Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of providing funding for a Best Start centre in York.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The government is committed to giving every child the best start in life. We will fund Best Start Family Hubs (BSFH) in every local authority to ensure all children and families who need support the most can access it. Backed by over £500 million, the rollout will deliver up to 1,000 BSFH nationwide by the end of 2028, reaching an estimated additional 500,000 children.
These Hubs will be key to our vision for joined-up services in the community, bringing together professionals from health and education, and will work with nurseries, childminders, schools, health services, libraries and local voluntary and community groups.
BSFH will be open to all families, but we know they are particularly important for families who are disadvantaged or have additional needs or vulnerabilities. That is why we have set an ambition that 70% of Hubs should be in the 30% most deprived areas nationally. It is for the local authority to decide where a Hub should be located to best meet the needs of the area.
Tackling child poverty is at the heart of this government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best start in life. Our landmark Child Poverty Strategy will lift 550,000 children out of poverty by 2030. The department will prioritise funding the continuation of existing Healthy Babies (formerly Start for Life) services that support babies to have the healthiest start in life, including perinatal mental health, parent infant relationships and infant feeding.
In addition, we raised the early years pupil premium by 45% in April 2025 to support improving educational outcomes for disadvantaged children and break the cycle of poverty.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how is she supporting (a) babies growing up in poverty and (b) ensuring that early inequalities are addressed.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The government is committed to giving every child the best start in life. We will fund Best Start Family Hubs (BSFH) in every local authority to ensure all children and families who need support the most can access it. Backed by over £500 million, the rollout will deliver up to 1,000 BSFH nationwide by the end of 2028, reaching an estimated additional 500,000 children.
These Hubs will be key to our vision for joined-up services in the community, bringing together professionals from health and education, and will work with nurseries, childminders, schools, health services, libraries and local voluntary and community groups.
BSFH will be open to all families, but we know they are particularly important for families who are disadvantaged or have additional needs or vulnerabilities. That is why we have set an ambition that 70% of Hubs should be in the 30% most deprived areas nationally. It is for the local authority to decide where a Hub should be located to best meet the needs of the area.
Tackling child poverty is at the heart of this government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best start in life. Our landmark Child Poverty Strategy will lift 550,000 children out of poverty by 2030. The department will prioritise funding the continuation of existing Healthy Babies (formerly Start for Life) services that support babies to have the healthiest start in life, including perinatal mental health, parent infant relationships and infant feeding.
In addition, we raised the early years pupil premium by 45% in April 2025 to support improving educational outcomes for disadvantaged children and break the cycle of poverty.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Health on enabling directors of children's services to commission CAMHS services in partnership with mental health trusts.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The departments are working closely together to ensure every child has the best start in life and to improve access to local mental health support for all children.
This includes:
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she has taken to ensure family hubs are accessible for adoptive and kinship families.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Best Start Family Hubs (BSFHs) will be open to all families, including adoptive and kindship families. Best Start Family Hubs (BSFHs) are focused on universal, preventative services, targeting disadvantaged families. They can also serve as a non-stigmatising gateway for more targeted, intensive, support delivered by Family Help services and other interventions.
Parents and carers including adoptive and kinship families will have access to a universal offer of parenting programmes through their local hub, alongside targeted support for those most in need.
When adoptive and kinship families walk through the door of their local BSFH, they should be able to see evidence of various services co-located in one place and be easily connected to a wider range of support delivered elsewhere in the BSFH network. BSFHs should bring together a wide range of statutory and non-statutory services for children ages 0 to 5 within BSFHs, spanning education, childcare, health and social care.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 15 October to Question 78154, how much of the £500 million allocated to local authorities for Family Help services is being allocated to help adoptive and kinship families with post placement support.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Family Help reforms are being delivered nationally through the Families First Partnership programme, offering services to all families, including adoptive and kinship families.
On 20 November, we announced additional investment of £547 million, bringing total programme funding to £2.4 billion over this Spending Review period. This funding demonstrates the government’s commitment to invest in prevention, supporting local authorities and partners to deliver reformed help and protection services that make a real difference to families.
It is for local authorities to determine how best to make use of these resources to support adoptive and kinship families with the help they need.
The department will soon pilot a new Kinship Allowance in some local authorities in England, which will support around 4,500 children. This will test whether paying an allowance to cover certain costs can help increase the number of children taken in by family members and friends.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what measures are being undertaken to recruit speech and language therapists.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department is working closely with the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England to improve access to community health services, including speech and language therapy, for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities. This includes extending the Early Language and Support for Every Child programme, trialling new ways of working to better identify and support children with Speech, Language and Communication Needs in early years settings and primary schools.
In addition to the undergraduate degree route, speech and language therapists can also train via a degree apprenticeship. This route is now in its fourth year of delivery and offers an alternative pathway to the traditional degree route into a successful career as a speech and language therapist.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to assess the impact of the April 2025 changes to the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund, including (a) the reduction in the fair access limit and (b) reductions in funding for (i) assessments and (ii) match funding.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The new criteria for the adoption and special guardianship support fund will enable as many children and families as possible to access support. So far this year, over 12,500 applications have been approved, including almost 1,000 applications for specialist assessments. The department continues to monitor and assess the impact of the changes and is engaging with stakeholders.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 15 October 2025 to Question 78154 on Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund, what steps she has taken to ensure (a) adoptive and (b) kinship families receive appropriate help from local authority Family Help services.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is committed to rebalancing the children’s social care system, which is why we are rolling out the Families First Partnership programme. On 20 November, we announced additional investment of £547 million, bringing the total funding provided for the programme to £2.4 billion over the next three years. This demonstrates our commitment to invest in prevention, supporting local authorities, working in collaboration with partners, to deliver reformed help and protection services that make a real, tangible difference to families.
We will spend close to £1.5 billion over the next three years on improving family services and early years education. Best Start Family Hubs are backed by £500 million of this investment between 2026 and 2029.
It is for local authorities to determine how best to make use of these resources to support adoptive and kinship families with the help they need.