Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the guidance entitled New national flood and coastal erosion risk information, published on 25 March 2025, whether her Department has held discussions with local authorities on insurance costs for schools now included in flood zones (a) two and (b) three.

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education and the department’s Schools Water Strategy team work with delivery partners such as the Environment Agency, water companies and lead local flood authorities to deliver flood prevention measures in schools through a number of workstreams.

The department has invested in measures to reduce risk to flooding at 573 schools to the end of 2023/24 and through the Schools Water Strategy, we continue to invest in flood prevention in schools at risk of flooding in line with the published Sustainability and Climate Change strategy.

Local authorities can choose which insurance provider is suitable for their needs, considering both breadth of cover and value for money.

The department’s Risk Protection Arrangement is an alternative to commercial insurance and operates on a no material fact disclosure basis, which means the cost of the service to its members will be unaffected by this information.