Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help ensure that public health education is delivered to children and young people who are (a) not in school and (b) at particular risk from harm from (i) use of (A) nitrous oxide, (B) drugs and (C) alcohol and (ii) other public health concerns.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
Parents have a right to educate their children at home and must provide a full time, efficient, and suitable education if the child is of compulsory school age. The government supports this right. There are no specific legal requirements as to the content of home education, provided the education provided is full-time, efficient and suitable. This means that education does not need to include any particular subjects and does not need to have any reference to the national curriculum.
The government’s elective home education guidance sets out eight components that local authorities should consider when determining whether a child is receiving a suitable education. The department intends to provide further information on what should be considered when determining ‘suitable education’ as part of the consultation to review elective home education guidance, which closed on 18 January. Responses are being analysed and the department will publish the revised guidance and consultation response in due course.
Part of the government’s strategy to reduce the harm of drugs is Frank, which is the number one drugs information site in England, and reaches audiences from 11 to 54+ supporting pre-users, regular users, concerned others and schools with information on drugs. Frank receives over 5 million page visits per year, and is updated to reflect new and emerging patterns of drug use, including the effects and risks of nitrous oxide.
The Frank service remains a key element in providing accurate and factual advice on the risks and effects of a range of drugs and alcohol, as well as broader advice around substance abuse, including sign posting to relevant services.
The Frank helpline is available, 24/7, 365 days of the year. Their trained advisors deal with, on average, 100,000, calls, emails, texts and webchats per annum, providing a help service for people who are concerned about their own or others’ drugs consumption. There is also a separate line for alcohol abuse calls, and the Frank agents will seamlessly deal with those as part of the same call.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Streatham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the statutory guidance entitled Prevent duty guidance: for higher education institutions in England and Wales (2015), updated on 31 December 2023, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of that guidance on (a) academic research, (b) the number of students applying to higher education institutions, (c) students’ experience in higher education, (d) freedom of speech and (e) people with protected characteristics.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The updated and refreshed guidance places no additional burdens on the education sector. There are no new requirements as a result of the refresh or additional responsibilities for the sector. The guidance reinforces that settings should understand their Prevent duty requirements as part of their wider safeguarding and welfare responsibilities.
The Prevent duty should not limit academic research but encourage debate, challenge ideas and advance knowledge on contentious topics. The government has legislated to ensure that universities in England are a place where academics, students and visiting speakers can express a diverse range of views without fear of repercussion.
In the most recent published assessment by the Office for Students (OfS) on the implementation of the Prevent programme in the English higher education sector in 2019, they found no cause for concern that free speech was being undermined by Prevent in external speakers’ policies and their implementation. The assessment is available here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/publications/prevent-review-meetings-programme-findings/.
Institutions should encourage students to respect other people with particular regard to the protected characteristics set out in the Equality Act 2010 Institutions should also be mindful of their commitments to protecting freedom of speech, provided that the speech is lawful.
A full Equality Impact Assessment was undertaken in line with responsibilities under the Public Sector Equality Duty. The Home Office commissioned an independent research agency to conduct in-depth research with frontline staff, particularly those with Prevent-specific responsibilities, across the key sectors of education, healthcare, local authorities, police and prisons & probation, to make sure that the new guidance is as robust as possible. This consultation covered England and Wales.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made a recent assessment of the effectiveness of schemes developed by schools and local authorities to help children who are not in education return to educational settings.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
Local authorities have a duty under Section 436A of the Education Act 1996 to make arrangements to identify children not registered at school and not receiving suitable education. They have powers to make enquiries when they have reason to believe that a child is not receiving education. The department has issued statutory guidance for local authorities on ‘Children missing education’ and those receiving Elective Home Education to support them in meeting their duties.
Local authorities also have a responsibility under Section 19 to make arrangements for the provision of suitable education for children who need it. The department has issued statutory guidance on alternative provision, which includes information on the reintegration of pupils into mainstream education.
The department wants local authorities to be supported in ensuring that all children are receiving a suitable education and continues to take steps to promote best practice.
On 26 October 2023, the government opened a public consultation to gather views on proposed changes to the non-statutory elective home education guidance to local authorities and parents, with the aim of emphasising responsibilities and improving practices and relationships. This consultation is open for contributions until 18 January 2024.
The government also ran a call for evidence on improving support for children missing education from 18 May to 20 July 2023. Evidence will be used to inform future policy to ensure all children, especially the most vulnerable in our society, are safe and have access to an excellent education. The government will issue a response in due course.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help improve the educational outcomes of pupils who are not in school.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
Parents have a right to educate their children at home and must provide an efficient, suitable full-time education if the child is of compulsory school age. The department supports this right and wants parents and local authorities to be supported in ensuring the education children receive at home is suitable and delivered well.
