Written questions by Sollom.

Pursuant to the Answer of 3 December 2024 to Question 15843 on Child Maintenance Service: Courts, how many liability orders have been (a) applied for by the Child Maintenance Service and (b) granted by the courts in each of the last three years.

In response to question (a) the Child Maintenance Service applied for approximately;17,800 liability orders between October 2023 and September 2024,15,100 liability orders between October 2022 and September 2023, and11,300 liability orders between October 2021 and September 2022.In response to question (b) the courts granted;15,300 liability orders between October 2023 and September 2024,13,600 liability orders between October 2022 and September 2023, and10,000 liability orders between October 2021 and September 2022.(Please note that the figures exclude Scotland).The Department publishes quarterly statistics for the Child Maintenance Service Child Maintenance Service statistics: data to September 2024 - GOV.UK. Please see Tables no. 6.1, Rows 21 and 22 for more information on liability orders. national-tables-child-maintenance-service-to-september-2024.ods

Whether she is taking steps to improve staffing levels in the Child Maintenance Service.

As more customers apply to the Child Maintenance Service (CMS), demand for the service increases. To allow us to meet this demand and provide an efficient service we continuously look at the resources we have and where we should focus our efforts to get the greatest value for money and deliver the best service to our customers. We review our overall resource supply twice yearly and take the appropriate steps to ensure that the CMS staffing levels meets the current demand. CMS has an ongoing recruitment campaign; this will continue into 2025. This will ensure that CMS is resourced to meet current and future forecasted demand. Additionally, through extensive modernisation to both telephony and digital channels, and by promoting self-service online, we are ensuring customers use the most appropriate and efficient contact method to quickly resolve their queries and reduce demand on our services. Furthermore, we have taken timely action to further train, support and redeploy resources within CMS to where it is needed most. Every change and improvement made to our processes, systems, and resourcing are all part of modernising our service. This will be an ongoing process of regular review and improvement to ensure CMS has the capability to deliver a service which is accessible to all parents.

Whether she plans to prevent transgender women being placed in male population prisons while their cases are reviewed.

Transgender women that have a history of violent and/or sexual offences, or retain their birth genitalia, are initially allocated to the men’s prison estate. Arrangements are made to keep them and other prisoners safe ahead of risk assessments that consider their ongoing placement. These assessments can be held prior to sentencing, and where they are not, they will be convened urgently for transgender women allocated to the men’s estate.Recognising the vulnerability of some transgender prisoners, separate provision for transgender women exists on a discrete unit at HMP Downview, which enables us to manage transgender women who both pose too much risk to be held in the general women’s estate but are too vulnerable to be held in the men’s estate.We support transgender prisoners regardless of where they are held, and most transgender women do not request to be held in the women’s estate.

Pursuant to the Answer of 25 November to Question 14520 on Compulsorily Detained Psychiatric Patients, how many people have been held in Section 136 suites for over 24 hours in the last five years; and under which section of the Mental Health Act 1983 they were held.

The Department does not hold the information in the format requested. Information on the number of uses of section 136 suites, collected by NHS England, is available at the following link:https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/mental-health-act-statistics-annual-figures

Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to help support people in areas where (a) there is damage to broadband cables and (b) other repairs are required to access to broadband services.

The Department works with Ofcom and communication providers to ensure broadband services are resilient and reliable. All communication providers have statutory obligations to maintain their networks and services. Ofcom has the power to investigate, rectify, and penalise providers for breaches. Consumers can report faults or delays on Ofcom’s website. Additionally, customers of the 10 providers who have signed up to Ofcom’s automatic compensation scheme can be compensated as a result of a delayed repair following loss of service.

Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to speed up the pace of repairs to damaged broadband cables in rural areas.

