Sandy Martin

Bright Tribe Trust, along with all academy trusts, is subject to a rigorous system of oversight and accountability, allowing us to take action to deal with under-performance, including transferring schools to new trusts when necessary. The Education and Skills Funding Agency has worked with Bright Tribe Trust since 2015 to ensure the best outcomes for their pupils and academies.

More broadly, it is important to place the Bright Tribe case into context and emphasise that the financial health of the academies sector is strong; and in the most recent published financial statements, we found that more than 95% of trusts had no issues.

The Department are spending record sums on school funding, rising from £41 billion to £42.4 billion this year and £43.5 billion next year.

The national funding formula (NFF) gives every local authority more money for every pupil in every school in 2018-19 and 2019-20. To help in transition to the NFF, local authorities have flexibility on how this funding is distributed in their local area.

By 2019-20, we will be spending approximately £6 billion a year on childcare support, including £1 billion to deliver 30 hours of free childcare and pay the higher funding rates that were introduced in April 2017.

These rates were based on our ‘Review of Childcare Costs’, which was described as thorough and wide ranging by the National Audit Office.

We are providing tailored support to providers on business sustainability and continue to monitor the implementation of 30 hours of free childcare.

The government recognises the importance of supporting pupils at school with medical conditions. Section 100 of the Children and Families Act 2014 introduced a duty that requires governing boards to make arrangements to support pupils with medical conditions. Most schools manage these issues well and take their responsibilities towards pupils with such conditions seriously, making sure that the medical needs of their pupils are being met.

The department works with organisations such as the Health Conditions in Schools Alliance to raise awareness of the duty, and recently promoted it through the department’s social media channels.

Governing boards should ensure that schools develop a policy for supporting pupils with medical conditions that is reviewed regularly and is readily accessible to parents and school staff. We keep the guidance under review, including in the context of school awareness, and the role it plays in securing accessibility of school policies.

This guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/supporting-pupils-at-school-with-medical-conditions--3.

The government recognises the importance of supporting pupils at school with medical conditions. Section 100 of the Children and Families Act 2014 introduced a duty that requires governing boards to make arrangements to support pupils with medical conditions. Most schools manage these issues well and take their responsibilities towards pupils with such conditions seriously, making sure that the medical needs of their pupils are being met.

The department works with organisations such as the Health Conditions in Schools Alliance to raise awareness of the duty, and recently promoted it through the department’s social media channels.

Governing boards should ensure that schools develop a policy for supporting pupils with medical conditions that is reviewed regularly and is readily accessible to parents and school staff. We keep the guidance under review, including in the context of school awareness, and the role it plays in securing accessibility of school policies.

This guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/supporting-pupils-at-school-with-medical-conditions--3.

School governing boards should ensure that all schools develop a policy for supporting pupils with medical conditions that is reviewed regularly and is readily accessible to parents and school staff. The department does not hold information on individual diabetes episodes within schools, nor on the extent to which governing boards are making arrangements within their school policies for the support of pupils with medical conditions to give specific consideration to the needs of pupils with Type 1 Diabetes.

Statutory guidance on supporting pupils at school with medical conditions includes information for schools on developing school policies. We have also provided a collection of links to useful resources to help schools support their pupils with medical conditions. This includes links to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation / East of England Children and Young People Diabetes Network; and to Diabetes UK website, which includes a sample medical conditions policy.

Ofsted’s Common Inspection Framework requires inspectors, in making judgements upon schools, to pay particular attention to the outcomes of a range of groups of pupils, including those with medical needs. Ofsted included guidance to inspectors on this matter in their March 2017 school inspection update, reminding inspectors that they should consider how schools are meeting the needs of pupils with medical conditions. The content of inspection frameworks and training of inspectors are matters for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector.

Governing boards must make reasonable adjustments to ensure that disabled children and young people are not at a substantial disadvantage compared with their peers. This duty is anticipatory: adjustments must be planned and put in place in advance, to prevent that disadvantage.