Local authorities have duties to ensure all children in their area are receiving a suitable education and are safe. They have powers to make enquiries with parents as to whether a suitable education appears to be being provided. If home education appears not to be suitable, then the local authority must commence the school attendance order process by first issuing a preliminary notice.
Local authorities also have the same safeguarding responsibilities for children educated at home as for other children. They should be ready to use safeguarding powers appropriately and when warranted. Local authorities also have a duty to make arrangements to identify children missing education (not in school or receiving suitable education).
The department is committed to a local authority registration system for children not in school, as well as a duty for local authorities to provide support to home-educating families. This will help local authorities undertake their existing duties to ensure all children receive a suitable education and are safe, regardless of where they are educated. The government will legislate for this at a suitable future opportunity.
On 26 October 2023, the government opened a public consultation to gather views on proposed changes to the non-statutory elective home education guidance to local authorities and parents, with the aim of emphasising responsibilities and improving practices and relationships. This consultation is open for contributions until 18 January 2024.
The government also ran a call for evidence on improving support for children missing education from 18 May to 20 July 2023. Evidence will be used to inform future policy to ensure all children, especially the most vulnerable in our society, are safe and have access to an excellent education. The government will issue a response in due course.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that students not in school are able to access a full education.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
Parents have a right to educate their children at home and must provide an efficient, suitable full-time education if the child is of compulsory school age. The department supports this right and wants parents and local authorities to be supported in ensuring the education children receive at home is suitable and delivered well.
Local authorities have duties to ensure all children in their area are receiving a suitable education and are safe. They have powers to make enquiries with parents as to whether a suitable education appears to be being provided. If home education appears not to be suitable, then the local authority must commence the school attendance order process by first issuing a preliminary notice.
Local authorities also have the same safeguarding responsibilities for children educated at home as for other children. They should be ready to use safeguarding powers appropriately and when warranted. Local authorities also have a duty to make arrangements to identify children missing education (not in school or receiving suitable education).
The department is committed to a local authority registration system for children not in school, as well as a duty for local authorities to provide support to home-educating families. This will help local authorities undertake their existing duties to ensure all children receive a suitable education and are safe, regardless of where they are educated. The government will legislate for this at a suitable future opportunity.
On 26 October 2023, the government opened a public consultation to gather views on proposed changes to the non-statutory elective home education guidance to local authorities and parents, with the aim of emphasising responsibilities and improving practices and relationships. This consultation is open for contributions until 18 January 2024.
The government also ran a call for evidence on improving support for children missing education from 18 May to 20 July 2023. Evidence will be used to inform future policy to ensure all children, especially the most vulnerable in our society, are safe and have access to an excellent education. The government will issue a response in due course.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that children not in school are not at risk of harm.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
Parents have a right to educate their children at home and must provide an efficient, suitable full-time education if the child is of compulsory school age. The department supports this right and wants parents and local authorities to be supported in ensuring the education children receive at home is suitable and delivered well.
Local authorities have duties to ensure all children in their area are receiving a suitable education and are safe. They have powers to make enquiries with parents as to whether a suitable education appears to be being provided. If home education appears not to be suitable, then the local authority must commence the school attendance order process by first issuing a preliminary notice.
Local authorities also have the same safeguarding responsibilities for children educated at home as for other children. They should be ready to use safeguarding powers appropriately and when warranted. Local authorities also have a duty to make arrangements to identify children missing education (not in school or receiving suitable education).
The department is committed to a local authority registration system for children not in school, as well as a duty for local authorities to provide support to home-educating families. This will help local authorities undertake their existing duties to ensure all children receive a suitable education and are safe, regardless of where they are educated. The government will legislate for this at a suitable future opportunity.
On 26 October 2023, the government opened a public consultation to gather views on proposed changes to the non-statutory elective home education guidance to local authorities and parents, with the aim of emphasising responsibilities and improving practices and relationships. This consultation is open for contributions until 18 January 2024.
The government also ran a call for evidence on improving support for children missing education from 18 May to 20 July 2023. Evidence will be used to inform future policy to ensure all children, especially the most vulnerable in our society, are safe and have access to an excellent education. The government will issue a response in due course.
Asked by: Caroline Nokes (Conservative - Romsey and Southampton North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department produced a ministerial response under the write round process to the Department for Education's review of the relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) curriculum.
