Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the economic impact of improving access to childcare out of school hours.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
The government has introduced free breakfast clubs in all primary schools which are 30 minutes before the school day. So far, the department has delivered 2.6 million breakfasts and offered places to almost 180,000 pupils across the country.
Following the success of the early adopters, as the first phase of national rollout, we are investing a further £80 million into the programme to fund around 2,000 additional schools between April 2026 and March 2027. This will benefit around 500,000 more children. Parents will gain up to 95 hours back over the academic year, saving up to £450 per year.
Parents can also receive support with costs for childcare, if eligible, through Tax-Free Childcare or Universal Credit childcare, which are UK-wide schemes. The Flexible Support Fund also helps individuals overcome financial barriers to employment and can provide support costs such as childcare, enabling claimants to access opportunities that improve their chances of finding or starting work.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has had discussion with the Child Poverty Taskforce on the potential impact of (a) the removal and (b) reform of the two-child benefit cap on the educational outcomes for children.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
As co-chair of the Child Poverty Taskforce, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, is working across government on levers to tackle child poverty and improve the lives of families across the country.
This government is committed to tackling child poverty and the Child Poverty Taskforce is developing an ambitious Child Poverty Strategy, which will be published in the autumn.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure schools reach Sustainable Development Goal 4.7.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
The work of the department contributes to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDG 4.
Citizenship education provides a framework to prepare pupils to be active, informed and responsible citizens. The national curriculum for citizenship is mandatory at key stages 3 and 4, where pupils learn about democracy, politics, parliament and voting, as well as human rights, justice, media literacy, the law, and the need for mutual respect. Primary schools can choose to teach citizenship following the non-statutory framework.
Climate change and the environment are included within the current national curriculum in geography and science, with an environmental science A level available. The department is also developing a new GCSE in natural history, which will equip young people to understand the protection and conservation of the environment and respect the natural world.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the withdrawal of government funding for Global Citizenship Education in England on the provision of Global Citizenship Education programmes.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
The Scottish Government is responsible for schools and teaching in Scotland, including any decisions about Global Citizenship Education programmes.
In England the national curriculum for citizenship education covers democracy, justice and human rights; media and financial literacy; and how citizens can influence decisions.
The government has established an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, which seeks to deliver a rich, broad, inclusive and innovative curriculum that equips young people with the knowledge, skills and attributes needed to thrive in life and work. The Review will publish its final report in autumn 2025.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to support schools in reducing (a) energy bills and (b) carbon footprints.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The department provides tools, guidance and support to help schools manage their spending:
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of the policy paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system: white paper, published on 12 May 2025, on the finances of higher education institutions.
Answered by Janet Daby
This government welcomes international students who enrich our university campuses, forge lifelong friendships with our domestic students and become global ambassadors for the UK. Our world-class higher education (HE) sector can offer a fulfilling and enjoyable experience to international students from around the world.
The Immigration White Paper sets out a series of measures that will achieve a reduction in net migration, while maintaining the UK’s globally competitive offer to international students and making a significant contribution to growth by boosting our skills base. This includes the commitment to explore the introduction of a levy on HE provider income from international students, with proceeds to be reinvested in the domestic HE and skills system. We will set out more details around this in the Autumn Budget. Analysis of the potential impacts is based on the levy applying to English HE providers only. We will fully consult all the devolved governments on the implementation of the international student levy.
In March, Professor Edward Peck was appointed as substantive Chair of the Office for Students. Professor Peck will continue the excellent work of interim Chair, Sir David Behan, focusing on the sector’s financial sustainability and increasing opportunities in HE.
Moreover, in November, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education announced the difficult decision to increase tuition fee limits in line with forecast inflation. The maximum fee for a standard full-time undergraduate course in the 2025/26 academic year will increase by 3.1%, from £9,250 to £9,535. In return for the increased investment we are asking students to make, we expect the sector to deliver the very best outcomes, both for those students and for the country.
Alongside this, we expect all universities to have a sustainable business model. Our forthcoming plans for reform of the HE sector will set out how we will support universities in this regard.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of the proposed levy on higher education provider income from international students on Scottish universities.
Answered by Janet Daby
This government welcomes international students who enrich our university campuses, forge lifelong friendships with our domestic students and become global ambassadors for the UK. Our world-class higher education (HE) sector can offer a fulfilling and enjoyable experience to international students from around the world.
The Immigration White Paper sets out a series of measures that will achieve a reduction in net migration, while maintaining the UK’s globally competitive offer to international students and making a significant contribution to growth by boosting our skills base. This includes the commitment to explore the introduction of a levy on HE provider income from international students, with proceeds to be reinvested in the domestic HE and skills system. We will set out more details around this in the Autumn Budget. Analysis of the potential impacts is based on the levy applying to English HE providers only. We will fully consult all the devolved governments on the implementation of the international student levy.
In March, Professor Edward Peck was appointed as substantive Chair of the Office for Students. Professor Peck will continue the excellent work of interim Chair, Sir David Behan, focusing on the sector’s financial sustainability and increasing opportunities in HE.
Moreover, in November, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education announced the difficult decision to increase tuition fee limits in line with forecast inflation. The maximum fee for a standard full-time undergraduate course in the 2025/26 academic year will increase by 3.1%, from £9,250 to £9,535. In return for the increased investment we are asking students to make, we expect the sector to deliver the very best outcomes, both for those students and for the country.
Alongside this, we expect all universities to have a sustainable business model. Our forthcoming plans for reform of the HE sector will set out how we will support universities in this regard.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help support the mental health of girls in schools.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
This government is committed to improving mental health support for all children and young people. This is key to breaking down barriers to opportunity, helping all pupils to achieve and thrive in education.
The government will provide access to specialist mental health professionals in every school, so every young person, regardless of their sex, has access to early support to address problems before they escalate. NHS-funded Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs) continue to roll out in schools and colleges and are expected to cover at least 50% of pupils by April 2025.
The department also provides a range of guidance and practical resources for schools on promoting and supporting pupils’ mental health and wellbeing. These include a resources hub for mental health leads, a toolkit to help choose evidence-based early support and guidance on effective whole-school approaches to pupil mental health and wellbeing. This guidance encourages schools to consider groups that are at greater risk of experiencing poor mental health when planning their approach. This might include consideration that girls in some age ranges have been shown to have higher levels of probable mental disorder than boys, or that girls may be more likely to experience certain mental health conditions.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she taking to ensure that children receive sex and relationship education.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
It is compulsory for schools to teach relationships education for primary school pupils, relationships and sex education for secondary school pupils, and health education for all pupils in state-funded schools, in line with the relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) statutory guidance, which has been in place since September 2020.
Oak National Academy are developing new resources to support schools with the delivery of RSHE, which will start to become available later this year.
Asked by: Scott Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help tackle misogyny in schools.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for Edinburgh South West, to the answer of 1 April 2025 to Question 40591.