Written questions by Jarvis.

What progress his Department has made on achieving the Access and Waiting Time Standard for children and young people with an Eating Disorder.

The number of children and young people starting treatment for eating disorders has increased since the pandemic, rising from 8,034 in 2019/20 to 11,174 in 2024/25, an increase of almost 40%. This increase in demand has affected performance against the Access and Waiting Time standard, which states that 95% of routine referrals should begin treatment within four weeks and 95% of urgent referrals should begin treatment within one week.In the rolling quarter from September to November 2025, the Mental Health Services Data Set shows improved performance against the standard. During this period, 78.4% of, or 384 out of 490, urgent referrals and 81.7% of, or 2,145 out of 2,625, routine referrals started treatment within one and four weeks respectively.To support systems to meet the Access and Waiting Time Standard, NHS England has published updated guidance on children and young people's eating disorders. The new guidance focuses on whole pathway approaches to early intervention, whilst ensuring swift access to specialist support as soon as an eating disorder is suspected.

Pursuant to the Answer of 17 December 2025 to Question 98528 on Schools: Speech and Language Therapy, what progress her Department has made in extending the Early Language Support for Every Child programme; and how her Department is assessing the programme's impact on early identification and support for children with speech, language and communication needs.

In partnership with NHS England, the department has extended the Early Language and Support for Every Child (ELSEC) programme for the 2025/26 academic year, trialling new ways of working to better identify and support children with speech, language and communication needs in early years settings and primary schools. The interim independent programme evaluation, due to be published this month, will assess the programme’s impact and allow the department to explore insights into the effectiveness of ELSEC delivery at a local level.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of making play-based learning and continuous provision statutory in England's Key Stage 1 Curriculum.

The Curriculum and Assessment Review considered the extent to which the curriculum and the assessment system in England is fit for purpose and meeting the needs of children and young people. The government’s response set out key reforms to the national curriculum that we will be taking forward. The purpose of the national curriculum is to outline what must be taught in schools rather than how.There are no plans to legislate to make play and continuous provision statutory in the key stage 1 curriculum. However, we will continue to back educators to apply their professional judgment and creativity to meet the needs of their pupils, meaning children will be able to benefit from play-based learning throughout their primary education where appropriate.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of mobility associated with armed forces service on the educational continuity of the children of service personnel with special educational needs and disabilities.

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is aware of the potential impact of Service related mobility on children with additional needs from Armed Forces families. December 2025 saw the publication of MOD commissioned research carried out by Oxford Brookes University entitled ‘Supporting ALL to Thrive’ (See link: https://sattproject.org.uk/|). This project investigated the educational opportunities, experiences and outcomes of children with additional learning or support needs and/or disabilities from UK Armed Forces families. The Oxford Brookes research team have presented their findings to the Department for Education and continue to work with the MOD in developing an evidence base that can help shape future policy development.

Whether she will consider establishing an Independent Commissioner to assess the claims of Equitable Life policyholders, the allocation of compensation, and the methodology used to distribute it.

The Equitable Life Payment Scheme has been fully wound down and closed since 2016 under the approach put in place by the Liberal Democrat and Conservative coalition government. Further guidance on the status of the Payment Scheme after closure is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/equitable-life-payment-scheme#closure-of-the-scheme.

Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with the National Fire Chiefs Council on the adequacy of the Provisional Local Government Finance Settlement 2026-2027 to 2028-2029 funding formula for fire and rescue services.

The Government recognises that the current fire funding formula was designed over a decade ago. In line with responses to the principles of reform consultation in December 2024, the Government updated the fire and rescue relative needs formula by using the most up-to-date data available. In the medium term, we will work with the fire sector on a comprehensive review of the formula ahead of the next Spending Review.

What estimate he has made of GP-to-patient ratios in Eastleigh constituency.

As of 30 November 2025, the median number of full time equivalent (FTE) doctors in general practice per 10,000 registered patients was 5.9 in the Eastleigh constituency. The England median was 5.6 FTE.

What action her Department is taking to help increase awareness of changes to the Highway Code introduced in 2022.

