Childcare Availability
(Lewes) (LD)
1. What steps she is taking to increase the availability of
high-quality childcare. [R] (901002)
The Secretary of State for Education ()
The early years are my No. 1 priority as Education Secretary. We
will deliver a sea change in early years education to give
parents better work choices and children better life chances. We
will start by repurposing empty classrooms to create or expand
school-based nurseries, making childcare more accessible and
affordable for hard-pressed families. I encourage state-funded
primary schools, working with their local authorities, to
consider applying before the application window closes on 19
December.
With Government data showing that 70,000 more early years places
need to be created by next year, and with an overhaul of outdated
business rates promised, will the Secretary of State commit to
removing unfair business rates from nurseries and pre-schools,
which will now be mostly delivering Government-funded
childcare?
It is undoubtedly a challenge to deliver the roll-out, but we are
determined to do it because it is so important for parents and
for children's life chances. We intend to reform the early years
sector overall. We will be looking very closely at this into next
year; I would welcome further input from the hon. Gentleman and
his party on the way forward.
Several hon. Members rose—
Mr Speaker
I call . Oh, you are not standing.
This is not directed at you personally, but when you stand I
think you are going to ask a question, and then when you sit down
I am left high and dry.
(Bolton North East)
(Lab)
As a mother in the north-west, I thank the Secretary of State and
welcome the Government's £1.8 billion commitment to expanding
publicly funded childcare. As we transition towards more publicly
funded childcare, can she share any plans for interim support to
keep childcare affordable for working families relying on private
providers?
My hon. Friend is right. As the roll-out continues, we will
shortly reach a situation in which 80% of childcare is
Government-backed. It is therefore right that in those
circumstances we look closely at whether we are getting the
best-quality provision for our children. As part of our early
years strategy review, we will take account of all
considerations. We are looking at a range of factors for the
sector, including workforce recruitment, quality of provision and
much more besides. I look forward to working with her on
this.
Mr Speaker
We welcome the new shadow Secretary of State.
(Sevenoaks) (Con)
Thank you, Mr Speaker. May I say how delighted I am to be in the
role? We will be a constructive Opposition working in the best
interests of young people. In that spirit, I ask the Secretary of
State to confirm that the Government's early years funding rates
for all age groups will increase to reflect the changes in
employer national insurance contributions. Will she give us a
figure for how much that will cost the Department for
Education?
I welcome the right hon. Lady to her place: it is the best job in
opposition, just as mine is the best job in government. I am sure
that whatever disagreements we might have in the weeks and months
to come, we can all get behind the importance of education to our
country.
We will set out more detail on funding rates in due course. What
I would say to the right hon. Lady is that the Conservative party
left behind commitments, but no plan to make them real. Instead,
they left us a £22 billion hole in the public finances, and this
Government have had to take some tough decisions to get our
public finances back on a stable footing.
Mr Speaker
I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.
(Twickenham) (LD)
Two thirds of early years places are delivered by private and
voluntary providers. Further to the shadow Education Secretary's
question, what assessment has the Department for Education made
of the impact of last week's national insurance rise on those
providers? How much more does the Department expect that parents
will have to pay in nursery fees? How much additional cost will
the Department have to bear to fund existing and planned
so-called free hours for parents?
As was announced at the Budget, we expect to provide £8.1 billion
for the early years entitlements in 2025-26, which is an increase
of about 30% on the previous year. We will continue to deliver
the roll-outs, because this Government have sought to protect
education priorities in the Budget.
On the hon. Member's precise question, we are looking in more
detail at what the changes mean for providers in the early years
sector, and we will have more to say shortly. Alongside the
changes to the national insurance employer contribution rate, we
are increasing the employment allowance to £10,500 and are
expanding this to all eligible employers, so smaller providers
may pay no national insurance at all in 2025-26.
Alongside formal childcare, many parents want to have the option
of spending more time at home with their babies in those precious
early months that are so crucial for a child's development. Does
the Secretary of State agree that at less than half the minimum
wage, statutory maternity pay is far from “excessive”? What
discussions has she had with ministerial colleagues about
boosting support for those parents who want to spend more time at
home, rather than being rushed back to work, in order to give
families real choice in how they care for their children?
I agree that it is important we get the balance right. That is
why the Deputy Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for
Business and Trade are looking carefully, as part of our wider
reforms to employment support and employment law, at what more we
need to do around parental leave entitlements. I share the hon.
Member's concern about the comments we have heard from the now
leader of the Conservative party, the right hon. Member for North
West Essex (Mrs Badenoch), about maternity pay. I want to make
sure that parents have choices about what works for them, what is
best for them and what best supports their children's development
in those crucial early years.
Knife Crime: Preventive Education
(Manchester Rusholme) (Lab)
2. What steps she is taking to provide preventive education for
schoolchildren about knife crime.(901003)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education ()
What schools teach can play an important part, alongside wider
activity, in the Government's safer streets mission and tackling
knife crime. Relationships, sex and health education includes
content on situations that lead to young people carrying knives,
including criminal exploitation, county lines operations and
grooming relationships. We are reviewing the content to ensure
that it remains relevant and protects children's wellbeing.
Greater Manchester continues to experience some of the highest
rates of knife violence in the country, with more than 10,000
recorded incidents since 2020. Organisations such as the Greater
Manchester violence reduction unit have been doing excellent work
in early prevention by engaging children and young people through
community-led projects, including theatre productions. Given the
importance of early community-based intervention, does the
Minister agree that providing support for such initiatives is
important in tackling knife violence?
