Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many households received more than £1,835 per month in benefits in the last period for which data is available.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Family Resources Survey (FRS) is an annual report that provides facts and figures about the incomes and living circumstances of households and families in the UK. The FRS uses a nationally representative sample of UK households and includes data on benefit receipt, at both individual and family levels.

The latest FRS is available for 2023/24 and, in the ‘Income and state support data tables’, Table 2.14a shows the number of benefit units in the UK by the total amount of annual state support received for that financial year, plus the two preceding years. This data is also available in the ‘FRS Family 2’ table in the ‘Family (Benefit Unit) Dataset’ on Stat-Xplore. Please read the notes which accompany these tables.

You can log in or access Stat-Xplore as a guest user and, if needed, you can access guidance on how to extract the information required. In addition there is also the FRS Stat-Xplore User Guide.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many households have been assessed as qualifying for each exemption from the household benefit cap in each of the last 12 months.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many households are exempt from the household benefit cap because they meet the earnings rule.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 12 December 2025 to Question 96808 on Department for Business and Trade: Career Development, how many and what proportion of Senior Civil Servants were rated in each of the box rating categories (a) exceeding, (b) high performing, (c) achieving and (d) partially met in the last year.

Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

The last complete performance year for SCS ran between 1^st April 2024 and 31^st March 2025. The proportion of ratings against each performance rating (Exceeding, High Performing, Achieving and Partially Met) are detailed below.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of staff in each grade in her Department were rated in the top performance category in the last year.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office introduced a no-rating performance management system for delegated grades in 2021 in line with external good practice. Therefore, the department cannot compare progression with performance markings / categories.

The performance management framework for Senior Civil Servants is a Cabinet Office policy, applied across the Civil Service departments including the Home Office.

In the last performance year, the proportion of staff rated in the top performance category (“Exceeding”) for Senior Civil Servants is 25.

• Senior Civil Service 1: 17 individuals (representing 6% of all SCS1 Home Office staff)

• Senior Civil Service 2: 6 individuals (representing 10% of all SCS2 Home Office staff)

• Senior Civil Service 3: <5 individuals (representing >20% of all SCS3 Home Office staff)

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the average number of working days lost to sickness absence per full-time equivalent member of staff was in (a) the Department and (b) its executive agencies in the last year; and how many formal performance warnings were issued to staff whose absence exceeded departmental triggers.

Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

Sickness absence data for the Civil Service, including departmental breakdowns is published annually, and is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/sickness-absence.

The department is not responsible for collecting or maintaining performance data for staff in its executive agencies. We do hold information on the number of formal performance warnings issued to staff within the core department; however, producing the requested information for both the core department and its executive agencies, and in the format specified, would incur disproportionate time and cost.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the total cost was of (a) settlement agreements and (b) special severance payments made to departing staff in her Department in the last year.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office does not publish specific information on settlement agreements and special severance payments for departing staff.

The Home Office does publish the overall payments made to staff exiting the department each year and this is outlined in the annual report and accounts. For 2024-25 this is featured on page 170. Home Office Annual Report and Accounts 2024 to 2025

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, in the past twelve months, how many disciplinary cases were concluded against civil servants in (a) her Department and (b) its agencies broken down by (i) outcome and (ii) whether the primary allegation related to (A) performance and (B) conduct.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

Please find table below outlining disciplinary cases by performance and conduct.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average number of working days lost to sickness absence per full-time equivalent member of staff was in (a) the Department and (b) its executive agencies in the last year; and how many formal performance warnings were issued to staff whose absence exceeded departmental triggers.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

The current Average Working Days Lost (AWDL) is 8.12. Regarding the number of performance warnings issued to staff, this can only be obtained through disproportionate effort.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, in the past twelve months, how many disciplinary cases were concluded against civil servants in (a) the Department and (b) its agencies broken down by (i) outcome and (ii) whether the primary allegation related to (A) performance and (B) conduct.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

As of 30 November 2025, the current figure for disciplinary cases stands at 1,342, covering the period from 1 December 2024 to 30 November 2025. This total includes both concluded and ongoing cases. Unfortunately, we are unable to provide a more detailed breakdown beyond this level.

