theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Sir Desmond Swayne:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of the planned increase in employer National Insurance contributions on charities. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Government highly values the charity sector, and its positive contribution across society.

Due to the difficult economic inheritance from the previous government, we have had to take a number of difficult decisions on tax, welfare and spending to fix the public finances, fund public services, and restore economic stability.

The Government has considered the implication of this policy change on the charity sector, and the impacts have been published in the usual way by HMRC as part of the Autumn Budget process.

A Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN), which gives a clear explanation of the policy objective and an assessment of the impacts, was published alongside the National Insurance Contributions (Secondary Class 1 Contributions) Bill on 13 November 2024. This Note includes the impacts of the policy on the Exchequer; the economic impacts of the policy; and the impacts on individuals, businesses, civil society organisations and equality impacts.
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Siân Berry:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 22 November 2024 to Question 14270 on Press: Regulation, what work her Department is undertaking on this issue; which other Departments have participated; and if she will publish the work completed to date. \p Stephanie Peacock: DCMS works with a range of other Departments, including the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and the Home Office, to support a free, plural, and financially sustainable press sector. This includes work to develop a Local Media Strategy and to deliver the National Action Plan for the Safety of Journalists.

We will update Parliament in the usual way on any policy developments in this area and work will be published as appropriate.
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Munira Wilson:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will include podcasts in the broadcasting code. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Government has no plans to widen the scope of the Broadcasting Code to include all online podcasts.
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Sarah Owen:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure grassroots (a) women's and (b) girls' football clubs have the facilities they need to (i) play and (ii) train. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Government is committed to supporting every aspect of women’s sport and ensuring all women and girls, no matter their background, have access to high quality sport including football.

We are pleased to see the significant progress in the number of women and girls taking up football in recent years, and wider developments in the women’s game. In 2023, Karen Carney OBE published a major Independent Review of Women’s Football which made a series of recommendations including supporting grassroots women and girls’ football. This Government fully endorses those recommendations and looks forward to ensuring tangible progress is made.

We are acting to support more players in getting onto the pitch wherever they live via the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme, which will invest £123 million UK-wide throughout 2024/25. All projects selected for funding through this programme are required to demonstrate how they increase access and participation levels among under-represented groups, which includes women and girls.

Following the Autumn Budget on 30 October 2024, the Government confirmed its continued support for elite and grassroots sport through future investment. Further details will be confirmed in due course.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-17)

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Sarah Owen:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to support grassroots (a) women's and (b) girls' football. \p Stephanie Peacock: The Government is committed to supporting every aspect of women’s sport and ensuring all women and girls, no matter their background, have access to high quality sport including football.

We are pleased to see the significant progress in the number of women and girls taking up football in recent years, and wider developments in the women’s game. In 2023, Karen Carney OBE published a major Independent Review of Women’s Football which made a series of recommendations including supporting grassroots women and girls’ football. This Government fully endorses those recommendations and looks forward to ensuring tangible progress is made.

The Government has set out its support for grassroots facilities, including through the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities programme which provides funding to build and improve grassroots facilities and a commitment to support the Football Association’s ambition to double their number of gold-standard (3-star) community clubs by EURO 2028. This will deliver more opportunities for women and girls to get on the pitch.

The Football Association is a long-term partner of Sport England, and have received over £26 million of funding from them for the period 2022-27.
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Sir John Hayes:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to support new FM licences for radio stations in (a) South Holland and the Deepings constituency and (b) Lincolnshire. \p Stephanie Peacock: The growth and development of digital radio and changes in listener behaviour have resulted in a clear shift away from analogue listening – digital listening now accounts for 74% of all radio listening (RAJAR Q3 2024). Although AM/FM platforms remain important for smaller commercial and community stations, significant numbers of listeners are migrating to digital platforms.

