Written questions by Stephenson.

When she plans to respond to the correspondence of 5 February 2025 from the hon. Member for Mid Bedfordshire on Swallowfield Primary School.

A response has been sent to the letter dated 5 February from the hon. Member for Mid Bedfordshire.

With reference to paragraph 2.72 on page 29 of the Spring Statement 2025, whether the funding will deliver 10 colleges per region or 10 colleges in total.

At the Spring Statement, this government committed £100 million to establish 10 new Technical Excellence Colleges specialising in construction across every region in England and to further build capacity to boost the provision of skills in construction. This means there will be ten construction Technical Excellence Colleges in total.

With reference to her Department's press release entitled £740 million allocated for 10,000 new places for pupils with SEND, published on 27 March 2025, how much of the investment into the condition of the school and sixth-form college estate in England will be spent in Bedfordshire.

The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or who require alternative provision sits with local authorities.The department has now published allocations for £740 million in High Needs Provision Capital Allocations (HNPCA) for the 2025/26 financial year, to support local authorities to deliver new places in mainstream and special schools, as well as other specialist settings, and to improve the suitability and accessibility of existing buildings.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.Central Bedfordshire Council has been allocated £4.4 million for 2025/26 and it is up to the local authority to make decisions about the places they create and to prioritise this funding to meet local needs.School buildings are integral to high and rising standards and need to be fit for the future. The department therefore also supports local authorities, academy trusts and voluntary-aided school bodies, which are responsible for keeping buildings safe and well-maintained by providing, capital funding, delivering major rebuilding programmes and offering guidance and support.The department is increasing capital funding to improve the condition of school buildings to £2.1 billion for the 2025/26 financial year, up from £1.8 billion for the 2024/25 financial year.As part of this, for the 2025/26 financial year, Central Bedfordshire Council has been provisionally allocated a school condition allocation (SCA) of £3.3 million to decide how to allocate across its maintained schools based on local knowledge of condition need, prioritising keeping schools safe and operational. Local authority schools in Central Bedfordshire have also been provisionally allocated a total of £0.4 million in devolved formula capital (DFC) in 2025/26 to spend on their own capital priorities.Large multi-academy trusts and large voluntary aided school bodies, such as dioceses, will also have been provisionally allocated SCA, but allocations typically span across local authority boundaries. Smaller multi-academy and single academy trusts and sixth form colleges were instead eligible to apply to the Condition Improvement Fund, with outcomes due to be published later in the spring. All eligible non-maintained schools in Bedfordshire have also been provisionally allocated DFC.Provisional capital condition allocations for 2025/26 are published on GOV.UK, with final allocations to follow later in the spring.

With reference to her Department's press release entitled £740 million allocated for 10,000 new places for pupils with SEND, published on 27 March 2025, how many of those places will be in schools in Bedfordshire.

The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or who require alternative provision sits with local authorities.The department has now published allocations for £740 million in High Needs Provision Capital Allocations (HNPCA) for the 2025/26 financial year, to support local authorities to deliver new places in mainstream and special schools, as well as other specialist settings, and to improve the suitability and accessibility of existing buildings.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.Central Bedfordshire Council has been allocated £4.4 million for 2025/26 and it is up to the local authority to make decisions about the places they create and to prioritise this funding to meet local needs.School buildings are integral to high and rising standards and need to be fit for the future. The department therefore also supports local authorities, academy trusts and voluntary-aided school bodies, which are responsible for keeping buildings safe and well-maintained by providing, capital funding, delivering major rebuilding programmes and offering guidance and support.The department is increasing capital funding to improve the condition of school buildings to £2.1 billion for the 2025/26 financial year, up from £1.8 billion for the 2024/25 financial year.As part of this, for the 2025/26 financial year, Central Bedfordshire Council has been provisionally allocated a school condition allocation (SCA) of £3.3 million to decide how to allocate across its maintained schools based on local knowledge of condition need, prioritising keeping schools safe and operational. Local authority schools in Central Bedfordshire have also been provisionally allocated a total of £0.4 million in devolved formula capital (DFC) in 2025/26 to spend on their own capital priorities.Large multi-academy trusts and large voluntary aided school bodies, such as dioceses, will also have been provisionally allocated SCA, but allocations typically span across local authority boundaries. Smaller multi-academy and single academy trusts and sixth form colleges were instead eligible to apply to the Condition Improvement Fund, with outcomes due to be published later in the spring. All eligible non-maintained schools in Bedfordshire have also been provisionally allocated DFC.Provisional capital condition allocations for 2025/26 are published on GOV.UK, with final allocations to follow later in the spring.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of employers’ National Insurance contributions on the availability of apprenticeships in 2025-26.

I refer the hon. Member for Mid Bedfordshire to the answer of 26 March 2025 to Question 39407.