I thank my hon. Friend for raising such an important topic and
highlighting the good work of the Greater Manchester violence
reduction unit. As well as the work on the RSHE curriculum, the
Government will create a new young futures programme, intervening
early to stop young people being drawn into crime through
preventive action and learning from best practice across the
country. It is vital that we have a system that can identify and
support those young people who need it most, be they victims or
potential perpetrators.
(Bath) (LD)
Preventive education is critical, and not just when it comes to
knife crime. A recent report from the University of Bath
highlighted that one in six vapes confiscated in school contains
the synthetic drug Spice, a highly addictive drug that condemns
young people—in particular, vulnerable young people—to a life of
crime and addiction. Will the Secretary of State agree to a
special educational programme to address the alarming issue of
Spice-spiked vapes in schools?
We want to make sure that every school and college across our
country is a safe environment for children to learn. I am happy
to meet the hon. Member to understand those issues in more
detail.
Teaching Assistants and Support Staff
(Blyth and Ashington) (Lab)
3. What steps she plans to take to improve the pay, terms and
conditions of teaching assistants and support staff. (901004)
The Secretary of State for Education ()
School support staff are crucial to ensuring that we give
children the best possible life chances. That is why we are
reinstating the school support staff negotiating body, the new
national voice for some of those who do the most important work
in our schools. In 2010, the Tories scrapped the body. Within our
first 100 days, Labour started the legislative process to bring
it back. That is because we value the vital role that support
staff play in our education system.
Low pay and limited career progression are driving many teaching
support staff out of our classrooms. Three quarters of the
profession are either considering leaving or are actively looking
to leave, with one in five teaching assistant posts currently
vacant. Will my right hon. Friend recommit to addressing this
recruitment and retention crisis and ensure that these hugely
valued employees receive the wages and terms and conditions that
they have longed for, for so long?
My hon. Friend can be assured that the school support staff
negotiating body will be tasked with establishing a national
terms and conditions handbook, training, career progression
routes and fair pay rates for support staff to make sure that we
can recruit and retain the brilliant people, including teaching
assistants and catering staff, who are essential to the
functioning of our schools.
(South Devon) (LD)
Teaching assistants in my constituency are struggling to support
a growing number of children who need extra help with speech and
language skills. What is the Secretary of State doing to ensure
that all school support staff have access to relevant training in
speech and language development so that they can better support
those children?
The hon. Lady is right to raise that. Our teaching assistants in
particular have a crucial role to play in supporting children
with special educational needs and disabilities. That is why we
have committed additional funding this year so that we can roll
out the Nuffield early language intervention to ensure that there
is additional early speech and language support for children who
are struggling. Our teaching assistants and others in support
roles will be a crucial part of that, but I recognise that there
is much more that we need to do after 14 years of Conservative
failure.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Minister.
(Harborough, Oadby and
Wigston) (Con)
On pay, what is the cost to schools and colleges of the national
insurance increase? How much will be provided to them in
compensation? Will the Secretary of State confirm clearly that
they will be fully compensated for the increased prices that
suppliers and indirectly employed members of staff, such as
caterers and IT and premises staff, will charge as a result? Will
those indirect costs be covered—yes or no?
I welcome the hon. Gentleman to his place. Schools and colleges
will be compensated at a national level. I would, however, point
out to him that when I became Secretary of State in July, I was
presented with the teachers' pay review body award of 5.5% that
the last Government received, put in a drawer and then ran away
from and called an election. We have backed our teachers, who are
crucial to the life chances of our children. That is why I was
delighted that we were able to honour that award and recognise
the vital contribution our teachers make. That is how we will
recruit 6,500 new expert teachers. If the Opposition refuse to
back our commitments on VAT, they should set out how many
teachers they intend to cut.
School Curriculum: Workplace Skills
(Sefton Central) (Lab)
4. What steps she is taking to link the school curriculum with
skills needed in the workplace.(901005)
The Minister for School Standards ()
Under the Conservatives, young people felt unprepared for their
futures, and employers agreed. That is why this Labour Government
have established an independent curriculum and assessment review
chaired by Professor Becky Francis. The review aims to deliver a
broad and rich curriculum that ensures that young people leave
education ready for life and work, which includes embedding
digital, oracy and life skills.
There is a shortage of technical skilled workers across our
economy. It is a chronic problem, not least in sectors such as
clean energy. For example, there are only 3,000 registered heat
pump installers, but to deliver the last Government's target of
600,000 installations a year we would need 27,000 of them. That
is repeated across the economy. Does my hon. Friend agree that
schools have a hugely important role in encouraging young people
into technical roles? What are the Government doing to support
young people into technical, skilled jobs?
I congratulate my hon. Friend on his work on the Energy Security
and Net Zero Committee. He has a long-established record of
championing this issue in the House, and I agree with him. That
is why our curriculum review will include speaking to employers
as part of the consultation about the essential knowledge and
skills that will support and enable students to adapt and thrive
in the world and workplace of the future, as well as ensuring
that we have that specialist knowledge in schools to support
young people to thrive.
(Central Suffolk and North
Ipswich) (Con)
Everyone knows that a knowledge-rich curriculum is the reason why
the English education system improved dramatically under the last
Government. The embedding of academic rigour produced phenomenal
results in PISA—the programme for international student
assessment. With that in mind, will the Minister confirm that she
has no intention of diluting the curriculum or any focus on
academic rigour?
The hon. Gentleman ignores the many challenges that young people
face in our school system. We have established the independent
review, which will consider areas to focus on in the light of the
evidence, responses to the call to evidence and widespread
engagement with stakeholders, including employers. The review
will seek to focus on the most significant issues in our
curriculum and assessment, but will not destabilise the system.
We are looking for evolution, not revolution, of our
curriculum.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Minister.