The licensing of AM/FM radio services is a matter for Ofcom, and in October Ofcom set out its current approach to licensing in a progress report on the rollout of small-scale DAB (SSDAB) technology. This report set out Ofcom’s current view that SSDAB offers audiences a wider range of services and makes a more efficient use of spectrum than FM, and committed to at least two further rounds of SSDAB licensing before considering the possibility of any further analogue licensing in the future.
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Sir Iain Duncan Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an estimate of the number of high-street gambling operators in possession of non-remote bingo licenses that are operating as adult gambling centres. \p Stephanie Peacock: As of 31 March 2024, there were 631 non-remote bingo premises in operation in Great Britain, according to the Gambling Commission’s November 2024 Industry Statistics.

As set out in the Gambling Commission’s Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice, in licensed bingo premises, gaming machines may only be made available for use where there are also substantive facilities for non-remote bingo available in the premises. Non-remote bingo licensees must also ensure that the function and presentation of their premises are such that a customer can reasonably be expected to recognise that it is a premises licensed for the purposes of providing bingo facilities. These are conditions of non-remote bingo licences. To operate an adult gaming centre, operators require a “gaming machine general operating licence” for an adult gaming centre and an adult gaming centre premises licence.
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Satvir Kaur:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to support the sustainability of local journalism including (a) magazines and (b) print media (i) nationally and (ii) in Southampton Test constituency. \p Stephanie Peacock: Sustainability of local journalism is an area of particular concern for this Government, across the country and in Southampton Test. We are developing a Local Media Strategy, in recognition of the importance of this vital sector. Our vision is a thriving local media that can continue to play an invaluable role as a key channel of trustworthy information at local level, reporting on the issues that matter to communities, reflecting their contributions and perspectives, helping to foster a self-confident nation in which everyone feels that their contribution is part of an inclusive national story.

We are working across Government and with other stakeholders as the Strategy develops and will announce further details in due course.
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Nick Timothy:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what industrial disputes are ongoing within (a) their Department and (b) each of the arm’s length bodies connected to their Department; how many (i) staff and (ii) contractors are involved in each dispute; what the form of industrial action is in each dispute; which recognised trade union is involved in each dispute; what the substantive matter is that is being disputed in each case; and what steps he plans to take to end each dispute. \p Stephanie Peacock: There are currently no ongoing industrial disputes within DCMS. Our arm’s length bodies are independent employers and are responsible for their own industrial relations.
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Mr Paul Kohler:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, who the recipients were of grants from the Listed Places of Worship Scheme in Wimbledon since 2001; and how much each recipient received. \p Chris Bryant: Since 2022, 21 grants have been awarded to 7 listed places of worship in Wimbledon, totalling £79,716.27.
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James McMurdock:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans she has to maintain historic places of worship. \p Chris Bryant: There is a range of funding available via DCMS and the Department’s Arm’s-Length Bodies that supports places of worship. These include Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme; the National Lottery Heritage Fund, who have committed to investing around £100m between 2023 and 2026 to support places of worship; the Churches Conservation Trust, which funds repairs and maintenance of over 350 churches in the CCT portfolio; and Historic England's Heritage At Risk grants, funding £9 million worth of repairs to buildings on Historic England’s Heritage at Risk register between April 2024 and March 2025.

We will shortly announce the outcomes of the Business Planning process, including for the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme.
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Nick Timothy:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the Welsh Government’s guidance entitled Public commemoration in Wales: guidance, updated on 15 November 2024. \p Chris Bryant: No, because it is a devolved matter.
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Satvir Kaur:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to encourage local magazine publishing in Southampton Test constituency. \p Chris Bryant: The Government’s Industrial Strategy will support the growth of the creative industries, including publishing which contributes £11.6 billion to the economy and supports 127,000 jobs.

In Southampton, Arts Council England (ACE) supports local writers through Artful Scribe, a not-for-profit development agency. ACE has committed over £184,000 to Artful Scribe through to 2027, including those interested in magazine publishing.

Nationally, ACE invests in poetry magazines such as Poetry London (£50,000 annually) and Wasafiri (£60,506 annually), both National Portfolio Organisations. ACE support also extends to writing development agencies like New Writing South (Brighton, £126,477 annually) and Literature Works (Plymouth, £98,333 annually), which offer guidance to writers seeking opportunities in local magazine publishing.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of boycotts of Israeli participation in (a) sporting and (b) cultural events on levels of community cohesion in the UK. \p Chris Bryant: Sports, arts, and culture are powerful ways to bring communities together. As such, we do not support sports or cultural boycotts in principle, including in relation to Israel.

