Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the current level of tuition fees.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Education is a devolved matter, and this response outlines the information for England only.
The government is determined that the higher education (HE) funding system should deliver for our economy, for universities and for students. The department will look carefully at all options and come forward with proposals. Funding plans for the HE sector will be set out at the relevant fiscal event in line with the approach to public spending commitments across government.
The department recognises the immediate financial strain that some providers are under. As such, the department will continue to work closely with the Office for Students to monitor any risks and to ensure there are robust plans in place to mitigate them.
Asked by: Adam Thompson (Labour - Erewash)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the contribution of degree apprenticeships to the delivery of skills needs (a) locally, (b) in the East Midlands and (c) nationally.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The latest figures for the 2023/24 academic year show there have been 44,060 apprenticeship starts at degree level, including 3,540 in the East Midlands.
Degree apprenticeships can provide school leavers and older learners alternative routes into degree level professions, which supports diversity and inclusion.
The department will work with Skills England to ensure that degree apprenticeships continue to offer good value for money and drive economic growth.
Asked by: Nesil Caliskan (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to meet demand for SEND educational provision in (a) London, (b) Barking and (c) the UK.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with SEND or in alternative provision (AP) receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life. The department is committed to improving inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools, as well as ensuring special schools cater to children and young people with the most complex needs, restoring parents’ trust that their child will get the special educational provision they need.
As part of this, local authorities must ensure there are sufficient school places for all pupils, including children and young people with SEND. The Children and Families Act 2014 requires local authorities to keep the provision for children and young people with SEND under review, including its sufficiency, by working with parents, young people and providers.
Local authorities have received high needs provision capital allocations to support them to deliver new places and improve existing provision for children and young people with SEND, or who require AP. For 2023/24 and 2024/25, Barking and Dagenham Council received £15.3 million and all inner and outer London boroughs received £467 million.
The department will work with the sector as valued partners to ensure that children and young people can access the special educational provision they need.
Asked by: Nesil Caliskan (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the capacity is of SEND (a) schools and (b) provision within mainstream schools in (i) London and (ii) Barking.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Information on school capacity in special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and mainstream schools as at May 2023 is published at local authority level in the annual School Capacity statistics publication, which can be accessed at the following link: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-capacity.
There are 1,506 places in SEND units and 4,476 places in resourced provision in mainstream schools in London. This data is also available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/91adc73e-edec-4645-a91a-08dce6ed00e6.
There are 21,118 school places in SEND schools in London. This data is also available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/02e993b4-22c1-445e-c3ba-08dce8260458.
There are 470 school places in SEND schools in Barking & Dagenham. This data is also available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/9c99ec5d-eea7-4b5b-c3c5-08dce8260458.
There are 100 school places in SEND units and 282 places in resourced provision in mainstream schools in Barking & Dagenham. This data is also available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/5d08e800-fbdb-4d82-c3c6-08dce8260458.
School capacity data is also published at school level. This can be combined with information from Get Information About Schools (GIAS) to identify parliamentary constituency. GIAS currently reflects the changes made following the general election parliamentary constituency changes and can be accessed at the following link: https://get-information-schools.service.gov.uk/.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure schools make reasonable adjustments to support children with vision impairments.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The government’s ambition is that all children and young people receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life. The department is committed to improving inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools, as well as ensuring special schools cater to children and young people with the most complex needs. This will help to restore parents’ trust that their child will get the support they need.
All schools have duties under the Equality Act 2010 towards individual disabled children and young people. They must make reasonable adjustments, including the provision of auxiliary aids and services for disabled children, to prevent them being put at a substantial disadvantage.
The department is committed to ensuring a steady supply of teachers of children with vision impairment in both specialist and mainstream settings. To teach a class of pupils with vision impairments, a teacher is required to hold the relevant Mandatory Qualification for Sensory Impairment (MQSI). There are currently seven providers of the MQSI.
Moreover, the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education is developing a new occupational standard for teachers of pupils with sensory impairment, which is expected to be available from September 2025. This will improve the supply of those qualified to teach this important cohort and further help to improve their educational outcomes.
Asked by: Patrick Spencer (Conservative - Central Suffolk and North Ipswich)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what early intervention measures her Department is taking in order to (a) identify, (b) evaluate and (c) support children who do not have SEND but require additional support throughout their education due to (i) domestic violence and (ii) other external circumstances.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This year government is investing £255 million in the Supporting Families Programme, which since 2012 has championed early intervention and helped over 800,000 families achieve successful outcomes.
