Steve Reed

The Department does not hold figures on the amounts spent by councils in England on maintaining street lights in each of the last five years.

Local authorities provide expenditure returns to the Department, but the most detailed of these do not have a specific category for pavement maintenance. They have broader categories relating to roads; these can be found in tables A1 and RO2 in the local authority data tables which are linked from www.gov.uk/government/collections/local-authority-capital-expenditure-receipts-and-financing and www.gov.uk/government/collections/local-authority-revenue-expenditure-and-financing respectively.

This data is not collected by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

Levelling up is about empowering local leaders and communities; growing the private sector and boosting living standards, particularly where they are lower; spreading opportunity and improving public services, particularly where they are lacking; and restoring local pride. As the Prime Minister set out in his speech on the 15 July 2021, the forthcoming Levelling Up White Paper will set out further details.

This data is not collected by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Local authorities in England report expenditure in long-established annual returns to the Department. Capital expenditure on coastal protection can be found in table A1 of the local authority data tables which are linked from www.gov.uk/government/collections/local-authority-capital-expenditure-receipts-and-financing. Revenue expenditure on coastal protection is in table RO5 of the local authority data tables which are linked from www.gov.uk/government/collections/local-authority-revenue-expenditure-and-financing.

None.

The Department does not hold this information.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) provides guidance to employers on 'ventilation and air conditioning during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic' which local authorities may use as part of their communications and engagement with local organisations.

This Government seeks to unite and level up the country, ensuring opportunity is available for all, and our plans to modernise the planning system are an important part of this. We are continuing to reflect on the many responses received to last year's White Paper, and will set out our response.

Independent research into the quality standard of homes delivered through permitted development rights was undertaken in 2019. The research is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/quality-standard-of-homes-delivered-through-change-of-use-permitted-development-rights

We now require all homes delivered under permitted development rights to meet Nationally Described Space Standards, and that adequate natural light be provided in habitable rooms.

This data is not currently held centrally.

The Government's policy is that local government reform should be locally led. Local government reform therefore is an ongoing locally led process rather than a one size fits all centrally led approach.

Despite the challenges of Covid-19, levelling up and ensuring that the whole UK can benefit from the same access to opportunities remains core to the Government's vision.

As the PM set out in his speech on 15 July, the Government will publish a landmark Levelling Up White Paper in due course, articulating how bold new policy interventions will improve opportunity and boost livelihoods in all parts of the UK.

The Department does not hold central data on the total number of community asset transfers that have been carried out by local authorities since 2010. Local authorities are responsible for setting their own community asset transfer policies and processes, and records of local community asset transfers are held by individual local authorities.

The Department have supported the online platform 'Keep it in the Community' to improve data on community-owned assets and assets of community value and to help make sure that more community groups are able to identify local assets of community value.

Through the £150 million Community Ownership Fund, the UK Government are supporting communities across the United Kingdom to own and manage the local facilities, community assets and amenities most important to them. Community groups can bid for up to £250,000 matched-funding to help them buy or take over local community assets or amenities at risk of being lost, to run as community-owned businesses. The Fund will also work alongside existing community asset transfer frameworks across the UK to support capital works and refurbishment as part of an asset transfer agreement, where the asset is at risk of being lost.

The Department does not hold the requested information.

Statistics on loans, grants and other assistance provided by local authorities for the improvement of private sector housing are available on gov.uk at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/local-authority-housing-statistics-data-returns-for-2019-to-2020.

Details of Ministerial meetings with external organisations are published on gov.uk.

Details of ministerial meetings are published and available on the gov.uk website; no such Ministerial meeting took place.

Details of ministerial meetings are published and available on the gov.uk website; no such Ministerial meeting took place.

The Cabinet Office publishes guidance on the use of confidentiality clauses in the Civil Service. This is publicly available here. It makes clear that such clauses should not be used to prevent staff from raising or discussing allegations of bullying, harassment or discrimination.

As part of the Government's evidence for the Women and Equalities Committee report on the use of non-disclosure agreements in discrminination cases, we provided details on the number of non-disclosure agreements used in the Civil Service including those that were used in cases of alleged discrimination. This represents the latest data we have available.

The Cabinet Office publishes guidance on the use of confidentiality clauses in the Civil Service. This is publicly available here. It makes clear that such clauses should not be used to prevent staff from raising or discussing allegations of bullying, harassment or discrimination.

As part of the Government's evidence for the Women and Equalities Committee report on the use of non-disclosure agreements in discrminination cases, we provided details on the number of non-disclosure agreements used in the Civil Service including those that were used in cases of alleged discrimination. This represents the latest data we have available.

The Cabinet Office publishes guidance on the use of confidentiality clauses in the Civil Service. This is publicly available here. It makes clear that such clauses should not be used to prevent staff from raising or discussing allegations of bullying, harassment or discrimination.

As part of the Government's evidence for the Women and Equalities Committee report on the use of non-disclosure agreements in discrminination cases, we provided details on the number of non-disclosure agreements used in the Civil Service including those that were used in cases of alleged discrimination. This represents the latest data we have available.

Ministers publish details of their government meetings with external individuals and organisations on GOV.UK.

The Government does not collate details of whether such individuals or organisations have made donations to any political party in the past.

This would not be a material consideration in deciding whether to hold any meeting, nor with the topics discussed.

The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government has yesterday published a comprehensive statement to the Housing, Communities and Local Government Select Committee on the manner in which the Westferry planning appeal was determined, and released a comprehensive collection of associated documents into the public domain; and I also refer the Hon. Member to the Secretary of State’s speech in the Opposition Day Debate.

The Cabinet Secretary has not undertaken an investigation; he has written to the Hon. Member in relation to this matter in reply to his letter. Given the Hon. Member publicly released his original letter, I am placing a copy of this reply in the Libraries of the House.

The Government Digital Service (GDS) - acting as the data controller for the shielded patient list (SPL) (ie persons who are medically extremely vulnerable to covid-19), as supplied by the NHS - has provided data of individuals on this list to local authorities. GDS initially provided data from the ‘registered list’ to local authorities in late March. From 2 April GDS provided the entire SPL, which was updated by the NHS on 9 April and 6 May, and then on a rolling basis.

Individual local authorities are only able to access SPL records where the postcode matches their relevant area.

The number of NHS SPL individuals was 2,232,175 as at 26 May 2020 and the number of 'registered list' individuals was 1,190,213 as at 26 May 2020. Note that the ‘registered list’ is broadly a subset of the SPL, not additional to it.

The Government continues to assess the impact of Covid-19 and is reviewing any implications for the delivery of public services on an ongoing basis. Our approach has been, and will continue to be, guided by the evidence and latest advice from medical experts, including the Chief Medical Officer.

We are currently working to facilitate the local, mayoral, and Police and Crime Commissioner elections on 7 May going ahead as planned.

We will of course continue to monitor the situation, and we are developing our responses and contingency plans as necessary.

The Inquiries Act 2005 empowers the Chair of an Inquiry to require the production of evidence, including from witnesses. The Prime Minister has received no requests for a witness statement from the Chair of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry. The London Fire Commissioner (which replaced LFEPA in 2017) is a core participant in the Inquiry.

Data regarding the number of apprentices in each Government Department is published yearly as part of routine Government transparency. The most recent report was published in September 2019, covering the 2018-2019 financial year, and can be found on GOV.UK:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-apprenticeship-data-2018-to-2019

Data regarding the number of apprentices in each Government Department is published yearly as part of routine Government transparency. The most recent report was published in September 2019, covering the 2018-2019 financial year, and can be found on GOV.UK:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-apprenticeship-data-2018-to-2019

£4.3 billion has been paid to Local Enterprise Partnership through the Local Growth Fund over the course of the last four years, to unlock local economic growth through investment in infrastructure across England. A breakdown in provided in the table below.

All payments from the 3 rounds of Growth Deals have been issued to Local Enterprise partnerships (LEPs) as of last year. LEPs are continuing to deliver the projects funded under these deals and currently there are 2109 Local Growth Fund (LGF) projects across all 38 LEPs as shown in the table.

The Local Growth Fund has invested in high value projects in England to boost local economic growth, including transport, skill, business support and housing projects to name but a few. This has empowered local areas to identify and bring forward genuine local priorities.

Local Enterprise Partnerships have reported that, to date over £15 billion of public and private sector investment has been leveraged through Local Growth Fund investment.

Departments publish quarterly details of Ministers’ meetings with external organisations on GOV.UK. Details for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/beis-ministerial-gifts-hospitality-travel-and-meetings.

The latest published data covers January to March 2020. Data for April to June 2020 will be published in due course.

Policy relating to young people is shared between several government departments. The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) is responsible for out of school activities for young people. DCMS officials are working closely with several other government departments to develop a bold and ambitious youth offer, including the Department for Education.

The government is developing world-leading plans to make the UK a safer place to be online. This includes a duty of care on online companies, overseen by an independent regulator with tough enforcement powers, to hold them to account. The regulator will have the power to require transparency reports from companies outlining what they are doing to protect people online. These reports will be published so parents and children can make informed decisions about their internet use.

We will carefully consider the recent report from the Royal College of Psychiatrists, including its recommendations relating to access to anonymous data for research.

The Department for Culture Media and Sport is working with colleagues across Government, and with young people, to build an ambitious long-term youth offer. The Secretary of State and Minister for Civil Society are responsible for this.

Last year the government announced its intention to set out a long-term vision for young people and has been working to develop this. Building on this announcement, in September the Chancellor announced a £500m Youth Investment Fund to build 60 new youth centres across the country, refurbish around 360 existing youth facilities, and provide over 100 mobile facilities for harder to reach areas. The funding will also be used to ensure that young people have access to a range of positive activities and qualified youth workers.

Ensuring that vulnerable children remain protected is a top priority for the government. Local authorities have the key day-to-day responsibility for delivery of children’s social care and we are working closely with them to ensure stability of services for our most vulnerable children.

£1.6 billion of additional funding is being provided to support local authorities address any pressures they are facing in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, including in providing children’s social care.

We recognise the extraordinary pressures on staffing across children’s homes and the difficult decisions providers are making to keep homes operating safely. We understand children’s homes are working closely with their local authorities on continuity plans for staff shortages at a local level and we are working closely with representative bodies to understand and monitor pressures, considering what further support we can provide.

In regards to social work, through the Coronavirus Act, we have taken powers to bring previously registered social workers onto the register of social workers held by the regulator, Social Work England, and have launched ‘Social Work Together’ to allow social workers to register their interest in returning to practice and to match them with employers. We are also looking to give local authorities additional flexibilities to meet the challenges of dealing with coronavirus.

The latest guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-childrens-social-care-services.

We have asked parents to keep their children at home, wherever possible, and for childcare providers, schools and colleges to remain closed, except for those children who absolutely need to attend. Guidance covers Ofsted-registered childcare providers for children of all ages, including childminders, nurseries and wraparound childcare and clubs. This includes before- and after-school and holiday care. Further details of the guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-schools-and-other-educational-settings.

On 23 March 2020, the government also provided further guidance directing youth centres and community centres to close. More information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/further-businesses-and-premises-to-close/further-businesses-and-premises-to-close-guidance.

Regarding financial support, the Chancellor of the Exchequer has announced a package of support for businesses. This includes business rates and Statutory Sick Pay relief, and a range of loans and grants. Furthermore, under the government’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, all UK employers will be able to access support to continue paying part of their employees’ salary for those employees that would otherwise have been laid off during this crisis. HM Revenue & Customs will reimburse 80% of furloughed workers’ wage costs, up to a cap of £2,500 per month.

