theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Mr Richard Holden:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 15 May 2025 to Question 51165 on Government Departments: Flags, whether VAT was paid on the purchases; what the size of the flags purchased was; and whether the flags were (a) printed and (b) sewn. \p Georgia Gould: VAT was paid at point of purchase by the Government Property Agency (GPA) Regional Supply Chain Provider.

Where GPA is making a purchase, to ensure quality and longevity, where possible, sewn flags are purchased. The size of the Pride flag is 4 yards. This is a sewn flagged and was provided roped and toggled. The size of the Ukraine flag is 3 yards. This is a sewn flagged and was provided roped and toggled.
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the average cost was of domestic flights taken by the Prime Minister since July 2024. \p Ms Abena Oppong-Asare: It has been the practice of successive administrations not to publish granular information relating to the official movements of Ministers and those accompanying them within the United Kingdom. Information about official overseas travel is published as part of the Cabinet Office transparency returns and made available on the GOV.UK website.
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish the Cabinet Office Freedom of Information Act response with reference FOI2025/05760 of 14 May 2025. \p Ms Abena Oppong-Asare: A copy of the response issued on the 14 May, with third party removed, will be deposited in the House Library shortly.
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the written statement entitled Plan for Change: Milestones for mission-led government, of 5 December 2024, HCWS285, if he will make it his policy to report every six months on the (a) metrics and (b) targets set out in that plan. \p Ellie Reeves: The Plan for Change sets out clear and transparent milestones, and our plan to achieve them. We published graphs and links to the statistics on the outcomes for these milestones. The statistical annex published on gov.uk on the Plan for Change – Milestones for mission-led government provides further detail. These milestones will allow the public to track our progress and hold the government to account for their delivery.
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 15 May 2025 to Question 50576 on Cabinet Office: Recruitment, which SCS roles were not advertised externally; and for what reason those roles were not advertised externally. \p Georgia Gould: As was the case under the previous administration,the Civil Service advertises all SCS vacancies on the principle of External by Default. External by Default means that vacancies will be open to external candidates outside the Civil Service, as well as existing civil servants, unless an exception applies.

Between 30 May 2024 and 30 April 2025, 7 SCS roles were not advertised externally. In each case the appropriate approval was obtained. It would not be appropriate to provide specific details of the roles as individuals could be identified.
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 13 May 2025 to Question 49956, and the Answer of 16 January 2025 to Question 21390, both on Armed Forces: Equality, what his Department's policy is on spending on equality, diversity and inclusion across the public sector. \p Georgia Gould: The controls outlined in the Civil Service Equality Diversity and Inclusion Expenditure Guidance which was published on 14 May 2024 remain in place.
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Mike Wood:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which central government residential properties are unoccupied, according to data held by the InSite database. \p Georgia Gould: Individual departments are responsible for management of their respective residential properties, including status of occupancy. The Cabinet Office therefore does not hold information on which central government residential properties are unoccupied.
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Jamie Stone:To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on improving public engagement with politics. \p Ellie Reeves: Public engagement and participation are vital to the health of our democracy, and the Government will continue to support the public to make their voices heard.

Engagement with the political process must be built on trust. The Government is committed to returning to a politics of service.
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Olivia Blake:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the error rate in asylum applications where decisions had an (a) automated and (b) AI-based element was between November 2024 and March 2025. \p Dame Angela Eagle: No automated / AI tools were deployed in Asylum decision making between November 2024 and March 2025.
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Liam Conlon:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to support victims of the Windrush scandal. \p Seema Malhotra: This government is determined to put right the appalling injustices caused by the Home Office’s treatment of members of the Windrush community, making sure that those affected receive the compensation they deserve quickly and ensuring cultural change is embedded permanently into the fabric of the department.

We are committed to engaging directly with the communities most affected to understand their views and priorities, and to ensure their voices are heard. Both I and the Home Secretary have met, and will continue to listen to, those directly affected by the scandal and representatives of groups advocating for them.

