Asked by: Justin Madders (Labour - Ellesmere Port and Neston)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what comparative assessment he has made of (a) availability of pre-school places and (b) demand for those places.
Answered by Vicky Ford
Local authorities are responsible for stewardship of local childcare markets. The department continues to work in close partnership with local authorities to monitor sufficiency of provision for children and parents. We have not seen a significant number of parents unable to secure a childcare place, this term or since early year settings re-opened fully on 1 June 2020. Where parents have been unable to temporarily secure a childcare place, for example due to their usual setting being temporarily closed due to the COVID-19 outbreak, this has been able to be quickly resolved locally. Local authorities are not reporting any significant sufficiency issues.
Our official data collection has monitored attendance in early years settings throughout the COVID-19 outbreak, and can be accessed here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/attendance-in-education-and-early-years-settings-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak. Additionally, Ipsos MORI conducted wave 8 of our parent poll, ‘Childcare use, perceived impact on child development, and information on working from home for families of 0-4 year-olds during COVID-19’ in March 2021, with a representative sample of 1,000 parents of children aged 0-4 in England. The data has been weighted to match the population profile of parents of children aged 0-4 in England by region, social grade and the age of the selected child. Key points from the findings include:
The report can be accessed via this link: https://www.ipsos.com/ipsos-mori/en-uk/childcare-use-perceived-impact-child-development-and-information-working-home-families-0-4-year.
Wave 9 of the parent poll, which covers similar territory, was conducted by Ipsos MORI in July 2021. The government intends to publish this evidence as soon as possible. The government continues to work in partnership with local authorities and stakeholders to monitor sufficiency of early education and childcare provision for parents and children.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North East Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment he has made of the impact on children of different local authority policies on school age start dates; and what he plans he has to amend the school admissions code to enable summer-born children to start reception at age five where that is what their parents want.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Local authorities do not set policies on school age start dates. Compulsory school age is the start of the term following a child’s fifth birthday. Admission authorities must provide for the admission of children in the September following their fourth birthday, but it is for parents to decide whether to send their child to school before compulsory school age.
For summer born children this means that they do not need to start school until the September after their fifth birthday. It is then the decision of the admission authority whether to admit the child to Year 1 or, at the parents' request, to Reception.
In May, the Department published the results of our latest research surveys of local authorities and parents into the delayed admission of summer born children to school.
It remains our intention to legislate, when an opportunity becomes available, so that summer born children can automatically be admitted to a Reception class, where that is what their parents want, and remain with that cohort throughout their education.
Asked by: Jonathan Ashworth (Labour (Co-op) - Leicester South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the ability of the podiatry workforce to meet demand for services over the next (a) five and (b) 10 years.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
It is the responsibility of individual National Health Service trusts to have staffing arrangements in place that deliver safe and effective care. This includes recruiting the staff needed to support these levels and meet local needs.
The Government is committed to ensuring that the NHS has the workforce it needs to deliver high quality care. As part of the new funding package for healthcare students, non-repayable, training grants of at least £5,000 per academic year are available to eligible new and continuing pre-registration podiatry students, studying at English universities. There is an additional specialist subject grant of £1,000 to eligible new students who choose to study in shortage professions, including podiatry.
There has been significant investment both via Health Education England, NHS England and NHS Improvement and the Office for Students over the last three years in a number of specific programmes of work involving the College of Podiatry, including television and social media campaigns to stimulate interest in podiatry careers both in school leavers and those seeking a second career.
The latest data from the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service shows there were 275 acceptances on podiatry courses in England in 2020, an increase of 53% compared to 2019.
Asked by: Angela Rayner (Labour - Ashton-under-Lyne)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much of his Department’s capital departmental expenditure limit was spent on creating new early years places in each financial year since 2010-11; and how many new places were created as a result of that spending.
Answered by Nick Gibb
In 2012-13, the Department announced £100 million of capital allocations for local authorities to support implementation of early years education for two-year olds from lower income families. Local authorities were responsible for distributing this capital investment and so the Department does not hold information on the number of places created by this funding.
The Department allocated £100 million over 2016-17 and 2017-18 to local authorities to support successful bids to the Early Years Capital Fund (EYCF). The Department regularly assesses the progress of these projects and will publish the outcomes in due course when all projects have completed. Information detailing the outcomes from the EYCF bidding round will be published at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/early-years-capital-fund-2017.
In July 2019, the Department announced the outcome of applications to the School Nurseries Capital Fund. This fund, of nearly £24 million for 69 projects, will help to create new high-quality school-based nursery places for 2, 3 and 4-year-olds. The profiling of this spend will depend on the progress of individual projects. The full list of successful projects for this fund can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-nurseries-capital-fund-list-of-application-outcomes.
