supplied by local authorities via the department’s Get Information about Schools (GIAS) database portal, which can be accessed here: https://www.get-information-schools.service.gov.uk/.
Based on information supplied by Salford and Wigan local authorities, no centres have closed in Salford or Wigan since May 2010. However, Salford local authority has converted 11 children’s centres into children’s centre linked sites since May 2010. Wigan local authority has converted 15 children’s centres into children’s centre linked sites since May 2010. ‘Children’s centre linked sites’ are formerly children's centres in their own right, but they no longer meet the statutory definition of a children’s centre. They offer some early childhood services on behalf of another children's centre.
The information on children’s centres closed since May 2010 is based on data supplied by the local authorities for Salford and Wigan as at 14 February 2025. These figures could change again in future, since local authorities may update the database at any time.
Asked by: Michael Wheeler (Labour - Worsley and Eccles)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that (a) people enrolling on a second undergraduate degree course, (b) people enrolling on a five-year degree course and (c) other returning learners receive adequate support via the additional entitlement within the new Lifelong Learning Entitlement scheme.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Under the Lifelong Learning Entitlement, new learners will be able to access a full entitlement equal to four years of full-time tuition. This is currently equal to £38,140 based on the fee rates for the 2025/26 academic year. Returning learners who have previously received government support to undertake higher-level learning will have a reduced entitlement that is dependent on the level of funding they have already received.
For example, a typical graduate who completed a 3-year degree worth £28,605 based on current fees will have a £9,535 residual entitlement (or 1 year of full-time study). This amount will be adjusted should the modern fee limit change.
An additional entitlement above the core four year entitlement will be available for some priority subjects and longer courses, such as medicine. This will ensure that learners can always gain skills in priority areas, regardless of remaining entitlement or previous qualifications.
The government will publish a list of subjects eligible for additional entitlement in 2025. This will include information on degrees longer than 4 years. We will also work with the Student Loans Company and the sector to ensure that learners have access to high-quality information, advice and guidance which supports them to make informed decisions about their entitlement and learning journey.
Asked by: Michael Wheeler (Labour - Worsley and Eccles)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many apprenticeships have started in Worsley and Eccles constituency in each of the last six years.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Apprenticeship starts by Parliamentary constituency between the 2018/19 and 2023/24 academic years are published in the Apprenticeships statistics publication, which is available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/ac6bc11a-b1ec-45a2-021e-08dd45ba797d.