In February, we launched the recruitment for a Windrush Commissioner, which marks a vital step in resetting the government’s response to the Home Office Windrush scandal. The Commissioner will serve as an independent advocate for those affected, assure delivery of the Windrush Compensation Scheme and hold the department to account as we learn the lessons of the past to drive improvements. The immediate priority is to appoint the right person into the role and ensure they engage swiftly with impacted communities to truly understand what they need and identify how the Commissioner can deliver meaningful change through their role.

We have injected £1.5 into a programme of grant funding for organisations to provide support for Compensation Scheme applicants who need additional help with the application process, ensuring claimants feel supported.  We invited applications for funding on 11th April 2025, with successful organisations expected to be announced by summer 2025.

Financial compensation cannot make up for what has been lost but we are committed to giving the maximum amount at the earliest point possible and doing so with compassion and understanding.

This is why we introduced a new single named caseworker process in July so the individuals who apply for compensation are better supported and have increased transparency on the progress of their claim. The time taken to allocate claims has also been reduced significantly, down to six weeks from 3 months a year ago. The time taken to finalise a claim has similarly reduced significantly now down to approximately 3 months compared to 6-7 months a year ago.

We also have a dedicated Vulnerable Persons Team who provide trusted help and advice to vulnerable people in urgent need. The Vulnerable Persons Team also administers the Urgent and Exceptional Payments policy, which provides immediate financial support to people in urgent need.
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James MacCleary:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the timeline is for UK travellers to start having expanded access to EU eGates. \p Seema Malhotra: We have secured confirmation that there will be no legal barriers to eGates use for UK nationals travelling to and from EU Member States after the introduction of the EU's Entry/Exit System.

But the Prime Minister has been clear that there should be no reason why European countries cannot go further and faster on this now.

We are therefore working with individual Member States at pace to make that transition happen as soon as possible.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Innovator Founder visa on entrepreneurial talent studying at UK universities. \p Seema Malhotra: We recognise the importance of retaining top entrepreneurial talent coming through our world leading universities. As part of this, we set out in the Immigration White Paper that we will support entrepreneurial talent currently studying at UK universities further. This will enable those with innovative business ideas to engage in that business activity while transitioning onto an Innovator Founder visa, so they can build their business and career in the UK.
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Tom Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of a youth mobility scheme with the United Arab Emirates. \p Seema Malhotra: The Home Office keeps all aspects of the immigration system under regular review, consistent with our commitment to reduce net migration significantly over the course of parliament.
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Victoria Collins:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department's White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published on 12 May 2025, what assessment she has made on the ability of British Nationals Overseas visa holders to (a) access higher education (i) home fee status and (ii) student finance, and (b) withdraw (A) private and (B) individual pensions from overseas after five years of UK residence. \p Seema Malhotra: The Government is committed to supporting members of the Hong Kong community who have relocated to the UK and those who may come here in future.

Further details of all measures announced in the Immigration White Paper will be set out in the normal way in due course, and where necessary, will be subject to consultation.
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Lisa Smart:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of UK citizenship applications refused since 10 February 2025 have had entry to the UK by irregular means cited as the reason for refusal. \p Seema Malhotra: The information requested is not centrally held, and could only be collected and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.
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Dr Scott Arthur:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of age-related pay for people with Skilled Worker visas on opportunities for exploitation by unscrupulous employers. \p Seema Malhotra: The Immigration White Paper, published on 12 May, sets out the Home Office’s proposals for reform in a number of areas, including exploitation of individuals on worker visas.
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Chris Law:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 8 April 2025 to Question 42556 on Visas: Seasonal Workers, whether Scheme Operators provide written reports to her Department in relation to their work in enforcing welfare on farms. \p Seema Malhotra: There is no such requirement at present.
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Dr Scott Arthur:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of which academic fields have benefitted most from the Global Talent visa scheme. \p Seema Malhotra: Following its introduction in February 2020, the Home Office commissioned Ipsos to undertake research into the impact of the Global Talent visa. Wave 1 of the research was published in May 2022 and wave 2 was published in March 2024.

