Every parliamentary written question tabled by Joshua Reynolds this session, with the full answer and department. Back to the MP page.
Showing 1–20 of 37 · Department for Education
What assessment she has made of the accessibility of the SEND reform consultation process for families with caring responsibilities, disability, literacy barriers or limited time to engage with technical documentation; and what steps her Department is taking to ensure that responses received are representative of the families most affected by the proposed reforms.
Awaiting answer.
What assessment she has made of the potential impact of proposed changes to SEND tribunal powers on the ability of parents and carers to secure named school placements for children with education, health and care plans.
Awaiting answer.
What assessment her Department has made of the consistency with which the statutory guidance on suspensions is applied across schools in England; and what guidance his Department provides to parents where they consider a suspension to have been (a) disproportionate and (b) inconsistent with the guidance on suspensions.
Awaiting answer.
What data her Department collects on (a) the use of suspension by schools in England and (b) compliance with the statutory guidance "Suspension and Permanent Exclusion from maintained schools, academies and pupil referral units in England, including pupil movement"; and what mechanisms are in place to monitor proportionality in the application of that guidance at school level.
Awaiting answer.
What recent assessment she has made of the potential financial impact of school transport costs on families in areas outside London; and whether she has plans to review school transport policy to address regional disparities in costs.
Children of compulsory school age, 5 to 16, will be eligible for free travel if they attend their nearest school and would not be able to walk there because of the distance, their special educational needs, disability or mobility problem, or the safety of the route. Extended rights to free travel support low-income families to exercise school choice. The department does not currently have any plans to change the existing statutory framework.Central government funding for home-to-school travel is provided through the Local Government Finance Settlement. From the 2026/27 financial year, it includes a new specific relative needs formula for home-to-school travel which estimates each authority’s relative need to spend based on pupil numbers and home-to-school distances. This ensures funding reflects real journeys to school including in areas outside London.
What steps she is taking to hold local authorities accountable for meeting the statutory 20-week timeframe for issuing education, health and care plans.
The Schools White Paper sets clear expectations for the quality and timeliness of special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision delivered by local authorities, supported by significant investment to drive system transformation.In March 2026, the department commissioned local authorities, working with Integrated Care Boards, to develop SEND reform plans and will hold them to account for delivering strong outcomes for children and young people with SEND, intervening decisively where progress stalls and using our full intervention powers where failure persists.The department publishes annual SEN2 data on education, health and care (EHC) plans and assessments, including timeliness, which informs performance monitoring. Where this highlights a concern around local authority failure to meet statutory duties on EHC plan timeliness, we take action that prioritises children’s needs. Support and challenge is delivered through expert improvement advisers, commissioners and managed support programmes to drive sustained improvement.Where a council does not meet its duties, the department can take action that supports local areas to bring about rapid improvement, including the issuing of Improvement Notices or Statutory Directions to drive urgent improvements.
How many speech and language therapists and educational psychologists will be required to deliver the Experts at Hand service set out in the SEND White Paper.
I refer the hon. Member for Maidenhead to the answer of 24 March 2026 to Question 121419.
What assessment she has made of the potential impact of proposed changes to SEND tribunal powers on the ability of parents and carers to secure named school placements for children with education, health and care plans.
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
What steps her Department is taking to ensure that Personal, Social, Health and Economic education in schools includes specific teaching on racism, sexism and gender equality across all state schools.
We are making sure that all children in England learn about respectful relationships, in person and online, as part of mandatory relationships, sex and health education (RSHE). The curriculum has a strong focus on equality, respect, the harmful impact of stereotyping, as well as the importance of valuing difference. Further guidance here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/relationships-education-relationships-and-sex-education-rse-and-health-education.Pupils should learn about the law relating to the protected characteristics of age, disability, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, and sex by the end of their secondary education.Relationships education should ensure that pupils understand the importance of treating others with respect, including those who differ in their choices, preferences or beliefs. Pupils should be taught to recognise and understand bullying, including the use of derogatory language and how stereotypes and prejudiced attitudes, including misogyny, can cause harm, and equip them to recognise and challenge such behaviours.
What assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the timeline for reviewing school food standards.
