Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether (a) he, (b) his predecessor, (c) current or former Ministers of his Department and (d) officials of his Department held meetings with contractors who had been encouraged to apply to carry out work relating to the incoming early years baseline assessment in which that assessment was discussed and before details of the contracts were made public.
The procurement for the reception baseline assessment has followed all due commercial procedure. As such, no current or previous Secretary of State, Minister or Department official has held meetings with contractors in which details of the reception baseline assessment were discussed or in which contractors were encouraged to apply for this work before the specification and contract were made public.
The Department for Education does not plan to include the performance management of teachers in the reception baseline assessment.