Regarding information about the Department’s agencies, Skills England is being transferred to DWP, however, some functions, including HR, are still being covered by the Department for Education, therefore DWP does not hold this data.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average number of working days lost to sickness absence per full-time equivalent member of staff was in (a) the Department and (b) its executive agencies in the last year; and how many formal performance warnings were issued to staff whose absence exceeded departmental triggers.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

DWP’s absence data is publicly available in the https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/sickness-absence., which includes the average working days lost. The Cabinet Office collates sickness absence data from DWP on a quarterly basis, and this management information is published annually.

Data for the year ending 31st March 2025 was published on 16th December 2025.

In the past year, 1,649 formal performance warnings were issued to staff whose absences exceeded departmental triggers. However, because of the way data are recorded, the Department cannot confirm whether in each case the warning was specifically due to absences exceeding those triggers. As of November 2025, the total DWP headcount stands at 95,164.

DWP has one executive agency, Skills England however their HR functions is provided by Department for Education, therefore sick absence data for Skills England will not be included DWP figures.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many households received benefit payments above the level of the household benefit cap in each of the last 12 months.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the total cost was of (a) settlement agreements and (b) special severance payments made to departing departmental staff in the last year.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

This information is available in DWP’s Annual Report and Accounts 2024/25: DWP Annual Report and Accounts 2024 to 25

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of departmental staff in each grade were rated in the top performance category in the last year.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

DWP’s performance management policy utilises a team-based approach. The policy requires the performance of every employee to be robustly assessed on an ongoing basis. However, the approach does not involve employees below the Senior Civil Service being assigned a performance rating. Consequently, we are unable to provide data on employees rated in a top performance category.

For Senior Civil Servants (SCS) there are four performance ratings available within the Performance management framework for the Senior Civil Service: Exceeding, High Performing, Achieving and Partially Met. In 2024-25, the DWP Pay Committee agreed to use three of the four performance ratings available for SCS1 and SCS2s, and the ‘top’ performers were recorded as high performing. Exceeding was used for SCS3s / Director Generals (DGs), following instruction from the Senior Leadership Committee for Director General performance management which set specific criteria for the assessment of DGs to improve consistency between departments. The number and proportion of SCS in each grade rated in the top performance categories for 2024-25 was as follows:

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many and what proportion of staff in each grade were rated in the top performance category in the last year.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

In core Defra, high performance substantive senior civil servants are those with an end-year performance rating of “Exceeded”. The headcount and proportion of each grade for those employed during the period November 2024 – October 2025 were:

* Where individuals changed substantive grade during the period, they are reported against their earliest substantive grade.

c. These numbers are suppressed in accordance with the Defra data protection policy.

End-year performance decisions were removed from the performance management framework for delegated staff grades in April 2023. Delegated staff grades are recognised through continuous recognition awards.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many disciplinary cases were concluded against civil servants in (a) the Department and (b) its agencies broken down by (i) outcome and (ii) whether the primary allegation related to (A) performance and (B) conduct in the past twelve months.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

The Cabinet Office does not centrally hold detailed data on all discipline cases required to answer this question.

• Minor misconduct cases are managed within the line management chain and details are held at that level.

• Serious and gross misconduct cases are reported via a third party, Civil Service Casework, supplied by the MOJ Casework Team. This data relies on MOJ HR Case Manager manual entries which may be inaccurate and or incomplete.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the average number of working days lost to sickness absence per full-time equivalent member of staff was in (a) the Department and (b) its executive agencies in the last year; and how many formal performance warnings were issued to staff whose absence exceeded departmental triggers.