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Statutory Framework sets the regulatory standards for learning and development and safeguarding and welfare requirements for all early years providers caring for children aged 5 and under. The framework defines 7 areas of learning and development and is clear that each area must be implemented through planned, purposeful play and through a mix of adult-led and child-initiated activity.

The EYFS does not promote a particular pedagogical approach - it is for individual early years settings to determine how the areas of learning should be implemented to support children to meet the expected level of development by the end of the reception year.

The EYFS Statutory Framework is available at the link below: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-years-foundation-stage-framework--2.

Ensuring that vulnerable children remain protected is a top priority for government. Local authorities have the key day-to-day responsibility for delivery of children’s social care and we are working closely with them to ensure stability of services for our most vulnerable children.

£1.6 billion of additional funding is being provided to support local authorities address any pressures they are facing in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including for delivering children’s social care.

In addition, through the Coronavirus Act 2020 we have taken powers to bring previously registered social workers onto the register of social workers held by the regulator, Social Work England. Alongside this we have launched the Social Work Together programme. Information about this is available at www.socialworkengland.org.uk/news/social-work-together/.

The Government have also published guidance to local authorities accessible at www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-childrens-social-care-services.

From Monday 23 March, all schools and childcare settings are closed except to vulnerable children and children of critical workers. Where the work of a parent or guardian is critical to our response to COVID-19, children should only be sent to school and/or a childcare provider where they cannot be cared for safely at home.

Vulnerable children include those who have a social worker and those children and young people up to the age of 25 with education, health and care plans. Those who have a social worker include children who have a child protection plan and those who are looked after by the local authority. A child may also be deemed to be vulnerable if they have been assessed as being in need or otherwise meet the definition in Section 17 of the Children Act 1989.

Leaders of educational settings and designated safeguarding leads know who their most vulnerable children are and will have the flexibility to offer a place to those on the edges of receiving children’s social care support.

The government welcomes the 'Safeguarding children at risk from criminal exploitation' report from the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel and thanks them for their detailed work and consideration. Child protection is a priority and when a child dies or faces serious harm and it is vital that lessons are learned from these tragedies. The government thanks the Panel for its recommendations and is considering carefully how to respond. In doing so, my ministerial colleagues and I will discuss the report with the Panel, and with those delivering children's social care and other interested parties.

The government welcomes the 'Safeguarding children at risk from criminal exploitation' report from the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel and thanks them for their detailed work and consideration. Child protection is a priority and when a child dies or faces serious harm and it is vital that lessons are learned from these tragedies. The government thanks the Panel for its recommendations and is considering carefully how to respond. In doing so, my ministerial colleagues and I will discuss the report with the Panel, and with those delivering children's social care and other interested parties.

The government welcomes the 'Safeguarding children at risk from criminal exploitation' report from the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel and thanks them for their detailed work and consideration. Child protection is a priority and when a child dies or faces serious harm and it is vital that lessons are learned from these tragedies. The government thanks the Panel for its recommendations and is considering carefully how to respond. In doing so, my ministerial colleagues and I will discuss the report with the Panel, and with those delivering children's social care and other interested parties.

The government welcomes the 'Safeguarding children at risk from criminal exploitation' report from the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel and thanks them for their detailed work and consideration. Child protection is a priority and when a child dies or faces serious harm and it is vital that lessons are learned from these tragedies. The government thanks the Panel for its recommendations and is considering carefully how to respond. In doing so, my ministerial colleagues and I will discuss the report with the Panel, and with those delivering children's social care and other interested parties.

The government welcomes the 'Safeguarding children at risk from criminal exploitation' report from the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel and thanks them for their detailed work and consideration. Child protection is a priority and when a child dies or faces serious harm and it is vital that lessons are learned from these tragedies. The government thanks the Panel for its recommendations and is considering carefully how to respond. In doing so, my ministerial colleagues and I will discuss the report with the Panel, and with those delivering children's social care and other interested parties.

The government welcomes the 'Safeguarding children at risk from criminal exploitation' report from the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel and thanks them for their detailed work and consideration. Child protection is a priority and when a child dies or faces serious harm and it is vital that lessons are learned from these tragedies. The government thanks the Panel for its recommendations and is considering carefully how to respond. In doing so, my ministerial colleagues and I will discuss the report with the Panel, and with those delivering children's social care and other interested parties.

The government welcomes the 'Safeguarding children at risk from criminal exploitation' report from the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel and thanks them for their detailed work and consideration. Child protection is a priority and when a child dies or faces serious harm and it is vital that lessons are learned from these tragedies. The government thanks the Panel for its recommendations and is considering carefully how to respond. In doing so, my ministerial colleagues and I will discuss the report with the Panel, and with those delivering children's social care and other interested parties.

The government welcomes the 'Safeguarding children at risk from criminal exploitation' report from the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel and thanks them for their detailed work and consideration. Child protection is a priority and when a child dies or faces serious harm and it is vital that lessons are learned from these tragedies. The government thanks the Panel for its recommendations and is considering carefully how to respond. In doing so, my ministerial colleagues and I will discuss the report with the Panel, and with those delivering children's social care and other interested parties.

The government welcomes the 'Safeguarding children at risk from criminal exploitation' report from the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel and thanks them for their detailed work and consideration. Child protection is a priority and when a child dies or faces serious harm and it is vital that lessons are learned from these tragedies. The government thanks the Panel for its recommendations and is considering carefully how to respond. In doing so, my ministerial colleagues and I will discuss the report with the Panel, and with those delivering children's social care and other interested parties.

The Department for Education made extensive preparations for leaving the EU based on government planning assumptions to ensure continued support for vulnerable children. We are working with the Home Office and local authorities to ensure that vulnerable children in the care system secure a status under the EU Settlement Scheme and have their rights protected in future.

Maintaining contact is consistently one of the most important issues raised by children and young people. Many children value the relationships that they have, not only with family, but also with previous carers. Children should be supported and encouraged to maintain positive and constructive contact with all those who are important to them and this should include previous foster parents unless this is not consistent with the child’s best interest.

The department is currently talking to the sector to find ways that foster parents can be supported with all aspects of contact, including contact with children that they have previously fostered.

The National Minimum Standards for fostering services are clear that every foster parent should receive an allowance that covers the full cost of caring for a child. Whilst local authorities determine the allowance paid to foster parents in their area, the National Minimum Allowance (NMA) serves as a baseline to the minimum amount that foster parents can expect to receive per week to cover the cost of a child living in their home.

The NMA rates for 2020-21 were published on 6 February. We have notified Directors of Children’s Services and reiterated that whilst it is not mandatory in regulations, we expect all fostering services to pay at least this amount.

No foster parent should be out of pocket because of their fostering role. The National Minimum Standards for fostering services are clear that every foster parent should receive an allowance that covers the full cost of caring for a child. Whilst it is for fostering services to decide the level of financial support offered to foster parents in their area, the Department for Education recommends the National Minimum Allowance (NMA) as a minimum benchmark. No foster parent should expect to receive anything less than the NMA per week. The NMA is uplifted annually to keep in line with inflation.

Over and above the NMA, it is for fostering services to set their own payment systems. Many fostering services currently operate local fee payments for foster parents, which is often based on their skills, experience and qualifications, and/or tier based on the complexity of the child’s needs. Many local authorities also offer additional allowances for equipment costs or to cover expenses such as travel or emergency clothing or initial set-up costs.

Schools and colleges have an important role to play in supporting the mental health and wellbeing of their pupils by providing support and activities tailored to their particular needs. It is up to schools to decide what support to offer pupils and what measurement tools to use to inform those decisions.

The Department is working on guidance which will build upon the toolkit[1] issued by Public Health England. It will set out how schools can use existing measurement tools to inform different aspects of their provision. The Department will consider the use and suitability of existing tools, and decide whether to take any further action to support schools in the context of that work.

[1] https://www.annafreud.org/media/4612/mwb-toolki-final-draft-4.pdf.

The latest information on episodes of need where trafficking was identified as a factor at the end of assessment is included in the department’s ‘Characteristics of children in need: 2018 to 2019’ statistical publication, available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/characteristics-of-children-in-need-2018-to-2019.

Table C3 of this publication shows that, at a national level, trafficking was identified as a factor at the end of assessment in 2,490 (0.5%) of the 498,870 episodes with assessment factor information in the year ending 31 March 2019.

Information on looked-after children is collected from local authorities in the annual looked-after children census, but does not include information on whether the child is specifically considered to be at risk of being trafficked.

The latest information on looked-after children is published in the ‘Children looked after in England including adoption: 2018 to 2019’ statistical release, available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/children-looked-after-in-england-including-adoption-2018-to-2019.

As at the end of December 2019, the total number of approved applications on behalf of previously looked-after children on special guardianship orders was 3,619 with an average funding of £3,033. The number of rejected applications was 13 (0.4%). The breakdown by financial year and local authority area is attached.

As at December 2019, the total number of approved applications were 42,103 with an average funding of £3,321. The total number of rejected applications was 176 (0.4%). The breakdown by financial year and local authority area is attached.

As at the end of December 2019, the total number of approved applications on behalf of previously looked-after children on special guardianship orders was 3,619 with an average funding of £3,033. The number of rejected applications was 13 (0.4%). The breakdown by financial year and local authority area is attached.

As at December 2019, the total number of approved applications were 42,103 with an average funding of £3,321. The total number of rejected applications was 176 (0.4%). The breakdown by financial year and local authority area is attached.

The safety of students and staff across the education estate remains a high priority. Since the Grenfell fire, the department has worked closely with the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) on fire safety. In line with the cross-government approach, we identified university-owned residential buildings over 18 metres with potentially dangerous aluminium composite material cladding. In the light of updated building safety guidance for owners of residential buildings published on 20 January 2020 by MHCLG, the department will gather any additional information required on residential buildings across the education estate, and we will continue to work with building owners to ensure that any subsequent remediation work, if any, is undertaken. The department does not hold information on cladding of non-residential university buildings.

The safety of students and staff across the education estate remains a high priority. Since the Grenfell fire, the department has worked closely with the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) on fire safety. In line with the cross-government approach, we identified university-owned residential buildings over 18 metres with potentially dangerous aluminium composite material cladding. In the light of updated building safety guidance for owners of residential buildings published on 20 January 2020 by MHCLG, the department will gather any additional information required on residential buildings across the education estate, and we will continue to work with building owners to ensure that any subsequent remediation work, if any, is undertaken. The department does not hold information on cladding of non-residential university buildings.

The safety of students and staff across the education estate remains a high priority. Since the Grenfell fire, the department has worked closely with the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) on fire safety. In line with the cross-government approach, we identified university-owned residential buildings over 18 metres with potentially dangerous aluminium composite material cladding. In the light of updated building safety guidance for owners of residential buildings published on 20 January 2020 by MHCLG, the department will gather any additional information required on residential buildings across the education estate, and we will continue to work with building owners to ensure that any subsequent remediation work, if any, is undertaken. The department does not hold information on cladding of non-residential university buildings.

The numbers of children previously looked after counted for pupil premium plus in each local authority in 2019-20 are shown in the attached table, including the numbers of those on (a) special guardianship order, (b) child arrangements order, (c) residence order and (d) adoption order.