Any disruption or threat to community cohesion is of concern. DCMS therefore works closely with sport and cultural stakeholders to identify issues and to minimise any negative impact on community cohesion. The Secretary of State recently met with a delegation led by the Board of Deputies of British Jews to discuss their experiences of working in the arts and cultural sector at a time of increased tension in the Middle East. She was very concerned by the scale and extent of their experiences and made clear her own view, and that of the government, that antisemitism is as unacceptable in the arts as it is anywhere else in society.
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Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps she has taken to increase awareness of financial support available to students. \p Janet Daby: Information on the student support package for the 2024/25 academic year, is available on GOV.UK at: https://studentfinance.campaign.gov.uk/currently-a-student/.

The higher education (HE) sector needs a secure financial footing to face the challenges of the next decade, and to ensure that all students have confidence that they will receive the world-class HE experience they deserve.

In line with this approach, on 4 November 2024, this government announced that from 1 August 2025 it will be increasing both the maximum cap for tuition fees, and maintenance loans for students, in line with inflation.

There is much more to do to expand access and improve outcomes for disadvantaged students. That is why we have announced that we expect the HE sector to do more to support students by working with the government and the Office for Students, and by making the most of the Lifelong Learning Entitlement. We will be setting out longer-term plans for the sector next year.

Further information for prospective students is provided on the Student Finance England website, available here: https://studentfinance.campaign.gov.uk/student-toolkit/.

The government will announce further details of the student finance package for the 2025/26 academic year soon.
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Mike Amesbury:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of support provided to care leavers to access higher education. \p Janet Daby: This government is committed to supporting the aspiration of every person who meets the requirements and wants to pursue higher education (HE), regardless of their background.

HE has an important role in giving care leavers the skills they need to succeed in life. To ensure that care experienced students are supported to gain the qualifications needed to access HE, the department has rolled out post-16 funding to all local authorities which can be used for attainment raising interventions such as additional tutoring. The department is also making the virtual school head role for children with a social worker statutory, enabling earlier intervention to address the educational barriers care experienced children face. Care leavers attending HE are entitled to statutory support from the government, including a bursary of £2000 and accommodation support up to the age of 25, if they require it. In addition, all HE providers registered with the Office for Students (OfS) that intend to charge higher level tuition fees are required to have an Access and Participation Plan approved by the OfS. These plans articulate how providers will improve equality of opportunity for underrepresented groups. In creating their plans, providers should consider the Equality of Opportunity Risk Register which details 12 key sector risks across the student lifecycle and the student groups most likely to experience these, including care leavers. Many HE providers have demonstrated positive examples of supporting care leavers, including targeted bursaries, pastoral support and mentoring.

In November the government set out five priorities for an ambitious programme of reform of the HE system, working in partnership with providers and the regulator, the OfS. The department will expect HE providers to play an even stronger role in expanding access and improving outcomes, tackling gaps between disadvantaged students and others and making the most of the opportunities presented by the Lifelong Learning Entitlement.

The department also published its policy paper ‘Keeping children safe, helping families thrive’. The department is absolutely committed to ensuring that children leaving care have safe and stable accommodation, access to health services, support to build lifelong loving relationships and are engaged in education, employment and training.
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Jack Rankin:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information his Department holds on the number of full-time undergraduate students paying international fees who are (a) British nationals and (b) non-domiciled in the UK. \p Janet Daby: The department is not able to identify students who are paying international fees who are (a) British nationals and (b) non-domiciled in the UK.

The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) is responsible for collecting and publishing data on the UK higher education sector. These data are shared with the department and include a wide range of information on students coming from overseas to study in UK higher education providers (HEPs). Information on the type of fees a student pays, however, is not collected across all UK HEPs.

