Written questions by Maguire.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of VAT on independent school fees on state school capacity.

Awaiting answer.

What assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the recommendations in the Missing Million report published by Speech and Language UK.

The department recognises the issues raised in Speech and Language UK’s ‘Missing Million’ report, including the importance of improving identification and support for children and young people with speech, language and communication needs, including Devel...

What steps her Department is taking to ensure that children and young people with Developmental Language Disorders are included in SEND reforms.

The department recognises the issues raised in Speech and Language UK’s ‘Missing Million’ report, including the importance of improving identification and support for children and young people with speech, language and communication needs, including Devel...

How much of the revenue raised from VAT on independent school fees since its introduction was directly spent on state schools per school.

Together, reforms to VAT and business rates will raise around £1.8 billion a year by 2029/30. This will raise revenue for essential public services, including supporting the 94% of children in the UK that attend state schools. Our overall core schools bud...

What assessment she has made of the impact of changes to the National Curriculum on students wishing to study languages at university.

The government is committed to supporting the teaching of languages. Languages provide an insight into other cultures and open the door to travel and employment opportunities. Following the Curriculum and Assessment Review, the department is refreshing th...

What steps she is taking to maintain the rights of children on Education Otherwise Than At School packages.

The department’s consultation, “SEND reform: putting children and young people first”, proposes the introduction of Specialist Provision Packages for all children and young people with complex needs, including those children and young people whose needs a...

Whether her Department's proposed SEND reforms will support children who receive education otherwise than at school packages.

The department’s consultation, “SEND reform: putting children and young people first”, proposes the introduction of Specialist Provision Packages for all children and young people with complex needs, including those children and young people whose needs a...

What assessment she has made of the impact of changes to the National Curriculum on students wishing to study languages at university.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

How much of the revenue raised from VAT on independent school fees since its introduction was directly spent on state schools per school.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

What discussions she has had with exam boards on introducing a Romanian GCSE.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

What steps she is taking to maintain the rights of children on Education Otherwise Than At School packages.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Whether her Department's proposed SEND reforms will support children who receive education otherwise than at school packages.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

When the RSHE training pilots promised from early 2026 will be available for schools to access.

Education is a significant part of the cross-government strategy to keep women and girls safe, focusing on prevention by instilling early the values and skills needed to protect young people, disrupt dangerous attitudes, and stop harmful behaviours escalating.As with all curriculum subjects, schools are responsible for ensuring the quality of the relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) they provide. This includes ensuring that staff are properly trained and equipped to teach these subjects accurately and confidently.The department is currently working at pace through a commercial process to establish the best route to support schools with implementation of the new elements of the RSHE curriculum. Through the Freedom from Violence and Abuse Strategy, the department has committed to invest £3 million 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.

When schools can expect to access training to implement the new RSHE curriculum, which all schools must follow from 1 September 2026; and how many schools will have access to Government funded support with the implementation of the new RSHE curriculum.

Education is a significant part of the cross-government strategy to keep women and girls safe, focusing on prevention by instilling early the values and skills needed to protect young people, disrupt dangerous attitudes, and stop harmful behaviours escalating.As with all curriculum subjects, schools are responsible for ensuring the quality of the relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) they provide. This includes ensuring that staff are properly trained and equipped to teach these subjects accurately and confidently.The department is currently working at pace through a commercial process to establish the best route to support schools with implementation of the new elements of the RSHE curriculum. Through the Freedom from Violence and Abuse Strategy, the department has committed to invest £3 million 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.

What assessment has been made of the training and support needs of teachers and school staff to effectively implement the new RSHE curriculum that all schools must follow from 1 September 2026.

Education is a significant part of the cross-government strategy to keep women and girls safe, focusing on prevention by instilling early the values and skills needed to protect young people, disrupt dangerous attitudes, and stop harmful behaviours escalating.As with all curriculum subjects, schools are responsible for ensuring the quality of the relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) they provide. This includes ensuring that staff are properly trained and equipped to teach these subjects accurately and confidently.The department is currently working at pace through a commercial process to establish the best route to support schools with implementation of the new elements of the RSHE curriculum. Through the Freedom from Violence and Abuse Strategy, the department has committed to invest £3 million 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.

What funding the Government is committing specifically to support teachers with the implementation of the new RSHE curriculum.

Education is a significant part of the cross-government strategy to keep women and girls safe, focusing on prevention by instilling early the values and skills needed to protect young people, disrupt dangerous attitudes, and stop harmful behaviours escalating.As with all curriculum subjects, schools are responsible for ensuring the quality of the relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) they provide. This includes ensuring that staff are properly trained and equipped to teach these subjects accurately and confidently.The department is currently working at pace through a commercial process to establish the best route to support schools with implementation of the new elements of the RSHE curriculum. Through the Freedom from Violence and Abuse Strategy, the department has committed to invest £3 million 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.

What steps his Department is taking to respond to calls from more than 100 organisations for a Good Food Bill to help improve access to healthy and affordable food.

The government is committed to raising the healthiest generation ever and breaking down barriers to opportunity.We are extending free school meals to all children from households in receipt of Universal Credit from September 2026. We are taking decisive action to drive down poverty by ensuring that over half a million disadvantaged children receive the support they need in school to be healthy, get the most out of their education, and enjoy lifelong success. This action will lift 100,000 children across England out of poverty and put £500 back in families’ pockets.The government is committed to delivering a free breakfast club in every state-funded school with primary-aged pupils in England. Free breakfast clubs remove barriers to opportunity by offering primary school children, no matter their circumstance, a supportive start to the school day.These meals must be compliant with the School Food Standards. To ensure they support our work to create the healthiest generation of children in history, we are revising the School Food Standards and are engaging with stakeholders.Additionally, we are working with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to add support for the outcomes of their Government Food Strategy.

What discussions her Department has had with schools on the effectiveness of the three-item cap on branded uniform.

Whilst many schools are taking action to reduce costs, too many families still tell us that the cost of school uniform remains a financial burden. ​This is why we have introduced legislation to limit the number of branded items of uniform and PE kit that schools can require.When determining the level at which to set the limit, we considered the available evidence and engaged with a range of stakeholders, including schools, to ensure we struck the right balance between reducing costs for parents and recognising the benefits that some branded items can bring to school life.The majority of primary schools, and nearly a third of secondary schools, already successfully operate within the proposed limit. It is therefore right that schools currently asking for large numbers of compulsory branded items are required to remove them.

What steps her Department is taking to support Ofsted in processing the backlog of applications for the a) registration and b) inspections of residential family centres.

Twenty Residential Family Centres have been registered by Ofsted since 1 April 2025, with three registrations rejected following a registration visit. Ofsted undertake a range of checks as part of the registration process, including ensuring Residential Family Centres have the correct planning permission and staff teams in place. While efficiencies in handling applications are necessary, they must not come at the expense of the scrutiny needed to ensure safe, high-quality provision. Residential Family Centres are inspected once in every three-year period.Between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026, Ofsted forecast to complete 54 full inspections, and have completed 56. In addition, two Residential Family Centres had their inspections brought forward into the previous inspection year due to identified concerns.

If her Department will review best practice guidance for play-based learning for five to seven year-olds.

I refer the hon. Member for Epsom and Ewell to the answer of 23 March 2026 to Question 117074.