?The Department for Education will publish the response to the Call for Evidence on Building Bulletin 100: Design for Fire Safety in Schools in due course.

The pupil premium is additional funding that state-funded schools in England receive to help improve the attainment and wider outcomes of pupils from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds; and also of looked after and previously looked after children.

Schools are allocated deprivation pupil premium funding based on the number of pupils on roll at the time of the January school census who have been registered for benefits-based free school meals (FSM) at any point in the last six years (known as Ever6 FSM). Schools also receive pupil premium funding at a higher rate (known as pupil premium plus) for pupils who have left local authority care in England and Wales through adoption, a special guardianship order, a child arrangements order or a residence order. Pupils who are in local authority care for one day or more also attract pupil premium plus funding; this is paid to the local authority and managed by the Virtual School Head.

The Department publishes information annually showing the number of pupils at school, local authority, Parliamentary constituency and national levels who attract the pupil premium to the schools they attend – this is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium-allocations-and-conditions-of-grant-2019-to-2020.

The Department does not routinely monitor or publish statistics on the number of pupils who would be eligible for the deprivation pupil premium through having a parent in receipt of benefits that meet the qualifying criteria for FSM, but who do not attract this funding to the schools they attend because they are not registered for FSM.

The pupil premium is additional funding that state-funded schools in England receive to help improve the attainment and wider outcomes of pupils from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds; and also of looked after and previously looked after children.

Schools are allocated deprivation pupil premium funding based on the number of pupils on roll at the time of the January school census who have been registered for benefits-based free school meals (FSM) at any point in the last six years (known as Ever6 FSM). Schools also receive pupil premium funding at a higher rate (known as pupil premium plus) for pupils who have left local authority care in England and Wales through adoption, a special guardianship order, a child arrangements order or a residence order. Pupils who are in local authority care for one day or more also attract pupil premium plus funding; this is paid to the local authority and managed by the Virtual School Head.

The Department publishes information annually showing the number of pupils at school, local authority, Parliamentary constituency and national levels who attract the pupil premium to the schools they attend – this is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium-allocations-and-conditions-of-grant-2019-to-2020.

The Department does not routinely monitor or publish statistics on the number of pupils who would be eligible for the deprivation pupil premium through having a parent in receipt of benefits that meet the qualifying criteria for FSM, but who do not attract this funding to the schools they attend because they are not registered for FSM.

As the department’s guidance ‘supporting pupils at school with medical conditions’ sets out, clinical support for children in schools who have long-term conditions and disabilities remain a Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) commissioning responsibility. CCGs should ensure their commissioning arrangements are adequate to provide the ongoing support essential to the safety of these vulnerable children whilst in school. The guidance is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/supporting-pupils-at-school-with-medical-conditions--3.

The government has no plans to bring forward legislative proposals to ban parents from using physical punishment to chastise their child.

The government does not wish to interfere in how loving families bring up their children. Legislation already exists to ban the beating of children by their parents; the defence of reasonable chastisement can only be used when a parent is accused of assault and not when the charge is actual bodily harm, grievous bodily harm or child cruelty.

The EdTech Strategy, published in April last year, set out our vision for the use of technology in education and included commitments to help improve the evidence base on the impact of technology. The strategy, funded by £10 million, seeks to support the use of technology to help drive efficiencies, cut teacher workload, support inclusion, and ultimately, improve outcomes for children and young people. The strategy marks the development of the EdTech Demonstrator Schools and Colleges programme which aims to spread good practice in the use of technology. The programme is due to launch across the country in the Spring.

Schools make a real difference to the mental wellbeing of their pupils, and the Government recognises that this is already a priority for many of them. According to the Department’s school snapshot survey published in winter 2018, 92% of secondary schools and 86% of primary schools already use tools such as surveys to monitor their pupils’ wellbeing.

To help more schools to access evidence-based approaches to measure and support wellbeing, the Government will provide wellbeing measurement advice that will enable schools to navigate the resources and tools available to them.

The Government will continue to engage with leading experts on the measurement of mental health and wellbeing in schools. Nationally, the Government draws upon large-scale sample surveys to understand trends in children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing, and we recently published the first ‘State of the nation’ report on this vitally important issue.

The safety of students and staff across the education estate remains ministers' highest priority. Since the Grenfell fire, the department has worked closely with the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) on fire safety. In line with that cross-government approach, we identified university-owned residential buildings over 18 metres with potentially dangerous ACM cladding. In the light of updated building safety guidance for owners of residential buildings published on 20 January by MHCLG, the department will gather any additional information required on residential buildings across the education estate, and will continue to work with building owners to ensure that any subsequent remediation work, if any, is undertaken.

The safety of students and staff across the education estate remains ministers' highest priority. Since the Grenfell fire, the department has worked closely with the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) on fire safety. In line with that cross-government approach, we identified university-owned residential buildings over 18 metres with potentially dangerous ACM cladding. In the light of updated building safety guidance for owners of residential buildings published on 20 January by MHCLG, the department will gather any additional information required on residential buildings across the education estate, and will continue to work with building owners to ensure that any subsequent remediation work, if any, is undertaken.

We recognise that short breaks services for disabled children are vital and we very much recognise the need for this provision. Section 17(11) of the Children Act 1989 sets out the meaning of “disabled” and includes children who are “substantially and permanently handicapped by illness” which can include life threatening or terminal illnesses.

The government made local authority provision of short breaks compulsory in 2011. In performing their duty under paragraph 6(1)(c) of Schedule 2 to the Children Act 1989, a local authority must provide, so far as is reasonably practicable, a range of services which is sufficient to assist carers to continue to provide care or to do so more effectively. The published guidance ‘Short Breaks for Carers of Disabled Children’ provides local authorities with information on their duties. This guidance is available at the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/245580/Short_Breaks_for_Carers_of_Disabled_Children.pdf.

Between 2011-2015 the government provided over £800 million to help local authorities implement the 2011 Short Breaks duties. Ongoing funding now rests with local authorities, and it is right that they have the freedom to make decisions based on the needs of their local area which allows them to prioritise the most vulnerable. This is deliberately flexible to enable local authorities to meet the needs of parents and carers.

The government has confirmed an additional £1 billion grant for adult and children’s social care for every year of this parliament. This is in addition to the continuation of existing social care grants.

We recognise that short breaks services for disabled children are vital and we very much recognise the need for this provision. Section 17(11) of the Children Act 1989 sets out the meaning of “disabled” and includes children who are “substantially and permanently handicapped by illness” which can include life threatening or terminal illnesses.

The government made local authority provision of short breaks compulsory in 2011. In performing their duty under paragraph 6(1)(c) of Schedule 2 to the Children Act 1989, a local authority must provide, so far as is reasonably practicable, a range of services which is sufficient to assist carers to continue to provide care or to do so more effectively. The published guidance ‘Short Breaks for Carers of Disabled Children’ provides local authorities with information on their duties. This guidance is available at the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/245580/Short_Breaks_for_Carers_of_Disabled_Children.pdf.

Between 2011-2015 the government provided over £800 million to help local authorities implement the 2011 Short Breaks duties. Ongoing funding now rests with local authorities, and it is right that they have the freedom to make decisions based on the needs of their local area which allows them to prioritise the most vulnerable. This is deliberately flexible to enable local authorities to meet the needs of parents and carers.

The government has confirmed an additional £1 billion grant for adult and children’s social care for every year of this parliament. This is in addition to the continuation of existing social care grants.

The safety of pupils, students and staff across the education estate remains the Department’s highest priority.

The Department has taken appropriate action as part of the cross-government response to the Grenfell Tower fire. Updated building safety guidance for owners of residential buildings was published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government on 20 January. In light of this guidance, the Department for Education will gather any additional information required on residential buildings across the education estate and work with building owners to ensure that any subsequent remediation work is undertaken.

The Children in Need review: final data and analysis, published in June 2019, found a moderate correlation between Looked After Children rates in 2018 and the percentage of children in low-income families in 2016. This is available in figure 5d, p.11 & 12 from: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/809108/CIN_review_final_analysis_publication.pdf.

Comprehensive data on trends in the numbers and characteristics of children in need are published at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-children-in-need#history.

In preparation for the Spending Review, to help ensure decisions are based on the best available evidence, the government is working with the sector to develop a sharper and more granular picture of demand for children’s services.

As set out in the Manifesto, the government is committed to undertaking a review of the care system that covers the key issues facing vulnerable children and young people.

​The Department for Education does not publish forecasts of future demand for children’s social care. Comprehensive data on past trends in the numbers and characteristics of children in need are published at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-children-in-need#history.

In preparation for the Spending Review, to help ensure decisions are based on the best available evidence, the government is working with the sector to develop a sharper and more granular picture of future demand for children’s services

And, as set out in the Manifesto, the government is committed to undertaking a review of the care system that covers the key issues facing vulnerable children and young people.

630 civil servants completed this training package between its launch on 20 November 2018 and 31 December 2019.

This is a matter for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman. I have asked her to write to the hon. Member and a copy of her reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

All local authorities have a duty to ensure they have sufficient provision to meet the needs of children in their care. We recognise that some local authorities are facing challenges ensuring there is sufficient provision in their areas to meet the needs of children. We are continuing to take steps to understand this issue and support local authorities.

We are working to increase placement options so that children are placed in homes that meet their needs. This includes £5 million from our £200 million Innovation Fund to increase councils’ residential capacity and improve commissioning practice. We also recognise that a lack of capacity in the fostering system can impact demand for children’s homes places and we have made nearly £500,000 in seed-funding available for 7 partnerships to test new approaches to sufficiency planning and commissioning in foster care.

We provided funding to local and combined authorities to commission feasibility studies into opening new secure provision to increase available capacity. The Residential Care Leadership Board is also sharing learning across the sector. In 2020-21, local government is getting an additional £1 billion grant for adult and children’s social care. This is on top of the continuation of the £410 million social care grant in 2020-21. This will support local authorities to meet rising demand.

The department is continuing to look at what else we can do to support local authorities to ensure that children in care are provided with suitable accommodation that meets their needs. As set out in the manifesto, we are committed to undertaking a review of the care system to make sure that all care placements and settings are providing children and young adults with the support they need.

Effective multi-agency working is integral to delivering joined-up and impactful support for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND).

We are committed to improving the services and support that these children and young people receive, which is why this government announced an additional £780 million investment in high needs funding for 2020-21.

However, we recognise that funding alone is not enough and this government is taking active steps to improve join-up across education, health and care to support children and young people with SEND. We have established the SEND System Leadership Board, bringing together commissioners across education, health and care to improve the way partners jointly plan, commission and deliver SEND provision. In addition, in September 2019 we launched the SEND review. A key focus of this review is how we can improve cross-system working across education, health and care to support the most positive outcomes for children and young people with SEND.

A pupil’s name can lawfully be deleted from the admission register on the grounds prescribed in Regulation 8 of the Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006 as amended.

All schools must notify the local authority when a pupil’s name is to be deleted from the admission register under any of the grounds prescribed in Regulation 8, as soon as the ground for removal is met and no later than the time at which the pupil’s name is removed from the register. The Department does not hold information centrally on the reason pupils are removed from the school register.

The Department has made clear the practice of off-rolling, whereby children are removed from school rolls without formal exclusion in ways that are in the interests of the school rather than the pupil, is unacceptable. Informal or unofficial exclusions are unlawful and we have previously written to schools to remind them of the rules on exclusions. Any school off-rolling on the basis of academic achievement is quite simply breaking the law.

