Asked by: Will Stone (Labour - Swindon North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reason she has made changes to the levels of payments made out of the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund; if she will publish a risk assessment for this funding change; and what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the funding change on future numbers and proportions of looked-after children being diverted into (a) adoptive families and (b) other types of care.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The changes made to the adoption and special guardianship support fund (ASGSF) were made so that funding can be accessed by the maximum number of children and families. The level of funding per child in 2025/26 will still allow adoptive and kinship families to access a significant package of therapeutic support.
The department always considers the impact of decisions on vulnerable children and reviews the risks of any policy changes.
The ASGSF is an important package of support, which is why we have continued to fund it. However, it is not the only support available to adoptive and kinship families. The department is funding Adoption England with £8.8 million this year to improve adopter recruitment and support, including innovative approaches to matching and the establishment of Centres of Excellence. We are also continuing to improve the support available to kinship families, including a £40 million package to trial a new kinship allowance to support family members and friends who take in children.
Asked by: Will Stone (Labour - Swindon North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what (a) progress she has made and (b) steps she plans to take with the Secretary of State for Transport on the HGV skills bootcamp programme.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Skills Bootcamps are an important offer in the skills landscape, supporting the development of crucial skills such as HGV driving.
Published statistics show that across the 2021/22 and 2022/23 financial years, there were 10,545 starts on HGV Skills Bootcamps, with 6,500 completions and almost 5,000 positive employment outcomes representing new jobs, promotions or increased responsibilities.
In line with our commitment to devolution, we will fund Skills Bootcamps through funding Mayoral Combined Authorities and local areas directly, supporting the government’s commitment to empower local leaders to have greater control of skills development, alongside an increased role in supporting people into work.
The department continues to support learners and employers in the HGV sector to benefit from a range of high quality skills training, including through apprenticeships such as the Urban Driver and Large Goods Vehicle (LGV) driver C + E apprenticeship standards.
Asked by: Will Stone (Labour - Swindon North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the 5.5% pay award for teachers in academized sixth forms to non-academized colleges.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Unlike 16-19 academies, sixth form colleges are part of the statutory further education (FE) sector.
The department does not set or recommend pay in FE providers, which have the freedom to make their own arrangements in line with their local circumstances.
We recognise the vital role that FE teachers and providers play in equipping learners with the opportunities and skills that they need to succeed in their education.
The October Budget set out the government’s commitment to skills, by providing an additional £300 million revenue funding for FE to ensure young people are developing the skills this country needs. The department will set out in due course how this funding will be distributed.