(North West Norfolk) (Con)
I think we will have to agree to disagree with the Minister about
the record of the last Government on driving up apprenticeships,
and in particular the work done by our colleague . Looking ahead, by how much
does the Minister expect the number of full apprenticeships to
grow over the course of this Parliament? Will she publish the
Department's assessment of the move to the growth and skills levy
and what that does to the number of people starting
apprenticeships?
Our reformed growth and skills levy will deliver greater
flexibility for learners and employers and will align with our
industrial strategy, creating routes into good skilled jobs in
growing industries, such as construction, digital and green
skills. We want a shorter duration of foundation apprenticeships
in those targeted sectors to help more people learn new high
skills at work, fuelling innovation in businesses across the
country, and to provide high-quality entry pathways for young
people. We are in the process of designing the growth and skills
levy, and we will set out more details in due course.
Vocational Training
(Southport) (Lab)
5. What steps she is taking to help increase the number of
students undertaking vocational training courses. (901006)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education ()
Further education is vital in breaking down barriers to
opportunity, driving growth and generating clean energy. The
Budget allocated £300 million to support young people and improve
skills development. In September, the Department launched a new
phase of the “It all starts with skills” campaign to promote
programmes such as apprenticeships and T-levels.
After 14 years of Tory decline, there is much to do in this
country to rebuild our crumbling infrastructure. A lot of people
need jobs to help us achieve that. I am glad that the new
Government are working to increase the number of students being
trained in the industries of the future, but will the Minister
tell us how she is working across Government to make sure that
more young people can find those opportunities locally, rather
than having to move away from their local communities?
Central to our opportunity mission is that where someone is from
should not determine where they end up in life. This Government
are serious about supporting young people. We are working across
Government to ensure that young people are supported in their
communities through devolution, local growth plans, local skills
improvement plans and the youth guarantee.
(Harrogate and Knaresborough)
(LD)
The largest provider of vocational education and training
opportunities in my constituency is Harrogate college, which was
previously promised more than £20 million in a combination of
loans and grants under the FE capital transformation fund. I have
written repeatedly to the Government to ask if they can secure an
extension to that funding period because, due to a hold-up in the
planning process, it will not be able to meet the deadlines. Will
the Minister commit to guaranteeing the funding for Harrogate
college for that rebuild?
The hon. Member outlined many failings by the previous
Government. I will ask my noble Friend the Minister for Skills to
meet him.
Special Educational Needs and Disabilities
(Tunbridge Wells) (LD)
6. What steps her Department is taking to improve support for
children with special educational needs and
disabilities.(901007)
(Honiton and Sidmouth)
(LD)
15. What steps her Department is taking to improve support for
children with special educational needs and
disabilities.(901016)
(Bognor Regis and
Littlehampton) (Con)
16. What steps her Department is taking to support children with
SEND.(901017)
(Stratford-on-Avon)
(LD)
17. What steps she is taking to improve SEND provision in
Warwickshire.(901018)
The Minister for School Standards ()
Every child deserves the opportunity to achieve and to thrive
but, currently, far from every child has that chance. We have
announced that high needs funding will increase by almost £1
billion in 2025-26 compared with 2024-25. We will work with the
sector to strengthen accountability, improve inclusivity through
Ofsted, support professionals to increase SEND expertise and
encourage schools to set up resourced provision or special
educational needs units in mainstream schools.
My constituent Suzie waited for an education, health and care
plan for her son Harrison for 42 weeks. By law, they have to be
provided within 20 weeks, so Conservative-run Kent county council
took more than twice the amount of time that it should have done.
When it came, it was full of mistakes, and Harrison is now in the
wrong school, his class size is too big and he does not have the
specialist support he requires. Previously, Kent county council
was put in special measures to sort out the problem with EHCP
provision. Would the Secretary of State support KCC going back
into special measures so that students like Harrison get the
support that they deserve?
I am sorry to hear about the challenges faced by the hon.
Gentleman's constituent. Local authorities have been impacted by
the increased demand for education, health and care plans and by
workforce capacity issues, so more efficient and effective
service delivery and communication with schools and families is
central to turning that around. We will work as quickly as
possible to ensure a more effective response and early
identification for children, and I will take away the particular
example he raises.
Devon county council is spending £55 million on private provision
for special educational needs and disabilities, without enough
quality control by the county council. State schools in mid and
east Devon want to be able to help provide more SEND specialists
and teaching assistants, but EHCPs are prescribing one-to-one
care with just £3,000, which is hardly enough for one-to-one
provision. Will the Government consider setting up more SEND
resource bases in Devon?
The hon. Gentleman raises an important point. It is vital for
turning around the current situation faced by far too many parts
of the country. There is not sufficient mainstream inclusion for
children with special educational needs, there are not enough
specialist units as part of mainstream school inclusion, and we
do not have the specialist places needed, so I will, of course,
take away the hon. Gentleman's specific example.
In West Sussex, EHCP requests are running at over 120 per month.
Will the Secretary of State's SEND reforms include measures that
could make it harder to get an EHCP, potentially making it harder
for children to qualify for special school places?
The hon. Lady raises an important point. I suspect it is on the
back of 14 years of letting down children who need the education
that is clearly wanting in so many parts of the country that
explains the number of Members raising these issues today. She
would do well to reflect on the record of the past 14 years. We
are changing the situation as fast as we can, but it will take
time.
The previous Conservative Government left SEND families in
Stratford-on-Avon to fend for themselves. I want not just
additional SEND places, but continued support for children
already attending specialist provision. Further, we need proper
investment in home-to-school transport. Children were left
without transport at the beginning of the academic year,
depriving them of access to their education. What are the
Government doing to ensure not just that budgets reflect need,
but that they do so to address the problem immediately?
