Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 25 January 2018 to Question 124482, on Children’s Centres, what evidence his Department has gathered since September 2015 to inform a consultation on children's centres.

Question 124482 referred to the answer to Question 118316. That answer referenced the gathering of evidence to consider what steps would be appropriate. The department has gathered evidence from numerous sources and held numerous discussions with representatives of stakeholder groups since September 2015, which contribute to the development of policy. We do not hold records of every discussion that has taken place.

The government intends to work with sector leaders to identify how best to achieve the social mobility ambition set out in ‘Unlocking Talent, Fulfilling Potential’, including through children’s centres. This is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/667690/Social_Mobility_Action_Plan_-_for_printing.pdf.