If she will make an assessment of the average cost to a school of providing a meal to a child eligible for Universal Infant Free School Meals.

All pupils in reception, year 1 and year 2 in England’s state-funded schools are entitled to universal infant free school meals. The department spends approximately £600 million per year ensuring that around 1.3 million infant pupils receive a nutritious lunchtime meal. Funding is not ring-fenced, meaning that schools have autonomy over delivery, including entering into contracts with suppliers and allocation of funding within their budgets. The department continues to work closely with the school food industry to monitor sector challenges. As with all government programmes, including universal infant free school meals, we will keep our approach under continued review.

With reference to her Department's press release entitled No child left behind in plans to narrow the digital divide in education, published on 21 March 2025, whether schools in areas without full fibre broadband will receive funding.

The government is investing £45 million to boost school infrastructure, including £20 million to upgrade fibre connections to a further 343 schools this year in areas without full fibre broadband, helping get schools online and boosting standards where it is most needed. This is the latest phase of funding for the programme that has so far improved connectivity for more than 1,000 schools.The department is going further, having launched a consultation to gather views on a long-term ambition for all schools and colleges to meet six core digital standards by 2030, which cover the foundations of good tech ensuring essential technology infrastructure and connectivity, digital security and leadership.

How schools in Bedfordshire can apply to the Great British Energy Solar project.

The department and Great British Energy have launched an £80 million partnership to provide rooftop solar panels across 200 schools and colleges.This investment will cut school energy bills, support our transition to clean energy and create new opportunities for students.The project demonstrates our commitment to making Britain a clean energy superpower while supporting educational excellence.With 200 projects in this first year of the programme, the department is not proposing a bidding round to select schools and colleges. Each of the nine government office regions in England will have a minimum of ten schools and there will be larger clusters of schools in the North West, North East and West Midlands in areas of deprivation.Each cluster will include a further education college, which will also work with the contractors appointed to promote careers in renewables and construction to students and support growth in the workforce.Once the delivery partners are appointed, they will work through a long list, the department has devised, of possible schools based on criteria including deprivation, roof condition and location to produce the final list of projects. The delivery partners will visit the schools and colleges and survey the site before final decisions are made on which to include.The programme has been designed so that it could be scaled up in the future. Any funding for future years, however, will be decided as part of the multi-year spending review.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of Level 7 Apprenticeships on social mobility.

The government is committed to spreading opportunities and economic growth supported by a strong skills system.This government has an extremely challenging fiscal inheritance. There are tough choices that need to be taken on how funding should be prioritised in order to generate opportunities for young people that enable them to make a start in good, fulfilling careers, and the department will therefore be asking more employers to step forward and fund a significant number of level 7 apprenticeships themselves outside of the levy-funded growth and skills offer.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of extending financial education to primary school children.

Financial education currently forms a compulsory part of the national curriculum for mathematics, at key stages 1 to 4, and citizenship, at key stages 3 and 4. The primary mathematics curriculum includes arithmetic knowledge that supports pupils’ ability to manage budgets and money, including, for example, calculations with money and percentages.Primary schools are free to teach financial education within citizenship. The non-statutory primary citizenship programme of study at key stages 1 and 2 equip pupils to look after their money and realise that future wants and needs may be met through saving.The government has established an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, covering ages 5 to 18, chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE. The Review is committed to ensuring a high-quality, knowledge-rich curriculum that drives excellence in education across a broad range of subjects and pathways. The next phase of work will consider whether there is sufficient coverage of key knowledge and skills to prepare children and young people for future life and to thrive in a fast-changing world, including financial education. The Review’s final report and recommendations will be published in autumn with the government response.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of equalising dedicated school grants for schools.

Every year the department uses the schools national funding formula (NFF) to distribute core funding for 5- to 16-year-old pupils in mainstream state-funded schools in England. In the current NFF, the vast majority of funding is distributed on the basis of pupil numbers and characteristics.The purpose of the NFF is not to give every school the same level of per pupil funding. It is right that pupils with additional needs attract additional funding to help schools respond and meet their needs. In addition, schools in more expensive areas, like London, attract higher funding per pupil than other parts of the country to reflect the higher costs they face.Through the dedicated schools grant, Bedford local authority is receiving over £179 million for mainstream schools in the 2025/26 financial year, which equates to £6,306 per pupil on average, excluding growth and falling rolls funding. Central Bedfordshire local authority is receiving almost £260 million, or £5,980 per pupil on average, for mainstream schools in the financial year 2025/26. Schools' final funding allocations are determined by local authority funding formulae and based on updated pupil numbers, so the final per pupil funding amounts for individual schools may differ.

If she will make an assessment of the equity of per pupil school funding in Bedfordshire.