I recognise the long list of challenges the hon. Lady sets out,
which she knows her constituents are facing. Children with
special educational needs and disabilities are being failed with
poor outcomes, and parents are struggling to get their children
the support they need and deserve. This Government's ambition is
for all children and young people with special educational needs
or in alternative provision to get the right support to achieve
and succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.
We are moving as fast as we can. It is a key part of our
opportunity mission and we will continue to do so.
Mr Speaker
I call the Chair of the Education Committee.
(Dulwich and West Norwood)
(Lab)
The additional £1 billion in the Budget for SEND support is very
welcome, but the Minister will know that local authorities remain
anxious about the forthcoming end to the statutory override of
dedicated schools grant deficits in March 2026. What discussions
is the Minister having with the Treasury and the Ministry of
Housing, Communities and Local Government on a plan to prevent
the end of the statutory override from becoming a cliff-edge
financial calamity for local authorities and children with
SEND?
As my hon. Friend mentions, high-needs funding will increase by
almost £1 billion in 2025-26, compared with 2024-25, bringing
total high-needs funding to £11.9 billion. That funding will help
local authorities and schools with the increasing cost of
supporting children and young people with SEND. We will continue
to support local authorities to meet those demands and reform our
system, so we can create inclusive education for every child.
(York Central)
(Lab/Co-op)
I want to raise the issue of governance. There are too many minds
controlling the system, which ultimately stymies local
authorities' ability to reform services in order to embed a
culture of nurturing and to ensure that the best interests of
children are represented. While reviewing the SEND system, will
the Minister take a look at governance, and ensure that is there
is one controlling mind, and it is that of the local
authority?
My hon. Friend will be aware of our plans to ensure that all
schools co-operate, within their local facilities, with their
local authorities when it comes to place-planning and admissions,
to ensure that we have a school system that serves the whole
community and to ensure that all children, whether or not they
have special educational needs and disabilities, are properly
served and given the opportunity to thrive within that
system.
(West Lancashire) (Lab)
I apologise for my premature bobbing at the beginning of this
questions session, Mr Speaker.
My constituent has been waiting for more than a year for
Conservative-run Lancashire county council to issue her
15-year-old son's EHCP. In that time he has attempted suicide and
has stopped eating, and my constituent's health is suffering as a
result of the stress. How can the Minister reassure my
constituent that the additional £1 billion for SEND provision
will speed up the issuing of EHCPs so that students with special
needs receive the support that they need?
I am sorry to hear about the experience of my hon. Friend's
constituent, and she was right to raise it today. We know that
far too many families and children are waiting far too long to
receive the support that they need, and we are determined to
reform the system, because children's needs should be recognised
at the earliest possible stage. They should not be waiting for
EHCPs in order to receive that support within our education
system. That is the change that we want to see, but we recognise
the demand on EHCPs and the process, and we recognise that we
need to improve.
Mr Speaker
That is happening throughout Lancashire, including Chorley.
Mr (Bury North) (Lab)
The 2014 reforms put SEN rights at the heart of the special
educational needs system, but the then Government did only half
the job, failing to honour the resources that they had promised.
EHCPs take too long to access, and children are often sent out of
borough to receive specialist education, which is more expensive.
How will the Government provide more SEN provision in our
mainstream schools in towns such as mine?
My hon. Friend is right to raise the priority of ensuring that
children with special educational needs and disabilities are
accommodated in mainstream schools with their friends whenever
possible. We are ensuring that training is available from the
earliest possible stage so that those in the workforce can teach
children with SEND, and that educational psychology services are
there to help schools to make any changes that are necessary. We
want to work in partnership with the sector to secure the best
outcomes for every child.
Childcare Accessibility
(Thurrock) (Lab)
7. What steps she is taking to make childcare more accessible.
(901008)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education ()
Ensuring that parents have access to affordable and high-quality
childcare is a priority for this Government. We will focus on
greater opportunities for every family to access early education,
and on greater opportunities for children to thrive and develop.
As an initial step, we have announced the bidding round for the
first 300 school-based nurseries from next September.
Many early years providers struggle to meet the needs of children
with SEND. Lack of funds, lack of training and lack of specialist
staff often mean that those that do provide a good or excellent
service quickly become over-subscribed. What steps is the
Department taking to reassure parents and carers of children with
SEND that those children will have access to the childcare or
early years provision in their areas that meets their needs?
We are helping members of the workforce to develop the skills and
confidence that will enable them to work effectively with
children with SEND, and reviewing early years funding
arrangements to ensure that they meet the needs of those
children. I should be happy to meet my hon. Friend or visit her
constituency to understand the issues that her local providers
are facing.
Dr (Hinckley and Bosworth)
(Con)
has long campaigned for
changes in childcare, in particular because the way in which it
is set up can damage single parents. There is an obvious cliff
edge. The last Government proposed a consultation on thresholds
for households being taken as one, but this Government seem to
have scrapped that in the Budget. Will Ministers be speaking to
the Treasury to decide how they will overcome this cliff edge
that affects so many single parents?
I thank the hon. Member for his question. We have a child-centred
Government, and early years is a priority for the Secretary of
State. We will focus on reforming the childcare system to ensure
that it is fit for purpose for the future and of high quality for
all young people. We are taking the sector's concerns seriously,
and we want to ensure there is a sustainable system going
forward.
SEND System: Effectiveness
Sarah (Hyndburn) (Lab)
8. What recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of
the system for supporting children with special educational needs
and disabilities. (901009)
(Birmingham Northfield)
(Lab)
24. What recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of
the system for supporting children with special educational needs
and disabilities. (901025)
The Minister for School Standards ()
Last month, the National Audit Office confirmed what many
families already know: the SEND system that we inherited from the
Conservatives is broken. Indeed, the number of hon. Members
raising concerns on behalf of their constituents shows the scale
of the challenge that we have inherited. We are working as
quickly as we can to make the changes that families need. It is
huge, complex reform, but we are determined to fix the
system.