We are continuing to work with Ofsted to tackle the practice of off-rolling. Since September 2019, Ofsted’s new education inspection framework details that where inspectors find off-rolling, this will always be addressed in the inspection report, and where appropriate, could lead to a school’s leadership being judged inadequate.

It is not part of current policy that residential schools should notify Ofsted or the Independent Schools Inspectorate on allegations of child abuse. Statutory guidance in “Keeping Children Safe in Education” requires all schools to refer allegations of abuse against children to the local authority, who are the relevant agency to investigate.

This is a priority area for this government. We are already considering where further changes should be made to ensure that semi-independent and independent settings are used appropriately and that they are of good quality. As set out in the manifesto, we are also committed to undertaking a review of the care system, considering how we support vulnerable children and young people in order to meet their needs and improve their outcomes.

The Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 introduced for the first-time quality standards for children’s homes. This includes the new and improved mandatory qualifications for those working in residential childcare, which were designed specifically to better meet children’s needs, by ensuring each new entrant demonstrates their competence in the core knowledge and skills required. The Regulations set out that it is the children’s home’s registered person’s responsibility to ensure staff have the necessary experience, qualifications and skills to meet the needs of each child, including any ongoing continuous professional development.

The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse’s Interim Report (April 2018) recommended further workforce regulation through introducing professional registration arrangements for staff in children’s homes. The department responded by issuing a Call for Evidence in summer 2019 to gather sector perspectives on wider workforce issues including workforce regulation, qualifications, training and professional standards. We recognise that in order to provide good quality care, we need a high quality, motivated workforce that feel valued and is adequately trained and qualified. We are currently exploring options following on from the Call for Evidence findings. We also understand that some residential homes face challenges attracting and retaining the right number of staff and the department is in regular dialogue with the sector about this issue.

The care review is a fundamental part of this government’s manifesto. We are moving forward with plans to review how we support vulnerable children and young people, in order to meet their needs and improve their outcomes.

A pupil’s name can lawfully be deleted from the admission register on the grounds prescribed in Regulation 8 of the Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006 as amended.

All schools must notify the local authority when a pupil’s name is to be deleted from the admission register under any of the grounds prescribed in Regulation 8, as soon as the ground for removal is met and no later than the time at which the pupil’s name is removed from the register. The Department does not hold information centrally on the reason pupils are removed from the school register.

The Department has made clear the practice of off-rolling, whereby children are removed from school rolls without formal exclusion in ways that are in the interests of the school rather than the pupil, is unacceptable. Informal or unofficial exclusions are unlawful and we have previously written to schools to remind them of the rules on exclusions. Any school off-rolling on the basis of academic achievement is quite simply breaking the law.

We are continuing to work with Ofsted to tackle the practice of off-rolling. Since September 2019, Ofsted’s new education inspection framework details that where inspectors find off-rolling, this will always be addressed in the inspection report, and where appropriate, could lead to a school’s leadership being judged inadequate.

All local authorities have a duty to ensure they have sufficient provision to meet the needs of children in their care. We recognise that some local authorities are facing challenges ensuring there is sufficient provision in their areas to meet the needs of children. We are continuing to take steps to understand this issue and support local authorities.

We are working to increase placement options so that children are placed in homes that meet their needs. This includes £5 million from our £200 million Innovation Fund to increase councils’ residential capacity and improve commissioning practice. We also recognise that a lack of capacity in the fostering system can impact demand for children’s homes places and we have made nearly £500,000 in seed-funding available for 7 partnerships to test new approaches to sufficiency planning and commissioning in foster care.

We provided funding to local and combined authorities to commission feasibility studies into opening new secure provision to increase available capacity. The Residential Care Leadership Board is also sharing learning across the sector. In 2020-21, local government is getting an additional £1 billion grant for adult and children’s social care. This is on top of the continuation of the £410 million social care grant in 2020-21. This will support local authorities to meet rising demand.

The department is continuing to look at what else we can do to support local authorities to ensure that children in care are provided with suitable accommodation that meets their needs. As set out in the manifesto, we are committed to undertaking a review of the care system to make sure that all care placements and settings are providing children and young adults with the support they need.

The information requested in not held centrally.

Following the Grenfell tragedy the Department contacted all bodies responsible for safety in school buildings in England, instructing them to carry out checks to identify any buildings which had Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) cladding of potential concern, so that they could be further investigated and any risks managed and dealt with appropriately and promptly. This work focused on identifying schools with ACM over 18 metres or with residential accommodation, and on student residential buildings over 18 metres with ACM.

The safety of pupils, students and staff remains the Department’s highest priority. Since the Grenfell fire, the Department has worked closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, as part of the cross-government programme to remediate buildings with potentially dangerous cladding. That approach will continue, and we welcome the package of measures to improve building safety standards announced on 20 January by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government. The Department is already looking at ways to ensure the education estate complies fully with the updated advice to building owners, announced as part of that package, on actions they should take in relation to cladding.

The independent Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel’s first national review focuses on what can be done to protect children who are threatened and exploited by criminal gangs. The date for publication is being determined, as is that for the triennial analysis of serious case reviews, 2014 to 2017. We expect that both documents will be published in the coming weeks.

The independent Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel’s first national review focuses on what can be done to protect children who are threatened and exploited by criminal gangs. The date for publication is being determined, as is that for the triennial analysis of serious case reviews, 2014 to 2017. We expect that both documents will be published in the coming weeks.

We are pleased to see that the engagement with the letter of 18 November from my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education to all 138 higher education institutions has had a 100% response rate.

The safety of pupils, students and staff remains ministers’ highest priority. Since the Grenfell fire, the department has worked closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, as part of the cross government programme to remediate buildings with potentially dangerous cladding, including student accommodation. That approach will continue, and we welcome the package of measures to improve building safety standards announced on 20 January by my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government. We are already looking at ways to ensure the education estate complies fully with the updated advice to building owners, announced as part of that package, on actions they should take in relation to cladding.

We are pleased to see that the engagement with the letter of 18 November from my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education to all 138 higher education institutions has had a 100% response rate.

The safety of pupils, students and staff remains ministers’ highest priority. Since the Grenfell fire, the department has worked closely with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, as part of the cross government programme to remediate buildings with potentially dangerous cladding, including student accommodation. That approach will continue, and we welcome the package of measures to improve building safety standards announced on 20 January by my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government. We are already looking at ways to ensure the education estate complies fully with the updated advice to building owners, announced as part of that package, on actions they should take in relation to cladding.

The government is committed to giving due consideration to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child when making policy and legislation. This includes, in article 12 of the Convention, giving children the right to express their views in all matters affecting them.

In order to help government departments give consideration to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, we have put in place a comprehensive children’s rights training package. This package is available across the whole Civil Service and includes access to a Child Rights Impact Assessment template. The tools in the package provide a structured way for policy makers to consider how their policies will impact on children’s rights and promote the voice of the child in policy making. We continue to encourage all departments to make use of the training and template so that consideration of children’s rights is further embedded in government policy and law-making.

The government is committed to improving the lives of vulnerable children.

Over the 5-year period from 2015 to 2020, councils will have had access to more than £200 billion. Within that, we have seen councils prioritise spending on the most vulnerable children, with spending on child protection increasing from £2.2 billion to £2.4 billion in 2018-19.

In order to help support local authorities meet rising demand, the government is providing councils with an additional £1 billion for adult and children's social care in every year of this Parliament. This is on top of the continuation of the £410 million social care grant in 2020-21.

As set out in the Conservative Party’s manifesto, we will review the care system to make sure that all care placements and settings are providing children and young adults with the support they need.

Every child growing up in care should have a stable, secure environment where they feel supported, regardless of the type of their placement. Due to this reason, we are committed to undertaking a review of the care system. This was set out in the Conservative Party’s manifesto and it is an early priority to deliver on this commitment. Doing so will allow us to go even further and to make sure that all care placements and settings provide children and young people with the support they need.

‘Fostering Better Outcomes (2018)’ sets out our ambitions for foster care, including our plans to undertake a digital project to explore how technology can help improve the quality and consistency of data on foster parents, to inform recruitment, planning and vacancy management. This project has been underway since October 2019. The aim of the project is not to design a central register but to improve our understanding of the feasibility and potential of national digital approaches to addressing the current challenges.

While most children in care are placed in children’s homes or foster care, an increasing number of children are placed in independent and semi-independent settings. For many older children, this is the right type of placement to meet their needs and develop their independence ahead of adult life. Where local authorities place children in these settings, they must ensure that these settings are suitable. It is unacceptable for any child to be placed for any amount of time in a setting that does not meet their needs and keep them safe.

We cannot imagine a circumstance under which a child under the age of 16 should be placed in an independent or semi-independent setting that does not deliver care, and my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, has written to local authorities asking them to review these placements. We are considering where we must go further to ensure that these settings are used appropriately and that they are of good quality.

Every child growing up in care should have a stable, secure environment where they feel supported, regardless of the type of their placement. Due to this reason, we are committed to undertaking a review of the care system. This was set out in the Conservative Party’s manifesto and it is an early priority to deliver on this commitment. Doing so will allow us to go even further and to make sure that all care placements and settings provide children and young people with the support they need.

‘Fostering Better Outcomes (2018)’ sets out our ambitions for foster care, including our plans to undertake a digital project to explore how technology can help improve the quality and consistency of data on foster parents, to inform recruitment, planning and vacancy management. This project has been underway since October 2019. The aim of the project is not to design a central register but to improve our understanding of the feasibility and potential of national digital approaches to addressing the current challenges.

While most children in care are placed in children’s homes or foster care, an increasing number of children are placed in independent and semi-independent settings. For many older children, this is the right type of placement to meet their needs and develop their independence ahead of adult life. Where local authorities place children in these settings, they must ensure that these settings are suitable. It is unacceptable for any child to be placed for any amount of time in a setting that does not meet their needs and keep them safe.

We cannot imagine a circumstance under which a child under the age of 16 should be placed in an independent or semi-independent setting that does not deliver care, and my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, has written to local authorities asking them to review these placements. We are considering where we must go further to ensure that these settings are used appropriately and that they are of good quality.

The Government is committed to investing in school places for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

The Department has allocated £365 million to local authorities across 2018 to 2021 through the Special Provision Capital Fund. This funding supports local authorities to create places for pupils with SEND. This funding also improves facilities for them in mainstream and special schools, nurseries, colleges and other education providers. The Department will continue to keep capital funding for pupils with SEND under review ahead of the next Spending Review.

In addition to this, 43 new Special Free Schools have opened since 2012 with a further 48 approved to open in the future. This will provide an additional 5,000 high quality new places. The Department also approved bids from local authorities for 37 new Special Schools and hope to announce the successful trusts to run these schools early this year.

Every child growing up in care should have a stable, secure environment where they feel supported, regardless of the type of their placement. Due to this reason, we are committed to undertaking a review of the care system. This was set out in the Conservative Party’s manifesto and it is an early priority to deliver on this commitment. Doing so will allow us to go even further and to make sure that all care placements and settings provide children and young people with the support they need.

‘Fostering Better Outcomes (2018)’ sets out our ambitions for foster care, including our plans to undertake a digital project to explore how technology can help improve the quality and consistency of data on foster parents, to inform recruitment, planning and vacancy management. This project has been underway since October 2019. The aim of the project is not to design a central register but to improve our understanding of the feasibility and potential of national digital approaches to addressing the current challenges.

