Asked by: Baroness Boycott (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many schools have implemented measures to be climate resilient in (1) a two degree centigrade, and (2) a four degree centigrade, rise in average global temperatures.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
As part of our Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy, we are helping all education settings to develop and implement climate action plans through a package of online and in person support. All climate action plans include taking action to become more climate resilient.
The department’s specification for the design and construction of new school buildings includes the requirement that they are built for a 2 degree rise in average global temperatures, and future-proofed for a 4 degree rise.
Engagement with the support has been positive. The department does not currently collect data relating to the number of schools with plans.
Asked by: Baroness Boycott (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many schools have produced climate action plans.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
As part of our Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy, we are helping all education settings to develop and implement climate action plans through a package of online and in person support. All climate action plans include taking action to become more climate resilient.
The department’s specification for the design and construction of new school buildings includes the requirement that they are built for a 2 degree rise in average global temperatures, and future-proofed for a 4 degree rise.
Engagement with the support has been positive. The department does not currently collect data relating to the number of schools with plans.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department plans to take to ensure that education exports support institutions in Buckingham and Bletchley constituency.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The new UK’s International Education Strategy sets a clear ambition to grow the value of education exports to £40 billion a year by 2030.
We are backing UK providers, at all levels, to deliver British education overseas in new and expanding markets, while driving growth at home.
By expanding overseas, our universities, colleges and education providers from all regions can diversify income, strengthen global partnerships and give millions more students access to a world-class UK education on their doorstep, all whilst boosting growth at home.
The new strategy urges UK providers to take advantage of the UK’s unique position and meet rising global demand for high-quality education.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of international education programmes on local employment.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The new UK’s International Education Strategy sets a clear ambition to grow the value of education exports to £40 billion a year by 2030.
We are backing UK providers, at all levels, to deliver British education overseas in new and expanding markets, while driving growth at home.
By expanding overseas, our universities, colleges and education providers from all regions can diversify income, strengthen global partnerships and give millions more students access to a world-class UK education on their doorstep, all whilst boosting growth at home.
The new strategy urges UK providers to take advantage of the UK’s unique position and meet rising global demand for high-quality education.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Sheffield (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Smith of Malvern on 16 September 2025 (UIN HL10060), what plans they have to amend the International Education Strategy; and what the anticipated timeline for the publication of a revised strategy is.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government’s International Education Strategy (IES) was launched on 20 January 2026.
The strategy backs UK providers at all levels to expand overseas, strengthening global partnerships and giving millions more students access to a world-class UK education on their doorstep, all whilst boosting growth at home. It sets a clear ambition to grow the value of education exports to £40 billion a year by 2030.
We want to increase the UK’s international standing through education and make the UK the global partner of choice at every stage of learning. The IES is now co-owned between the Department for Education, the Department for Business and Trade and the Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the UK's level of participation in global disability rights and inclusion activities.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK has been a long-standing supporter of disability rights around the world, and our global programmes are supporting disability inclusion in health, education and employment, as well as access to innovative assistive technology.
As well as building disability inclusion into the work we are doing across all Foreign Office priorities, the UK is co-chairing the Global Action on Disability Network, which will strengthen international coordination on disability rights and accelerate progress.
Asked by: David Smith (Labour - North Northumberland)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help increase funding for education for children around the world.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is a world leader in championing safe, inclusive, quality education, working in partnership with governments and multilaterals to deliver the education that all children deserve. In a context of scarce resources, the UK is working to increase both the volume and effectiveness of global and national financial investments in education, including supporting innovative financing mechanisms such as the International Finance Facility for Education.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to consider child rights in (1) foreign policy, (2) international development policy, and (3) humanitarian policy.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
As a ratifier of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, the UK is committed to safeguarding and promoting the rights and wellbeing of children. These principles are embedded across our foreign, development, and humanitarian policies. We work with international partners to deliver better outcomes for children, including through education, health, and nutrition programmes. The UK is an active member of the UN Security Council Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict, and we continue to support global initiatives that strengthen child protection systems and uphold children's rights in all contexts.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that the UK’s commitments at the 2025 Nutrition for Growth Summit are implemented through integration with (a) education, (b) immunisation, and (c) other relevant areas of development policy.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) is a global leader in nutrition and continues to prioritise nutrition integration across sectors. At the 2025 Nutrition for Growth (N4G) Summit, the UK launched the Global Compact on Nutrition Integration, encouraging all 86 signatories to integrate nutrition into sectors such as education and health, for example through GAVI's Immunisation Nutrition Integration work. Since 2021 the FCDO has adopted a Nutrition Policy Marker, which prompts teams to consider nutrition objectives and integration during programme design. This is applied across programmes on early childhood development, food and agriculture, and social protection that are delivered bilaterally or through multilateral partners.
Asked by: Ellie Chowns (Green Party - North Herefordshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, for what reason the UK opposed advancing discussions on a new optional protocol on free education at the Intergovernmental Working Group on Free Education in September 2025; and whether she plans to review that decision.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is committed to investing in children and promoting equal access to education. The UK already provides free primary and secondary education and has been supporting partners globally to deliver education for all. We challenged the need for a new optional protocol as free secondary education is already provided for under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. States Parties to these treaties should already be providing free education.
We do not believe the resources required to develop a new treaty solely on free pre-primary education are justified when they could otherwise be used to implement existing international obligations.
This position is in line with several UN entities, including United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), the leading actor on child rights with a global presence and understanding of lived realities.