Answered by Anna Turley - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)

Sickness absence data for the Civil Service, including departmental breakdowns is published annually, and is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/sickness-absence The next update will be for the year ending 31st March 2025.

Data on performance warnings related to sickness absence is not held centrally.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the median annual earnings were for apprentices whose prior attainment was equivalent to (a) 4 As or above, (b) 360 points, (c) 300-359 points, (d) 240-299 points, (e) 180-239 points, (f) below 180 points, (g) 1 or 2 A level passes, (h) BTEC and (i) other (i) 1, (ii) 3 and (iii) 5 years after the completion of their apprenticeship in the most recent year for which data is available.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department publishes annual data on the learning and employment outcomes of apprentices, including earnings up to 5 years after completion in the Further Education Outcomes publication available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/further-education-outcomes#explore-data-and-files.

The latest published data on earnings outcomes by level for apprenticeships was published on 10 December 2025 and can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/c75d0f51-44de-418d-ccdc-08de37c05e81.

Earnings outcomes data for apprenticeships broken down by prior attainment is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many and what proportion of staff were promoted (a) in-grade and (b) to a higher grade in the last year broken down by (i) performance marking in the previous year and (ii) grade.

Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

With regards to a) the in-grade promotions: We are unclear how “in-grade promotion” should be defined in relation to the data we do hold.

Information on b) promotions to a higher grade is not held centrally. In particular, the information held centrally on outward secondments and loans does not record whether the secondment/loan is a promotion or whether it would be in-grade or not.

Collation and presentation of this data could potentially require significant manual work and data linking across departments and would come at a disproportionate cost and we are, therefore, unable to provide the information requested.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many households left the benefit cap by reason of being in receipt of an exempting benefit and where the exempting benefit was receiving Universal Credit with limited capability for work and work-related activity during each of the following periods: the quarter to August 2025, the quarter to May 2025, the quarter to February 2025 and the quarter to November 2024.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Department publishes Official Statistics on the number of households in Great Britain on Housing Benefit or Universal Credit that have flowed off the benefit cap, including outcome at off-flow, which are published quarterly on Stat-Xplore and are currently available up to the quarter to August 2025.

Statistics on the exempting benefit outcomes above are grouped in the ‘Other outcome’ category above. The Department does not produce statistics breaking down this category into individual exempting benefits and to do so would incur disproportionate cost.

Users can log in or access Stat-Xplore as a guest and, if needed, can access general guidance on how to extract the information required.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many households left the benefit cap by reason of being in receipt of an exempting benefit and where the exempting benefit was PIP during each of the following periods: the quarter to August 2025, the quarter to May 2025, the quarter to February 2025 and the quarter to November 2024.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Department publishes Official Statistics on the number of households in Great Britain on Housing Benefit or Universal Credit that have flowed off the benefit cap, including outcome at off-flow, which are published quarterly on Stat-Xplore and are currently available up to the quarter to August 2025.

Statistics on the exempting benefit outcomes above are grouped in the ‘Other outcome’ category above. The Department does not produce statistics breaking down this category into individual exempting benefits and to do so would incur disproportionate cost.

Users can log in or access Stat-Xplore as a guest and, if needed, can access general guidance on how to extract the information required.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many households left the benefit cap by reason of being in receipt of an exempting benefit during each of the following periods: the quarter to August 2025, the quarter to May 2025, the quarter to February 2025 and the quarter to November 2024.

Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Department publishes Official Statistics on the number of households in Great Britain on Housing Benefit or Universal Credit that have flowed off the benefit cap, including outcome at off-flow, which are published quarterly on Stat-Xplore and are currently available up to the quarter to August 2025.

Statistics on the exempting benefit outcomes above are grouped in the ‘Other outcome’ category above. The Department does not produce statistics breaking down this category into individual exempting benefits and to do so would incur disproportionate cost.

Users can log in or access Stat-Xplore as a guest and, if needed, can access general guidance on how to extract the information required.