While most children in care are placed in children’s homes or foster care, an increasing number of children are placed in independent and semi-independent settings. For many older children, this is the right type of placement to meet their needs and develop their independence ahead of adult life. Where local authorities place children in these settings, they must ensure that these settings are suitable. It is unacceptable for any child to be placed for any amount of time in a setting that does not meet their needs and keep them safe.

We cannot imagine a circumstance under which a child under the age of 16 should be placed in an independent or semi-independent setting that does not deliver care, and my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, has written to local authorities asking them to review these placements. We are considering where we must go further to ensure that these settings are used appropriately and that they are of good quality.

We are committed to inclusive education of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and the progressive removal of barriers to learning and participation in mainstream education. This commitment is reflected in the law on SEND and underpins all aspects of the SEND system. We have made our expectation clear that every school is a school for pupils with SEND and that every teacher is a teacher of pupils with SEND.

To support mainstream schools to meet the needs of pupils with SEND effectively, we will provide, for example, an extra £780 million in high needs funding next year. This figure is an increase of 12% compared to this year, bringing the total amount for supporting pupils with the most complex needs (including pupils in mainstream schools who have an education, health and care plan) to £7.2 billion. This increase will be the largest year-on-year increase since the high needs funding block was created in 2013.

We have also launched a review of the SEND system, which is considering how the system has evolved since 2014, how it can be made to work best for all families and how we can ensure quality of provision is the same across the country. The review is also looking at how all schools and colleges can provide the best possible support to enable all children and young people with SEND to thrive and prepare for adulthood.

Our commitment to support for pupils with SEND is also reflected in the teacher-training approach that special educational provision is underpinned by high quality teaching. As part of teachers’ initial training, qualified teachers must have demonstrated their ability to recognise and respond to a wide range of pupils’ needs, including pupils with SEND.

Additionally, a SEND schools’ workforce contract worth £3.9 million has been in place over the period 2018 to 2020 to equip the workforce to deliver high quality teaching to pupils with all types of SEND.

The Government has already taken significant steps to improve the welfare of domestic and other animals. The Animal Health and Welfare Framework has been produced to help county councils, unitary authorities and metropolitan boroughs in England deliver their statutory duties in relation to the health and welfare of farmed animals. Published in May 2021, our Action Plan for Animal Welfare sets out an ambitious programme of future reforms which will strengthen our position as a world leader in this field.

The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 were developed to help improve standards and enforcement across a range of animal activities licensed by local authorities; for example, modernising the regulation of dog breeding, pet selling and animal boarding. Local authorities are responsible for enforcing the requirements of licenses in these areas and have access to appropriately trained officers. Statutory guidance aims to improve consistency with the interpretation and application by local authorities of the regulatory regime across England. Ultimately, however, it is for local authorities themselves to decide how best to use the powers of inspection and licensing available to implement the regime and deal with individual cases.

Defra do not hold any data from the last five years on the number of shopping trolleys or motor vehicles abandoned nor the amount spent by local authorities on seizing, storing and disposing of abandoned shopping trolleys.

Local authorities have powers under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to seize, store and dispose of abandoned shopping and luggage trolleys. They can also recover costs from the owners of the trolleys.

Local authorities may agree schemes with local businesses to make sure they collect their trolleys. The local authority cannot claim any costs associated with removing, storing or disposing of trolleys if the trolley owners are part of such a scheme.

Defra has not made an assessment of the environmental impact of abandoned shopping trolleys.

The Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978 (RDAA) places a duty on councils to remove vehicles that are abandoned on any land in the open air, including private land, and council officers may legally enter land to investigate and remove abandoned vehicles.

Authorities do not have to remove an abandoned vehicle if the cost of moving it to the nearest highway is unreasonably high. It is for councils to determine whether any particular vehicle has been abandoned, and whether it is subject to their duty to remove it.

The Government has published guidance on councils’ powers for removing abandoned trolleys and responsibilities for removing abandoned vehicles, which is available at gov.uk at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/removing-abandoned-shopping-trolleys-council-powers and https://www.gov.uk/guidance/abandoned-vehicles-council-responsibilities

Defra do not hold any data from the last five years on the number of shopping trolleys or motor vehicles abandoned nor the amount spent by local authorities on seizing, storing and disposing of abandoned shopping trolleys.

Local authorities have powers under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to seize, store and dispose of abandoned shopping and luggage trolleys. They can also recover costs from the owners of the trolleys.

Local authorities may agree schemes with local businesses to make sure they collect their trolleys. The local authority cannot claim any costs associated with removing, storing or disposing of trolleys if the trolley owners are part of such a scheme.

Defra has not made an assessment of the environmental impact of abandoned shopping trolleys.

The Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978 (RDAA) places a duty on councils to remove vehicles that are abandoned on any land in the open air, including private land, and council officers may legally enter land to investigate and remove abandoned vehicles.

Authorities do not have to remove an abandoned vehicle if the cost of moving it to the nearest highway is unreasonably high. It is for councils to determine whether any particular vehicle has been abandoned, and whether it is subject to their duty to remove it.

The Government has published guidance on councils’ powers for removing abandoned trolleys and responsibilities for removing abandoned vehicles, which is available at gov.uk at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/removing-abandoned-shopping-trolleys-council-powers and https://www.gov.uk/guidance/abandoned-vehicles-council-responsibilities

Defra do not hold any data from the last five years on the number of shopping trolleys or motor vehicles abandoned nor the amount spent by local authorities on seizing, storing and disposing of abandoned shopping trolleys.

Local authorities have powers under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to seize, store and dispose of abandoned shopping and luggage trolleys. They can also recover costs from the owners of the trolleys.

Local authorities may agree schemes with local businesses to make sure they collect their trolleys. The local authority cannot claim any costs associated with removing, storing or disposing of trolleys if the trolley owners are part of such a scheme.

Defra has not made an assessment of the environmental impact of abandoned shopping trolleys.

The Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978 (RDAA) places a duty on councils to remove vehicles that are abandoned on any land in the open air, including private land, and council officers may legally enter land to investigate and remove abandoned vehicles.

Authorities do not have to remove an abandoned vehicle if the cost of moving it to the nearest highway is unreasonably high. It is for councils to determine whether any particular vehicle has been abandoned, and whether it is subject to their duty to remove it.

The Government has published guidance on councils’ powers for removing abandoned trolleys and responsibilities for removing abandoned vehicles, which is available at gov.uk at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/removing-abandoned-shopping-trolleys-council-powers and https://www.gov.uk/guidance/abandoned-vehicles-council-responsibilities

Defra do not hold any data from the last five years on the number of shopping trolleys or motor vehicles abandoned nor the amount spent by local authorities on seizing, storing and disposing of abandoned shopping trolleys.

Local authorities have powers under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to seize, store and dispose of abandoned shopping and luggage trolleys. They can also recover costs from the owners of the trolleys.

Local authorities may agree schemes with local businesses to make sure they collect their trolleys. The local authority cannot claim any costs associated with removing, storing or disposing of trolleys if the trolley owners are part of such a scheme.

Defra has not made an assessment of the environmental impact of abandoned shopping trolleys.

The Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978 (RDAA) places a duty on councils to remove vehicles that are abandoned on any land in the open air, including private land, and council officers may legally enter land to investigate and remove abandoned vehicles.

Authorities do not have to remove an abandoned vehicle if the cost of moving it to the nearest highway is unreasonably high. It is for councils to determine whether any particular vehicle has been abandoned, and whether it is subject to their duty to remove it.

The Government has published guidance on councils’ powers for removing abandoned trolleys and responsibilities for removing abandoned vehicles, which is available at gov.uk at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/removing-abandoned-shopping-trolleys-council-powers and https://www.gov.uk/guidance/abandoned-vehicles-council-responsibilities

We are actively engaging with companies in the waste sector and local authorities to understand the current level of absences amongst their staff and the potential for this to impact their services.

We circulated a short survey to waste companies and local authorities on 21 July 2021 to gather data on staff absences and heavy goods vehicle (HGV) driver vacancies. We intend to continue gathering this data over the summer to continue our assessment of pressures on waste and recycling services.

Defra does not hold data on the number of local authorities that provide a service to remove abandoned vehicles.

The Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978 places a duty on councils to remove vehicles that are abandoned on any land in the open air, including private land, and council officers may legally enter land to investigate and remove abandoned vehicles.

Authorities do not have to remove an abandoned vehicle if the cost of moving it to the nearest highway is unreasonably high. It is for councils to determine whether any particular vehicle has been abandoned, and whether it is subject to their duty to remove it.

The Government has published guidance on councils’ responsibilities for removing abandoned vehicles, which is available at gov.uk.

According to data from the Waste and Resources Action Programme, the number of local authorities providing a weekly residual waste collection was (a) 202 in 2009/10, (b) 172 in 2014/15 and (c) 147 in 2019/20. In the data set, some local authorities may appear in more than one frequency category as they may operate several different schemes across their area. There are also a small number of local authorities who provide a residual waste collection more frequently than weekly.

The frequency of waste collections is for local authorities to determine. The Government supports comprehensive and frequent rubbish and recycling services and is developing proposals on consistent recycling collections, including requiring weekly food waste collections from all households in England.

We collect information on the number of Civic Amenity Sites (household waste recycling centres) operated by a local authority or its contractors. This information is only collected in quarter four (January to March) via WasteDataFlow. Two questions are completed in WasteDataFlow, one by waste disposal authorities for each district and the other is completed by unitary authorities and waste collection authorities.

The datasets can be found at the following link: WasteDataFlow - Local Authority waste management - data.gov.uk, with the datasets for 2020, 2015 and 2010 attached.

The data can be filtered by setting the 'question column' to 'Q013' (Waste Disposal Authories) or 'Q015' (Unitary Authorities and Waste Collection Authorities). Then the number of Civic Amenity Sites for each local authority will be presented in the 'data column'.

We have provided no specific guidance to local authorities on the effect of air pollution on the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19).

However, on 7 April, we asked the Air Quality Expert Group (AQEG) to issue a call for evidence addressing areas of current scientific uncertainty related to the potential interactions between COVID-19 and UK air pollution. The AQEG report assessing available evidence was published on the UK Air website on 1 July. The report concluded that there is currently very limited evidence to support the concept of transmission of viable live SARS-Cov-2 virus via ambient (outdoor) particulate matter.

We continue to work with our colleagues in the Department of Health and Social Care, Public Health England and the wider research community to improve our understanding of this issue.

The Local Air Quality Management (LAQM) regime requires that local authorities review and assess air quality in their area. When a local authority assesses that air quality objectives may be exceeded, it should carry out appropriate air quality monitoring. Defra provides technical and policy guidance to local authorities to assist them in meeting these LAQM responsibilities. Defra also provides technical support to local authorities via a dedicated local air quality management Helpdesk (phone, email and webpage) and calculation tools to support local authorities in their monitoring and modelling efforts to ensure a consistent approach.

We do not routinely assess air pollution levels against World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines at a local authority level. However, local authorities are required to review and assess local air quality with regard to air quality standards and objectives under the Local Air Quality Management regime.

We have committed to setting a new ambitious target for fine particulate matter (PM_2.5). As part of that work we have explored progress made towards WHO PM_2.5 guidelines on a national level and a report was published in July 2019.