The Department works with Ofcom and communication providers to ensure broadband services are resilient and reliable. All communication providers have statutory obligations to maintain their networks and services. Ofcom has the power to investigate, rectify, and penalise providers for breaches. Consumers can report faults or delays on Ofcom’s website. Additionally, customers of the 10 providers who have signed up to Ofcom’s automatic compensation scheme can be compensated as a result of a delayed repair following loss of service.

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of encouraging the Joint Council for Qualifications to include the Level 3 Core Maths qualification within the A level and Level 3 results documents to ensure their profile is aligned with similar sized qualifications.

High and rising school standards, including in mathematics, are at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best life chances. Our Core Maths suite of qualifications is designed to prepare students for the mathematical demands of university study, employment and life by strengthening and building on students’ existing skills with a focus on using and applying mathematics. In the 2024/2025 academic year, a Core Maths premium of £900 per year per student was introduced into the 16-19 funding formula to support students’ participation in programmes with core mathematics qualifications. Guidance is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/16-to-19-funding-core-maths-premium/16-to-19-funding-core-maths-premium#eligible.The government has established an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, covering ages 5 to 18, chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE, an expert in education policy. The review will seek to deliver an excellent foundation in reading, writing and maths and will look at ensuring all young people aged 16-19 have access to rigorous, high value qualifications and training.Results data is published by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) annually. Departmental officials have discussed with JCQ what data they might report for summer 2025 and beyond. While JCQ regularly review what and how they publish their data, they are an independent organisation, and this is a matter for them to consider.The department funds the Advanced Mathematics Support Programme (AMSP), to promote the value of, and discuss positive encouragement for, level 3 mathematics and Core Maths in particular. The AMSP monitors engagement with the programme and provides support to increase the uptake of Core Maths.

What steps she is taking to (a) increase awareness and (b) raise the status with (i) universities and (ii) employers of the Level 3 Core Maths qualification.

High and rising school standards, including in mathematics, are at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best life chances. Our Core Maths suite of qualifications is designed to prepare students for the mathematical demands of university study, employment and life by strengthening and building on students’ existing skills with a focus on using and applying mathematics. In the 2024/2025 academic year, a Core Maths premium of £900 per year per student was introduced into the 16-19 funding formula to support students’ participation in programmes with core mathematics qualifications. Guidance is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/16-to-19-funding-core-maths-premium/16-to-19-funding-core-maths-premium#eligible.The government has established an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, covering ages 5 to 18, chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE, an expert in education policy. The review will seek to deliver an excellent foundation in reading, writing and maths and will look at ensuring all young people aged 16-19 have access to rigorous, high value qualifications and training.Results data is published by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) annually. Departmental officials have discussed with JCQ what data they might report for summer 2025 and beyond. While JCQ regularly review what and how they publish their data, they are an independent organisation, and this is a matter for them to consider.The department funds the Advanced Mathematics Support Programme (AMSP), to promote the value of, and discuss positive encouragement for, level 3 mathematics and Core Maths in particular. The AMSP monitors engagement with the programme and provides support to increase the uptake of Core Maths.

What steps she is taking to help resolve pay disputes with non-academised sixth forms who were not included in the 5.5% pay award announced for teachers.

The government does not set or recommend pay in further education (FE) providers, which have the freedom to make their own arrangements in line with their local circumstances. This government recognises the vital role that FE teachers and providers play in equipping learners with the opportunities and skills that they need to succeed in their education and throughout life. That is why the October Budget set out the government’s commitment to skills, by providing an additional £300 million revenue funding for FE to ensure young people are developing the skills this country needs. The department will set out in due course how this funding will be distributed.

If she will undertake a review of further education funding, in the context of the pay dispute with teachers at non-academised sixth forms.

