Written questions by Dance.

What assessment she has made of geographic inequalities in access to a range of V and T Levels.

There are 21 T Levels available across England, delivered by over 320 providers. Further subjects are being introduced from 2028, and the first rollout of V Levels will be in 2027. We have published a transition document for providers to move to the new system- supporting access to the full suite of reformed qualifications across the country. This document can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/post-16-level-3-and-below-pathways/outcome/transition-plan-to-the-reformed-16-to-19-qualifications-landscape.We recognise the challenges of T Level delivery in some areas, particularly around accessing industry placements in rural locations. We provide a contracted offer to support employers to engage with and offer placements and a ‘Connect’ service to help providers and employers to connect locally. We are also making further changes to support students in rural locations where travelling to placements can be more difficult, including greater provision for remote placements.In addition, the 1,200-member-strong T Level Ambassador Network published regional plans in February 2026, using evidence to better target engagement activity across the North, Midlands and South.

What steps she is taking to help ensure the introduction of T Levels promote gender equality in access to the technical sector.

Over 85,000 students have enrolled on a T Level since their launch in 2020. in the 2024/25 academic year, T Level entrants were almost evenly split between male and female learners. This represents a more balanced intake than either of the previous two academic years, where male learners made up slightly more than half of all entrants. Entrant data for the 2025/26 academic year can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/t-level-and-t-level-foundation-year-entrant-data-2025-to-2026/t-level-and-t-level-foundation-year-entrant-data-2025-to-2026.To challenge gender stereotypes which may hold young people back from applying, the department showcases a range of student case studies in our communications, for example females studying construction and males studying health. In addition, our 1,200-member-strong T Level Ambassador Network use their influence and personal experience to inspire employers and young people to explore the opportunities offered by T Levels and technical education.

What steps she is taking to reduce girls’ school absence rates in (a) Yeovil constituency, (b) Somerset and (c) England.

The 'Working together to improve school attendance' statutory guidance supports the attendance of all children and requires schools and wider services to take a ‘support first’ approach to understand the nature of the individual barriers facing a child’s attendance and put in place appropriate support.Schools are supported with real-time data and practical toolkits to diagnose drivers of absence, including bespoke attendance targets. Our attendance mentoring programme provides one-to-one support for persistently absent children, both in Somerset and more widely. The national regional improvement for standards and excellence attendance and behaviour hubs support over 3,500 schools with practical advice for improving attendance practice.Attendance is also supported by wider investment, including rolling out free breakfast clubs in all primary schools and expanding access to specialist mental health professionals in every school.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the introduction of V and T Levels on Teaching Staff on Yeovil constituency.

On 10 March, the government published its response to the consultation on post-16 level 3 and below pathways, which set out the introduction of V Levels and changes to T Levels. These reforms represent generational changes to our vocational education system and will bring vocational and technical education on a par with academic education.The department is working closely with the sector on the rollout of these qualifications over the four-year reform period, and the implications for the 16 to 19 teacher workforce. To support the sector to transition, we will not remove public funding approval for unreformed qualifications in 2026/27, as previously planned, giving more time for the sector to prepare for delivery. More detail on support to deliver reformed qualifications will be set out in the implementation plan, which will be published by June 2026.

What steps she is taking to improve access to Portage services.

On 23 February, the government published its ‘Every Child Achieving and Thriving’ White Paper where we announced new investment of over £200 million over three years to strengthen the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) offer in Best Start Family Hubs. This includes funding for a family-facing practitioner in every hub to support children with additional needs and their families from the earliest stages.Our reforms to the SEND system will give families a more joined up local offer, with Best Start Family Hubs, early years settings, local authorities and health partners working together to ensure children with SEND and their families get the support they need. Portage services play an important role in supporting children with additional needs and Best Start Family Hubs will join up local services and build capacity through partnership working in every community.Best Start Family Hubs guidance was published on 30 March and is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/every-child-achieving-and-thriving.

What steps she is taking to make enrichment activities, including residential trips, (a) affordable and (b) accessible for children on free school meals in Yeovil constituency.

