Tom Hayes

This Government is clear: someone’s race or ethnicity should never be a barrier to opportunity. For Black History Month, we are celebrating Black British changemakers, past and present, and encouraging others to do the same.

We are also engaging with grassroots activists and community leaders, and showcasing their work on Government channels. We stand in solidarity with those affected by racism and are committed to understanding and addressing the causes of racial inequality.

We are clear that the Equality Act 2010, which provides protection against direct and indirect discrimination across a range of fields, including employment, service provision and housing, already offers some protection for single parents.

Significantly more women than men, and disproportionately more members of particular ethnic groups, have single parent responsibilities. Accordingly, employers in particular must ensure that their rules and practices which may affect single parents do not indirectly discriminate on grounds of sex or race. We continue to keep the effectiveness of the Act under review and are committed to supporting every woman to thrive in her working life.

Due to the delegated nature of the Civil Service, departments as individual employers are able to set the learning requirements for their employees.

However, Civil Service Expectations training is available to all Civil Servants. This provides an introduction to the Civil Service code and values; the legislation around diversity and inclusion; the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy; why diversity and inclusion matters and what it means to Civil Servants and the support that is available to them such as workplace adjustments, mental health and wellbeing support.

This Department has not made an estimate of the number of English Language Teaching (ELT) centres that have closed permanently since the pandemic began, but is aware of data published by English UK which states that one in six of the UK's 415 language schools, 69 in total, closed in the first year of the pandemic.

This Department works closely with English UK and have provided support for their English with Confidence campaign, including through the production of promotional material and hosting ELT agents during familiarisation visits. We will continue to ensure that the ELT sector’s recovery and ambition is captured in the Government’s International Education Strategy and via the English Language Teaching Action Group. DBT will be supporting English UK’s Study World event in the UK and in China and will support the sector at ICEF (International Consultants for Education and Fairs) Berlin, alongside considering ELT mission destinations for the next 12 months.

This Department has not made an estimate of the number of English Language Teaching (ELT) centres that have closed permanently since the pandemic began, but is aware of data published by English UK which states that one in six of the UK's 415 language schools, 69 in total, closed in the first year of the pandemic.

This Department works closely with English UK and have provided support for their English with Confidence campaign, including through the production of promotional material and hosting ELT agents during familiarisation visits. We will continue to ensure that the ELT sector’s recovery and ambition is captured in the Government’s International Education Strategy and via the English Language Teaching Action Group. DBT will be supporting English UK’s Study World event in the UK and in China and will support the sector at ICEF (International Consultants for Education and Fairs) Berlin, alongside considering ELT mission destinations for the next 12 months.

The Government does not have any plans to introduce a specific paid leave entitlement at this time. However, depending on the nature of the individual’s employment, survivors may be able to access a range of leave entitlements allowing them to take time off from work when they need it.

Being at work is often important for victims, and there is practical support employers can offer which can make a real difference, such as signposting, financial assistance and supporting safety in and around the workplace.

Ministers are considering options to reduce embodied emissions in industry by growing the demand for construction materials such as low carbon steel, cement and concrete. This includes resolving questions such as how embodied emissions in products are measured.

The Government will consult on options for answering these questions in due course.

The Government has established a Circular Economy Taskforce to support the efficient use of construction materials to reduce embodied carbon. Alongside this, Government continues to collaborate with industry groups to promote the efficient, circular use of construction materials, supporting research to enable this.

Minimum energy efficiency standards in non-domestic buildings have improved energy efficiency and Government has consulted on strengthening them. We will publish our government response early next year. In addition, our Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme requires large businesses to undertake energy audits and encourages improvements.

There are also incentives to decarbonise with grants to small businesses through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme and the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund offers up to £500 million to support existing firms to decarbonise and grow, with the government recently confirming £163 million in phase 3 funding to invest by 2028. More detail on the Government’s approach to decarbonising non-domestic buildings, including through the Warm Homes Plan, will be published in due course.

The Government’s ambitious Warm Homes Plan will upgrade 5 million homes across the country by making them cleaner and cheaper to run, from installing new insulation to rolling out solar and heat pumps. We will partner with combined authorities and local and devolved governments to roll out this plan. We will set out further detail on delivering our Warm Homes Plan in due course.