Injuries and fatalities from road collisions caused by driving are unacceptable, and this Government will work hard to prevent these tragedies for all road users.That is why on 7 January 2026, we published our new Road Safety Strategy, setting out our vision for a safer future on our roads for all. Following updates to the Highway Code in 2022, the department ran large-scale THINK! advertising campaigns to raise awareness of the changes.Via the THINK! campaign, we are also running year-round radio filler adverts encouraging compliance with the guidance to improve safety for those walking, cycling and horse riding. We will also continue to promote the changes via THINK! and Department for Transport social media channels, as well as through partner organisations.However, as set out in the strategy, more work is needed to continue embedding these changes and overall awareness of the Highway Code. We are considering options in this area, and further details will be shared in due course.As our road environment and technologies evolve, providing education for all road users throughout their lifetime is vital to improving road safety. As announced in the strategy to support a Lifelong Learning approach in the UK, the government will publish for the first time national guidance on the development and delivery of road safety education, training and publicity. Alongside this, the government will publish a manual to support the implementation of a Lifelong Learning approach for road safety.

What steps she is taking to help ensure continuity of (a) assessments and (b) support across local authorities for children of service personnel with special educational needs and disabilities when families relocate.

All those with statutory responsibilities towards children of service personnel with special education needs and disability (SEND), should ensure that the impact of their policies, administrative processes and patterns of provision do not disadvantage such children when families relocate.Statutory guidance is clear that when a child moves home across local authority boundaries, the education, health and care plan must be transferred from the ‘old’ local authority to the ‘new’ local authority on the day of the move or within 15 working days from when the old local authority first becomes aware of the move. Upon receiving the plan, the new local authority must arrange the special educational provision set out in it, although a child may have to be placed in a school other than the one named on the plan if the distance of the move makes it impractical to send the child to the named school.

What steps her Department is taking to enhance the accessibility of reporting mechanisms for fraud and cyber crime.

A new and improved national police reporting service for fraud and cyber crime called Report Fraud went live on 4 December 2025, replacing the previous Action Fraud service. The new service will ensure that victims of fraud have the confidence and trust to come forward, report instances of fraud, and know that their case will be dealt with properly.Report Fraud will speed up the time it takes to report, inform victims about what has happened or is happening with their report and significantly improve the speed and quality of information provided to law enforcement partners, boosting their chances of successful prosecutions.

Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that local authorities give due regard to the Armed Forces Covenant.

Local authorities are bound by the Armed Forces Covenant when they discharge their housing and homelessness duties, and independent Returning Officers and Electoral Registration Officers support service personnel and their families to register and to vote. There is statutory guidance for local authorities which takes account of the special circumstances of those who serve or have served in the Armed Forces and their families when discharging homelessness duties which can be found here, and when allocating accommodation, which can be found here.

Innovation and Technology, when she plans to implement the recommendations set out in policy paper entitled Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025.

The Government’s new strategy sets out our long-term vision for a world where the use of animals in science is eliminated in all but exceptional circumstances, achieved by creating a research and innovation system that drives the development and validation of alternative methods to using animals in science. The strategy has 26 commitments which will be delivered or started during 2026 and 2027 to prioritise the development of non-animal testing methods. This includes creating a preclinical translational models' hub and publishing areas of research interest for alternative methods.

What steps she is taking to help ensure young people from all backgrounds can pursue a career in STEM.

Following the Curriculum and Assessment review, our new national curriculum and GCSEs will have improved coherence, specificity, sequencing, and will be grounded in the most important knowledge and disciplinary skills.We will take forward many subject-specific Review recommendations for science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), including working with schools to support them in developing a triple science offer for all pupils, ahead of introducing a statutory entitlement. We will build on support for early years and year 7 maths teaching, including through Maths Hubs programmes.Through the Careers and Enterprise Company, the department funds high quality resources to embed STEM insights into the curriculum and match over 3,500 business volunteers, including 1,400 from STEM backgrounds, with schools and colleges to provide strategic support to develop their careers programme.These measures will ensure that every child leaves school having mastered the subjects they have been taught and is able to pursue a career in their chosen field.

Whether his Department has assessed the adequacy of access to CAMHS services for children in Eastleigh constituency.

The Department has made no assessment of the adequacy of access to children and adolescent mental health services for children in the Eastleigh constituency. The 10-Year Health Plan sets out ambitious plans to boost mental health support across the country, including children and young people’s mental health services in the Eastleigh constituency. As prioritised in our Medium-Term Planning Framework, we are taking action to reduce the longest waits for specialist mental health support, tackling regional disparities, and expanding access, thereby making services more productive so children and young people spend less time waiting for the treatment they need. We are also accelerating the rollout of Mental Health Support Teams in schools and colleges to reach full national coverage by 2029. As part of this, we are investing an additional £13 million to pilot enhanced training for staff so that they can offer more effective support to young people with complex needs, such as trauma, neurodivergence and disordered eating. With an additional 900,000 children and young people having access by this spring, 60% of all pupils will have access to this early support at school, up from 44% in spring 2024. More widely, we are, rolling out Young Futures Hubs. The Government’s first 50 Young Futures Hubs will bring together services at a local level to support children and young people, helping to ensure that young people can access early advice and wellbeing intervention. We will work to ensure there is no wrong door for young people who need support with their mental health.