The Global Talent Visa Evaluation is published at:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/global-talent-visa-evaluation/global-talent-visa-evaluation-exploring-experiences-of-the-global-talent-visa-process-wave-1-report.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/global-talent-visa-evaluation-wave-2-report/global-talent-visa-evaluation-wave-2-report.
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Rebecca Long Bailey:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department's White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published on 12 May 2025, whether the proposals will apply to British National (Overseas) visa holders; and whether provisions will be introduced to allow access for British National (Overseas) visa holders to local university tuition fee rates before settlement is achieved. \p Seema Malhotra: The Government is committed to supporting members of the Hong Kong community who have relocated to the UK and those who may come here in future.

Further details of all measures announced in the Immigration White Paper will be set out in the normal way in due course, and where necessary, will be subject to consultation.
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Tom Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of enabling school groups to travel to the EU with ID cards. \p Seema Malhotra: Entry requirements to the EU are a matter for EU Member States.
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Tom Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the White Paper entitled Restoring Control over the Immigration System, publish on 12 May 2025, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of her proposed changes to short-term study visas on language schools in the UK. \p Seema Malhotra: Further details of all the measures announced in the White Paper will be set out in due course, and where necessary, subject to consultation.

Across Government, we will also make it easier for those already in the UK, working with partners in the Department for Education, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to access classes for English language lessons for those who need additional help.
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Uma Kumaran:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the White Paper entitled Restoring Control over the Immigration System, published on 12 May 2025, when she plans to publish further information on how changes to the five-year settlement pathway will affect people already in the UK on a pathway to settlement. \p Seema Malhotra: We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year and further details on the proposed scheme will be provided at that time.
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Suella Braverman:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has an internal target for net migration in 2025. \p Seema Malhotra: In the Immigration White Paper published on 12 May, we set out our commitment to continue reducing net migration from the record highs that were reached when the Rt Hon Member was the Home Secretary in June 2023.
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Lisa Smart:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of her Department's revised guidance entitled Nationality: good character requirement, published on 11 February 2025, on levels of community cohesion in Greater Manchester. \p Seema Malhotra: I refer the Hon Member to the answers I gave on 3 April to Question 40163, and on 25 February to Question 31371.
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Rebecca Long Bailey:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department's White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published on 12 May 2025, which visa schemes the points-based system would apply to; and whether it would apply retrospectively to existing visa holders. \p Seema Malhotra: We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year and further details on the proposed scheme will be provided at that time.
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James Naish:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the duration of the Ukrainian Visa scheme for Ukrainian national visa holders with children currently working towards GCSE or A Level qualifications in the UK. \p Seema Malhotra: The Ukraine Permission Extension (UPE) scheme, which opened on 4 February 2025, enables Ukrainians who have been provided sanctuary here in the UK to apply for a further 18 months’ permission to remain. The scheme provides the same rights and entitlements to access work, benefits, healthcare and education as the other Ukraine schemes.

We keep the Ukraine schemes under continuous review in line with the ongoing conflict and the Ukrainian government’s desire for the future return of its citizens to Ukraine. This is why the Ukraine Schemes remain temporary.

The Home Office is mindful of the importance of continuity of education and my officials are exploring options so that more clarity can be provided.
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Dr Scott Arthur:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she plans to take to evaluate the effectiveness of her Department's Enough campaign at tackling violence against women and girls. \p Jess Phillips: To evaluate communications activity, including the Enough campaign to help tackle violence against women and girls, the Department follows the steps set out by the Government Communication Service: GCS Evaluation Cycle - UK Government Communications.
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Chris Law:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 8 April 2025 to Question 42554 on Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority: Complaints, whether North West includes Scotland, Northern Ireland, North Wales and geographical areas of North West England. \p Jess Phillips: “North West” in this instance includes Scotland, Northern Ireland, North Wales and North West England.
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Callum Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to allocate the £20 million fund to services supporting victims of abuse in (a) Buckinghamshire and (b) Milton Keynes. \p Jess Phillips: On Monday 12 May, we announced a £19.9m funding boost to support thousands more victims of violence against women and girls (VAWG). This funding will help victims access specialist services . This includes £6m for specialist helplines to support victims of VAWG across England and Wales, £2m for a Flexible Fund administered by Women’s Aid Federation England, which offers direct cash payments to victims fleeing abuse across England and Wales, and £2.4 million for the Supporting Migrant Victims Scheme, a national programme that supports migrant victims of abuse who are unable to access public funds. This comprehensive national package reflects our commitment to ensuring that all victims and survivors - regardless of their background, circumstances or postcode - can access the support they need.