Landlords can use our ‘Help for Households’ GOV.UK page to find available support via the Home Upgrade Grant and the Great British Insulation Scheme. In addition, there is a zero-rate of VAT until March 2027 on energy saving measures. Government will consult this year on increasing minimum energy efficiency standards in the domestic private rented sector. This consultation will set out proposals on maximum spend required from landlords and the exemptions regime to manage the cost burden placed on landlords, including those who own properties that are difficult to retrofit, whilst still achieving our ambition to lift households out of fuel poverty.

The Government will consult on increasing minimum energy efficiency standards in the domestic private rented sector and on introducing a minimum energy efficiency standard for the social rented sector. The Government will work closely with both the private and socially rented sectors during the consultations and will consider potential costs for private landlords and social housing providers in our assessment of options for the minimum energy efficiency standards.

The Government is committed to protecting children online and supporting families who have endured unimaginable losses.

The Online Safety Act contains measures that seek to address challenges faced by bereaved parents when engaging with online services following the death of a child, including provisions to ensure that online services are transparent to bereaved parents about data disclosure, and have a dedicated helpline for bereaved parents relating to requests for information relevant to the death of a child.

We will present a new Data Bill soon.

The Football Governance Bill was introduced to Parliament on 24 October 2024. The Bill delivers on our manifesto commitment to establish the independent football regulator and a new set of rules to protect clubs, empower fans and keep clubs at the heart of their communities.

The Bill includes a requirement for clubs to seek the Regulator’s approval for a stadium sale or relocation. Clubs will not be able to relocate from their stadium unless it makes financial sense and does not compromise the heritage of the club. Clubs will also be required to consult their fans on the move, prior to the Regulator giving approval.

The Football Governance Bill was introduced to Parliament on 24 October 2024. The Bill delivers on our manifesto commitment to establish the independent football regulator and a new set of rules to protect clubs, empower fans and keep clubs at the heart of their communities.

This includes a requirement for clubs to seek the Regulator’s approval for a stadium sale or relocation. The potential sale of a club’s home ground must not undermine the financial sustainability of the club.

The home ground is often the most important economic and heritage asset of a club so has been given specific protections. The Regulator will assess the wider assets of a club as part of the financial regulation regime.

The Football Governance Bill was introduced to Parliament on 24 October 2024. The Bill delivers on our manifesto commitment to establish the independent football regulator and a new set of rules to protect clubs, empower fans and keep clubs at the heart of their communities.

As part of the test for prospective new club owners, they will have to provide the Regulator with evidence they have sufficient financial resources to acquire a club. The Regulator will not approve a takeover if the acquiring party does not have sufficient funds and an appropriate plan to finance a club.

The UK is a global hub of talent and is home to many of the world’s biggest VFX studios. The UK’s visual effects (VFX) sector is highly competitive, competing successfully with production centres in the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India, South East Asia, and Europe, to secure substantial inward investment.

The government is committed to supporting the UK’s visual effects industry, ensuring that they are able to remain competitive and with international reach. We will continue to focus on maintaining a strong and globally competitive sector by attracting new film and high-end TV productions that require our VFX and post-production studios; providing competitive tax incentives; investing in infrastructure; supporting innovation; working with industry on skills development; and promoting independent content. The government will continue to ensure our tax incentives are modern, agile, competitive and attractive.

The government will continue to engage both with sector organisations like the UK Screen Alliance and with individual VFX studios to make sure the UK remains an attractive and competitive place to do business.

Whilst DCMS Sector Economic Estimates provide high level figures for employment within the Creative Industries, DCMS does not hold this information for each creative sub sector. However, BFI’s most recent report estimates that the UK VFX sector directly employed 10,680 FTE in 2021. The same BFI report also estimates the total number of jobs supported by VFX, including indirect employment through the supply chain, was 27,430 FTE in 2021.

The UK is a global hub of talent and is home to many of the world’s biggest VFX studios. The UK’s visual effects (VFX) sector is highly competitive, competing successfully with production centres in the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India, South East Asia, and Europe, to secure substantial inward investment.

The government is committed to supporting the UK’s visual effects industry, ensuring that they are able to remain competitive and with international reach. We will continue to focus on maintaining a strong and globally competitive sector by attracting new film and high-end TV productions that require our VFX and post-production studios; providing competitive tax incentives; investing in infrastructure; supporting innovation; working with industry on skills development; and promoting independent content. The government will continue to ensure our tax incentives are modern, agile, competitive and attractive.

The government will continue to engage both with sector organisations like the UK Screen Alliance and with individual VFX studios to make sure the UK remains an attractive and competitive place to do business.

