Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether Young Futures hubs will work with local prevention partnerships; and whether those services will be co-located.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Young Futures Hubs will bring together services to improve access to opportunities and support for young people at community level, promoting positive outcomes, supporting crime prevention and enabling young people to thrive.
This is part of the Young Futures Programme alongside which we will establish a network of Young Futures Prevention Partnerships to bring together key partners to identify children and young people at risk of being drawn into crime and offer support in a more systematic way to divert them.
To make progress quickly and achieve impact across this programme, the department will need to build upon the existing structures it has in place, from physical buildings to local partnership working and the existing workforce.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to increase (a) awareness and (b) uptake of the Adoption and Special Guardian Support Fund for eligible families.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Local authorities, Adoption England and Regional Adoption Agencies promote the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF) to families throughout their adoption journey as a source of support should they need it.
In December 2023, the department changed the name of the Fund from the Adoption Support Fund to the ASGSF, to reflect the eligibility of special guardianship order (SGO) families and encourage increased numbers of applications for therapy where these families might need support.
The department does not hold definitive data on the number of families eligible for the ASGSF at any one time. During the period from 7 February to 31 December 2024, 18,030 individual children have accessed support through the ASGSF.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many families are eligible for the Adoption and Special Guardian Support Fund; and how many of these have accessed the fund since 7 February 2024.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Local authorities, Adoption England and Regional Adoption Agencies promote the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund (ASGSF) to families throughout their adoption journey as a source of support should they need it.
In December 2023, the department changed the name of the Fund from the Adoption Support Fund to the ASGSF, to reflect the eligibility of special guardianship order (SGO) families and encourage increased numbers of applications for therapy where these families might need support.
The department does not hold definitive data on the number of families eligible for the ASGSF at any one time. During the period from 7 February to 31 December 2024, 18,030 individual children have accessed support through the ASGSF.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of a suicide prevention strategy aimed at (a) school and (b) university students.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is committed to reducing the numbers of lives lost to suicide, including through prevention in educational institutions.
The Department of Health and Social Care published a Prevention Strategy for England on 11 September 2023 with over 130 actions aimed at reducing the suicide rate. The strategy also sets ambitions to improve support for people who self-harm and people who have been bereaved by suicide. As part of the strategy, a number of groups have been identified for consideration for tailored or targeted action at a national level, including children and young people.
Guidance to schools is reviewed regularly, including the statutory ‘Keeping children safe in education’ guidance that all schools must have regard to. Amongst other things, the guidance sets out the role all staff must play in safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, including identifying where mental health concerns are also safeguarding concerns and making appropriate referrals into early help support services and statutory support services as appropriate.
The statutory guidance for relationships, sex and health education (RSHE), which came into force in September 2020, advises that schools should approach teaching about self-harm and suicide carefully and should be aware of the risks to pupils from exposure to materials that are instructive rather than preventative, including websites or videos that provide instructions or methods of self-harm or suicide. The guidance can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/relationships-education-relationships-and-sex-education-rse-and-health-education.
The department is currently reviewing the RSHE guidance and as part of this process the department will explore whether additional content is required on suicide prevention.
The National Review of Higher Education Student Suicides will report with important lessons for better supporting students and preventing tragedies in higher education (HE) settings in the spring. This will be published alongside updated data on HE student suicides from the Office for National Statistics.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what age ranges Young Futures hubs will work with.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity. Too many children and young people today do not have access to the same enrichment opportunities as their peers, suffer from poor mental health and, in some cases, end up being drawn into crime rather than going on to achieve and thrive.
Young Futures Hubs will bring together the support services that tackle underlying needs and make them more accessible to those that need them. The department is engaging with local areas, communities, statutory partners, charities and other key stakeholders to support the design of the Young Futures Hubs, including the specific age-range they will serve. The department will share further information in due course.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an estimate of the number and proportion of children who would be eligible for free school meals had the income threshold for people on Universal Credit risen with inflation since 2018.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The new government has a central mission to break down barriers to opportunity for every child.
The government has inherited a trend of rising child poverty and widening attainment gaps between children eligible for free school meals (FSM) and their peers. Child poverty has increased by 700,000 since 2010, with over four million children now growing up in a low income family. The government is committed to delivering an ambitious strategy to reduce child poverty by tackling the root causes and giving every child the best start at life. To support this, a new ministerial taskforce has been set up to develop a Child Poverty Strategy, which will be published in spring 2025. The taskforce will consider a range of policies in assessing what will have the greatest impact in driving down rates of child poverty.
The department has not made a recent formal assessment of the proportion of children who are eligible for FSM but not registered to receive the entitlement. The last review conducted in 2013 suggested that 89% of eligible pupils were registered for FSM. We recognise the vital role played by FSM and encourage all eligible families to take their entitlement up and join the 2.1 million pupils currently registered to receive FSM. To support FSM take up, we provide the Eligibility Checking System which allows local authorities to quickly verify eligibility for FSM and ensure that it is easily received.