The legal nationality of the student is collected across all HEPs that submit data to HESA. The department estimates that of the 288,465 full-time, undergraduate, international students (those with permanent address outside the UK) enrolled in UK HEPs in the 2022/23 academic year, 12,805 declared that they held British nationality. Of the remaining full-time, undergraduate, international students, 271,505 declared that they held an overseas nationality and 4,155 have an unknown nationality.
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Charlie Dewhirst:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many staff are employed in the Policy Profession Unit; what the headcount allocation for that Unit is; what grades each civil servant who works in the Unit is; and how many of these are (a) policy professionals and (b) administrative support staff. \p Janet Daby: The Policy Profession Unit is the central unit supporting policy professionals across the UK civil service. The Unit holds the competency framework for the profession and supports policy professionals to build, maintain and grow their professional capability. The Unit also supports departments in reviewing the environment in which policy is made. Other examples of projects and initiatives the Unit runs are the new Government Policy Fast Stream, which launched in autumn 2024, the annual Policy Festival, with invited speakers from inside and outside government, and the Policy Awards, which aim to recognise high-quality contributions by individuals and teams across the civil service.

The Unit is hosted by the department, as the Permanent Secretary is the Deputy Head of the Government Policy Profession, although the Unit works across government with all departments, agencies and devolved governments.

The following table shows:

Grade

Current Full Time Equivalent (FTE)

Total FTE

Executive Officer

6.2

6.2

Higher Executive Officer

8

9

Senior Executive Officer

8

12

Grade 7

10.8

13.8

Grade 6

3

3

SCS 1 (Deputy Director)

2

2

Total

38.0

46.0 (headcount)

The table below shows the primary government profession for each member of the Policy Profession Unit. Four of these staff provide administrative support across the Unit:

Government profession

Number of staff

Policy Profession

21

Human Resources

7

Communications

6

Operational Delivery

1

Government Science & Engineering

1

Analysis Function

1

Knowledge & Information Management

1

Total

38
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Nick Timothy:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what industrial disputes are ongoing within (a) her Department and (b) each of the arm’s length bodies connected to her Department; how many (i) staff and (ii) contractors are involved in each dispute; what the form of industrial action is in each dispute; which recognised trade union is involved in each dispute; what the substantive matter is that is being disputed in each case; and what steps she plans to take to end each dispute. \p Janet Daby: There are no industrial disputes ongoing within the Department for Education or any associated Arm’s Length Bodies.
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Nick Timothy:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance his Department issues to schools and local education authorities on the teaching around the British Empire in the National Curriculum. \p Catherine McKinnell: The national curriculum for history for key stages 1 to 3 includes references to the British Empire and gives teachers and schools the flexibility to use specific examples to teach pupils about the history of Britain and the wider world.

The British Empire could be taught across the three key stages. At key stage 1, pupils should be taught about changes within living memory, events beyond living memory that are significant nationally or globally, and the lives of significant individuals in the past who have contributed to national and international achievements. At key stage 2, when teaching about the concept of empire and teaching about other empires, further foundations can be developed for the teaching of the British Empire.

Teaching about the British Empire can take place across the time periods and themes at key stage 3. Within the statutory themes of ‘the development of Church, state and society in Britain 1509-1745’, ‘ideas, political power, industry and empire: Britain, 1745-1901’, ‘challenges for Britain, Europe and the wider world 1901 to the present day’, there are non-statutory examples of what children might be taught about the British Empire. The British Empire could also be taught within the requirement for the study of an aspect or theme in British history that consolidates and extends pupils’ chronological knowledge from before 1066 and within local history across the three key stages.

As part of the flexibility all schools have in teaching the national curriculum, schools and teachers are able to determine which examples, topics and resources to use to stimulate and challenge pupils and reflect key points in history.

The department announced a Curriculum and Assessment Review last year. The review’s interim report is due to be published in early 2025, with a final report later in the year.
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Samantha Niblett:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many students were classified as educated otherwise than at school in the latest period for which figures are available; and how many children receiving educated otherwise than at school funding received less funding in the 2024-25 academic year than in 2023-24. \p Catherine McKinnell: The department collects a range of data on children being educated in contexts other than school. This includes data on children and young people with education, health and care (EHC) plans who, as part of their education, are receiving ‘Special educational provision otherwise than in schools, post-16 institutions’ under section 61 of the Children and Families Act 2014. The latest figure for those receiving such support is 8,640, as at January 2024. More information can be found at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/education-health-and-care-plans.