The government is committed to ensuring that all children and young people across England can access a variety of enrichment opportunities at school as part of our mission to break down barriers to opportunity.A new Enrichment Framework will be published this academic year. It will set out benchmarks to help schools and colleges plan high-quality enrichment more strategically, with case studies and signposting to tools and resources. The framework will support schools to provide accessible and inclusive enrichment opportunities to those less likely to participate, such as pupils on free school meals.We are also working with the Department of Culture Media and Sport to deliver a £22.5 million programme to create tailored enrichment offers in up to 400 schools over 3 years, with a particular focus on underserved pupils, and will confirm the schools which will be involved in due course.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of installing air filtration systems in schools in England.

The department regularly reviews its guidance to ensure that it aligns with best practice and industry standards, supporting the delivery of high quality school environments.The department has assessed the suitability of using air cleaning units, and the relevant information is included in our guidance on ventilation and indoor air quality in education and childcare settings, which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ventilation-and-air-quality-in-education-and-childcare-settings/ventilation-and-air-quality-in-education-and-childcare-settings.

What steps she is taking to ensure young carers with neurodiverse learning needs are able to access additional support at school.

Every child deserves a high quality, inclusive education establishment in their community, including young carers with neurodiverse learning needs.We have now announced plans to reform the special educational needs and disabilities system, with further information available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/every-child-achieving-and-thriving.The department will introduce a new universal offer, ensuring all children receive the right support in mainstream schools. For all those with additional needs there will be layers of targeted support that remove barriers to learning, with schools working alongside parents and local partnerships.Regional improvements for standards and excellence has made a universal offer to equip mainstream schools with the expertise, evidence and networks they need to embed consistently high quality, inclusive practice and improve outcomes for every child, including young carers. Ofsted’s renewed inspection framework, introduced in November 2025, focuses explicitly on inclusion and their inspection toolkit is clear that inspectors will consider the impact of a school’s work to improve the attendance, behaviour, inclusive personal development and wellbeing of young carers.Furthermore, this government is preparing a cross-government action plan for unpaid carers of all ages which it plans to publish later this year. This will include actions to strengthen the support that is provided to young carers.

What steps she is taking to increase the retention of Special educational needs co-ordinator's (SENCO) in schools in Yeovil constituency.

The department knows the important role that special educational needs co-ordinators (SENCOs) play in driving inclusive practice across settings and building a culture where every child can achieve and the thrive. However, we recognise the challenges that the SENCO role currently involves, including excessive bureaucracy and administrative burdens.Special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) should be the responsibility of all staff. That is why in the ‘SEND Reform: Putting Children and Young People First’ document, we have committed to working with the sector to redefine roles and responsibilities across the system. This will drive inclusive practice and enable SENCOs to have a greater focus on strategic leadership and supporting the development of high quality practice. The government has announced a new training package, backed by £200 million of new funding, to ensure that every teacher, educator, teaching assistant and leader across early years, schools and post-16 settings can be trained to support pupils with SEND.Alongside this, the mandatory SENCO national professional qualification continues to ensure that SENCOs receive high quality, evidence-based training and equips them with the knowledge and skills to work with other leaders to create an inclusive environment.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of trends in the level of student debt on the financial stability of people in Yeovil constituency.

Unlike commercial loans, student loans carry significant protections for borrowers. Student loan repayments are linked to income, not to the amount borrowed or interest applied. Repayments are made at a constant rate of 9% above the earnings threshold, and if a borrower’s income drops below the repayment threshold, or they are not earning, their repayments will stop.Any outstanding loan, including interest built up, is cancelled at the end of the loan term with no detriment to the borrower, and debt is never passed on to family members or descendants. However, the government appreciates that making student loan repayments does have an impact on individuals. This is why there are unique protections for borrowers and the finance system is heavily subsidised by taxpayers.The department does not hold information on financial stability for Yeovil.

What assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the lack of statutory authority for (a) schools or (b) local authorities to provide NHS clinical care outside the EHCP framework.