Sarah
Far too many people in my constituency of Hyndburn find the
current EHCP process to be adversarial and one that fails to
assess their child's needs adequately. As the Government work to
reform the system, how can we be sure that the voices of parents
and children will remain at the heart of any policy change?
I recognise what my hon. Friend is saying. We engage with
children, young people, parents and carers in the development of
policy, including through our participation contract. Next week I
will meet our National Young People's Group, which is a diverse
group of young people from across England who have special
educational needs and disabilities. They share their views and
experiences with us, and I am looking forward to it.
At the recent SEND surgery that I organised with SEND Socials
Birmingham, one message came through time and again: different
public bodies are not working together as the Children and
Families Act 2014 intended, and this is contributing to long
delays and distress. Will the Minister agree to receive
representations from young people and families in south
Birmingham, so that their negative experiences can at least
contribute to the important work of reforming the SEND
system?
Absolutely. We are committed to working with families to deliver
an improved SEND system that works for all. We ensure that
families have access to free and impartial information, advice
and support to enable them to participate as fully as possible in
the decisions that affect them, but I would welcome suggestions
from my hon. Friend and parents in south Birmingham on how to
improve the system.
(Boston and Skegness)
(Reform)
The Minister has just agreed that there is a crisis of capacity
for SEND provision in the state sector, yet the Government's
deeply misguided VAT policy on school fees is exaggerating this
crisis and the crisis of EHCP assessments. Surely the right thing
to do is grant a VAT exemption on SEND children to ease the
crisis.
We are committed to ensuring that pupils whose needs necessitate
a place at private school are not impacted by this policy. Where
a pupil's place in private school is funded by a local authority
in England, Scotland and Wales because the pupil's needs cannot
be met in the state sector, the local authority will be able to
reclaim the VAT it is charged on fees.
(Broxbourne) (Con)
I refer Members to my entry in the Register of Members' Financial
Interests. Hertfordshire currently receives the third lowest SEND
funding in the country, but since 2015 the number of children in
the county with educational, health and care plans has grown by a
staggering 223%. Does the Minister agree that funding should
reflect the current need?
High-needs funding will increase by almost £1 billion in 2025-26
compared with 2024-25, bringing the total high-needs funding to
£11.9 billion. The funding will help local authorities and
schools with the increasing costs of supporting children and
young people with special educational needs. On the distribution
of funding, the national funding formula will be announced later
in November.
Skills and Employment
(West Ham and Beckton)
(Lab)
9. What steps she is taking to help ensure that young people have
the necessary skills to gain employment. (901010)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education ()
This Government are about fixing the foundations. To help do
this, we have launched an independent curriculum and assessment
review, which aims to enable all young people to access rigorous
and high-value qualifications and training. We will also
introduce a youth guarantee, which will help 18 to 21-year-olds
to access education, training and apprenticeship opportunities,
and to receive employment support.
The London Design and Engineering university technical college in
my constituency caters for 14 to 19-year-olds and offers at
secondary level the kind of training often only found at further
education level. Does the Minister agree that we need to create
more opportunities at secondary level for skills-based training
to ensure that it is embedded and lasts, post 16, into the
workplace and that it improves employability skills as well?
I appreciate my hon. Friend's thoughtful question. This
Government absolutely value university technical colleges for
helping young people to develop technical skills and, with
employer support, to move into technical careers. The independent
curriculum and assessment review aims to broaden the curriculum,
ensuring that young people do not miss out on vocational subjects
and that they leave education ready for employment.
(Eastbourne) (LD)
Eastbourne, as the sunniest town in the UK, is on a mission to be
a solar energy superpower. At the heart of that is East Sussex
college's green training hub, which is supporting students, young
and mature, to move into that sector. Will the Minister join me
in celebrating the hub's second birthday, and will she come down
to Eastbourne to visit the hub and its principal, Rebecca Conroy,
and to soak up some Eastbourne sun?
The sun is obviously shining on Eastbourne, even though may not
be shining everywhere else at the moment because of the weather.
A visit to Eastbourne to celebrate the hub sounds delightful, but
this falls to my noble Friend, of Malvern, so I will pass on these
comments to her.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Minister, .
(Harborough, Oadby and
Wigston) (Con)
The sun always shines on Chorley, Mr Speaker. One thing that
helps young people to gain skills is involvement in the cadets,
but the Department recently confirmed a decision to cancel
support payments to combined cadet forces in state schools. That
payment was something that people involved in the cadets and
teachers really valued. What assessment was made beforehand of
the impact that this cut would have? Will the Secretary of State
reconsider it?
We respect all our young people who are in the cadets or any
other armed forces areas. The hon. Gentleman raises this point,
but after 14 years of the previous Government's failure and the
£22 billion black hole, there are difficult choices to be made.
We are absolutely committed to children and young people and to
doing the best we can do by them.
Young Carers: School Absence
(Carshalton and Wallington)
(LD)
10. What steps her Department is taking to help tackle persistent
school absences among young carers. (901011)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education ()
The Government are committed to breaking down barriers to
opportunities for all young people, including young carers who
provide a critical role in caring for their loved ones. We now
collect specific absence data for young carers through the school
census, and our statutory attendance guidance seeks to ensure
that they receive holistic support to overcome barriers to
attendance.