We are consulting on proposed updates to the School Food Standards in England to ensure that all food served at school, including breakfasts and lunches, better reflect current nutritional guidance and support children’s health, wellbeing and learning. The consultation will run for 9 weeks, closing on 12 June 2026 and full details can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/school-food-standards-updating-the-legislative-framework.We want to give schools and caterers time to plan for these changes. Following the consultation, we will announce the new School Food Standards in September this year, before they are enforced from September 2027.We propose that the new standards take full effect for primary schools from September 2027. Most changes for secondary schools will also begin in September 2027. However, there are some requirements that we propose to phase in for secondary schools, including adding pulses to menu options, limiting cheese-based main dishes, restricting sweetened baked products and desserts, and introducing the healthier drinks list. These would start from September 2028.
Whether she plans to take steps with Cabinet colleagues to (a) maintain funding for all 16 to 24 year olds enrolled in further education and training, (b) extend VAT reimbursement to further education colleges and (c) lift the cap on the Adult Skills Fund for 18 to 24 year old learners who are not in education, employment or training.
The department has made significant increases to the average funding per student since the 2024/25 academic year, an expected per student increase of 10.5%. We expect that the average per student funding in 2026/27 will stand at £6,874, compared to £6,219 in the 2024/25 academic year. We will continue to fund the demographic increase in 16 to 19-year-olds, providing significant investment to ensure there are valuable and high-quality post-16 places for every student that wants one.My right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister has committed to looking into VAT reimbursement to further education colleges. The Government does keep all taxes under review, and any changes would be announced at a fiscal event.We are committed to investing in education and skills training for adults and are investing over £1.4 billion in the Adult Skills Fund (ASF) this academic year. The ASF supports a range of learners, including young people who are unemployed.
What assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of teaching on social media harms, including body image and algorithmic content, within PSHE curricula in secondary schools.
As part of statutory relationships, sex and health education (RSHE), pupils are taught about online safety and harms, including the implications of sharing private or personal data online, and the risks associated with over-reliance on social media.The department updated its RSHE guidance in July 2025, including new content on artificial intelligence, deepfakes, and how social media can escalate conflicts. Pupils should be taught the similarities and differences between the online world and the physical world, including the impact of unhealthy or obsessive comparison with others online, including through setting unrealistic expectations for body image, as well as how information is targeted at them.Schools have flexibility to tailor their curriculum to local needs, drawing on high quality resources and evidence‑based materials.The government commissioned Oak National Academy to make lesson materials which reflect the new guidance freely available.The department’s guidance on teaching online safety covers how to teach about all aspects of internet safety.
Whether she has plans to review the Childcare Sufficiency Duty.
Through our Best Start in Life strategy, we are focused on reforming the childcare system, delivering on our plan for change. We will act to increase affordability and accessibility, improve quality and ensure our workforce is valued and respected. This government continues to prioritise and protect investment in the early years, which is why we are investing over £1 billion more in the early years entitlements next year compared to 2025/26 to deliver a full year of the expanded entitlements, and an above inflation increase to entitlements funding rates.It is important to continue to monitor the sufficiency of childcare places. While we do not retain data on settings closures, we continually monitor the sufficiency of childcare in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead. The department has regular contact with them, and all other local authorities in England, about their sufficiency of childcare and any issues they are facing. The 2025 Survey of Childcare and Early Years Providers shows that England-wide early years places increased to 1,620,800 (+1%) between 2024 and 2025.
What assessment she has made of the adequacy of early years funding rates in helping to ensure the financial sustainability of pre-school and nursery settings.
The government expects to provide over £9.5 billion for the early years entitlements in 2026/27, more than doubling annual public investment in the early years sector compared to 2023/24, as a result of successfully rolling-out the expansion of government-funded childcare for working parents.In 2026/27, we are delivering an above-inflation increase on 2025/26 entitlements funding rates. This increase allows the national average funding rate to continue reflecting forecast cost pressures on the early years sector, including the National Living Wage announced at Autumn Budget 2025, and goes further, taking into account the wider workforce pressures felt by the sector since April 2025.In December 2025, we announced above inflation national average increases of 4.95% to the 3 to 4-year-old hourly funding rate, a 4.36% increase to the 2-year-old hourly funding rate, and a 4.28% increase to the 9 month to 2-years-old hourly funding rate.
How many early years pre-school settings have closed in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the last 12 months; and what steps the Government is taking to support the financial sustainability of early years providers.