The department has not formally assessed the number and proportion of children who would be eligible for FSM, had the eligibility threshold for households on Universal Credit increased in line with inflation since its introduction in 2018. As with all policies, the government keeps the approach to FSM under review.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many pupils who are eligible for free school meals are not claiming it.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The new government has a central mission to break down barriers to opportunity for every child.
The government has inherited a trend of rising child poverty and widening attainment gaps between children eligible for free school meals (FSM) and their peers. Child poverty has increased by 700,000 since 2010, with over four million children now growing up in a low income family. The government is committed to delivering an ambitious strategy to reduce child poverty by tackling the root causes and giving every child the best start at life. To support this, a new ministerial taskforce has been set up to develop a Child Poverty Strategy, which will be published in spring 2025. The taskforce will consider a range of policies in assessing what will have the greatest impact in driving down rates of child poverty.
The department has not made a recent formal assessment of the proportion of children who are eligible for FSM but not registered to receive the entitlement. The last review conducted in 2013 suggested that 89% of eligible pupils were registered for FSM. We recognise the vital role played by FSM and encourage all eligible families to take their entitlement up and join the 2.1 million pupils currently registered to receive FSM. To support FSM take up, we provide the Eligibility Checking System which allows local authorities to quickly verify eligibility for FSM and ensure that it is easily received.
The department has not formally assessed the number and proportion of children who would be eligible for FSM, had the eligibility threshold for households on Universal Credit increased in line with inflation since its introduction in 2018. As with all policies, the government keeps the approach to FSM under review.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of skills training for the (a) construction, (b) planning and (c) architecture sectors.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is working closely with the construction sector to ensure its skills offer meets the needs of employers. We are working with the Construction Leadership Council (CLC), Construction Skills Delivery Group (CSDG), industry leaders and other government departments, to help more people access high-quality training and careers in construction. The CSDG has been instrumental in bringing together partners from industry, and across different government departments, to identify barriers to growth in construction and feed intelligence on how the skills offer can be shaped to best meet the needs of the industry.
This government has announced £140 million industry investment in Homebuilding Skills Hubs. These will be established by the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) and the National Housebuilding Council (NHBC) on a demand led basis, in areas where large scale homebuilding projects lead to a surge in demand. The hubs are projected to deliver over 5,000 fast track apprenticeships per year by 2027/28, in shortage occupations including Bricklaying and Groundwork, making use of the existing flexibilities in our apprenticeships system to help businesses get the skilled workers they need more quickly. This initiative represents £100 million investment from the NHBC and the CITB, an executive non-departmental public body.
The department continues to support the take-up of construction and construction-related subjects in further education. Skills, including construction, planning and architecture are crucial for the delivery of the government’s missions. The department is building a coherent, flexible, high-quality skills system to break down barriers to opportunity and drive economic growth, underpinned by a new post-16 skills and education strategy.
A wide range of government-funded programmes are available for construction employers who are considering hiring employees, offering work experience, or upskilling existing staff. These include apprenticeships, T Levels, Skills Bootcamps, and free courses for jobs.
There are currently 91 high-quality apprenticeship standards in the construction and the built environment sector, with a further two standards in development, including in occupations like level 2 scaffolder, level 3 bricklayer, and level 6 construction site manager.
The department has introduced innovations to support growth of training programmes in the sector. For example, we are making apprenticeships more flexible through flexi job apprenticeships. There are Skills Bootcamps around the country that offer courses in different areas of construction.
T Levels provide an excellent option for 16 to 19 learners and include valuable workplace experience through an industry placement of at least 45 days. Thousands of young people have benefited from T Levels such as Design, Surveying and Planning, and Building Services Engineering, which can lead to rewarding careers in the construction sector.
There are 21 Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQs) currently available in the Construction and the Built Environment occupational route, with a further 19 becoming available from September 2025. Examples of HTQs currently available in these areas include a Higher National Diploma (HND) in Modern Methods of Construction, HND in Architectural Technology and a Higher National Certificate Construction Quantity Surveying.
Following the Review of Qualifications Reform, which looked at level 3 qualifications due to be defunded by 31 July 2025, the department is retaining 12 level 3 qualifications in Construction and the Built Environment until 2026. The department’s expectation is that, at this point, the combination of A levels, T Levels and reformed qualifications will meet the needs of learners in this route.
As part of this review, the department announced that new enrolments onto the T Level in Onsite Construction will cease. Although this T Level is providing valuable education and industry experience, on the whole, its success and uptake has been limited due to the overall lack of demand for a large level 3 qualification in this area. Moving forward, the needs of learners will best be met through apprenticeships and other classroom provision as set out here.
The department is also setting up Skills England to bring together central and local government, businesses, training providers and unions to help meet the skills needs of the next decade. Aligned to the government’s industrial strategy, this work will also be underpinned by local skills improvement plans, which help make technical education and training more responsive to local labour market and employer needs, including employers in the construction section.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure adequate numbers of skilled workers in the (a) construction, (b) planning and (c) architecture sectors.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is working closely with the construction sector to ensure its skills offer meets the needs of employers. We are working with the Construction Leadership Council (CLC), Construction Skills Delivery Group (CSDG), industry leaders and other government departments, to help more people access high-quality training and careers in construction. The CSDG has been instrumental in bringing together partners from industry, and across different government departments, to identify barriers to growth in construction and feed intelligence on how the skills offer can be shaped to best meet the needs of the industry.