School governing boards should ensure that all schools develop a policy for supporting pupils with medical conditions that is reviewed regularly and is readily accessible to parents and school staff. The department does not hold information on individual diabetes episodes within schools, nor on the extent to which governing boards are making arrangements within their school policies for the support of pupils with medical conditions to give specific consideration to the needs of pupils with Type 1 Diabetes.

Statutory guidance on supporting pupils at school with medical conditions includes information for schools on developing school policies. We have also provided a collection of links to useful resources to help schools support their pupils with medical conditions. This includes links to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation / East of England Children and Young People Diabetes Network; and to Diabetes UK website, which includes a sample medical conditions policy.

Ofsted’s Common Inspection Framework requires inspectors, in making judgements upon schools, to pay particular attention to the outcomes of a range of groups of pupils, including those with medical needs. Ofsted included guidance to inspectors on this matter in their March 2017 school inspection update, reminding inspectors that they should consider how schools are meeting the needs of pupils with medical conditions. The content of inspection frameworks and training of inspectors are matters for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector.

Governing boards must make reasonable adjustments to ensure that disabled children and young people are not at a substantial disadvantage compared with their peers. This duty is anticipatory: adjustments must be planned and put in place in advance, to prevent that disadvantage.

School governing boards should ensure that all schools develop a policy for supporting pupils with medical conditions that is reviewed regularly and is readily accessible to parents and school staff. The department does not hold information on individual diabetes episodes within schools, nor on the extent to which governing boards are making arrangements within their school policies for the support of pupils with medical conditions to give specific consideration to the needs of pupils with Type 1 Diabetes.

Statutory guidance on supporting pupils at school with medical conditions includes information for schools on developing school policies. We have also provided a collection of links to useful resources to help schools support their pupils with medical conditions. This includes links to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation / East of England Children and Young People Diabetes Network; and to Diabetes UK website, which includes a sample medical conditions policy.

Ofsted’s Common Inspection Framework requires inspectors, in making judgements upon schools, to pay particular attention to the outcomes of a range of groups of pupils, including those with medical needs. Ofsted included guidance to inspectors on this matter in their March 2017 school inspection update, reminding inspectors that they should consider how schools are meeting the needs of pupils with medical conditions. The content of inspection frameworks and training of inspectors are matters for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector.

Governing boards must make reasonable adjustments to ensure that disabled children and young people are not at a substantial disadvantage compared with their peers. This duty is anticipatory: adjustments must be planned and put in place in advance, to prevent that disadvantage.

School governing boards should ensure that all schools develop a policy for supporting pupils with medical conditions that is reviewed regularly and is readily accessible to parents and school staff. The department does not hold information on individual diabetes episodes within schools, nor on the extent to which governing boards are making arrangements within their school policies for the support of pupils with medical conditions to give specific consideration to the needs of pupils with Type 1 Diabetes.

Statutory guidance on supporting pupils at school with medical conditions includes information for schools on developing school policies. We have also provided a collection of links to useful resources to help schools support their pupils with medical conditions. This includes links to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation / East of England Children and Young People Diabetes Network; and to Diabetes UK website, which includes a sample medical conditions policy.

Ofsted’s Common Inspection Framework requires inspectors, in making judgements upon schools, to pay particular attention to the outcomes of a range of groups of pupils, including those with medical needs. Ofsted included guidance to inspectors on this matter in their March 2017 school inspection update, reminding inspectors that they should consider how schools are meeting the needs of pupils with medical conditions. The content of inspection frameworks and training of inspectors are matters for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector.

Governing boards must make reasonable adjustments to ensure that disabled children and young people are not at a substantial disadvantage compared with their peers. This duty is anticipatory: adjustments must be planned and put in place in advance, to prevent that disadvantage.