Provision set out in an EHC plan is funded by the relevant local authority. The department does not collect funding data from local authorities in enough detail for us to be able to identify funding at an individual level for those whose EHC plan contains provision made under section 61 of the 2014 Act.
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Cat Smith:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will publish (a) the number and (b) a list of trust names of academy trusts in which the highest paid member of staff including employer pension contributions was paid (i) more than £200,000, (ii) more than £250,000, (iii) more than £300,000, (iv) more than £350,000 and (v) more than £400,000 in the last 12 months. \p Catherine McKinnell: The department collates and publishes data annually in the academies sector annual report and accounts on the number of academy trusts with an individual staff member whose emoluments are above £100,000. The data is available in the attached spreadsheet and can also be accessed in the reports published on GOV.UK at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/academies-sector-annual-reports-and-accounts.

Emoluments include salary, employer pension contributions and other benefits received during the year. These are reported in bandings of £100,000 to £150,000 and over £150,000.

The academies sector annual report and accounts also publishes information on all trustee remuneration, including pension contributions. This covers bandings including £120,000 to £130,000, £130,000 to £140,000, £140,000 to £150,000, and £150,000 and over. The data is available in the attached spreadsheet and can also be accessed in the reports published on GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/academies-sector-annual-reports-and-accounts

The department also publishes an annex alongside the academy sector accounts listing academy trusts paying one or more staff member remuneration of £150,000 in that year.

The academies sector annual report and accounts is drawn from academy trusts’ accounts data. The report for 2022 to 2023 will be published shortly and the deadline for academy trusts to submit data for 2023 to 2024 to the department is 28 January 2025.

As referenced in response to Question 21323, academy trusts must publish pay information in their annual audited accounts and on their website. The Academies Sector Annual Report and Accounts includes an annex, annex E in the most recently published set, listing all the academy trusts that paid at least one member of staff in excess of £150,000.

22907_22909_22910_attachment_academy_staff_emolume (xlsx, 24.4KB)
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Neil O'Brien:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much her Department granted to the Choir Schools Association through the Music and Dance Scheme in each year since 2010. \p Catherine McKinnell: The department will announce future funding for the Music and Dance Scheme for the 2025/26 academic year following the conclusion of the Spending Review in the spring. This includes consideration of the grant to the Choir Schools Association for the Choir Schools Scholarship Scheme.

The department has provided a grant of over £216,000 per year for the Choir Schools Scholarship Scheme between 2010 and 2025.
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Damian Hinds:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reason a school tie is not permitted as an additional item of branded uniform in primary schools in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. \p Catherine McKinnell: School uniforms play a valuable role in creating a sense of common identity among pupils and reducing visible inequalities, but too many schools require high numbers of branded uniform items, with parents reporting uniforms are their most significant cost of school concern. This government has therefore introduced legislation to limit the number of branded items of uniform and PE kit that schools can require, to bring down costs for parents and remove barriers from children accessing sport and other school activities. This will give parents more choice in where to purchase uniform and allow them greater flexibility to make the spending decisions that suit their circumstances.

The vast majority of primary schools do not currently require pupils to purchase a branded tie and, as most primary schools already have a lower number of compulsory branded items, this government does not want that number to increase. Primary schools will remain free to require a branded tie, however it will count towards their three branded item limit.

In comparison, most secondary and middle schools already require branded ties, with 82% of secondary schools requiring a tie. Allowing secondary and middle schools an additional branded tie balances reducing costs for parents with providing those schools with necessary extra flexibility in setting their uniform policies. For example, it allows a secondary school to retain a branded tie and blazer whilst still being able to brand other items across PE kit and daywear, according to their circumstances.
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Helen Maguire:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has plans to increase funding for STEM education at secondary school level. \p Catherine McKinnell: High and rising school standards are at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best start in life. The best way of supporting education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects is to ensure high quality teaching in these subjects, by helping schools to recruit and retain good teachers.