Regarding investment into local services, on 28 November 2024 the Government announced a £30m funding increase to the Domestic Abuse Safe Accommodation Grant, bringing the total investment to £160m in 2025-26. This will enable local authorities to invest in essential support in frontline safe accommodation services. Furthermore, Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) in England and Wales also receive annual grant funding from the MOJ’s victim and witness budget to commission local support services for victims of all crime types. PCCs are best placed to understand their local communities and providers and to commission appropriate support to meet that need.
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Bell Ribeiro-Addy:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the National Police Chiefs’ Council's guidance entitled Practice Advice on Child Death Investigation, published in February 2025, on (a) bereaved families and (b) trust in maternity services. \p Dame Diana Johnson: Guidance to support operational policing in discharging their duties is a matter for the National Police Chiefs’ Council.
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Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of training available to police forces for engaging with neurodiverse suspects. \p Dame Diana Johnson: Training on mental ill health and autism is already integrated throughout the initial police learning programme which all new recruits must complete.

Policing is operationally independent, and it is a matter for the chief constables of each force to decide which additional training their officers should undertake. The National Police Chiefs’ Council has produced an e-learning course and a glossary of terms on neurodiversity, which are available to all police officers.
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Liam Conlon:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent progress her Department has made on improving neighbourhood policing in (a) Beckenham and Penge constituency and (b) the UK. \p Dame Diana Johnson: The Government is committed to strong neighbourhood policing for everyone in England and Wales, no matter where they live.

As the Prime Minister announced on 10 April, by July, every community will have named, and contactable officers dedicated to addressing the issues facing their communities as part of the Government’s Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee.

We are providing £200 million to police forces in financial year 2025/26 to support the first steps of delivering 13,000 more neighbourhood policing personnel.

The Metropolitan Police has been allocated £45,639,456 from the £200 million fund for 2025/26. Based on their funding allocation, the projected growth for neighbourhood officers in the Metropolitan Police over 2025/26 will be 420 (FTE) police officers and 50 (FTE) Police Community Support Officers.
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Liam Conlon:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to tackle (a) shoplifting and (b) violence against shopworkers (i) in Beckenham and Penge constituency and (ii) nationally. \p Dame Diana Johnson: This Government is committed to tackling retail crime and is absolutely clear that everybody has a right to feel safe at their place of work. Through our Crime and Policing Bill, we have introduced a standalone offence of assaulting a retail worker to protect the hardworking and dedicated staff that work in stores.

The Bill will also repeal existing legislation which makes shop theft of and below £200 a summary-only offence, which means it can only be tried in a magistrate’s court. This will send a clear message that any level of shop theft is illegal and will be taken seriously.

We will provide £5 million over the next three years to continue to fund a specialist analysis team within Opal, the national policing intelligence unit for serious, organised acquisitive crime.

We will also invest £2 million over the next three years in the National Business Crime Centre which provides a resource for both police and businesses to learn, share and support each other to prevent and combat crime.

Further, the National Police Chiefs' Council will receive funding to give further training to police and retailers on prevention tactics. The training will aim to empower retailers to develop and implement tactics to prevent retail crime across all of the UK.