The Government is committed to evidence-based policy making and will consider the WHO annual mean guideline level for PM_2.5 when setting the target, alongside independent expert advice, evidence and analysis on a diversity of factors. It is important to get this right and set a target that is ambitious, achievable and focuses on how the greatest public health benefits can be achieved.

Air pollution poses one of the biggest environmental threats to public health, which is why the Government is already investing £3.8 billion to clean up our air. This includes £880 million ring-fenced for local authorities to tackle previously identified nitrogen dioxide exceedances. The Defra/Department for Transport Joint Air Quality Unit (JAQU) continues to work closely with those local authorities developing and implementing local clean air plans, which can include charging Clean Air Zones (CAZs). JAQU provides these local authorities with guidance on the practicalities of setting up a CAZ, including information on both the digital interface and the physical infrastructure required to make CAZs function effectively.

It is legal for household waste and recycling centres (HWRCs) to remain open during the Coronavirus pandemic. However, we know that some local authorities are finding this challenging, which is why on 5 May Defra published some guidance to help local authorities do this.

We worked with industry, local authorities and other Government departments, including Public Health England, on developing the guidance which includes a section on workforce safety. The key principle of the guidance is that human health must be protected while maintaining safe systems of working. Social distancing must also be observed by both staff and visitors to HWRCs wherever possible. The guidance makes it clear that residents must only visit HWRCs if they cannot store safely at home the items they wish to dispose of.

Here is a link to the guidance on the GOV.UK website:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-advice-to-local-authorities-on-prioritising-waste-collections/managing-household-waste-and-recycling-centres-hwrcs-in-england-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-pandemic

As of 31 December 2019, there were 72 apprentices in Defra. This is 1.4% of the total staff employed in the department.

Data regarding the number of apprentices in each Government department is published yearly as part of routine Government transparency. The most recent report was published in September last year, covering the 2018-19 financial year, and can be found on the GOV.UK website:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-apprenticeship-data-2018-to-2019

The Department does not hold data on the level of profits made by bus operating companies.

The information is not held in the format requested.

The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

No specific assessment has been made.

We continue to work closely with bereavement services to ensure support is available and assess what is required by the sector.

The information requested is not held centrally.

The Service Continuity and Care Market Review took the form of all local authorities carrying out a self-assessment in autumn 2020, to ascertain the risk to the continuity of care across all adult social care markets in England over the winter to the end of March 2021. We are unable to provide the content of these self-assessments as they are commercially sensitive and the disclosure of information may prejudice local authorities’ ability to deliver their services.

However, the National Audit Office published a high-level summary of the review findings in, ‘The adult social care market in England’ in March 2021, which is attached.

Under the Care Act 2014, local authorities are required to shape their local markets according to local needs, which includes securing the right balance of domiciliary, residential and other provision. Throughout the pandemic, we have made available over £2 billion in specific funding for adult social care, in addition to over £6 billion for local authorities to address pressures on their services. In partnership with the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services and the Local Government Association, we carried out a service continuity and care market review to understand the robustness of local authorities’ plans and the level of support needed to maintain continuity of provision through winter 2020-21.

The Government has been in constant contact with local authority leaders and directors of public health to support local Covid-19 outbreak management in these areas.

The Department engages routinely with Local Authorities through our Regional Partnership teams, who have daily and weekly meetings with local authorities. The Director of Strategy & Engagement for Contain and their team meets with Local Authority Chief Executives, Directors of Public Health, the Local Government Association and Society of Local Authority Chief Executives fortnightly to discuss policy development.

On 25 May 2021, officials met the 8 Local Authorities concerned about the travel guidance. Since then we have engaged continuously with local health leads on the risks posed by new variants. We have deployed local communications to the affected areas to alert the public to advice. We worked at pace last week, recognising the risks posed by the increased case rates of the new variant in some parts of the country. As a result, we recognise that the communications were not as clear as they could have been. We will be discussing with local authority colleagues this week to make sure that everyone is clear what the expectations are and how we can improve communications going forward.

The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies considered the impact of tiers in England and interventions in the devolved administrations in November 2020. A summary of this analysis is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/impact-of-interventions-tfg-the-uks-4-nations-autumn-interventions-update-26-november-2020

Between 28 May 2020 to 28 April 2021 the total number of polymerase chain reaction tests which produced a recorded result was 8,726,870 test results.

The total number of lateral flow device tests which recorded a result between 22 October 2020 and 28 April 2021 in England was 63,852,593.

In determining fixed charges for short-term residential care, a local authority must follow the Care and Support (Charging and Assessment of Resources) 2014 Regulation (the Regulations) and have regard to the Care and Support Statutory (CASS) guidance.

It is the role of the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, to look at individual complaints about local authority failure to follow policies, including those on whether fixed charges for short-term residential care are in line with statutory guidance.

Public health allocations to local authorities in England were published on 16 March 2021 and are available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/public-health-grants-to-local-authorities-2021-to-2022

Figures on how many consultants are employed each month on the Test and Trace programme is not collected as the number is subject to continual week on week change. Audited information for the monthly costs of consultants is not currently available.

The actual average cost per day to the Department for a consultant is £1,100 per day and approximately 2,500 consultants are currently employed on NHS Test and Trace. Information on the number of days in total of consultancy time contracted to support NHS Test and Trace is not collected in the format requested.

We expect to confirm individual local authority public health grant allocations for 2021/22 shortly.

In the recent Spending Review, it was announced that the Department would be provided with funding for 2021/2022 to cover ongoing COVID-19 related personal protective equipment (PPE) expenditure. We are currently analysing options for the future supply and distribution of PPE beyond March 2021.

We have seen a monumental change in the way that PPE has been secured and supplied across the country. We have learned a great deal from this experience and want to build on this to transition to a future model that is both resilient and proportionate.

Local authorities will play a vital role, working together with the National Health Service and local care providers, to ensure we make the best possible use of initial supplies of the vaccine. The NHS has identified Senior Responsible Officers to link local authorities and the social care system. The Government will continue to support councils and will ensure everyone who has been clinically prioritised to receive a vaccine will have access as soon as possible.

As of 20 September 2020, NHS Volunteer Responders have undertaken 861,192 tasks since the start of the programme, which went fully live on 7 April 2020.

The following table sets out the number of completed tasks by month from March to September 2020.

Information on Test and Trace contracts is available publicly on https://www.gov.uk/contracts-finder

Week by week data is not available.

The contract with Clipper Logistics was put in place by Supply Chain Coordination Ltd (SCCL), the management function of NHS Supply Chain, via a sub-contract with its existing primary logistics supplier. This was for an initial 3 month period from March to June at a value of £1.3m (monthly extensions at estimated values of £450,000) for storage and distribution of PPE to all NHS Trusts. This contract was subsequently varied for a 3 month period from May to July at a value of £1.95m (monthly extensions at estimated values of £650,000) to provide an eCommerce solution involving an eBay platform for the storage and distribution of PPE by Clipper to care homes and GP surgeries.

All upper tier local authorities have access to record level (including sex, age, occupation and postcode) test and case data. Directors of Public Health are also receiving fully identifiable test, case and contact tracing data where the case data includes, address, postcode, sex, age, NHS Number, occupation, test date, and additional data describing progress through the NHS Test and Trace contact tracing process. Public Health England (PHE) provides access to this data via a secure platform to Directors of Public Health to support them to carry out their outbreak management responsibilities. This data is currently updated on a daily basis.

PHE began providing record level positive test data, including postcodes, to local authorities (including Directors of Public Health) on 24 June.

We do not currently hold the information in the format requested.

Deloitte is contracted to provide professional services support to the Department and the National Testing Programme. Deloitte’s role has included setting up testing facilities; coordinating the set-up of home and satellite delivery channels; and designing the digital platform that enables people to book a test and register their kit. Deloitte makes this digital information available to the National Pathology Exchange.

Once results are generated in the labs, the results information also flows to the National Pathology Exchange where the result is matched to the individual’s demographic information. These results are passed to Public Health England every 30 minutes through a data flow. As such, Deloitte does not have a role in the generation of results or the handling of positive case data.

All upper tier local authorities have access to record level test and case data, including sex, age, occupation and postcode. Directors of public health are also receiving fully identifiable test, case and contact tracing data where the case data includes, address, postcode, sex, age, National Health Service number, occupation, test date, and additional data describing progress through the NHS Test and Trace contact tracing process.

These data are collected as management information from the NHS Test and Trace Service. The Department plans to publish information from the first week of the tracing service, on Thursday 11 June.

The Joint Biosecurity Centre is aligned to the CONTAIN strand of the Government’s Test, Trace, Contain and Enable programme. The aim of CONTAIN is to prevent local outbreaks and, where not possible, to contain them locally to minimise the spread of the virus and avoid the need for escalation to a national lockdown.

The JBC/CONTAIN’s regional teams will work closely with local authorities, Local Health Protection Teams and Local Resilience Forums in managing outbreaks of COVID-19 at a local level. Further information on how the JBC will link in with these organisations will be provided in the near future.

The upcoming launch of the Test and Trace Service was announced to local authorities on Friday 22 May as a briefing note, press release and slide pack announcing the service and £300 million to develop local outbreak control plans which tailor the authorities’ response to the virus at the local level.

We have agreed £300 million worth of new dedicated funding to support local authorities with implementing Test and Trace and local outbreak plans.

This money will be allocated shortly following standard procedures.

Alongside financial contributions, the NHS Test and Trace service is developing comprehensive guidance to assist local authorities in developing their own COVID-19 outbreak plans.

The Government is working with e-commerce expertise to roll out a new online portal to help primary care and small social care providers to order critical personal protective equipment (PPE). The PPE Portal acts as an emergency top-up route for health care providers that cannot obtain sufficient PPE through their usual wholesaler routes.

All health and care providers should continue to use their usual wholesaler routes as their primary access route for PPE, whether invited to register with the portal or not.

As of Tuesday 30 June, over 16 million items of PPE have been delivered via the PPE Portal, with over 11,000 orders for PPE having been made.

Local authority staff will be a key part of contact tracing as the NHS Test and Trace service focusing on local outbreak management and this element of the service is being developed jointly between Public Health England and representatives from local government sector organisations.

The priority has always been to ensure that public health bodies, such as Public Health England (PHE), have the data they require under the Health Protection (Notification) Regulations, and under the updates to the Control of Patient Information Regulations, to undertake their vital work in relation to contact tracing, case management and health surveillance. PHE provides the results to the appropriate local PHE Health Protection Team, who work with their respective local authorities as part of their routine public health response arrangements. We are developing a solution for our stakeholders to access the additional Management Information data that will further support their work, and local authorities and the National Health Service are top priorities.

The personal protective equipment (PPE) Portal has now been rolled out to general practitioners and small social care providers in all local authorities in England, totalling over 21,000 providers and delivering over 22 million items of PPE. Originally, the pilot involved inviting small groups of healthcare providers to register with the portal from the following local resilience forum (LRF) areas:

- Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly;

- Northumbria;

- Nottinghamshire;

- Hertfordshire; and

- Thames Valley.

As the LRFs are based on police areas, the list above does not correspond to local authority boundaries. For example, Northumberland, Newcastle, Gateshead, South Tyneside, North Tyneside and Sunderland local authorities are all within Northumbria LRF.

Information is not available in the format requested.

The Department’s most recent assessment looked at actual data on surcharge-payers’ use of the National Health Service between April 2015 and September 2019 and their length of stay in the United Kingdom. This estimated the total costs to the NHS of treating the average surcharge-payer to be around £624 per person per annum.