The department has therefore announced an Initial Teacher Training financial incentives package for the 2025/26 academic year worth £233 million, a £37 million increase on the last recruitment cycle. This includes a range of measures, including bursaries worth £29,000 tax-free and scholarships worth £31,000 tax-free, to encourage talented trainees in key STEM subjects such as mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing.

For the 2024/25 and 2025/26 academic years, the department is also offering a targeted retention incentive worth up to £6,000 after tax for mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing teachers in the first five years of their careers who choose to work in disadvantaged schools. This will support recruitment and retention of specialist teachers in these subjects and in the schools and areas that need them most.

In the 2025/26 financial year, the government will continue to fund subject continuing professional development (CPD) and other programmes in mathematics, computing and physics. This includes Maths Hubs, which co-ordinate mathematics CPD, and the ‘Subject knowledge for physics teachers’ programme, an intensive retraining programme for teachers teaching physics out of specialism.
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Robin Swann:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she had discussions with the Minister of Education in Northern Ireland on Clause 56 of the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill. \p Janet Daby: Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.

The department has engaged with the devolved governments during the development of the Bill.

The department is committed to keeping our devolved government colleagues properly engaged on matters with cross-border impact and will continue to do so throughout the progression of the Bill and our implementation planning.
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Dr Neil Shastri-Hurst:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the value of charity given to (a) state schools and (b) local communities by independent schools in each of the last five years. \p Stephen Morgan: The department does not collect data about the value of charity given to state schools and local communities by private schools. Therefore, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education has not made an estimate of its value in each of the last five years.

The Independent Schools Council, which represents over 1,400 private schools belonging to an association, publishes an annual report which sets out the support private schools give to schools in the state sector through partnership working and bursaries.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-17)

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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans she has to support parents and carers that require more than 38 weeks of funded pre-school care provision per year. \p Stephen Morgan: The government’s Plan for Change set the ambition of a record number of children starting school ready to learn, measured by the number meeting the early learning goals, and accessible, high-quality early education and childcare is a crucial part of this. The government is committed to delivering the expansion of early years entitlements to enable eligible working parents of children aged from nine months to access 30 hours of funded childcare from September 2025, boosting children’s life chances and parents work choices.

Early years early education and childcare entitlements are available for either 15 or 30 hours, over 38 weeks a year, which aligns to school terms. Early years entitlements can be stretched so parents and carers have fewer hours over more weeks, up to 52 weeks a year, but cannot be compressed into fewer than 38 weeks.

Additionally, parents can access Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) and Universal Credit. TFC can save parents up to £2,000 per year on the cost of childcare, or up to £4,000 for eligible children with disabilities. The eligibility criteria for TFC are the same as the working parent entitlement. Eligible Universal Credit claimants can claim back up to 85% of their registered childcare costs each month, regardless of the number of hours they work.

This government had a dire financial inheritance with a £22 billion black hole in the nation’s finances. Our first priority must be to fix the economic foundations of our country, and any policy changes must be affordable.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-17)

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Dr Luke Evans:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans her Department has to (a) support foster placements and (b) develop regional recruitment hubs in the East Midlands. \p Janet Daby: This government is committed to working in partnership with local authorities to recruit more foster carers. This currently includes delivering 10 regional fostering recruitment and retention hubs, covering 64% of local authorities in England. The hubs will transform the way people who are interested in fostering are supported, and rollout of a retention programme which offers peer-support to foster carers and the children in their care. An additional £15 million was announced in the Autumn Budget 2024 to move towards national roll out in the 2025/26 financial year.

Foster For East Midlands Recruitment Hub launched in March 2024 and comprises of four neighbouring local authorities, Derbyshire County Council, Nottinghamshire County Council, Nottingham City Council, and Derby City Council. The department would welcome discussions with other local authorities in the East Midlands region about national roll out plans.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-17)

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Martin Wrigley:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to implement the recommendations of the report by Professor Alexis Jay entitled Report of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, HC 720, published on 20 October 2022. \p Janet Daby: As my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister has made clear, the government is focused on delivering the change and justice victims deserve.