This government has announced £140 million industry investment in Homebuilding Skills Hubs. These will be established by the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) and the National Housebuilding Council (NHBC) on a demand led basis, in areas where large scale homebuilding projects lead to a surge in demand. The hubs are projected to deliver over 5,000 fast track apprenticeships per year by 2027/28, in shortage occupations including Bricklaying and Groundwork, making use of the existing flexibilities in our apprenticeships system to help businesses get the skilled workers they need more quickly. This initiative represents £100 million investment from the NHBC and the CITB, an executive non-departmental public body.
The department continues to support the take-up of construction and construction-related subjects in further education. Skills, including construction, planning and architecture are crucial for the delivery of the government’s missions. The department is building a coherent, flexible, high-quality skills system to break down barriers to opportunity and drive economic growth, underpinned by a new post-16 skills and education strategy.
A wide range of government-funded programmes are available for construction employers who are considering hiring employees, offering work experience, or upskilling existing staff. These include apprenticeships, T Levels, Skills Bootcamps, and free courses for jobs.
There are currently 91 high-quality apprenticeship standards in the construction and the built environment sector, with a further two standards in development, including in occupations like level 2 scaffolder, level 3 bricklayer, and level 6 construction site manager.
The department has introduced innovations to support growth of training programmes in the sector. For example, we are making apprenticeships more flexible through flexi job apprenticeships. There are Skills Bootcamps around the country that offer courses in different areas of construction.
T Levels provide an excellent option for 16 to 19 learners and include valuable workplace experience through an industry placement of at least 45 days. Thousands of young people have benefited from T Levels such as Design, Surveying and Planning, and Building Services Engineering, which can lead to rewarding careers in the construction sector.
There are 21 Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQs) currently available in the Construction and the Built Environment occupational route, with a further 19 becoming available from September 2025. Examples of HTQs currently available in these areas include a Higher National Diploma (HND) in Modern Methods of Construction, HND in Architectural Technology and a Higher National Certificate Construction Quantity Surveying.
Following the Review of Qualifications Reform, which looked at level 3 qualifications due to be defunded by 31 July 2025, the department is retaining 12 level 3 qualifications in Construction and the Built Environment until 2026. The department’s expectation is that, at this point, the combination of A levels, T Levels and reformed qualifications will meet the needs of learners in this route.
As part of this review, the department announced that new enrolments onto the T Level in Onsite Construction will cease. Although this T Level is providing valuable education and industry experience, on the whole, its success and uptake has been limited due to the overall lack of demand for a large level 3 qualification in this area. Moving forward, the needs of learners will best be met through apprenticeships and other classroom provision as set out here.
The department is also setting up Skills England to bring together central and local government, businesses, training providers and unions to help meet the skills needs of the next decade. Aligned to the government’s industrial strategy, this work will also be underpinned by local skills improvement plans, which help make technical education and training more responsive to local labour market and employer needs, including employers in the construction section.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many state-funded schools have been (a) temporarily and (b) permanently closed due to unsafe buildings in each year since 2019; and if she will list all the schools affected.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department provides capital funding, guidance and support to help responsible bodies and their schools effectively manage their school buildings. It is the responsibility of those who run schools – academy trusts, local authorities and voluntary-aided school bodies – to ensure their schools are safe, well-maintained and compliant with relevant regulations, and alert the department if there is a significant concern with a building. Local authorities and academy trusts do not need to report building closures to the department. Therefore, the department does not hold this data. The department does provide support on a case-by-case basis, working with the sector if it is alerted to a serious safety issue. The department always puts the safety and wellbeing of children and staff in schools and colleges at the heart of our policy decisions.
There are over 22,000 schools and colleges in England. The number of schools and colleges with confirmed reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) was 237, or around 1%. The department has committed to resolving this problem of RAAC as quickly as possible.
Where the presence of RAAC has been confirmed, the government is funding its removal from schools and colleges in England. The department has committed to resolving this problem as quickly as possible, permanently removing RAAC either through grant funding or the School Rebuilding Programme (SRP). Permanently removing RAAC may involve refurbishment of existing buildings or rebuilding affected buildings.
For schools and colleges receiving grants, it is for individual responsible bodies to develop project plans that suit their individual circumstances, drawing on the department’s support as needed. The scope and cost of each project will vary depending on the extent of the issue and nature and design of the buildings. Grants are agreed with responsible bodies and we support them as they take this forward.
As of 27 November 2024, 30 schools, where works are being delivered by responsible bodies via grant funding, have informed us they have permanently removed RAAC.
A total of 122 schools with confirmed RAAC have been included in SRP. Once a school enters delivery, a project team will carry out a feasibility study which will determine the scope of the works. SRP projects take on average 3 to 5 years to complete.