Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether Specialist Resource Bases and Alternative Provisions are eligible for funding from the free breakfast clubs scheme.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
All state-funded schools with primary aged pupils, including those with specialist units, special schools and alternative provision schools, are in scope for the free breakfast clubs programme.
Through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, all state-funded schools with primary-aged pupils will be required to offer a free breakfast club and will be funded to do so.
We are undertaking national roll out of free breakfast clubs to these schools in phases, with 2,000 starting in the 2026/2027 financial year. We will share details regarding how schools can join the programme in future years, in due course.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make it her policy to delay departmental decisions on academy closures or mergers in Norfolk until after the 2026 local elections.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
In line with the Cabinet Office May 2026 elections guidance, during the three weeks preceding local authority elections, the department will take special care in relation to decisions, announcements and other public actions which could have a bearing on the elections.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of delaying decisions on school closures until after the 2026 local elections in relevant local authorities.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department has not made such an assessment.
However, in line with the Cabinet Office May 2026 elections guidance, during the three weeks preceding local authority elections the department takes special care in relation to announcements, including academy closures, and other public actions which could have a bearing on the elections.
Local authorities are the decision makers for proposals to close maintained schools. Local authorities are subject to their own restrictions when elections are taking place.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how her Department defines a partial closure of a Sixth Form College; and whether removal of A-Level provision constitutes a partial closure.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The arrangements for closing a standalone sixth form college are set out in the Dissolution of Further Education Corporations and Sixth Form College Corporations (Prescribed Bodies) Regulations 2012, and do not include partial closure.
It is for the college to decide the provision offered, taking into account the local authority’s statutory duty to ensure sufficient provision for 16 to 18 year-olds and their learner demographic and needs.
For school sixth forms, it is up to individual schools to decide which post-16 qualifications to offer in line with the 16 to 19 study programmes guidance.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to (a) help reduce exam stress and (b) support pupils with exam stress.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department recognises that it is normal for young people to experience some stress around exams. It is important that this stress is identified early and the right support is in place to help young people manage it in a healthy and constructive way. Schools play a key role in supporting students through this, and mental health charities such as YoungMinds have published guidance on staying well during revision and exams. Their guidance is available at:
https://www.youngminds.org.uk/media/mqljrydj/staying-well-during-revision-and-exams.pdf.
The department is providing access to specialist mental health professionals in every school by expanding Mental Health Support Teams (MHST), so every child and young person has access to early support to address problems before they escalate. By April 2026, we estimate that 60% of pupils in schools and learners in further education in England will be covered by an MHST, up from 52% in April 2025.
The independent Curriculum and Assessment Review carefully considered evidence on wellbeing and found that many factors can impact student mental health. The Review recommended reducing exam volume to help improve the overall student experience. We will work closely with Ofqual and exam boards to reduce GCSE exam time by 2.5 to 3 hours for the average student, while maintaining high standards and protecting the integrity and validity of the qualifications system.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to consult (a) disabled children and their (i) parents and (ii) carers and (b) organisations representing those people before the publication of the Government’s (A) interim and (B) final response to the Law Commission’s report entitled Disabled children’s social care, published on 16 September 2025.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The Law Commission’s review of disabled children’s social care law included a full public consultation on their proposals between 8 October 2024 and 31 January 2025, inviting written responses. In addition, both before and during the consultation, they met with around 1,000 stakeholders, including disabled children and young people, parents and carers, at approximately 150 meetings and events.
The department is now considering the 40 recommendations made in the Law Commission’s final report. In line with the protocol agreed between the Lord Chancellor and the Law Commission, we will provide an initial response to these recommendations within six months of publication and a full response within one year. We will have regard to the views outlined in the report and we will engage relevant stakeholders at appropriate points as we consider our response.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
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 funding formula on the viability of small schools in rural areas.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
The government recognises the essential role that small schools play in their communities, many of which are in rural areas. The schools national funding formula (NFF) accounts for the particular challenges faced by small schools in rural areas through the lump sum and sparsity factor.
In the 2025/26 financial year, the sparsity factor provides eligible primary schools up to £57,400, and all other eligible schools up to £83,400. In addition to this, all small and rural schools have benefited from the increase to core factors in the NFF in 2025/26, including the NFF lump sum set at £145,100. The lump sum provides a fixed amount of funding that is particularly beneficial to small schools, as it is not affected by pupil numbers.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to encourage more young people to undertake vocational training to become (a) plumbers and (b) electricians.
Answered by Janet Daby
The department continues to make available education and training opportunities in electrical and plumbing sectors, including:
The department continues to raise awareness amongst young people of the vocational training that is available. Secondary schools have legal requirements to provide independent careers guidance, including at least six opportunities for providers of technical education or apprenticeships to speak to all pupils. Our government-funded network of Careers Hubs, coordinated by the Careers and Enterprise Company, supports schools and colleges to maximise these opportunities.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of trends in the level of drop-outs from vocational courses; and what steps she is taking to increase course completion rates.
Answered by Janet Daby
The department's Qualification Achievement Rates (QARs) include official statistics on levels of achievement for a range of qualifications, including vocational learning. Latest published statistics show overall achievement rates within the 19+ education and training cohort have increased from 86.8% in 2022/23 to 87.4% in 2023/24, an increase of 0.6 percentage points. Compared with 2021/22, they are up by 1.2 percentage points. Links to QAR data from current and previous years is available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/introduction-to-qualification-achievement-rates-qars.
Retention rates are also improving at ages 16 to 18. The retained and assessed rate for students who finished their T Level across 16 subjects in summer 2024 was up five percentage points from the previous year in over 10 subjects. The rate for large Vocational Technical Qualifications was up three percentage points. Further details on provisional T Level results for the 2023/24 academic year are available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/provisional-t-level-results/2023-24.
Alongside T Levels, the department continues to develop and improve qualifications to ensure that they meet the needs of learners. Newly reformed qualifications will become available for delivery at levels 2 and 3 at the start of the next academic year, and we are in the process of approving new level 3 qualifications for delivery from August 2026. These are high-quality, aligned to occupational standards in technical routes, and offer learners clear routes to higher education or skilled employment.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to her Department's press release entitled £740 million allocated for 10,000 new places for pupils with SEND, published on 27 March 2025, how many new SEND places will be created in Norfolk.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or who require alternative provision, sits with local authorities.
The department has now published allocations for £740 million in High Needs Provision Capital Allocations for the 2025/26 financial year, to support local authorities to deliver new places in mainstream and special schools, as well as other specialist settings, and to improve the suitability and accessibility of existing buildings.
The funding can be used to adapt schools to be more accessible for children with SEND, to create specialist facilities within mainstream schools that can deliver more intensive support adapted to suit the pupils’ needs and to create special school places for pupils with the most complex needs.
Norfolk County Council has been allocated just over £13 million for 2025/26 and it is up to the local authority to make decisions about the places they create and to prioritise this funding to meet local needs.