I speak regularly with representatives of the retail sector and chair the Retail Crime Forum which brings together policing and industry to discuss practical ways to work together to tackle retail crime.
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Victoria Collins:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to make LGBTQ+ hate crimes aggravated offences; and if she will implement a national Hate Crime Strategy and Action Plan to improve (a) reporting and (b) support for victims of hate crimes based on (i) sexual orientation and (ii) gender identity. \p Dame Diana Johnson: All hate crimes are unacceptable, and we back the police in taking the strongest action against the perpetrators of these appalling offences.

We are currently considering the best way to implement commitments in this space.

The Government funds an online hate crime reporting portal called True Vision, designed so victims of all types of hate crime - including homophobic, biphobic and transphobic hate crime - do not have to visit a police station to report. We are also continuing to fund the National Online Hate Crime Hub which supports individual local police forces in dealing specifically with online hate crime.
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Rachel Gilmour:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on what the average processing time for a shotgun license application was in the last 12 months. \p Dame Diana Johnson: The issuing of firearms certificates and the efficiency of police forces is a matter for individual Chief Constables and local Police and Crime Commissioners.
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Lewis Cocking:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to help end the use of (a) vape shops, (b) barbers and (c) other high street businesses by organised crime groups. \p Dame Diana Johnson: There are a range of powers available to deal with criminal use and exploitation of high street properties. Authorities can use closure powers under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 to close quickly premises which are being used, or are likely to be used, to commit nuisance or disorder. Courts may in turn grant a Closure Order where a person has engaged in criminal behaviour on the premises. This power is designed specifically to protect victims and communities by enabling swift action where premises are creating harm.

Law enforcement agencies are taking robust action to deal with criminal use of high street properties wherever they see it. For example, in March the National Economic Crime Centre, part of the National Crime Agency, coordinated Operation Machinize, a three-week crackdown against cash-intensive businesses linked to serious and organised crime across England and Wales.
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Lee Anderson:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will increase the number of police officers in neighbourhood teams in Nottinghamshire. \p Dame Diana Johnson: The Government has committed to restoring neighbourhood policing through the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee. This includes putting thousands more police personnel on the beat in neighbourhood policing roles up and down the country. As a part of this pledge, Nottinghamshire Police have been allocated £3,570,488 funding in 2025/26 to bolster their neighbourhood policing teams.

Based on their funding allocation, Nottinghamshire Police’s projected growth over 2025/26 will be 30 police officers (FTE), 20 Police Community Support Officers (FTE), and 20 Special Constables (headcount).
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Dr Al Pinkerton:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to tackle levels of anti-social behaviour involving catapults in Surrey. \p Dame Diana Johnson: We are clear that catapults should not be used for illegal or anti-social purposes, whether against wildlife, people or property.

The Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 provides the police, local authorities and other local agencies with a range of tools and powers that they can use to respond quickly and effectively to anti-social behaviour, including the misuse of catapults.

Through the Crime and Policing Bill, we are strengthening the powers available to relevant agencies to tackle ASB, including introducing new Respect Orders to tackle the most persistent ASB offenders.

The police have powers relating to the use of any item as an offensive weapon, including a catapult. Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and the Wild Mammals (Protection) Act 1996, the police also have powers to deal with cases where wildlife is attacked, including cases involving the misuse of catapults.

We continue to keep all relevant legislation under review in the interest of public safety.
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Bell Ribeiro-Addy:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will review the National Police Chiefs' Council's guidance on investigating stillbirths. \p Dame Diana Johnson: Guidance to support operational policing in discharging their duties is a matter for the National Police Chiefs’ Council.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-06)

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Joe Powell:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many offences were recorded for enforcement action against delivery e-bikes in the last 12 months. \p Dame Diana Johnson: The Home Office collects and publishes data on fixed penalty notices (FPNs) and other outcomes for motoring offences in England and Wales on an annual basis, as part of the ‘Police powers and procedures: Roads policing’ statistical bulletin. The most recent data, up to 2023, is available here: Police powers and procedures: Roads policing, to December 2023 - GOV.UK

However, the Home Office does not centrally collect data on the type of vehicle involved in the offence.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-06 conversation_161