Whilst DCMS Sector Economic Estimates provide high level figures for employment within the Creative Industries, DCMS does not hold this information for each creative sub sector. However, BFI’s most recent report estimates that the UK VFX sector directly employed 10,680 FTE in 2021. The same BFI report also estimates the total number of jobs supported by VFX, including indirect employment through the supply chain, was 27,430 FTE in 2021.

Schools and colleges are best placed to decide what pastoral support to put in place to meet the needs of their pupils. Pastoral support should promote good mental wellbeing and respond to emerging issues. There is a range of support available to schools, including a government-commissioned mental wellbeing toolkit, which is available here: https://mentallyhealthyschools.org.uk/targeted-support/.

This practical guide and tool were designed to help schools and colleges identify and embed the most effective targeted support options for their setting.

To ensure the right support is available to every young person that needs it, the department has committed to provide access to specialist mental health professionals in every school. As of April 2024, Mental Health Support Teams cover 44% (4.2 million) of pupils in schools and learners in further education (FE) in England and are expected to cover at least 50% by the end of March 2025. The government will also be putting in place new Young Futures hubs, including access to mental health support workers, and will recruit an additional 8,500 new mental health staff to treat children and adults.

Pastoral support is also available to children and young people in other education settings.

The department continues to work closely with the FE sector to promote and support providers to develop and implement a whole college approach to mental health and wellbeing. This is supported by the Association of Colleges refreshed Mental Health and Wellbeing Charter, published in March 2024. The department encourages colleges to sign up to effectively integrate a whole-college approach.

To raise standards for mental health support in the higher education sector, the Office for Students has provided £400,000 of funding to the student mental health charity, Student Minds. This has enabled significant expansion of the University Mental Health Charter Programme, with 113 universities now signed up. The programme helps universities to adopt a whole-institution approach to mental health, bringing universities together to drive forward continuous improvement in mental health support for students.

For early years, the early years foundation stage (EYFS) statutory framework sets the standards and requirements all early years providers must meet to ensure that children have the best start in life and are kept healthy and safe. It sets out the importance of strong, warm and responsive relationships between staff and children. The framework is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-years-foundation-stage-framework--2.

The EYFS also states that each child must be assigned a key person. Their role is to help ensure that every child’s care is tailored to meet their individual needs to help the child become familiar with the setting, offer a settled relationship for the child and build a relationship with their parents and/or carers.

Removing barriers to opportunity and driving high and rising standards at all schools are at the heart of the government’s opportunity mission which aims to transform children’s life chances.

The Education Policy Institute's Annual Report 2024 outlined that the disadvantage gap in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole is 10.2 months at the end of key stage 2 and that this grows to 16.1 months at the end of key stage 4. Far too many disadvantaged children are being failed and this government is determined to change this by raising standards and creating opportunities for all our children enabling them to achieve and thrive.

This is why the department has already started work to recruit an additional 6,500 expert teachers and has launched an independent, expert-led Curriculum and Assessment Review that will look closely at key challenges to attainment.

The department is also committed to making quick progress to deliver on its commitment to offer breakfast clubs in all state-funded primary schools, ensuring every primary school child is well prepared for school. The government confirmed it will triple its investment in breakfast clubs to over £30 million in the 2025/26 financial year to help ensure children are ready to learn at the start of the school day and help to drive improvements to behaviour, attendance, and attainment.

Alongside this, pupil premium funding is allocated to schools to support the educational outcomes of disadvantaged pupils and is worth over £2.9 billion in the 2024/25 financial year.

Departmental officials also continue to work closely with the multi-academy trusts and schools in the area to promote continued collaboration, sector-led networks and initiatives to remove barriers to opportunity for all children in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole.

Every child, regardless of background, deserves the opportunity to progress and succeed in school and beyond, and this government is committed to breaking the link between young people’s backgrounds and their future success.

The department is fully focused on supporting the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children. That is why removing barriers to opportunity and raising school standards are at the heart of our mission to transform life chances and ensure all children can achieve and thrive.

The department is providing over £2.9 billion of pupil premium funding in 2024/25 to improve the educational outcomes of disadvantaged pupils in England.

The department will continue to take time to consider the various funding formulae going forward, recognising the importance of establishing a fair funding system that directs funding where it is needed. We will consider the pupil premium as part of that process, and decisions on pupil premium funding for 2025/26 will be taken later this year.

The department will continue to support schools to achieve maximum impact from the pupil premium.

Funding for post-16 education has been discussed with my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer.

As announced in the Budget, the government is providing an additional £300 million for further education to ensure young people are developing the skills they need to succeed.