Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions he has had with the relevant stakeholders on supporting disabled children and families to recover from the covid-19 outbreak.

The department’s £18 million supported internship scheme will help more people into sustained paid employment. We are also making better respite care available for those who care for children with special educational needs and disabilities, with councils getting an extra £30 million for the next three years to set up more than 10,000 additional respite placements for vulnerable children.

The Department for Education and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) have worked together to secure funding for councils. This year councils have access to £51.3 billion to deliver their core services, including a £1.7 billion grant for social care. The government has also given over £6 billion in non-ringfenced funding directly to councils to support them with the immediate and longer-term impacts of COVID-19 spending pressures, including children’s services.

In addition to statutory services, the department is providing £27.3 million to the Family Fund in the 2021/22 financial year to support over 60,000 families on low incomes raising children and young people with disabilities or serious illnesses. Grants can be used for a range of purposes, including family breaks.

The department will continue to work with other government departments, including DLUHC, to ensure the needs of children’s services are reflected.