Every year the department uses the schools national funding formula (NFF) to distribute core funding for 5- to 16-year-old pupils in mainstream state-funded schools in England. In the current NFF, the vast majority of funding is distributed on the basis of pupil numbers and characteristics.The purpose of the NFF is not to give every school the same level of per pupil funding. It is right that pupils with additional needs attract additional funding to help schools respond and meet their needs. In addition, schools in more expensive areas, like London, attract higher funding per pupil than other parts of the country to reflect the higher costs they face.Through the dedicated schools grant, Bedford local authority is receiving over £179 million for mainstream schools in the 2025/26 financial year, which equates to £6,306 per pupil on average, excluding growth and falling rolls funding. Central Bedfordshire local authority is receiving almost £260 million, or £5,980 per pupil on average, for mainstream schools in the financial year 2025/26. Schools' final funding allocations are determined by local authority funding formulae and based on updated pupil numbers, so the final per pupil funding amounts for individual schools may differ.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of allowing children to attend specialist education settings in a different local authority to the one in which they reside.

Children and young people can attend specialist provision in any local authority, not just the one in which they reside.Children and young people will be placed in special schools through the statutory process which the Children and Families Act 2014 prescribes for an education, health and care plan. Where pupils require alternative provision because they do not have a school place, the local authority is responsible for arranging a placement.As of January 2024, 8.9% of special school pupils were educated outside the local authority where they live. More information on school and pupil characteristics can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics.

Whether children who attend school in a different local authority area to the one in which they reside are funded at the level of (a) the local authority their school is in or (b) the local authority where they reside.

The schools national funding formula (NFF) allocates funding for mainstream schools. The funding levels vary between local authority areas, and the funding that mainstream schools receive is determined by the local authority that they are in, rather than where their pupils live. In any given year, mainstream schools are allocated funding based on pupil numbers and characteristics at the time of the previous October census. This means that for the 2025/26 financial year, schools are allocated funding based on the pupils they had at the time of the October 2024 census.Children with complex special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) are mainly funded by the local authority in whose area they reside. Local authorities are allocated high needs funding for this purpose and their allocations are calculated through a high needs NFF which uses data relating to the children resident in their area. The local authority allocates the majority of this high needs funding to mainstream and special schools, both those located in the authority’s area and those elsewhere, in respect of the children with SEND resident in their area for whom they have statutory responsibilities.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of proposed reductions in the funding for the Advanced Mathematics Support Programme on children in Mid Bedfordshire constituency.

I refer the hon. Member for Mid Bedfordshire to the answer of 28 April to Question 40352.

If she will make an estimate of the number of school students in Mid Bedfordshire constituency impacted by changes to funding for the Advanced Mathematics Support Programme.

Excellence in mathematics is one of the many skills needed to drive economic growth, and we are committed to ensuring all children and young people have opportunities to secure mathematical knowledge, regardless of background and socio-economic status.The Advanced Maths Support Programme (AMSP) is a vital government funded programme that continues to positively impact mathematics education across England. We are currently working with the AMSP supplier (MEI) to ensure that its important work evolves to better align with the government’s Opportunity Mission and skills for the future, such as AI and Data Science.More details on AMSP funding and the full offer for schools and colleges nationally and locally will be published in due course, on the AMSP website, which can be accessed here: https://amsp.org.uk/.

Pursuant to the Answer of 7 February 2025 to Question 27313 on Private Education: Special Educational Needs, if she will make a separate assessment for SEN pupils.

HM Treasury has published a tax information and impact note on applying VAT to independent school fees, which includes pupils with special educational needs.

If she will make an estimate of the number of SEN children fined for school absences in the last academic year.

The information requested is not held by the department.The department collects aggregate data on penalty notices from local authorities in England through the annual ‘parental responsibility measures’ attendance census. Information is not collected on the characteristics of the children concerned.The available data are published in the following statistical release: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/parental-responsibility-measures.The most recent data was published in January 2025.

If she will make an estimate of the number of teachers employed in state schools in (a) 2024-25 and (b) 2025-26.

Information on the school workforce, including the number of teachers employed in state-funded schools, is published in the ‘School workforce in England’ statistical publication. This publication is available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-workforce-in-england.As of November 2023, the latest date for which data are available, there were 468,693 full-time equivalent teachers employed in state-funded schools in England.Figures for the 2024/25 academic year will be published in June 2025 at the link above.Each year, the department calculates the number of trainees needed via postgraduate initial teacher training to meet future teacher demand. As part of these calculations, the department’s model makes a short-term estimate of future teacher numbers required. The most recently published version, that makes such estimates for 2023/24 and 2024/25 respectively, is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/postgraduate-initial-teacher-training-targets-2024-to-2025.An updated version, for 2025/26 recruitment targets will be published later this year.

Whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of apprenticeship levy reforms on Chartered Town Planner Level 7 Apprenticeships.

I refer the hon. Member for Mid Bedfordshire to the answer of 20 January 2025 to Question 23140.