Katie Lam:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department holds data on the number of people who have illegally arrived in the UK via small boat crossings having previously been deported. \p Dame Angela Eagle: I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave on 7 March to Question 35056.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-06 conversation_162

Dr Roz Savage:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that children with (a) complex SEND and (b) escalating behavioural needs have timely access to suitable residential education placements when local day settings are unable to meet their needs; and what support is available to families (i) experiencing delays in placement decisions and (ii) for whom safeguarding or health risks have been identified. \p Catherine McKinnell: The Children and Families Act 2014 requires local authorities to ensure there are sufficient school places for all pupils, including those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

The department has published allocations for £740 million in High Needs Provision Capital Allocations for the 2025/26 financial year. The funding can be used to adapt schools to be more accessible for children with SEND, to create specialist facilities within mainstream schools that can deliver more intensive support adapted to suit the pupils’ needs, and to create special school places for pupils with the most complex needs.

The department continues to monitor and work closely with local authorities that have issues with education, health and care plan timeliness, including placement decisions. Where there are concerns about a local authority’s capacity to make the required improvements, we help the local authority to identify the barriers and put in place an effective recovery plan.

Free support and advice for families and local authorities is provided by Special Educational Needs and Disability Information and Advice Services.

Where there are concerns about a child’s safety or wellbeing, support from social care services may be required. Under Section 17 of the Children Act 1989, it is the general duty of every local authority to safeguard and promote the welfare of children within their area who are in need, including disabled children, and to promote the upbringing of such children by their families by providing a range and level of services appropriate to those children’s needs. Where appropriate, social care services may be provided in conjunction with an educational placement such as a residential special school.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-06 conversation_163

Ian Byrne:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of removing spelling and grammar software from Disabled Students' Allowance funding on student retention rates at universities. \p Janet Daby: The department engaged with disability experts who support disabled students to gather their feedback and insights on the decision to remove non-specialist spelling and grammar software from Disabled Students’ Allowance funding.

The department’s review of non-specialist spelling and grammar software found that the required functionality to meet students’ disability-related support needs was available to students in free to access software. We do not expect that this change will affect students’ retention rates or employment prospects.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-06 conversation_164

Fred Thomas:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of a levels of Educational Psychologists on EHCP (a) assessment and (b) review waiting times. \p Catherine McKinnell: This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or in alternative provision receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.

Educational psychologists play a critical role in the support available to children and young people, providing statutory input into education, health and care assessments and advising the school workforce on how to support children and young people with SEND. However, the department knows that current workforce shortages are a barrier to this.

As the employers of educational psychology services, local authorities are responsible for ensuring that their services are adequately staffed. However, we are taking measures to support local authorities by investing in building the pipeline. The department is investing over £21 million to train 400 more educational psychologists from September 2024. This is in addition to the £10 million currently being invested in the training of over 200 educational psychologists who began their training in September 2023. As these trainees complete their studies, they will join the workforce to support local authority educational psychology services, including contributing to statutory assessments.

To support retention, following graduation, trainees who have had their training funded by the department are required to remain in local authority employment for a minimum period. For trainees beginning their course in September 2024, this requirement has increased to three years.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-06 conversation_165

Damian Hinds:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how the recruitment of 6,500 new expert teachers in key subjects will be split across (a) mainstream schools (b) special schools and (c) other educational settings. \p Catherine McKinnell: High quality teaching is the in-school factor that has the biggest positive impact on a child and young person’s outcome in schools and colleges. Recruiting and retaining more qualified, expert teachers is critical to the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and boost the life chances for every child.

This is why, in its Plan for Change, the government is committed to recruiting an additional 6,500 new expert teachers in secondary and special schools, and in our colleges, over the course of this Parliament, and we will be continuing to monitor this.