One thing that might be driving absences from schools for young
carers is long-term mental health conditions. The Royal College
of Paediatrics and Child Health says that as many as one in five
young carers could be suffering from long-term mental health
conditions. Can the Minister explain what measures the Department
is taking to ensure that sufficient help is in place for people
suffering from those conditions?
We want to ensure that we support young carers in school, as well
as other children who may be suffering from mental health
conditions. This Government are entirely committed to supporting
young people with mental health conditions, and we are making
sure that there will be mental health support in every school up
and down the country. For young carers who may be experiencing
increasing mental health conditions, we are expanding the
attendance mentoring programme to ensure that around an extra
10,800 young carers are supported, especially in the area of
mental health.
Curriculum and Assessment Review
(Filton and Bradley
Stoke) (Lab)
11. What recent progress the independent curriculum and
assessment review has made. (901012)
(West Suffolk) (Con)
19. What progress the independent curriculum and assessment
review has made. (901020)
The Secretary of State for Education ()
Our independent curriculum and assessment review was launched in
July. It will support our ambition for high and rising standards
for all, and for a broader curriculum with an excellent
foundation in the core subjects. The review has launched its call
for evidence, and there is still time to participate. The review
will publish its interim report in early 2025, with final
recommendations in autumn 2025.
Research from the University of Cambridge shows that financial
habits are often set by the age of seven, yet financial education
for young people is still a postcode lottery. It is not part of
the primary curriculum, and many teachers at secondary level,
where it is part of the curriculum, lack resources and confidence
in teaching it. Can the Secretary of State confirm whether such
foundational life skills, which all young people need in order to
thrive, will be considered at all key stages in the curriculum
and assessment review?
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for highlighting this important
area, which has been raised by many Members in the past. I am
sure the review will carefully consider what financial education
young people need to meet that aim, and it will, of course,
consider what support we need to provide to enable teachers to
teach the reformed curriculum successfully.
I think parents will be quite alarmed by the answer given to my
hon. Friend the Member for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich
(), as it had very little
focus on academic attainment. The Education Secretary appointed
Becky Francis, who attacked the Blair Government for their
obsession with academic achievement. The National Education Union
denies that school accountability should be at the heart of our
assessment system, which is wrong, so will the Secretary of State
take this opportunity to rule out scrapping SATs in year 6?
I rather fear that the hon. Gentleman and his party have learned
nothing from the massive defeat inflicted upon them by voters in
July. I can assure this House that the review will be
evidence-based and will not seek to fix things that are not
broken. However, I remind the hon. Gentleman that his record is a
SEND system in crisis, one in five children persistently absent
from school—they cannot learn if they are not there—falling
standards, a persistent disadvantage gap, and over half of
disadvantaged pupils in state primary schools not leaving with
the required standards in English and maths. He might be proud of
that record, but I am not.
Topical Questions
Edward Morello (West Dorset) (LD)
T1. If she will make a statement on her departmental
responsibilities.(901027)
The Secretary of State for Education ()
Last week's Budget protects key education priorities, putting
education back at the forefront of national life and breaking
down barriers to opportunity for every child at every stage. The
Department for Education's settlement means that we can begin to
deliver on this Government's mission: rolling out funded
childcare, rebuilding and maintaining our school and college
estate, reforming the SEND system, investing in children's social
care, and ensuring that young people have the skills that they
need to seize opportunity.
Additionally, the £2.3 billion increase in core schools funding,
together with July's fully funded 5.5% teacher pay award, further
supports our commitment to recruit 6,500 new teachers. This
Government will fix the foundations to deliver change, and there
is no better place to start than education.
West Dorset has seen a 134% increase in the number of children
requiring SEN support in the last six years. As of the latest
data, more than 275 children are waiting for education, care and
health plan assessments, with the average waiting time well in
excess of the 20-week statutory limit. Will the Minister outline
what specific measures the Department is implementing to ensure
that the much-needed £1 billion investment announced in the
Budget is used to bring down waiting times for EHCPs in places
such as West Dorset?
The hon. Gentleman is right to raise his concern, as so many have
this afternoon, about the state of the system for supporting
children with SEND. It is not working, and we know it needs
reform, but committing an extra £1 billion into the system at
this crucial time was an important first step. We face choices on
how to take this system forward, and how to make it less
adversarial and more focused on better life chances for our
children. One of the first steps I took was to refocus the work
of the Department for Education on children with SEND.
Dame Meg Hillier (Hackney South and Shoreditch) (Lab/Co-op)
T2. Schools are closing across inner London, and across London
more widely, for various reasons, leaving premises empty or at
risk of being sold off. What strategic oversight is the Secretary
of State taking to ensure that we get the best value for our
children from these properties?(901028)
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising that important issue,
about which there was a lack of thinking by the previous
Government on how we do this properly and seriously. Challenges
come with demographic change, but there are opportunities too.
That is why we have announced more primary-based nurseries in
empty classrooms, and we can think about doing more around
additional support and provision for children with special
educational needs and disabilities, in particular.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
(Sevenoaks) (Con)
There has been a lot of discussion about our record in
government. Under the Conservatives, England climbed
international educational league tables, but what happened to
Labour- run Wales? It fell. Under the Conservatives, youth
unemployment went down and school standards improved —that is the
record of the Conservative Government, which we are proud to
defend. Does the Secretary of State agree that academisation was
one of the driving forces behind that very good school
improvement?
I am sorry to disappoint the right hon. Lady, but we will be
talking about the Conservatives' 14 years of failure for a very
long time indeed.
(Harborough, Oadby and
Wigston) (Con)
rose—
Children across our country were failed by her party time and
again, including the children with SEND we have heard about this
afternoon—
Mr Speaker
Order. Mr O'Brien, please, enough is enough.