On 7 January, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for the Home Department outlined in Parliament commitments to introduce a mandatory duty for those engaging with children to report sexual abuse and exploitation, making grooming an aggravating factor to toughen up sentencing, and introducing a new performance framework for policing.

The government is working at pace to address the recommendations in the final report of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse. That is happening now and the government is determined to finally deliver for victims after years of no action being taken.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-17)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-01-17 conversation_106

Dr Luke Evans:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress her Department has made on the kinship allowance trial; how many kinship carers will be able to join the trial; what date she plans to launch the trial; and whether the findings of the trial be published. \p Janet Daby: The department recognises the important role that kinship carers play in caring for some of the most vulnerable children, and the role of local authorities to support them.

​​​​The government has recently announced a £40 million package to trial a new Kinship Allowance to test whether paying an allowance to cover the additional costs of supporting the child can help increase the number of children taken in by family members and friends. The pilot will begin in 2025.

This government’s ambition is that all kinship carers will get the support they need to care for their children. It is important that we first build the evidence base to find out how best to deliver financial support for kinship families, therefore we will be evaluating this pilot. Decisions about future national rollout will be informed by the findings of the evaluation.

The department will share further details on the process for selecting local authorities in due course.​
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-17)

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Mike Amesbury:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number of young people not in employment, education or training in Runcorn and Helsby constituency. \p Janet Daby: The department publishes statistics on those not in education, employment or training (NEET) for England, from the labour force survey (LFS) for young people aged 16 to 24. These statistics are available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/neet-statistics-annual-brief. The number of 16 to 24 year olds estimated as NEET in England at the end of 2023 was estimated to be 709,600, representing 11.9% of the population. However, these estimates are only published at national level due to limitations with sample sizes for lower-level geographies. Therefore, NEET rates for young people aged 16 to 24 in Runcorn and Helsby constituency cannot be provided.

However, local authorities are required to encourage, enable or assist young people’s participation in education or training and return management information for young people age 16 and 17. This data is published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/neet-and-participation-local-authority-figures. The data shows that of the 7,263 young people aged 16 and 17 years old who were known to Cheshire West and Chester local authority at the end of 2022, 329 were NEET or their activity was not known. Of the 3,255 young people aged 16 and 17 years old who were known to Halton local authority at the end of 2022, 158 were NEET or their activity was not known. These statistics are published as transparency data so some caution should be taken if using these figures.

In addition, 16 to 18 destination measures are published. These official statistics show the percentage of pupils not continuing to a sustained education, apprenticeship or employment destination in the year after completing 16 to 18 study, that is six months of continual activity. This can be used as a proxy for NEET at age 18. The latest publication includes destinations in 2022/23 by parliamentary constituency boundaries at that time. Data can be found at parliamentary constituency level here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/819215d3-4c06-40ac-0f95-08dd167ca495.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-01-17)

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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to monitor capacity in state schools in the context of potential pupil transfers from the private to state sector following the introduction of VAT on school fees. \p Stephen Morgan: The government predicts that 35,000 pupils will move into UK state schools in the long-term steady state following the removal of the VAT exemption to school fees. As such, the impact on the state education system as a whole is expected to be small.

This increase in the state sector represents less than 0.5% of total UK state school pupils, of which there are over 9 million. The number expected to move before the end of the 2024/25 academic year is around 3,000. The government expects the associated revenue costs of pupils entering the state sector to steadily increase to a peak of around £0.3 billion after several years.

Every year lots of pupils move between schools, including between the private and state-funded sectors. Local authorities routinely support parents that need a state-funded school place, including where private schools have closed. Where local authorities are experiencing difficulties in ensuring there are enough school places for children that need them, the department will offer support and advice.

The department collects pupil forecasts and school capacity data from local authorities annually through the School Capacity survey and this data shows that in May 2023, 11.7% of primary capacity and 11.5% of secondary capacity was unfilled nationally, meaning school places are available in many parts of the country. The department will monitor demand and capacity using our normal processes and continue to work with local authorities to meet any pressures.

The department provides capital funding through the Basic Need grant to support local authorities to provide school places, based on their own pupil forecasts and school capacity data. They can use this funding to provide places in new schools or through expansions of existing schools.