Written questions by Shannon.

Whether her Department supports schools in implementing programs teaching children about civic responsibility in a digital age.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only. All schools are expected to actively promote fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, and mutual respect and tolerance for those of different faiths and beliefs.The government’s response to the Curriculum and Assessment Review committed to making citizenship statutory at primary and strengthening primary and secondary content, including on democracy and the rule of law. Applied knowledge and skills in media and digital literacy and subject-specific disciplinary skills, including critical thinking and problem solving, will be embedded in the refreshed programmes of study. Pupils will also have opportunities to develop social and emotional attributes such as resilience.Working closely with the sector, we are working towards a first teaching of the new curriculum from September 2028.

Whether assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of screen time on children's development.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.On 27 March, the government published advice on screen use for children aged 0-5 on the Best Start in Life website, accessible at: https://beststartinlife.gov.uk/screen-time-under-5s/.The advice is informed by an expert panel’s independent report, which draws on quantitative and qualitative research, including engagement with parents, carers and stakeholders. This report can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/screen-use-by-children-aged-under-5.The independent panel was co-chaired by Professor Russell Viner, and Dame Rachel de Souza.On 2 March, alongside the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the department launched the Children’s Digital Wellbeing consultation on further measures to ensure children have healthy relationships with technology, mobile phones and social media. The consultation will close on 26 May, with the government set to publish its response in the summer.We will also support families by producing evidence-based screen time guidance for parents of children aged 5 to 16.

How she supports arts programs in schools.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.The department is committed to revitalising arts education in schools, including changes to the curriculum, qualifications, accountability and enrichment.We are consulting on an improved Progress 8 model, which balances a strong academic core with breadth and student choice. The current structure has hampered progress in subjects that strengthen our economy and society, including the arts. The improved version recognises the value of these subjects.The department is supporting arts in schools through a £13 million investment in the new National Centre for Arts and Music Education, which will launch in September 2026 to provide strategic national leadership, support excellent teaching, and promote arts opportunities, ensuring every child can access a high‑quality arts education.The department provides significant funding for the Music Hub network, Music Opportunities Pilot, Music and Dance Scheme, and Dance and Drama Awards, all designed to improve equity in the arts, mainly in schools and colleges.The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) committed £22.5 million enrichment in up to 400 schools, across all types of enrichment activity, including arts and culture.Arts Council England, an arm’s-length body of DCMS, provides funding to a range of programmes that support arts in schools. As part of the government’s recent response to the independent review of Arts Council England, the department has committed to enabling all children across the country to have access to excellent culture in both schools and communities.

Whether she is taking steps to help reduce classroom sizes in primary schools.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only. Measures are in place to limit and reduce class sizes, particularly for younger children. Legislation caps the size of an infant class at 30 pupils per qualified teacher. Infant classes are those in which most pupils turn five, six, or seven during the school year. Current data shows the average infant class size is 26.2 pupils, a decrease of 0.4 compared with the previous year.There is no statutory limit on class sizes for older children aged eight and above. Schools have the flexibility to organise these classes according to local needs and circumstances, ensuring pupils receive the support they need to achieve and thrive. The average primary class size, covering both infant and junior classes, is 26.4 pupils, down by 0.2 from last year.These trends, alongside the statutory infant class limit, demonstrate that current measures are helping to keep class sizes manageable in primary schools.

What steps are being taken to ensure that teachers receive training in safeguarding children.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.The initial teacher training (ITT) Criteria set out requirements for ITT courses leading to qualified teacher status. Course design must encompass all aspects of the Initial Teacher Training and Early Career Framework, including safeguarding duties; and accredited providers are required to ensure trainee teachers are aware of Keeping Children Safe in Education (KSCIE), guidance that schools and colleges must have regard to. KCSIE is clear that every school must have a designated safeguarding lead who takes lead responsibility for safeguarding and child protection. In line with KCSIE, all staff should undergo safeguarding and child protection training (including online safety) at induction. Additionally, all staff should receive regular safeguarding and child protection updates, including online safety (e.g., via email, e-bulletins, staff meetings) as required, and at least annually, to continue to provide them with relevant skills and knowledge to safeguard children effectively.

What steps her Department is taking to support schools in improving pupil attendance in areas with high absence rates.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.Absence is a key barrier to opportunity. For children to achieve and thrive, they need to be in school. In the Schools White Paper, the department set a national commitment to improve the attendance rate to over 94% by 2028/29, equivalent to 100,000 pupils attending school full time and represent the fastest rate of improvement in over a decade.Our statutory ‘Working Together to Improve School Attendance’ guidance requires schools to appoint an attendance champion, have a published attendance policy, and work with local authorities.The department provides real-time data tools and attendance toolkits, which help schools, trusts and local authorities identify the drivers of absence and adopt effective practice to improve attendance to pre‑pandemic attendance levels.In January, we launched our new regional improvement for standards and excellence attendance and behaviour hubs, which can support over 3000 schools, including enhanced support for up to 500 schools, helping schools build strong relationships with parents and helping teachers form strong relationships of trust with students.

What recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the availability of speech and language support for pupils in primary schools.

Speech and language therapists (SaLTs) break down communication barriers, but too often, children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) wait too long to receive support from them.As part of our new £1.8 billion investment, schools will be able to access support from professionals such as SaLTs through the Experts at Hand offer. These experts will work directly with school staff to equip them with skills and strategies to better meet need.We are also investing £15 million to establish new SaLT advanced practitioners in every integrated care board area to support more SaLTs to work with educational settings, upskill speech and language support workers, and promote the SaLT apprenticeship route.This is in addition to £3.4 million being invested this year in the Early Language Support for Every Child (ELSEC) programme, helping to identify and respond to speech and language needs, continued investment in the Nuffield Early Language Intervention, which has demonstrated significant impact on speech and language skills particularly for disadvantaged pupils, and an expansion of English Hubs support to include specialist early language support from the 2026/27 academic year.

Whether her Department plans to provide additional funding to support schools in introducing digital literacy programmes for pupils aged 11 to 16.

Education is a devolved matter, and this response relates to state-funded schools in England only.On 5 November 2025, the government issued the response to the Curriculum and Assessment Review, setting out the changes that will be made to the national curriculum, as well as reforms to qualifications. To ensure students develop the essential digital literacy skills needed for future life and work, the refreshed curriculum, due for first teaching in September 2028, will provide greater clarity on what should be taught at each key stage.The department continues to invest in the National Centre for Computing Education, supporting teachers to confidently teach topics such as digital literacy through the provision of free online courses and resources. This includes a free online course supporting secondary subject leaders to understand what digital literacy is and to integrate it across subjects. The core schools budget is also increasing by £1.7 billion in 2026/27, which includes funding for special educational needs and disabilities reforms announced within the Schools White Paper.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of levels of teacher recruitment in STEM subjects in the last academic year.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.The department is seeing real progress. On top of an increase of 2,346 teachers (full-time equivalent) in secondary and special schools between 2023/24 and 2024/25, the future pipeline is also looking positive. New entrants to training in physics are up 37% this year, computing up 46%, and maths up by 18%. In total, the data shows an increase of 22% in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects, exceeding the STEM target for the first time since it was introduced in 2019.The department set out plans for an additional 6,500 teachers in our delivery plan, published last month alongside the Schools White Paper, available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6995de6aa58a315dbe72bf7c/6500_additional_teachers_delivery_plan_print_ready_version.pdf.We are continuing to offer bursaries worth £29,000 tax-free and scholarships worth up to £31,000 tax-free to encourage more talented people to train to teach key STEM subjects. We are also offering a targeted retention incentive worth up to £6,000 after tax for teachers of the same STEM subjects in the first five years of their careers who work in disadvantaged schools.

What information her Department holds on the number of schools who have their own minibus.

The department does not collect or hold information about the number of schools who have their own minibus.

What steps she is taking to ensure that all schools are adequately prepared for emergency situations.

All education, childcare and children’s social care settings should have emergency plans in place. They must also comply with legal responsibilities, including under health and safety law.The department publishes non-statutory guidance to support settings plan for emergencies within their own local context. The guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/emergency-planning-and-response-for-education-childcare-and-childrens-social-care-settings/emergency-planning-and-response-for-education-childcare-and-childrens-social-care-settings.In any emergency, education, childcare and children's social care settings should keep children and staff safe and seek to minimise the amount and length of any disruption.

What steps she has taken since July 2024 to (i) expand childcare provision and (ii) help tackle the affordability of childcare costs for working families.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only. The government began a phased expansion of funded childcare in 2024, introducing 15 hours of funded childcare for eligible working parents of two-year-olds in April 2024 and extending this entitlement to children aged from nine months to three years in September 2024. This expansion grew further in September 2025, when eligible working parents of children from nine months to school age were given access to 30 hours of government-funded childcare per week, saving families using their full entitlement up to £7,500 per eligible child per year. As a result, the department expects to provide over £9.5 billion in 2026/27 for the early years entitlements, more than doubling annual public investment in the sector compared with 2023/24. The School-based Nursery Programme is a £400 million capital investment to deliver on the department’s commitment to create tens of thousands of places in school-based nurseries, helping more families access funded childcare and giving children the best start in life. We awarded £37 million of capital funding to 300 schools to create up to 6,000 nursery places, helping parents access affordable, quality childcare where it is needed. Schools were invited to bid for up to £150,000 capital funding from a £45 million pot, with an increased focus on supporting families from disadvantaged areas to access early years provision. We will announce successful projects for this phase in the spring.

How many schools have evacuation chairs for pupils, staff and visitors with mobility impairments.

I refer the hon. Member for Strangford to the answer of 5 January 2026 to Question 100857.

