Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 22 April 2025 to Question 44536 on Childcare: Finance, what role ministers played in allocation decisions; and in what way the four key criteria were (a) assessed and (b) scored.

The assessment process for applications to the school-based nursery capital grant was conducted in a fair and consistent manner across all schools. Awards to eligible schools were made based on application scores.

Each application was evaluated by a team of officials from the department against four established criteria, using a six-point scoring scale. Any applicant that scored less than 2 in any criterion was eliminated from the process. Assessors reviewed each project based on the information provided in the application, the required supporting documentation and relevant school performance and financial indicators available to the department.

After the initial assessment and scoring, a panel of commercial specialists conducted a moderation exercise. Applications were then ranked by total score and funding was awarded to the 300 highest-scoring projects.