This government recognises the vital role that further education (FE) teachers and providers play in equipping learners with the opportunities and skills that they need to succeed in their education, and will consider workforce sufficiency and what this might mean for FE funding in future years.The Autumn Budget 2024 set out the government’s commitment to skills by providing an additional £300 million revenue funding for FE to ensure young people are developing the skills this country needs. The department will set out in due course how this funding will be distributed.Government plays no role in recommending or setting pay or terms and conditions of employment within the FE sector. Institutions remain solely responsible for the pay, contractual conditions and terms of service for their workforce, and for managing their own industrial relations.The department encourages sixth form colleges both to ensure good industrial relations and, if necessary, to take appropriate mitigations to ensure that young people’s learning can continue during industrial action.

What steps her Department is taking to support the education of pupils at non-academised sixth forms in the context of planned industrial action.

This government recognises the vital role that further education (FE) teachers and providers play in equipping learners with the opportunities and skills that they need to succeed in their education, and will consider workforce sufficiency and what this might mean for FE funding in future years.The Autumn Budget 2024 set out the government’s commitment to skills by providing an additional £300 million revenue funding for FE to ensure young people are developing the skills this country needs. The department will set out in due course how this funding will be distributed.Government plays no role in recommending or setting pay or terms and conditions of employment within the FE sector. Institutions remain solely responsible for the pay, contractual conditions and terms of service for their workforce, and for managing their own industrial relations.The department encourages sixth form colleges both to ensure good industrial relations and, if necessary, to take appropriate mitigations to ensure that young people’s learning can continue during industrial action.

If her Department will publish an evaluation of the pilot scheme on the use of single-named caseworkers by the Child Maintenance Service.

The Child Maintenance Service takes the support of survivors of domestic abuse very seriously. In response to recommendation 4 of Dr Callan’s independent review, the Single Caseworker Team pilot was set up on 23rd January 2024 to deal with complex domestic abuse cases. After the successful completion of the pilot, the team has become a permanent part of the operational structure since 18 November 2024.

With reference to his Department's press release entitled Establishing the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme in Regulations, published on 23 August 2024, what his planned timetable is to publish the second set of regulations to provide for the payment of compensation to affected persons; and whether a target date has been set for when compensation payments will begin.

Subject to Parliamentary approval, the Government is aiming for the second set of Regulations to be in place by 31 March 2025 to support our intention that people who are affected can start receiving payment next year.

Whether his Department plans to meet regularly with the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Integrated Care Board; and whether he plans to issue guidance to the Board on the the construction of a town hub in Northstowe.

The Department currently has no plans to meet regularly with the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Integrated Care Board, and is not taking any steps to issue guidance to the ICB on the construction of a town hub in Northstowe.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential implications for (a) her policies and (b) the labour market of changes in the level of the provision of maths in universities.

English universities are independent, autonomous institutions and are therefore free to choose which courses they run. Quality is assessed by the Office for Students, the regulator of higher education (HE) providers in England.The factor that makes the biggest difference to a young person’s education in schools and colleges is high quality teaching, but there are shortages of qualified teachers across the country. This is why the department is committed to recruiting an additional 6,500 expert teachers across schools, both mainstream and specialist, and colleges, over the course of this parliament.Our measures will include getting more teachers into key subjects, such as mathematics, supporting areas that face recruitment challenges or shortages of qualified teachers, and tackling retention issues.The department has recently announced the Initial Teacher Training financial incentives package for the 2025/26 recruitment cycle, which is worth up to £233 million, and represents a £37 million increase on the last 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 to key subjects such as mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing.The department is also supporting the retention of teachers within the profession, alongside additional recruitment. As of 14 October, eligible early career teachers in priority science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and technical subjects can claim targeted retention incentive payments worth up to £6,000 after tax, with payments made available to college teachers in key STEM and technical subjects for the first time.The government recognises that our universities make a vital contribution to our economy, society and to industry and innovation. We recognise the need to put our world-leading HE sector on a secure footing to ensure that all students have confidence that they will receive the world-class HE experience they deserve.

For what reason he has maintained the cut-off dates for the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme.