What guidance she has issued to (a) Health and Social Care Trusts and (b) fostering service providers on the treatment of foster care allowances in the assessment of Universal Credit; and what steps she is taking to ensure that potential foster carers are given full information to make an informed decision on becoming a carer.

Fostering is a devolved issue. Guidance to Health and Social Care Trusts is a matter for the devolved Northern Irish government.The department funds Fosterline, which provides guidance on Universal Credit to fostering services and to prospective and current foster carers in England.In England, the government sets the National Minimum Allowance to cover carers’ day‑to‑day caring costs. Fostering income is disregarded when determining eligibility for Universal Credit.During discussions with a Department for Work & Pensions work coach, foster carer support can be tailored by recording that they are an approved foster carer and looking after children.English fostering standards make clear that carers should receive clear information about the financial support they will receive before they start looking after a child. The department has also launched a call for evidence which included questions on financial transparency, to improve the understanding and consistency of financial support that is available to foster carers.

Whether he plans to review the regulation of the private tutoring sector.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.The government is committed to safeguarding children across all education settings, including out-of-school settings such as private tutoring.Last year, the government launched a call for evidence on safeguarding in out-of-school settings, aiming to better understand current sector safeguarding practices and invited views on approaches for further strengthening safeguarding, including regulation.The department is currently analysing responses, with support from independent external analysts, given the significance of the issue.The department also intends to undertake further engagement, including focus groups with parents and small providers and sector roundtables with safeguarding experts and sector representatives, before issuing a full response in due course.​

What steps he is taking to ensure vulnerable children in care are given the best start in life.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.Reforming children’s social care is essential to ensuring vulnerable children have the best start in life. We are shifting the system toward early, preventative support so more families can stay safely together.Our plans will help children remain with their families wherever possible, increase support for kinship carers and foster families and improve outcomes for children in care and care leavers, including through the rollout of the Staying Close programme. We will also fix the care market to reduce profiteering and put children’s needs first, alongside strengthening multi‑agency approaches to keep children safe.Backed by £2.4 billion over the next three years, national reforms to Family Help, Multi‑Agency Child Protection and Family Group Decision Making will be delivered through the Families First Partnership programme, with local authorities deciding how best to use these resources to support vulnerable children in care. A further £1.5 billion will improve access to affordable early education, raise early years quality and strengthen family services.

What steps she is taking to help tackle educational underachievement.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.All children and young people should have every opportunity to succeed, but too many face barriers holding them back, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds.The government’s Plan for Change sets our intention to give every child the best start in life, setting a milestone of a record proportion of children starting school ready to learn, backed by investment close to £1.5 billion over the next three years, subject to the spending review.High and rising standards are the key to strengthening outcomes for every child. The department is driving standards in every school through regional improvement for standards and excellence teams, a refreshed high quality curriculum and assessment system, and recruiting an additional 6,500 additional teachers.The Schools White Paper will build on our existing work to drive school standards and improve outcomes for all children.This is alongside wider work to improve outcomes for all children, including tackling child poverty and our Post-16 Education and Skills Strategy.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of further and higher education funding.

The department has increased investment in 16-19 education by £400 million in the 2025/26 financial year. From the Spending Review, we will invest nearly £800 million extra in 2026/27, including and fully consolidating the £190 million boost to 2025/26 funding provided in May.The department is investing in education and skills training for adults through the Adult Skills Fund (ASF), spending £1.4 billion in the 2025/26 academic year. The ASF fully funds or co-funds skills provision for eligible adults aged 19 and above from pre-entry to level 3, to support adults to gain the skills they need for work, an apprenticeship or further learning.To support long‑term stability in higher education, the department is increasing maximum tuition fees in line with inflation, by 2.71% in 2026/27 and 2.68% in 2027/28, in addition to the 3.1% increase delivered for the current academic year. The government provides £1.31 billion in Strategic Priorities Grant (SPG) funding for the 2025/26 academic year to support teaching, high‑cost subjects and disadvantaged students, and we are working with the Office for Students to reform the SPG to better target priority skills needs and access and participation.

How many children were entitled to free school meals in each of the last three years.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.The department publishes data on free school meal (FSM) eligibility and the number of eligible pupils taking FSMs on school census day in the annual Schools, Pupils and their Characteristics accredited official statistics, which can be accessed here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics/2024-25.The latest figures were published in June 2025, and the next figures will be published in summer 2026.

How many children in England and Wales in primary school have a classroom assistant for part of their school day.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.The department does not hold data on whether a child has access to a teaching assistant full time or for part of their school day.Schools in England are asked to record the headcount and FTE of their teaching assistants. In the November 2024 school workforce census, there were a reported 288,800 teaching assistants (FTE).Information on the school workforce in England, including the number of teaching assistants in state-funded schools, is published in the ‘School workforce in England’ statistical publication. The publication is available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-workforce-in-england/2024.These figures have been available since 5 June 2025.