Delivery is already under way. Upon entering government we moved quickly to expand our Get Into Teaching marketing campaign and, in July 2024, announced a 5.5% pay award for teachers and leaders in maintained schools. In 2024/25, we drove forward teacher recruitment and retention, backed by investment of around £700 million across schools and further education (FE). This includes announcing a £233 million initial teacher training financial incentives package, confirming targeted retention incentives worth up to £6,000 after tax, and taking steps to improve teachers’ workload and wellbeing. Building on this, on 22 May 2025, we also announced a 4% pay award for teachers and leaders in maintained schools in England from September 2025, ensuring teaching remains an attractive graduate profession.

The government’s Plan for Change is starting to deliver, with over 2,000 more people training to become secondary school teachers this year and recruitment on track to improve even further for the cohort set to start training in 2025/26, with 1,070 more acceptances to postgraduate and teacher degree apprenticeship initial teacher training courses in secondary subjects by the end of April 2025, compared to the same time last year. Additionally, over 2,500 more teachers are expected to stay in the profession over the next three years.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-06 conversation_166

Lewis Cocking:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has had recent discussions with relevant stakeholders on amending eligibility for education, health and care plans. \p Catherine McKinnell: Ministers and departmental officials engage with a wide range of experts on special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). The government has established and are working with an Inclusion Expert Advisory Group and a Neurodiversity Task and Finish Group, set up by Ministers to advise on steps needed to improve mainstream education outcomes and experiences for children and young people with SEND.

In addition to regular engagement with parents across the country, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education met recently with members of the Disabled Children’s Partnership (a coalition representing more than 120 organisations who support families of children and young people with SEND) and the department continues to have ongoing conversations with parents and other key stakeholders.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-06 conversation_167

Sadik Al-Hassan:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to review the level of guaranteed support available to children with special educational needs in mainstream schools. \p Catherine McKinnell: This government is committed to ensuring that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) receive the right support to succeed and thrive in their education and as they move into adulthood.

To enable high quality and inclusive practices within mainstream schools, the department is building a strong and credible evidence base on what works to drive inclusive education. The department has also created an Expert Advisory Group for Inclusion, who are using their expertise and drawing on that of wider stakeholders to advise government on how to best drive inclusive practice and improve the education experiences and outcomes of children and young people with SEND in mainstream schools.

Additionally, the department is providing an increase of £1 billion for high needs budgets in England in the 2025/26 financial year. Total high needs funding for children and young people with complex SEND is over £12 billion in 2025/26. My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education has also announced £740 million for high needs capital in the 2025/26 financial year to support children and young people with SEND or who require alternative provision. This can be used to adapt classrooms to be more accessible for children with SEND, create specialist facilities within mainstream schools that can deliver more intensive support adapted to suit pupils’ needs and continue to provide places to support pupils in special schools with the most complex needs.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-06 conversation_168

Dr Luke Evans:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent discussions her Department has had with local authorities on the impact of changes to employer National Insurance contributions on special educational needs transport providers. \p Catherine McKinnell: I refer the hon. Member for Hinckley and Bosworth to the answer of 29 January 2025 to Question 26397.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-06 conversation_169

Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the condition of school buildings in Fylde constituency. \p Stephen Morgan: The department supports academy trusts, local authorities and voluntary-aided bodies, who are responsible for managing the safety and maintenance of their estates, with capital funding, rebuilding programmes and guidance on effective estate management.

We recently confirmed details of £2.1 billion of capital funding for the 2025/26 financial year to improve the condition of schools, up from £1.8 billion committed for the 2024/25 financial year. Allocations are partly informed by consistent data on the condition of the estate collected by the department reflecting the relative need of schools.

This is on top of the continuing school rebuilding programme, which includes Lytham St Annes High School in Fylde constituency.

From 2021 to 2026, the department’s Condition Data Collection 2 is providing updated data on the condition of schools in England. Findings from Condition Data Collection 1, including those in Fylde, can be accessed here: https://depositedpapers.parliament.uk/depositedpaper/2285521/details.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-06)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-06-06 conversation_170

Mr Andrew Snowden:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to provide additional funding for after-school activities in Fylde. \p Stephen Morgan: Any future decisions on departmental spending are subject to the spending review process.