School governing boards should ensure that all schools develop a policy for supporting pupils with medical conditions that is reviewed regularly and is readily accessible to parents and school staff. The department does not hold information on individual diabetes episodes within schools, nor on the extent to which governing boards are making arrangements within their school policies for the support of pupils with medical conditions to give specific consideration to the needs of pupils with Type 1 Diabetes.

Statutory guidance on supporting pupils at school with medical conditions includes information for schools on developing school policies. We have also provided a collection of links to useful resources to help schools support their pupils with medical conditions. This includes links to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation / East of England Children and Young People Diabetes Network; and to Diabetes UK website, which includes a sample medical conditions policy.

Ofsted’s Common Inspection Framework requires inspectors, in making judgements upon schools, to pay particular attention to the outcomes of a range of groups of pupils, including those with medical needs. Ofsted included guidance to inspectors on this matter in their March 2017 school inspection update, reminding inspectors that they should consider how schools are meeting the needs of pupils with medical conditions. The content of inspection frameworks and training of inspectors are matters for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector.

Governing boards must make reasonable adjustments to ensure that disabled children and young people are not at a substantial disadvantage compared with their peers. This duty is anticipatory: adjustments must be planned and put in place in advance, to prevent that disadvantage.

We know how important it is that children with medical conditions such as Type 1 diabetes are supported to enjoy a full education. That is why we introduced the duty to require governing bodies to make arrangements to support pupils with medical conditions and have provided statutory guidance outlining schools’ responsibilities in this area.

All governing boards should ensure that their school develops a policy for supporting pupils with medical conditions which is reviewed regularly and is readily accessible to parents and school staff.

We continue to work with organisations such as the Health Conditions in Schools Alliance to help raise further awareness of the duty on schools, and have recently promoted the duty through the department’s social media channels.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

The Government has provided local government with over £200 billion for this spending period and while councils make their own spending decisions, we would expect councils to prioritise what they do to deliver what their residents want to see and to invest in waste and recycling facilities as necessary to ensure good waste management practice.

The Government is also investing around £3 billion of grant funding in 24 Private Finance Initiative (PFI) waste infrastructure projects. These grants support infrastructure including material recovery, mechanical biological treatment and anaerobic digestion facilities, as well as implementing and expanding kerbside recycling services.

In the supporting impact assessment to our consultation on consistency in recycling, we modelled three scenarios on how that policy could be delivered, all including separate food waste collection. In the preferred option of that impact assessment (option 3, which for local authorities includes weekly separate food waste, free garden waste, weekly dry multi-stream recycling and fortnightly residual waste collections) the overall cost to the public purse is estimated to be just under £260 million a year between 2023-2035.

This comprises: local authority initial costs and subsequent savings; lost revenue to the Exchequer from local authority and business waste diverted away from landfill; lost garden waste income to local authorities; and policy costs to Government in supporting waste collection changes to municipal business.

The full impact assessment is available from the following link: https://consult.defra.gov.uk/environmental-quality/consultation-on-consistency-in-household-and-busin/supporting_documents/recycleconsistencyconsultia.pdf

We will refine our analysis based on consultation feedback and engagement with the sector.

We do not record this information.

I refer the Hon. Member to the reply given to the Hon. Member for Delyn, David Hanson, on 1 July 2019, PQ 268406.

No funding has been made available by the Department to disposal authorities for the prevention of methane emissions from closed landfill sites.

In tackling waste crime the Environment Agency has spent: (in millions)

£13.4m in 2013/14

£11.2m in 2014/15

£11.4m in 2015/16

£10.8m in 2016/17

£10.7m in 2017/18

Data for 2018/19 has not yet been released.

Over the last five years fines totalling £3,332,214 have been levied by the courts in England on offenders convicted of fly-tipping offences prosecuted by local authorities.

Further detailed data about fly-tipping, including fines, in England is publicly available at: www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fly-tipping-in-england.

The Department does not hold this information.

In our Resources and Waste Strategy we have committed to match or where economically practicable exceed the ambition of the Single-Use Plastics Directive.