Schools are not responsible for clinical healthcare tasks. Healthcare tasks can be delegated to staff in schools and other education settings where the responsible healthcare professional considers delegation safe and appropriate.The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) and the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) both include a regulatory standard requiring registrants to delegate only when they are satisfied that the other person is competent to carry out the delegated task safely and require the healthcare practitioner to supervise and support those who are delegated to. These are found in the NMC Code, which is available here: https://www.nmc.org.uk/standards/code/, and the HCPC Standards, available at: https://www.hcpc-uk.org/standards/standards-of-conduct-performance-and-ethics/.

What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of safeguarding in settings that offer extracurricular activities for children outside of schools in (a) Yeovil constituency, (b) Somerset and (c) England.

This government is committed to safeguarding children and protecting them from harm across all extracurricular activities. Local authorities have legal safeguarding duties towards children in their areas and, where concerns arise, we expect them to intervene using the wide range of powers available to them.The department also works closely with regions, including in Somerset and Yeovil, to support the delivery of these duties. To help ensure all children can receive safe and enriching education and activities, we launched a Call for Evidence seeking to better understand current practice and invite views on possible approaches to further strengthen safeguarding.​The department intends to supplement the Call for Evidence with further engagement, including focus groups with parents and smaller providers, and sector roundtables with safeguarding experts, national governing bodies and other community representatives, before issuing a full response in due course.

What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help promote equality and inclusion as part of the National Year of Reading.

I refer the hon. Member for Yeovil, to the answer of 24 February 2026 to Question 112566.

What steps the department is taking to ensure that the National Year of Reading is accessible for neurodiverse people in (a) Yeovil constituency (b) Somerset and (C) the United Kingdom.

The National Year of Reading is a UK wide campaign designed to tackle the steep decline in reading enjoyment amongst children, young people and adults, and to engage new audiences in reading.’Go All In’ is a fully inclusive campaign, encouraging people to read about whatever interests them, via any genre and all mediums of reading. Embracing a variety of reading formats, from print to digital to audio, can make reading more accessible, engaging and inclusive for both children and adults, including those with neurodiversity and special educational needs.The campaign is reaching communities across the UK through schools, libraries, businesses and local partners. Libraries, as free to access community hubs, play a central role in supporting participation and helping people of all ages and from all sectors of society to develop a lasting love of reading.You can find out more about events in your local area by visiting the website here: https://goallin.org.uk/whats-on/.Schools and early years settings in Somerset and across the UK can also access a range of exciting online webinars, resources and activities throughout the year. They can find more information here: https://goallin.org.uk/get-involved/schools/.

What plans her Department has to promote the National Year of Reading in (a) early years settings, (b) primary schools, (c) secondary schools, (d) further education and (e) higher education in Southwest England.

The National Year of Reading is a UK-wide campaign to address long term declines in reading enjoyment through engaging new audiences, reshaping public attitudes and building the systems needed to embed lasting, meaningful change, during 2026 and beyond. It includes a major physical and online marketing campaign, as well as exciting events, webinars, resources, and activities in communities, libraries, schools and early years settings throughout the year.We are raising awareness of the National Year of Reading through a range of methods, such as via departmental communication channels, the National Year of Reading mailing list and social media, communications from the National Literacy Trust and promotion via the English Hubs network.The Reading Agency are also providing public libraries with resources, toolkits and print and digital materials to activate the National Year of Reading.  You can find out more about events in your local area here: https://goallin.org.uk/whats-on/. Schools and early years settings in South West England and across the UK can also access a range of engaging online webinars, resources and activities throughout the year. They can find more information here: https://goallin.org.uk/get-involved/schools/.This government is also providing £5 million of funding for secondary schools to purchase books to encourage reading for pleasure, as well as committing over £10 million in funding to guarantee a library for every primary school by the end of this parliament.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of changing the national curriculum to increase awareness of cancer prevention amongst pupils in Yeovil constituency.