The Infected Blood Compensation Scheme does not have hard cut-off dates for determining whether a person is eligible for compensation based on when their infection was acquired. However, the evidence requirements will be higher where a person was infected after the introduction of screening of blood, blood products and tissue. The dates for the introduction of screening are November 1985 for HIV infection, September 1991 for Hepatitis C infection and December 1972 for Hepatitis B infection. Those whose infection fell outside of these date ranges would still be eligible as long as they can satisfy the Infected Blood Compensation Authority that the infected blood treatment caused the person to become infected with that infection. It is intended that the Authority’s approach to applications will be to be as proactive and sympathetic as possible, and consistent with appropriate and proportionate safeguarding of the integrity of the scheme.

What assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of maths provision in universities as part of the plan to recruit 6,500 new teachers.

English universities are independent, autonomous institutions and are therefore free to choose which courses they run. Quality is assessed by the Office for Students, the regulator of higher education (HE) providers in England.The factor that makes the biggest difference to a young person’s education in schools and colleges is high quality teaching, but there are shortages of qualified teachers across the country. This is why the department is committed to recruiting an additional 6,500 expert teachers across schools, both mainstream and specialist, and colleges, over the course of this parliament.Our measures will include getting more teachers into key subjects, such as mathematics, supporting areas that face recruitment challenges or shortages of qualified teachers, and tackling retention issues.The department has recently announced the Initial Teacher Training financial incentives package for the 2025/26 recruitment cycle, which is worth up to £233 million, and represents a £37 million increase on the last 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 to key subjects such as mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing.The department is also supporting the retention of teachers within the profession, alongside additional recruitment. As of 14 October, eligible early career teachers in priority science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and technical subjects can claim targeted retention incentive payments worth up to £6,000 after tax, with payments made available to college teachers in key STEM and technical subjects for the first time.The government recognises that our universities make a vital contribution to our economy, society and to industry and innovation. We recognise the need to put our world-leading HE sector on a secure footing to ensure that all students have confidence that they will receive the world-class HE experience they deserve.

When applications for the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme will open to those infected after the cut-off date of 1991.

The Infected Blood Compensation Scheme Regulations 2024, approved by Parliament in October, do not set out hard cut-off dates for determining whether a person is eligible for compensation based on when their infection was acquired. However, the evidence requirements will be higher where a person was infected after the introduction of screening of blood, blood products and tissue. The Infected Blood Compensation Authority opened the compensation scheme to a small number of people in October to allow the Authority to test the service, with further invitations, as part of this testing approach, to be sent between now and January. The claim service for compensation is being designed and delivered now, starting small and scaling up as quickly as possible, to make payments. Dates for the roll out of the service to larger numbers of people will be determined and communicated by the Infected Blood Compensation Authority.

Pursuant to the Answer of 22 November 2024 to Question 14160 on Higher Education: VAT, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of enabling groups of universities to share VAT-exempt costs at contract level without creating a separate legal entity.

The requirement for groups using the cost sharing exemption to create a separate legal entity is in place to ensure that use of the exemption aligns with normal VAT principles that apply to all taxpayers. The Government keeps all taxes under review as part of the policy making process, but there are currently no plans to change this.

How many pupils had applications to state-funded mainstream schools rejected due to the school being unable to meet their identified SEND requirements in the 2023-24 school year.

School applications and admissions are handled by the local authority and individual schools’ admission authorities. Therefore, the department does not hold information on the reasons for applications to state-funded schools being refused.All mainstream, state-funded schools must comply with the statutory ‘school admissions code’ and with equalities legislation. The code is clear that admission authorities must not discriminate against disabled children or those with special educational needs (SEN), and that their admission arrangements will not disadvantage unfairly, either directly or indirectly, a child with a disability or SEN. The school admissions code can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1001050/School_admissions_code_2021.pdf.A parent refused a place at a school they have applied for must be offered the right to appeal to an independent appeal panel.More information on school applications and appeals can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/secondary-and-primary-school-applications-and-offers, and here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/admission-appeals-in-england#releaseHeadlines-tables.