Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the answer of 28 July 2026 to question 17814, whether her Department has (a) met with Kent County Council and (b) concluded whether their Communities of Schools model complies with her Department's guidance.

The department has met Kent County Council to discuss its Communities of Schools model and to understand how the model is intended to operate in practice.

Following that engagement, the department is considering the information provided by the council against the relevant guidance.