Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the balance between (a) theoretical and (b) practice-based content in postgraduate courses in play therapy.

Universities are autonomous institutions and responsible for the content of their courses, including quality and standards. The Department for Education does not assess individual courses or make judgements about the content of courses.

However, the Office for Students (OfS) is responsible for protecting the interests of all students and the quality of all regulated provision, working with the designated quality body, the Quality Assurance Agency. The OfS expects higher education providers to ensure they enable students to progress to employment, including by working with employers on the content of courses. This is particularly relevant where there are professional bodies with an interest in the abilities and standard of graduates and post-graduates. The OfS also manages the Teaching Excellence and Student Outcomes Framework.

The government has a role in ensuring a framework exists to understand and provide for skills needs at a national and local level.