We are focused on driving up standards for our children, the
length and breadth of our country, by providing more teachers and
improved school budgets, and by ensuring our children do not go
to school in crumbling buildings, unlike the Conservative party,
which made sure that our children went to school in buildings
that were literally propped up.
The problem that we have is that while we are learning the
lessons of our defeat, the Government are failing to learn from
our brilliant record on school standards. Results improved, more
schools were “good” or “outstanding”, but now the party in
government is trying to undermine one part of the basis for that
success. Why is the Secretary of State scrapping the academy
conversion support grant when it was such a push behind improving
school standards?
The Conservative party has learned absolutely nothing and parents
will not buy it. We were faced with some very tough choices
because of the £22 billion hole in the public finances, as the
right hon. Lady, the former Chief Secretary to the Treasury,
knows all too well—[Interruption.] We are fixing the foundations
and rebuilding our schools.
Mr Speaker
Order. Are we going to work together? It would be much easier for
all of you, I can assure you.
Mr (Bury North) (Lab)
T4. News of the impact of last week's Budget on schools was
greeted with relief in Bury North. The Derby high school is a
top-performing school, but its main building dates back to 1959
and faces critical issues. It was due for renewal under Labour's
Building Schools for the Future programme but was ignored during
the 14 years of the Tories. Will the Minister meet me and the
school's leadership team to discuss the urgent need for
refurbishment funds?(901030)
Mr Speaker
Order. These are topical questions. I have to get everybody in
who has not got in before. You have got in once already, so don't
be greedy.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education ()
We are committed to improving school buildings, where we want our
children to achieve and thrive, but that will not be a quick fix.
Bury council has been awarded £1.8 million for the financial year
to improve its school buildings, including The Derby high school.
Last week, this Government increased next year's capital
allocation for England to £2.1 billion, some £300 million more
than last year. I will, of course, be happy to meet with my hon.
Friend—
Mr Speaker
Order. Obviously, set-up questions have very long answers. We
should be able to have shorter questions and answers.
(Bicester and Woodstock)
(LD)
T3. I noted the Minister's answer to the hon. Member for Dulwich
and West Norwood (), but will she clarify whether
the £1 billion announced in the Budget last week for SEND goes to
new expenditure? What will the Government do about the statutory
override that is preventing local authorities from going bust,
with a total of nearly £4 billion owing?(901029)
We expect the additional funding to go directly to providing
provision for children and young people. We will set out wider
plans about the issues the hon. Gentleman raises in due
course.
(Bristol North East) (Lab)
T5. What does the extra funding outlined for children in the
Budget mean for the growing number of foster children and
children who need foster care?(901031)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education ()
Foster carers provide some of the best care for children who are
looked after. Some £4 million of new funding has been allocated
for regional foster recruitment hubs, bringing the total amount
of funding to £15 million. I am pleased to say that these hubs
will generate hundreds of new foster placements.
(Bridlington and The
Wolds) (Con)
T6. The teachers and staff at Hornsea school and language college
do a fantastic job for their 1,300 pupils, including 90 with
SEND, but they do so in crumbling buildings with leaking roofs.
With the news in last week's Budget that this Government will
continue the Conservative's school rebuilding programme, will the
Secretary of State prioritise Hornsea school?(901032)
I note the hon. Member's point on that specific college. As he
will know, the Chancellor committed £1.4 billion at the Budget to
drive the delivery of the current school rebuilding programme for
next year. Over the coming weeks and months, we will work with
trusts and local authorities to identify which schools will be in
scope.
(Truro and Falmouth)
(Lab/Co-op)
T8. My constituency has some brilliant further education colleges
and apprenticeship schemes, but some students struggle, retaking
GCSE and functional skills maths and English over and over again.
Will the Minister consider how the process could be done better,
so that those students do not end up feeling like a failure as
they retake and retake?(901034)
The Department considers level 2 English and maths to be
essential, so students without those qualifications are required
to continue studying to achieve them. The independent curriculum
and assessment review is looking at support for students without
level 2 in English and Maths at the age of 16, and further
information will follow shortly.
(Lewes) (LD) [R]
T7. When I visit nurseries in my constituency of Lewes, many
raise serious concerns about special educational needs and
disabilities provision in the early years. Will Ministers commit
to an urgent review of SEND in early years to take account of
funding shortfalls and staffing challenges, and to address
families' concerns about insufficient places due to growing
demand?(901033)
Ensuring that there is the right level of provision for and
identification of SEND in the early years is an essential part of
our review of the early years system and of the reform that is
required.
(Burnley) (Lab/Co-op)
T9. In the Budget, an extra £300 million was announced for
further education. I know that the Secretary of State is a big
fan of Burnley, so will she come back to Burnley with me to meet
representatives of Burnley college and talk with them about their
brilliant work and the expansion of the campus?(901035)
It was a pleasure to visit my hon. Friend ahead of the
election—and what a brilliant champion he is for Burnley and his
constituents. I would be very happy to visit again. As part of
setting out our commitment to further education, at the Budget we
put in place an additional £300 million, alongside £300 million
of capital funding for our colleges.
(Westmorland and Lonsdale) (LD)
rose—
Mr Speaker
I call Tim Shannon—I mean, Farron. [Laughter.]
The hon. Member for Strangford () and I are indeed never seen in the same place
together. [Laughter.]
Stramongate nursery school in Kendal faces closure following an
Ofsted inspection. If it had been a regular school, it would have
had help to remain open under special measures, but as it is, the
nursery has to close. Will the Secretary of State pay attention
to this particular issue to ensure that the children and parents
are protected, and that childcare can continue?
I will look carefully at the case and ensure that the hon.