It is important to educate people about causes and symptoms of cancer, and we are supportive of efforts to do this at an early age.Revised relationships, sex and health education statutory guidance was published on 15 July 2025. Cancer awareness and other specific cancer-related content is included. At secondary school, as part of their studies on health protection and prevention and understanding the healthcare system, pupils will be taught the importance of taking responsibility for their own health, including regular self-examination and screening.Schools may teach about cancer awareness in other areas of the current national curriculum. The secondary science curriculum ensures pupils are taught about non-communicable diseases, such as cancer, and the impact of lifestyle factors. In design and food technology, schools should highlight the importance of nutrition. We are developing a new national curriculum with teachers, curriculum experts, pupils and parents, which schools will start teaching from September 2028.

What assessment she had made of the potential implications for her policies of the British Dyslexia Association's report entitled Lost in the system: Councils’ blind spot on dyslexia, published on 3 February 2026.

As reflected in the British Dyslexia Association’s report, the effective early identification and intervention is critical in improving the outcomes of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities. In an inclusive education system, settings should be confident in accurately assessing children and young people’s learning and development and meeting any educational needs with evidence-based responses.There are a number of national assessments already in place to measure progress and help teachers identify where pupils may require additional support with literacy, such as the phonics screening check, and end of key stage 2 assessments. A range of measures have also been introduced that aim to support the effective teaching of reading, including for those with special education needs and disabilities or those at risk of falling behind. This includes the English Hubs programme, the reading and writing frameworks, the Reading Ambition for All programme and the published list of department-validated high-quality phonics programmes for schools.To further support settings to identify need early, we are strengthening the evidence base of what works to improve early identification in mainstream settings, including through collaboration with UK Research Innovation.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the phonics screener for the early identification of dyslexia in primary schools.

Early identification of need and support is critical to improving outcomes for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), including those with dyslexia.There are several assessments in place to measure progress and help teachers to identify where pupils may require additional support with literacy. These include the phonics screening check, the end of key stage 1 non-statutory assessments and the key stage 2 statutory assessments. The phonics screening check helps teachers to identify pupils who may need extra help and enables schools to benchmark their pupils against national performance. This is not specifically designed to test for dyslexia.The English Hubs programme is dedicated to improving the teaching of reading, with a focus on supporting children making the slowest progress in reading. Reading Ambition for All is a continuous professional development programme to support the lowest attaining children in reading, with a particular focus on those with SEND. This programme is delivered by 34 English hubs, reaching more than 600 schools, this academic year.

What steps she is taking to increase training on Personal, Social, Health and Economic education for teachers in Yeovil constituency.

The revised relationships, sex and health education statutory guidance was published on 15 July 2025.The department will invest £3 million in a teacher training fund over the next two years to ensure that the new curriculum has the greatest impact and £5 million to pilot healthy relationships training delivered by external providers.Following the Curriculum and Assessment Review, published on 5 November 2025, we will strengthen financial literacy content and sequencing in citizenship and maths. More details on the conclusions and recommendations from the Curriculum and Assessment Review are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/curriculum-and-assessment-review-final-report.To ensure all pupils benefit from the refreshed national curriculum, we will ensure that core training throughout a teacher’s career has a strong focus on high-quality adaptive teaching, formative assessment and high expectations for all. This includes initial teacher training and the early career framework.The government commissioned Oak National Academy to develop resources for schools in line with new curriculum requirements.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of local authorities' guidance on how to (a) assess or (b) identify (i) dyslexia or (ii) support literacy difficulties.

As reflected in the British Dyslexia Association’s report, the effective early identification and intervention is critical in improving the outcomes of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities. In an inclusive education system, settings should be confident in accurately assessing children and young people’s learning and development and meeting any educational needs with evidence-based responses.There are a number of national assessments already in place to measure progress and help teachers identify where pupils may require additional support with literacy, such as the phonics screening check, and end of key stage 2 assessments. A range of measures have also been introduced that aim to support the effective teaching of reading, including for those with special education needs and disabilities or those at risk of falling behind. This includes the English Hubs programme, the reading and writing frameworks, the Reading Ambition for All programme and the published list of department-validated high-quality phonics programmes for schools.To further support settings to identify need early, we are strengthening the evidence base of what works to improve early identification in mainstream settings, including through collaboration with UK Research Innovation.