In addition, through the £45 million families first for children pathfinder and family networks pilot, the department is testing whole-system reform to children’s social care in 10 local authorities to help families overcome challenges, stay together and thrive, and to keep children safe. This includes testing a new model of Family Help, building on best practice from well-evidenced programmes, such as Supporting Families.
The department is working closely with pathfinder local authority areas and their partners including health, police, education, the voluntary and community sector and local children and families. The department will share learning from the programme with the wider sector and partners as the programme progresses including through an independent evaluation. Initial evaluation findings are expected in spring 2025.
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Asked by: Jess Asato (Labour - Lowestoft)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of recognising (a) non-formal and (b) experiential learning alongside academic achievements in the curriculum review.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The Curriculum and Assessment Review (CAR) is being independently conducted by a group of education leaders (the review group) and chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE. The Terms of Reference were published in July 2024.
The review has been asked to consider how to remove barriers to learning and remove ceilings to achievement. It will support the innovation and professionalism of teachers, enabling them to adapt how they teach the curriculum to their students’ lives and life experiences.
The review will also look at whether the current assessment system can be improved for both young people and staff. It will seek to deliver an assessment system that captures the strengths of every child and young person and the breadth of curriculum with the right balance of assessment methods whilst maintaining the important role of examinations.
The role of the review group is to consider the evidence, the responses to the call for evidence and widespread engagement with the sector over the coming months, and then make recommendations for the government to consider.
The review group will publish an interim report in the new year setting out their interim findings and confirming the key areas for further work. The final review with recommendations will be published in autumn 2025.
The government will consider changes to the National Curriculum and assessment in light of the recommendations of the review.
A link to access the CAR’s call for evidence can be found below: https://www.gov.uk/government/calls-for-evidence/improving-the-curriculum-and-assessment-system.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help increase the (a) availability and (b) affordability of childcare in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
It is the government’s ambition that all families have access to high quality, affordable and flexible early education and care to improve the life chances for every child and the work choices for every parent.
From September 2024, eligible working parents of children age nine months and above have been able to access 15 hours childcare a week for 38 weeks a year. From September 2025, this entitlement will be extended to 30 hours a week. The department is also growing the provision of wraparound childcare, which is before and after school provision, for primary school children.
In 2024/25, the department expects to provide over £1.7 billion to support local authorities and providers deliver the childcare expansion. This will rise to over £4.1 billion in 2027/28. By the same year, we expect to be providing over £8 billion every year overall on new and existing early years entitlements.
For Lincolnshire County Council, the hourly rate for three to four year olds for 2024/25 is £5.47, which is an increase of 5.2% on 2023/24. For 2 year olds, this rate is £7.61 per hour and for under 2s, £10.36 per hour.
In addition to the entitlements, parents may also be eligible for childcare support through Tax-Free Childcare or Universal Credit Childcare. Parents can check what childcare support they are entitled to via the Childcare Choices website, which is accessible at: https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.
The department has regular contact with each local authority in England on their sufficiency of childcare and any issues they are facing, including supporting them through our childcare delivery support contract where appropriate.
Asked by: Rebecca Paul (Conservative - Reigate)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what data her Department holds on the proportion of families with children about whom (a) care and (b) protection issues have been raised who are offered a family group conference.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department does not hold this data
Statutory guidance for local authorities, such as ‘Working together to safeguard children’ and the ‘Children’s social care national framework’, encourages local authorities to consider family group decision making, such as family group conferences, from the earliest point of a family’s involvement in children’s social care and to repeat them, as considered appropriate, throughout the system.
Asked by: Nesil Caliskan (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department plans to take this academic year to help schools tackle absences.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government recognises school absence as a key barrier to learning and tackling this must be a top priority. Thanks to the sector's efforts, more students are attending school this year compared to last. However, 1.6 million children remain persistently absent, missing 10% or more of lessons.
To address this, backed by £15 million investment, the government will expand the reach of attendance mentoring to 10,000 more children and to cover an additional ten areas with some of the worst attendance rates across the country, which will help to get more children into school where they can be supported to achieve and thrive.
The department will additionally roll out funded breakfast clubs to all primary schools so that all children get a strong start to the day and are ready to learn. The department will also introduce new annual Ofsted reviews on safeguarding, attendance, and off-rolling. Mental health support is being expanded, with specialists in every school.
The ‘Working together to improve school attendance’ statutory guidance promotes a 'support first' approach, encouraging schools, trusts, and local authorities to work with families to address attendance barriers. This guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-improve-school-attendance.