Gentleman has a meeting with the relevant Minister to discuss it
further.
Chris (North East Hertfordshire)
(Lab)
T10. Many towns and villages across my constituency have
experienced rapid population growth in recent years, but
education opportunities have not kept pace, so will the Minister
meet me to discuss the specific investment needed to expand
school places for my constituency's growing
population?(901036)
I am very happy to meet my hon. Friend to discuss the matter.
Mr Speaker
I call .
Hon. Members
Hear, hear!
(Daventry) (Con)
Thank you, Mr Speaker. It has been a while since I have
spoken!
Those at Buckton Fields school in my constituency were delighted
when they had a newly constructed building, but that delight was
sadly short-lived, as there were defects. As a consequence, with
interim arrangements, the school's roll has gone up and down, and
now it has a £45,000 shortfall in its budget. Will the Minister
meet me and representatives from the school to discuss the
issue?
The Minister for School Standards ()
I welcome the right hon. Gentleman back to his place and would be
more than happy to meet him to discuss the challenges in his
constituency.
(Ossett and Denby Dale)
(Lab)
The UK's social mobility commissioner has highlighted the
“geography of disadvantage” being experienced by young people in
northern post-industrial communities like those in Ossett and
Denby Dale. Does the Secretary of State agree with the
commissioner that decisive and bold Government action to improve
educational attainment and opportunity is required for these
children?
I do agree, and I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising the
point. I am leading the work across Government on breaking down
the barriers to opportunity in order to break the unfair link
between background and success. We know that tackling child
poverty is a crucial part of that process, and it is essential
that we get the recommendations of the child poverty taskforce to
ensure that poverty does not hold back our children's life
chances.
(Rutland and Stamford)
(Con)
Helen Blythe from Stamford has campaigned courageously for
improvements to allergy safety since her son Benedict died
following a severe allergic reaction at school in 2021. Will the
Minister commit to meet me to discuss introducing a mandatory
requirement for all schools to have a specific allergy and
anaphylaxis plan, and for every school to have adrenaline
auto-injectors?
I met Helen Blythe last week, and I will happily meet the hon.
Member to take forward her concerns.
(East Worthing and Shoreham)
(Lab)
I thank the Minister for working with Treasury colleagues to
secure important additional funding to rebuild schools in last
week's Budget. Will he meet me to discuss the serious repair
issues facing St Nicolas and St Mary primary school in my
constituency, which are hampering children's ability to
thrive?
We are proud of the investment that we are making in school
buildings. I would be delighted not only to meet my hon. Friend
but to visit his constituency.
Mr (Basildon and Billericay)
(Con)
Will the Secretary of State acknowledge, as the right hon. of Basildon has in the other place,
that concerns around freedom of speech and academic freedom in
our universities are not a botched culture war but a serious
matter that needs to be addressed properly?
As I said to the right hon. Gentleman during the last Education
questions, I believe in the vital importance of freedom of speech
and freedom of expression within our university campuses.
University is a place where young people should be exposed to
views that they might find difficult or challenging; however, it
is important that any legislation in this area is workable.
(Brighton Kemptown and
Peacehaven) (Lab)
The current national guidelines on school transport mean that
children who live less than 3 miles from school do not get any
support in Government funding. In my constituency, that means
that some of the most deprived kids either have to walk an hour
and a half a day to and from school, or their already struggling
families have to find the money for their transport. Will the
Minister meet me to talk about this and see whether the 3-mile
limit can be changed?
We are committed to removing barriers to opportunity for every
child. No child should struggle to access education because of a
lack of transport. We are keen to understand how well the
transport system is working for children accessing schooling, and
I will happily meet my hon. Friend to discuss it further.
(Mid Dorset and North Poole)
(LD)
The majority of teachers have had no more than half a day's
training on autism. If the Government are as committed as they
say they are to ensuring that most children with special
educational needs and disabilities receive a mainstream
education, what will they do to ensure that teacher training
meets children's needs?
The hon. Lady is right to identify that this is an area where we
must do more, and do it better. I hear, as she doubtless does,
from teachers and support staff that they want additional
training and support in this crucial area, and we will ensure
that it is part of our SEND reform.
(Oldham East and
Saddleworth) (Lab)
We know that children with special educational needs and
disabilities are more likely to live in poverty, so how will my
right hon. Friend ensure that children with special and complex
needs are incorporated into the child poverty strategy?
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for the work that she leads on
behalf of this House on the Education Committee. Our child
poverty taskforce is absolutely focused on this area. We will
listen to and engage directly with families across the UK,
including those who have children with SEND. As she identifies,
child poverty blights the life chances of far too many, and that
must change.
(Mid Sussex) (LD)
Carers Trust estimates that two children in every classroom
across the UK are young carers, yet 72% of schools say that they
have no young carers on their roll. What steps is the Department
taking to address that?
We have recently required all schools to provide that data, so
that we can find out where the young carers are and ensure that
they gain the support that they need. Through the children's
framework, they can have an assessment alongside their parents. I
am happy to speak further on this matter.
(Wolverhampton West)
(Lab)
I welcomed the Budget last week, in which the Chancellor
confirmed the recruitment of 6,500 teachers. Will the Secretary
of State please confirm how those extra teachers, including
specialist teachers, will be recruited, and how issues such as
workload, working conditions and support for the training and
development of new and existing teachers and school support staff
will be addressed?
We know that having a well-supported, highly qualified teacher at
the front of the class makes the single biggest difference to
children's life chances, but it is also crucial that we tackle
issues around workload and pay. That is why I was delighted that
we were able to bring in a fully funded 5.5% pay award for our
teachers, to recognise their brilliant hard work on behalf of our
children, our families and our country.