Clinical commissioning groups (CCG) should ensure that commissioning arrangements are adequate to provide the ongoing support essential to the safety of vulnerable children whilst in school.

NHS England have advised that CCG Chief Operating Officers are now co-signatories for Local Safeguarding Partnership plans which should include collaborative governance processes and partnership solutions for the commissioning arrangements for children with special needs.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member the Member for St Albans on 3 February 2020, UIN 9144.

https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-01-28/9144/

Fifteen National Health Service buildings are currently understood to have High Pressure Laminate cladding and these are being reviewed to determine their specific situation.

The safety of patients, visitors and staff has always been the top priority of the National Health Service. Guidance on fire safety is provided to the NHS through the Health Technical Memorandum (HTM) 05 series - Firecode.

The BS 8414 test methods were developed by the British Standards Institute in conjunction with the Building Research Establishment and they evaluate whether a cladding system subject to fire breaking out of an opening (such as a window) in an external wall, will result in excessive fire spread via the outside of the building and the potential for fire to re-enter at a higher level. The BS 8414 test and associated pass/fail guidance represents one route by which cladding systems may be judged as meeting the necessary standards in certain circumstances. However other means of demonstrating compliance with the required standard may be equally valid. Cladding systems used in the NHS should meet the requirements of the Building Regulations.

Fifteen NHS buildings are currently understood to have High Pressure Laminate cladding and these are being reviewed to determine their specific situation.

The safety of patients, visitors and staff has always been the top priority of the National Health Service. Guidance on fire safety is provided to the NHS through the Health Technical Memorandum (HTM) 05 series - Firecode.

The BS 8414 test methods were developed by the British Standards Institute in conjunction with the Building Research Establishment and they evaluate whether a cladding system subject to fire breaking out of an opening (such as a window) in an external wall, will result in excessive fire spread via the outside of the building and the potential for fire to re-enter at a higher level. The BS 8414 test and associated pass/fail guidance represents one route by which cladding systems may be judged as meeting the necessary standards in certain circumstances. However other means of demonstrating compliance with the required standard may be equally valid. Cladding systems used in the NHS should meet the requirements of the Building Regulations.

Fifteen NHS buildings are currently understood to have High Pressure Laminate cladding and these are being reviewed to determine their specific situation.

The safety of patients, visitors and staff has always been the top priority of the National Health Service. Across the National Health Service, there are nine buildings identified as having Aluminium Composite Material cladding. These include residential buildings over two storeys and non-residential ones over 18 metres. This cladding is being remediated by the trusts that are responsible for the buildings.

Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is currently provided in England through the three-year PrEP Impact Trial. Participation in the trial is on a voluntary basis and it is for clinics and local authorities to decide the number of allocated places they can accept. The Department has held no discussions with representatives from Croydon University Hospital in relation to the pause in recruitment for gay and bisexual men.

All digital content posted on HMT’s social media channels in the lead up to Budget was produced by the department’s in house communications team at no additional cost.

At least 750 roles from across HM Treasury, the Department for International Trade, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and the Office for National Statistics will be based at the Darlington economic campus. The UK Infrastructure Bank (UKIB) is a new institution and will be headquartered in Leeds. The UKIB will be launched in interim form later in the Spring with the recruitment of the bank’s Chair currently underway.

As the Chancellor said at the 2020 Spending Review, sticking to the target to spend 0.7% of GNI as Official Development Assistance (ODA) is not an appropriate prioritisation of resources at a time of emergency.

The reduction in planned ODA expenditure was included in the overall spending plans that the government set out at the 2020 Spending Review, which prioritised funding to support the government’s response to Covid-19, invest in the UK’s recovery for all nations and regions and deliver on promises to the British people. This includes the provision of £621 million in 2021-22 towards the continuation of investment from the Towns Fund to regenerate high streets, town centres and communities.

Treasury ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery.

Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmt-ministers-meetings-hospitality-gifts-and-overseas-travel.

Any new funding for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government will have the Barnett formula applied to it in the usual way.

This would be on top of the £8.9 billion of additional funding that we have already confirmed for the devolved administrations in relation to Covid-19.

The estimated cost of the exemption of Capital Gains Tax on gains on the disposal of a person’s main or only residence was £26.7bn for 2017-18. Further information is provided in the official statistics on non-structural tax reliefs that are available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/main-tax-expenditures-and-structural-reliefs

As announced on 14 January, HM Treasury is undertaking a review of Air Passenger Duty to ensure regional connectivity is strengthened while meeting the UK’s climate change commitments to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.

The government takes its environmental responsibilities very seriously and uses a range of levers at its disposal, including spending, taxation and regulatory policy, to meet its climate and environmental objectives.

Adequate maintenance is defined by Paragraph 6 of the Immigration Rules to mean, after income tax, National Insurance contributions and housing costs have been deducted, there must be available to the family the level of income that would be available to them if the family was in receipt of Income Support.

Published guidance on adequate maintenance for spouses is on GOV.UK here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/452967/IDI_Adequate_Maintenance_and_Accommodation_Appendix_FM_Annex_1_7A.pdf

Last year, the Government successfully expanded Independent Child Trafficking Guardians (ICTGs) to one third of local authorities.

An evaluation of the ICTG service within the early adopter sites was published in July 2019 and can be found https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/819723/evaluation-independent-child-trafficking-guardians-final-horr111.pdf.

This evaluation was conducted on the service provided in the three initial sites of Greater Manchester, Hampshire and Wales between February 2017 and January 2019. Over this time period, 445 children were referred to the ICTG service.

Later this year the Home Office will publish its next evaluation of the ICTG service, which will provide further updates on outcomes of the service including the number of children it supports.

We aim to publish the firearms safety consultation as soon.

The minimum income requirement must be met by all those who are subject to this requirement. However, we recognise some sponsors will have a reduced earning capacity as a result of disability or caring for someone with a disability. Therefore, an applicant who is applying for a spousal visa whose sponsor is in receipt of a specified disability-related benefit, including personal independence payments, will be exempt from meeting the minimum income requirement.

In such cases the sponsor is required to demonstrate adequate maintenance which is equivalent to the Income Support level.

Sponsors will need to show they remain exempt from the minimum income requirement at each application application stage or they will otherwise need then to meet the requirement.

The Home Office has put in place a comprehensive vulnerability strategy to ensure the EU Settlement Scheme is accessible for all, including children in care.

The Home Office has engaged extensively with relevant stakeholders such as the Department for Education, Local Government Association and Association of Directors of Children’s Services to assess the needs of this group and ensure they are supported. That engagement continues, and all parties are committed to ensuring local authorities are supported throughout the process.

The vital role local authorities and health and social care trusts (HSCT) have with regards to looked after children accessing the EU Settlement Scheme has been agreed nationwide. Those responsibilities include the identification of eligible children and the recording of each application made. This includes the outcome status and future plans for converting pre-settled status into settled status.

Independent Child Trafficking Guardians (ICTGs) have been rolled out in one third of local authorities in England and Wales. If a child presents indicators of trafficking in these areas, first responder organisations have a responsibility to make a referral to the ICTG service.

The Home Office will publish its next evaluation of the ICTG service later this year, which will provide further updates on outcomes of the service including the number of children it supports.

The Government is currently considering improvements to the Modern Slavery Act 2015 made by the Independent Review in 2019, which considered Section 48, which makes provision for ICTGs. The Government remains committed to the national roll out of ICTGs.

The Home Office does not hold the data requested and information on the UK’s resident population is a matter for the independent Office for National Statistics. The no recourse to public funds (NRPF) condition is applied to the leave of most migrants in the UK as a legitimate means of maintaining and protecting our economic resources.

In those cases where leave has been, or is being, granted for family or private life reasons the NRPF condition can be lifted on application to the Home Office, including for reasons involving the welfare needs of children. In addition, immigration legislation specifically provides for assessments of child welfare needs to take place and support to be provided by a local authority under section 17 of the Children Act 1989.

The available published information on EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) applications and concluded applications by the applicant’s age and nationality to 31 December 2019, can be found in the Home Office’s ‘EU Settlement Scheme quarterly statistics’, statistics tables, tables EUSS_01, EUSS_02 and EUSS_04, available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/eu-settlement-scheme-quarterly-statistics-december-2019.

The Home Office has been engaging with relevant stakeholders such as the Department for Education, Local Government Association and Association of Directors of Children’s Services to assess the needs of looked-after children and care leavers and ensure they are supported.

To support this, guidance about the EUSS to help local authorities and Health and Social Care Trusts understand their responsibilities for supporting looked-after children and care leavers and how to apply has been created and issued.

A New Burdens Assessment has been produced in collaboration with key stakeholders representing local authorities and children’s social services to ensure they are adequately funded to support looked after children and care leavers who are eligible to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme.

The Home Office has been holding monthly teleconferences for local authority staff who are undertaking this work. The teleconferences provide a forum to obtain information, ask questions and raise issues. A designated help line number has also been made available for local authority staff to contact trained caseworkers in the Home Office should they need to discuss any aspect of the EU Settlement Scheme, be it a specific case issue, or a matter of general information.

The available published information on EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) applications and concluded applications by the applicant’s age and nationality to 31 December 2019, can be found in the Home Office’s ‘EU Settlement Scheme quarterly statistics’, statistics tables, tables EUSS_01, EUSS_02 and EUSS_04, available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/eu-settlement-scheme-quarterly-statistics-december-2019.

The Home Office has been engaging with relevant stakeholders such as the Department for Education, Local Government Association and Association of Directors of Children’s Services to assess the needs of looked-after children and care leavers and ensure they are supported.

To support this, guidance about the EUSS to help local authorities and Health and Social Care Trusts understand their responsibilities for supporting looked-after children and care leavers and how to apply has been created and issued.

A New Burdens Assessment has been produced in collaboration with key stakeholders representing local authorities and children’s social services to ensure they are adequately funded to support looked after children and care leavers who are eligible to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme.

The Home Office has been holding monthly teleconferences for local authority staff who are undertaking this work. The teleconferences provide a forum to obtain information, ask questions and raise issues. A designated help line number has also been made available for local authority staff to contact trained caseworkers in the Home Office should they need to discuss any aspect of the EU Settlement Scheme, be it a specific case issue, or a matter of general information.

The available published information on EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) applications and concluded applications by the applicant’s age and nationality to 31 December 2019, can be found in the Home Office’s ‘EU Settlement Scheme quarterly statistics’, statistics tables, tables EUSS_01, EUSS_02 and EUSS_04, available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/eu-settlement-scheme-quarterly-statistics-december-2019.

The Home Office has been engaging with relevant stakeholders such as the Department for Education, Local Government Association and Association of Directors of Children’s Services to assess the needs of looked-after children and care leavers and ensure they are supported.

To support this, guidance about the EUSS to help local authorities and Health and Social Care Trusts understand their responsibilities for supporting looked-after children and care leavers and how to apply has been created and issued.

A New Burdens Assessment has been produced in collaboration with key stakeholders representing local authorities and children’s social services to ensure they are adequately funded to support looked after children and care leavers who are eligible to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme.

The Home Office has been holding monthly teleconferences for local authority staff who are undertaking this work. The teleconferences provide a forum to obtain information, ask questions and raise issues. A designated help line number has also been made available for local authority staff to contact trained caseworkers in the Home Office should they need to discuss any aspect of the EU Settlement Scheme, be it a specific case issue, or a matter of general information.