The Department will publish the outcomes in due course when all projects have completed.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of looked-after children achieved five GCSEs graded A - C in each year for the last 10 years.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
The number and percentage of looked-after children who achieved 5 or more GCSEs at grades A*-C (or equivalent) in each year are shown in the table. Looked-after children are defined as those looked after continuously for at least 12 months as at 31 March of the year in which key stage 4 assessments were taken.
A large percentage (63%) of looked-after children enter care due to abuse or neglect. They often have disrupted experience of education and this pre-care experience can have a significant impact on their attainment. Looked-after children are almost 4 times more likely to have a special educational need than all children and are almost 10 times more likely to have a statement and education, health and care plan than all children. There is also a disproportionately high prevalence of social, emotional and mental health difficulties among looked-after children. We recognise these needs as well as the fact that looked-after children have top priority in school admissions and we expect them to be placed in good or outstanding schools.
Schools must appoint a designated teacher for looked-after children and local authorities must have a virtual school head who is accountable for the education attainment of all the children looked after by the authority. We have introduced the Pupil Premium Plus for looked-after children (£2300 per pupil), which is managed by the school head teacher, to deliver the outcomes in each looked-after child’s personal education plan.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many looked-after children achieved five GCSEs graded A - C in each year for the last 10 years.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
The number and percentage of looked-after children who achieved 5 or more GCSEs at grades A*-C (or equivalent) in each year are shown in the table. Looked-after children are defined as those looked after continuously for at least 12 months as at 31 March of the year in which key stage 4 assessments were taken.
A large percentage (63%) of looked-after children enter care due to abuse or neglect. They often have disrupted experience of education and this pre-care experience can have a significant impact on their attainment. Looked-after children are almost 4 times more likely to have a special educational need than all children and are almost 10 times more likely to have a statement and education, health and care plan than all children. There is also a disproportionately high prevalence of social, emotional and mental health difficulties among looked-after children. We recognise these needs as well as the fact that looked-after children have top priority in school admissions and we expect them to be placed in good or outstanding schools.
Schools must appoint a designated teacher for looked-after children and local authorities must have a virtual school head who is accountable for the education attainment of all the children looked after by the authority. We have introduced the Pupil Premium Plus for looked-after children (£2300 per pupil), which is managed by the school head teacher, to deliver the outcomes in each looked-after child’s personal education plan.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when the review on allowing schools to admit summer-born children to reception class at the age of five will be published.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department is concerned that some summer born children may be missing the reception year at school. The Department remains committed to amending school admissions policy so that summer born children can be admitted to a reception class aged 5, where parents believe this to be in the best interests of their child. The Department is continuing to review the implications of any changes.
It is encouraging that many admission authorities are now more responsive to requests for delayed entry to the reception year. Data from a survey of local authorities, published by the Department in May 2018, indicated that requests to delay entry are agreed in around 75% of cases. This data is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/707417/Delayed_school_admissions_for_summer-born_pupils.pdf.
Asked by: Dan Poulter (Conservative - Central Suffolk and North Ipswich)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the report entitled, Study of early education and development: the potential value for money of early education, published in July 2017, what sample size was used to calculate the mean hourly delivery cost for a three to four-year old place in the east of England.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The mean hourly delivery cost for a three-four-year old place in the east of England was not used in the Study of Early Education and Development (SEED): the potential value for money of early education, published in July 2017. A mean hourly delivery cost for a three-four-year old place in England was used; this was £3.72. This was taken from the SEED: the cost and funding of early education report, published January 2017.
Asked by: Michael Tomlinson (Conservative - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that the Skills Funding Agency website reflects the latest guidance on entry requirements for early years educators.
Answered by Robert Halfon
Individuals cannot complete and claim certification for any apprenticeship, including the Early Years Educator (EYE) programme, until all components of the apprenticeship (including English and Maths, where appropriate) are achieved.
The current GCSE English and Maths requirements for EYE staff at level 3 have been broadened to include level 2 functional skills alongside other suitable qualifications. This is in response to the government consultation on the literacy and numeracy requirements for EYE staff and as part of the early years workforce strategy.
The Skills Funding Agency will amend the relevant web pages, apprenticeship funding rules and the Individualised Learner Record validation rules accordingly so that anyone who started an early years apprenticeship on or after 1 September 2014 can now meet English and Maths requirements through the achievement of level 2 functional skills or other suitable qualifications.
Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number and proportion of eligible two-year-olds who have not taken up a funded early education place (a) nationally and (b) in each local authority.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
A copy of the data requested has been placed in the Library. The data tells us that 68% of two year olds are taking up their entitlement to funded early learning, an increase of 10% from January 2015.