Answered by Sarah Dines
The Secretary of State for Education has been clear she is very concerned about reports of inappropriate materials being used to teach relationships and sex education (RSHE). The Government has brought forward the review of the RSHE statutory guidance as a result, including conducting a public consultation as soon as possible.
The statutory guidance clearly states that the guidance will be reviewed every three years from first teaching (September 2020) and so the decision to review the guidance does not require collective agreement. The Secretary of State for Education will seek collective agreement to the consultation documents through a write-round process, before publishing the consultation in the autumn. This process is not yet underway.
As part of the review, an expert panel has been established to advise the Secretary of State on what topics should and should not be taught in school and the introduction of age limits. This will provide clear guidance for teachers about when certain topics can be addressed.
In tandem to this work, the Oak Academy is producing a suite of materials to support teachers to create age-appropriate lessons plans and ensure that they have access to appropriate materials.
The Government is determined to make sure RSHE teaching leaves children equipped to make informed decisions about their health, wellbeing and relationships, in a sensitive way that reflects their stage of development.
The Government expects new statutory guidance to be released in the coming months. It will then be subject to public consultation to conclude by the end of the year, coming into statutory force as soon as possible after that.
Asked by: Philip Dunne (Conservative - Ludlow)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he plans to launch a public consultation on his proposal for a register of electively home-educated children when the draft legislation is published.
Answered by Will Quince
The department does not currently collect data on numbers of home educated children or school attendance orders. Such data as is collected is held by local authorities. Parents are not required to register if they are home educating their children and, therefore, there is not a robust basis on which the department or independent accredited researchers can reliably collect statistics on home education.
The department supports the right of parents to educate their children at home. Most do so with the best education of their child at the centre of their decision. The department is aware of increasing numbers of home educated children, which cannot be overlooked. For some parents, the child’s education is not the primary reason behind the decision to home educate, which can mean that some children are not being provided with a suitable education.
Local authorities are under a duty to take action if it appears to them that the home education provided to a child is unsuitable. The department issued revised and strengthened guidance to local authorities in April 2019, setting out how they can exercise their powers in this regard. This guidance will be reviewed again in due course.
The department remains committed to a form of local authority register for children not in school and we will legislate for it at the next suitable opportunity. The department have already consulted on proposals in the Children Not in School consultation, and their response to the consultation, published on 3 February 2022, reaffirmed this commitment to create local authority registers of children not attending registered independent or local authority- maintained schools, and to place a duty on local authorities to provide support for home-educating families (should they want it). Such duties will help local authorities undertake their existing duties, improve data on children in scope, as well as help safeguard all children who are in scope. In addition to the Children Not in school consultation, officials continue to engage with relevant stakeholders as we prepare for the next legislative opportunity. There are no immediate plans to commission, undertake or publish any independent accredited research on elective home education, for the reason noted above.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which external stakeholders his Department plans to consult as part of the upcoming review and update of statutory guidance for local authorities on unaccompanied asylum-seeking children.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Department for Education (DfE) publishes guidance for local authorities on unaccompanied asylum-seeking children, which can be found at:
The department is committed to updating this guidance in due course, and will carry out a public consultation which will be available to all external stakeholders when it does so.
Asked by: Lord Boateng (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the response by Safe Passage, the Hummingbird Project, and Kent Refugee Action Network to their proposed new plan for immigration; and what provision they intend to make for the specific needs of refugees and asylum seekers for (a) accommodation, (b) education, and (c) employment.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
We note the joint report by the young people of Safe Passage, the Hummingbird Project and Kent Refugee Action Network, ‘Safe routes from the perspective of young refugees – our response to the New Plan for Immigration’, published on 25 June 2021.
As part of the New Plan for Immigration, there was an engagement and consultation process which ran from 24 March 2020 to 6 May 2021. During this time, the Home Office encouraged stakeholders and members of the public to share their views on its proposals via an online questionnaire.
The Home Office’s response to the consultation was published in July 2021 and can be found here:
The New Plan for Immigration will deliver the most comprehensive reform of the asylum system in decades. It includes plans to set up accommodation centres to provide basic accommodation for asylum-seekers who would otherwise be destitute. We will only accommodate people in the centres after an individual assessment shows it’s suitable and safe for them. We also continue to seek opportunities to expand the number of areas participating in our dispersal area accommodation system.
Asylum seekers’ children under 18 will continue to have access to full-time education and continuous support in line with our duty under section 55 of the Borders Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009.
In terms of employment, we will allow asylum seekers to work if their claim has been outstanding for 12 months or more through no fault of their own. Those permitted to work are restricted to jobs on the Shortage Occupation List (SOL).