The term oxo-degradable plastics is used in the Directive. The Directive mandates that oxo-degradable plastics shall be restricted from being placed on the market from 3 July 2021. Oxo-degradable plastics are conventional plastics. They include additives which are designed to promote the oxidation of the material to the point where it embrittles and fragments, potentially resulting in risks from micro-plastic particles. The Government remains committed to reducing the health and environmental impacts of certain plastic products, including those made from oxo-degradable plastics, in the marine environment.

The Government is concerned that, in the absence of standards, claims about the biodegradability of plastic based products cannot be verified leading to potential confusion in the market place, possible increased levels of consumption and potential environmental harm at the point of disposal.

As part of the Bioeconomy Strategy published on 5 December last year, the Government committed to work with UK Research and Innovation and industry to seek evidence on the demand, benefits and implications (for example the impact on recycling streams) of a standard for bio-based and biodegradable plastics that would include carrier bags. The call for evidence will seek evidence in relation to labelling and information provision.

The UK’s product safety regimes are among the strongest in the world and we have a robust framework of chemicals regulation in place to protect human health; this includes the restriction of chemicals in certain products. General product safety is regulated by the General Product Safety Regulations 2005. They apply to all products used by consumers and place a duty on producers and distributors to ensure their products are safe in normal or reasonable foreseeable use. We have also committed in our Resources and Waste Strategy to considering how we address the identification and tracking of chemicals in products across supply chains.

I met Procter & Gamble who have developed a technology to recycle nappies and I understand they are in discussions with several local authorities to establish a facility in the UK. The Government is committed to eliminating all avoidable waste by 2050, and wants to encourage more recycling and to make it easier for households to recycle. We say more on how we will do this in our Resources and Waste Strategy which was published in December last year.

While reusable nappies may make a valuable contribution to reducing residual waste that has to be disposed of to landfill or incineration, the Government has not made a formal assessment of the environmental or financial merits of the introduction of reusable nappy schemes by local authorities.

The new environmental land management scheme, underpinned by natural capital principles, will contribute to delivering many of the key outcomes set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan and the Clean Growth Strategy.

As the cornerstone of future agriculture policy the new environmental land management scheme will pay public money for the provision of public goods. As set out in our consultation document Health and Harmony, the public goods incentivised by the scheme could include: biodiversity, which habitat enhancement and maintenance contribute to; cultural heritage, such as the maintenance of heritage buildings and monuments; and public access.

The UK has some of the highest animal welfare standards in the world and we will maintain these once we leave the EU. We have recently consulted on our future agricultural policy, which included proposing using public money to fund public goods including animal welfare. We are considering the responses and will publish a report of the findings in due course.

The new environmental land management scheme, underpinned by natural capital principles, will contribute to delivering many of the key outcomes set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan and the Clean Growth Strategy.

As the cornerstone of future agriculture policy the new environmental land management scheme will pay public money for the provision of public goods. As set out in our consultation document Health and Harmony, the public goods incentivised by the scheme could include: biodiversity, which habitat enhancement and maintenance contribute to; cultural heritage, such as the maintenance of heritage buildings and monuments; and public access.

The new environmental land management scheme, underpinned by natural capital principles, will contribute to delivering many of the key outcomes set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan and the Clean Growth Strategy.

As the cornerstone of future agriculture policy the new environmental land management scheme will pay public money for the provision of public goods. As set out in our consultation document Health and Harmony, the public goods incentivised by the scheme could include: biodiversity, which habitat enhancement and maintenance contribute to; cultural heritage, such as the maintenance of heritage buildings and monuments; and public access.

The Withdrawal Bill will make sure the whole body of existing EU environmental law continues to have effect in UK law, providing businesses and stakeholders with maximum certainty as we leave the EU.

Defra has identified where SIs or other legislative action may be needed, but this is contingent on the outcome of negotiations and implementation of legislation.

The Secretary of State has also announced that we will consult on creating a new, statutory, independent body to uphold environmental standards, and a new policy statement setting out environmental principles.