The response for UINs 311, 312 and 313 were given on 25th June 2020.

The Government recognises the damaging impact that violence and abuse can have on victims, businesses, and the wider community; and we are committed to tackling this issue.

To ensure that our response to retail crime is as robust as possible we work with a wide range of partners through the National Retail Crime Steering Group, including the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners and British Retail Consortium.

In addition, we launched a call for evidence on violence and abuse toward shop staff to help strengthen our understanding of the scale and extent of the issue. The call for evidence has now closed and we are carefully analysing the responses before deciding what further action may be required. We intend to publish the government’s response in due course.

The Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government is responsible for matters relating to faith and religion within Government.

The Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government is responsible for matters relating to faith and religion within Government.

The Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government is responsible for matters relating to faith and religion within Government.

The Department does not hold the information requested.

As we stated in our previous responses, we aim to publish a full Regulatory Impact Assessment on the measures as soon as possible.

The Department does not hold figures on the amounts spent by councils in England on older people's leisure activities.

The National Planning Policy for Waste states that waste planning authorities should prepare Local Plans which should identify sufficient opportunities to meet the identified needs of an area for the management of waste, aiming to drive waste management up the Waste Hierarchy. It should ensure that suitable sites and areas for the provision of waste management facilities are identified in appropriate locations.

MHCLG does not hold statistics on the number of waste strategies currently prepared.

Local planning authorities have strong powers through the designation and planning systems to protect historic sites. In the recent Planning White Paper, Planning for the Future, we have committed to reviewing and updating the current planning framework for listed buildings and conservation areas, to ensure their significance is conserved while allowing, where appropriate, sympathetic changes to support their continued use and address climate change. Our detailed proposals will be announced.

No national assessment of the provision of allotments in England has been made. Local authorities are responsible for allotment provision in their area.

The Government recognises through our National Planning Policy Framework the important role that allotments can provide in enabling and supporting healthy lifestyles within our communities. Our National Model Design Code states that as part of open space design for large developments there should be the consideration of allotments and community growing projects for food production, learning and community engagement.

However, our National Planning Policy Framework is clear that local planning policies should be based on robust and up-to-date assessments of the need for open space and opportunities for new provision, which can include allotments, and their plans should then seek to accommodate this.

The Department does not collect the data requested.

There is no requirement for local authorities to report to central government on how they manage asbestos in their own buildings but local authorities are of course expected to comply as dutyholders under the relevant legal requirements.

The Health and safety Executive publishes a range of guidance for employers about working with asbestos and how to comply with relevant legislation. This is set out under the Control of Asbestos Regulations (CAR) 2012 with further guidance available on HSE’s website HSE: Asbestos - health and safety in the workplace.

The Department does not hold the data requested.

The Department does not collect this information. Whilst the Department is responsible for off street parking policy, the operation and management of local authority car parks is ultimately a responsibility of local authorities. This responsibility includes annual reporting that covers the financial, statistical and other data (including any parking or civil parking enforcement targets) set out in Annex A of the Government's guidance for local authorities on enforcing parking restrictions.

The Government believes that, in principle, all data held and managed by local authorities should be made available to local people unless there are specific sensitivities to doing so (for example, protecting vulnerable people).

The Department does not hold the information requested.

Following the July announcement we now intend to seek Parliamentary approval to the structural changes orders giving effect to the unitary decisions. These orders will include provision for transitional arrangements, including for elections in May 2022 to the future unitary councils and for the electoral arrangements for those elections. As we are drawing up this provision we are engaging with councils in the three areas and will carefully consider any views they express.

Our expectation is that the Local Government Boundary Commission for England will carry out a full electoral review for each new unitary council and put in place electoral arrangements to apply to the second elections to the those councils which are intended for May 2027.

As the Prime Minister said on 15 July, we consider that strong local leadership is critical in delivering the government's levelling up agenda. We want more places, especially in city regions and major urban areas, to agree an ambitious mayoral devolution deal where there is local support, and want to widen devolution beyond the cities and provide strong local leadership for all of our places. We have been engaging with a number of councils across England over the summer who have expressed interest in a "county deal".

Proposals are assessed as to whether they command a good deal of local support as assessed in the round across the whole area of the proposal, having regard to the views of the area's residents, businesses, public service providers, including councils and town and parish councils, and the voluntary sector, as well as other stakeholders such as Local Enterprise Partnerships.

The proposals were assessed against the criteria set out in the invitation which the Secretary of State issued on 22 February 2021 to councils to submit unitary proposals; these criteria included a criterion about the geography of any unitary council.

This information is available in the published summary of consultation responses available here .

Under the permitted development rights the developer must apply to the local planning authority for prior approval as to the provision of adequate natural light in all habitable rooms of each new dwellinghouse. The legislation requires the local planning authority to refuse prior approval if adequate natural light is not provided. We do not hold information on how that light is provided as it is a local authority matter.

We introduced this change with effect from 1 August 2020 and will continue to keep all permitted development rights under review.

The summary document that I published on 22 July 2021, available here , contains extensive detail on the responses to the consultation from Somerset residents and stakeholders.

In April, MHCLG announced £43.1 million of government funding to welcome Hong Kong British Nationals (Overseas) [BN(O)] status holders to the UK and to support them to access housing, work and educational support.

MHCLG has published an online bilingual Welcome Pack on GOV.UK and is establishing a network of 12 welcome hubs across the UK, alongside funding to enable local authorities in England to provide English language provision and destitution support, where needed.

Additionally, MHCLG has invited Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) organisations to bid for a share of a £2.6 million fund to support programmes that will help BN(O) status holders make the best start to rebuilding their lives. The grant schemes will provide regional community support, support on a national level, educational resources for schools, and a hate crime reporting service. We expect successful VCSE organisation to begin delivery in the autumn.

MHCLG has established a network of 12 Welcome Hubs across the 9 regions of England, and Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to coordinate preparations to welcome BN(O) status holders to the UK and help to ensure they are able to quickly integrate and contribute to their newfound communities. Details of the Welcome Hubs can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/regional-vcse-grant-scheme/regional-vcse-grant-scheme-prospectus.

The Department has made no estimate of the number of working days lost as a result of staff sickness related to positive cases of Covid-19.

We do not routinely disclose the Covid-19 test results of officials employed by the Department.

It is essential that everyone continues to follow national guidance on self isolation, it remains a legal requirement for people to self-isolate if they test positive and are told to do so, or are told to isolate as a close contact of a positive case by NHS Test and Trace. The public should continue to download and use the latest version of the NHS Covid-19 app to help reduce the spread of the virus

Local authorities in England have a statutory duty to provide a range of services to their communities. Local authorities have business continuity plans in place in order to continue to deliver these services and mitigate against any disruptions. Ministers and officials from my Department continue to have regular discussions with local partners to ensure appropriate plans are in place.

The Government welcomes the NAO report and is carefully considering each recommendation

Further details of how we intend to work with local government to reach net zero will be set out in the Net Zero Strategy, to be published prior to COP26.

We have been clear throughout the pandemic that all councils would be supported through this crisis, and they have been, with over £12 billion allocated directly to councils.

In the last year, our focus has been making sure councils continue to get the support they need during the pandemic, driving forward recovery and renewal plans and maintaining critical services. Once the pandemic is through, we will take stock of the demands faced by councils and the resources available to meet them and will decide on the timetable for future funding reform. Final decisions will be taken in the context of this year's Spending Review.

My Department continuously engages Her Majesty’s Treasury on local authority reserve levels as part of our routine work on local government finances.

Individual local authorities determine the level of reserves that they hold and are accountable to their electorate for the decisions they make.

This data is not held by the Department.

Our Planning for the Future white paper sets out how we will reform the planning system to make it more efficient, effective and equitable.

Adopted local plans throughout England collectively make provision for an average of around 200,000 homes per year. However, with regard to the status of specific site allocations in plans, my Department does not currently hold this information. Through our reforms, we are bringing forward a digital transformation of the planning process, with clear data standards and new digital tools to make planning more transparent and accessible; as part of this work, we are actively looking at ways to capture data on key aspects of local plans, including site allocations, to address key strategic questions like this.

Annual figures for homes given planning permission and the new homes delivered in England are published within MHCLG’s Official Statistics on planning applications and housing supply, available on Gov.uk at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-housing-communities-and-local-government/about/statistics

The Government has committing a total of over £12 billion in England to support local authorities in tackling the impacts of Covid-19. Over £6 billion of this is un-ringfenced in recognition that local authorities are best placed to decide how to meet the major pressures in their local area.

In addition to this the Government made available an increase in Core Spending Power in England from £49 billion in 2020-21 to up to £51.3 billion in 2021-22, a 4.6% increase in cash terms. This recognised the resources councils need to meet their pressures and maintain current service levels.

We have continued to work with local government as the pandemic has progressed, including through specially tailored financial monitoring. Our latest figures show that local authorities spent a total of £6.9 billion in responding to the pandemic in 2020-21, against funding provided of over £9 billion.

As the local government finance system continues to move into a more stable position, we will assess the demands faced by councils and the resources available to meet them in the context of the upcoming Spending Review.

Decisions on local authority funding and on social care funding beyond 2021-22 will be taken at the planned Spending Review later this year.

We have received Liverpool City Council's application for a selective licensing scheme. Each application is assessed on its merits against the statutory criteria. We will update on the outcome of the application in due course.

Local authorities report to MHCLG their levels of reserves for the start and end of each financial year. The latest outturn figures include reserve levels to 31 March 2020. These can be found here:www.gov.uk/government/collections/local-authority-revenue-expenditure-and-financing .

Ministers and officials from my Department have regular discussions with counterparts in the Department for Health and Social Care on a range of matters including helping local authorities to take steps to reduce the transmission of Covid-19 in their localities

The £23.75 million ‘Community Champions’ scheme has supported those groups at greater risk of Covid-19, to ensure key public health advice is understood, safer behaviours are followed and vaccine take-up promoted.

On 12 July my department invited 34 local authorities to submit expressions of interest in order to join the Partnerships for People and Place scheme, and published guidance online to help them do so. We will announce the successful projects soon.

We have now offered Town Deals to all 101 places that were invited to submit proposals as part of the Towns Fund, committing over £2.4 billion. This includes the accelerated funding provided to places last year. The exact funding distributed each year is subject to agreeing spend profiles with each town.

The Future High Streets Fund aims to renew and reshape town centres and high streets in a way that drives growth, improves experience and ensures future sustainability. In total, 72 places are sharing over £830 million of capital funding from the Future High Streets Fund, between January 2021 and March 2024, to deliver transformative projects which will support their towns and high streets to reopen and recover from the effects of the pandemic.

At the Spending Review, the UK Government committed an initial £4 billion for the Levelling Up Fund for England over the next four years (up to 2024-25) and set aside at least £800 million for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The UK Government will use the new financial assistance powers in the UKIM Act to make the Fund available to the whole of the UK, enabling all communities to receive the investment and support they need to recover from the pandemic. As such, up to £4.8 billion until 2024-25 will be available for the Fund across the UK, with at least £800 million invested in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The Community Renewal Fund is a one year fund with a budget of £220 million. The UK Community Renewal Fund aims to support people and communities most in need across the UK to pilot programmes and new approaches and will invest in skills, community and place, local business, and supporting people into employment.

The Community Ownership Fund is a £150 million fund over four years to support community groups across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland to take ownership of assets which are at risk of being lost to the community.