Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much of the £100 million investment through the social mobility action plan, entitled Unlocking talent, fulfilling potential (a) will be and (b) has been allocated to Walsall North to support social mobility in early years education.

Information on funding at constituency level is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Walsall local authority currently receives funding for the 2-year-old offer, and take-up is currently at 62%. Walsall has bid for the schools nursery capital fund and is a partner to Wolverhampton’s bid to the early outcomes fund, both of which are currently being assessed. The outcomes will be announced in due course.

In addition, the department has commissioned an early years special educational needs and disability (SEND) partnership led by the National Children's Bureau. This project aims to improve the quality of provision for children with SEND in the early years by building the confidence, knowledge and ability of the workforce to identify and support children with SEND. The West Midlands is one of the regions that the National Children’s Bureau will be working with.