What steps she is taking to support young carers in school in Eastleigh constituency.

Statutory guidance ‘Keeping children safe in education’ states that all school staff should be alert to the potential need for early help for young carers and requires designated safeguarding leads to be trained to understand and respond to their needs. These expectations apply to all schools ensuring young carers, including those in Eastleigh, are supported to thrive in education. The department is using school census data to shine a light on the educational disadvantage faced by young carers and published data on their attainment at key stages 2 and 4 for the first time last autumn. This increased visibility will ensure they receive tailored support and do not miss out on vital educational opportunities. Further, Ofsted’s new education inspection framework places a direct focus on their inclusion, safeguarding and personal development, with explicit reference to young carers. This will drive stronger practice, identification and support for young carers in Eastleigh and nationally.

What steps he is taking to support pubs with operating costs in Eastleigh constituency.

My department works closely with hospitality businesses to assess impact of rising operating costs across energy, staffing, compliance and taxation. This includes regular engagement with the sector, including through the Hospitality Sector Council which provides a formal forum to co-create solutions to pressures facing the industry. We also maintain regular engagement with trade bodies such as UKHospitality and the British Beer and Pub Association, as well as colleagues across government, to ensure that policy decisions are informed by the latest evidence and genuinely support the sector’s long-term stability.

What steps his Department is taking to help promote the growth of independent brewers in Eastleigh constituency.

The Government recognises that independent breweries are essential to the diversity and character of our pubs. We have conducted a review of the beer market to determine whether there are any structural barriers preventing small breweries, the findings from which are currently being considered by ministers. We’ve introduced a Hospitality Support Scheme to co-fund projects aligned with Department for Business & Trade and Hospitality Sector Council priorities, such as supporting initiatives like investing £440,000 to help rural pubs diversify as community hubs, delivered with Pub is The Hub to unlock over 40 stalled projects. We also maintain regular engagement with trade bodies such as Society of Independent Brewers, as well as colleagues across government, to ensure that policy decisions are informed by the latest evidence and genuinely support the sector’s long-term stability.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of transport accessibility on attendance at antenatal appointments and the take-up of routine vaccinations for babies; and what steps he is taking to reduce access barriers for families in underserved areas.

The Government recognises that there are transport accessibility issues for families in underserved areas. That is why we are delivering on the vision for neighbourhood health set out in the 10-Year Health Plan to bring care closer to babies, children, and young people.NHS England is already taking steps to improve access barriers for families in underserved areas. This includes: - hyperlocal projects in areas of high deprivation and low uptake to improve access to routine childhood vaccinations for underserved communities, offering walk-in appointments and extended evening and weekend hours;- Equity and Equality Guidance which asks local services to establish community hubs in the areas with the greatest maternal and perinatal health needs, including areas where transport infrastructure impacts uptake of services; and- rolling out the enhanced Midwifery Continuity of Carer model to provide targeted support for women most likely to experience poor outcomes.

What steps his Department is taking to support Primary Care Networks to deliver improved access to community-based and preventative care.

Primary care networks (PCNs) build on existing primary care services and enable greater provision of proactive, personalised, coordinated, and more integrated health and social care for our communities. The introduction of PCNs helps to deliver economies of scale, boost capacity, and improve access. The PCN contract, the Network Contract DES, which determines the funding PCNs receive and the services they provide, is discussed with the General Practitioners Committee (GPC) of the British Medical Association as part of annual general practice contract consultation between the Department, NHS England, and the GPC. Community health services are an essential building block in developing a neighbourhood health service, working closely with primary care, social care, and other services. To support the shift to neighbourhood health, we have set a clear target for systems to work to reduce long waits for community health services. By 2028/29 at least 80% of community health services activity should take place within 18 weeks. In addition, systems have been asked to increase the capacity of community health service to meet growth in demand and to work to standardise provision of core services.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to coordinate data collection across (a) police forces and (b) other public bodies to monitor dog attacks on postal workers, and if she will hold discussions with Cabinet colleagues on a cross-government approach to protect postal workers from such attacks.

Defra is working with the police, local authorities and animal welfare groups to help prevent dog attacks. As part of this work, the Government reconvened the Responsible Dog Ownership taskforce to explore measures to promote responsible dog ownership across all breeds of dog. The taskforce is considering improvements in data collection and reporting. We look forward to receiving its findings and recommendations in due course.