Through our Best Start in Life strategy, we are focused on reforming the childcare system, delivering on our plan for change. We will act to increase affordability and accessibility, improve quality and ensure our workforce is valued and respected. This government continues to prioritise and protect investment in the early years, which is why we are investing over £1 billion more in the early years entitlements next year compared to 2025/26 to deliver a full year of the expanded entitlements, and an above inflation increase to entitlements funding rates.It is important to continue to monitor the sufficiency of childcare places. While we do not retain data on settings closures, we continually monitor the sufficiency of childcare in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead. The department has regular contact with them, and all other local authorities in England, about their sufficiency of childcare and any issues they are facing. The 2025 Survey of Childcare and Early Years Providers shows that England-wide early years places increased to 1,620,800 (+1%) between 2024 and 2025.
What steps her Department is taking to ensure that the cost of school transport for students outside London is affordable and does not place a disproportionate financial burden on families; and whether her Department plans to review school transport policy to address disparities in access and cost between London and other areas.
The government is committed to creating opportunities for all children so that they can achieve and thrive. The department’s home-to-school travel policy aims to make sure that no child is prevented from accessing education by a lack of transport. Local authorities are responsible for arranging free home-to-school travel for eligible children. A child is eligible if they are of compulsory school age, 5 to 16, attend their nearest school and would not be able to walk there because of the distance, their special educational needs, disability or mobility problem, or the safety of the route. There are extended rights to free travel for children from low-income families. The department does not currently have any plans to change the existing statutory framework.Public transport has an important role to play too. The Bus Services Act 2025 puts the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders right across England. This will enable them to ensure local bus services meet the needs of local communities, including supporting access to education.
Whether a dedicated teacher retention strategy will be informed by evidence on teacher mental health and workplace wellbeing.
A well supported, high-quality education workforce is critical to our mission to break down the barriers to opportunity for children and young people, which is why recruiting and retaining our expert teachers is at the heart of the government’s Plan for Change. Detailed plans on how we will recruit and retain more teachers in our 6,500 additional teachers delivery plan are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/every-child-achieving-and-thriving.We will promote best practice in workload and wellbeing management, including flexible working opportunities, and tackle the external pressures where schools are filling the gaps.We will invest in a new programme that provides training, resources and peer support to help schools learn from each other, to normalise flexible working and manageable workloads. We will also invest £1 million additional funding each year for wellbeing support, providing up to 2,500 leaders annually with a safe and confidential space to develop new strategies to manage their resilience and capacity to thrive in their role. .
What assessment she has made of the balance between online safety measures and the development of digital literacy skills in young people aged 12 to 18.
As set out in the department’s Schools White Paper, it is vital that children are supported to become digitally literate and confident users of technology. We must strike a healthy balance between preparing young people for a technologically enabled world, whilst not compromising on safety.We have updated our generative AI safety standards, introducing measures that safeguard children’s cognitive and social-emotional development, protect their mental health, and guard against manipulation. We will also establish new sovereign education benchmarks to provide a trusted framework for evaluating how well AI models meet stringent safety standards and prevent harmful content.Following the recommendations of the independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, we are strengthening digital education through clarifying digital literacy content within the revised computing curriculum and working with experts to consider incorporating digital content in other subjects. Alongside this, updated relationships, sex and health education statutory guidance, required from September 2026, includes strengthened online safety content, including deepfakes.
What assessment she has made of the potential impact of limiting the number of branded school uniform items on the overall cost of school uniforms for families.
I refer the hon. Member for Maidenhead to the answer of 09 March 2025 to Question 114997.
How many directors with responsibility for human resources are employed across their department and its executive agencies; and how many of those directors hold professional HR qualifications from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development or equivalent professional bodies.
Organograms for the department, including senior civil service posts, are published on GOV.UK here: https://www.data.gov.uk/dataset/5a1f3831-86d6-4979-9164-99e982361ca4/organogram-department-for-education. The data sets out director-level roles and responsibilities across the core department, including for our Executive Agencies.Information on the professional qualifications of individual employees is personal data, and it would not be appropriate to release this at an individual level. However, all directors appointed with responsibility for human resources would be expected to have the appropriate skills, experience and, where relevant, professional qualifications necessary to undertake the role effectively, including experience aligned with Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CPID) standards or equivalent professional bodies in line with requirements set out by the Government People Group.Number of Directors with responsibility for human resources (HR)Number of Directors delivering non-HR technical activity e.g. Shared ServicesNumber of Directors with CIPD membershipDepartment for Education (including Executive Agencies) - 1Department for Education (including Executive Agencies) - 0Department for Education (including Executive Agencies) - N/D Headcount less than 5