Written questions by Wrigley.

Whether her Department has considered replacing Ofsted with a new HM Inspector of Schools with a (a) revised inspection framework and (b) assessments of (i) staff and (ii) pupil wellbeing.

In 2024, Ofsted conducted its Big Listen, which was the largest consultation in its history, receiving more than 20,000 responses. It listened to the views of a wide range of parents, teachers, school leaders and others about the impact of inspection and where change was needed. Ofsted published its ‘Big Listen action monitoring report’ in December 2024 to show what progress it has made in responding to feedback from parents, pupils and education staff and an updated report was published earlier this month. It can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/big-listen-action-monitoring-reports.In February 2025, the department and Ofsted launched public consultations on proposals for a better accountability system. Ofsted’s consultation includes proposals for a revised school inspection framework, with the outcomes of inspection presented in a report card. The report card will cover key areas, including the school’s curriculum and pupils’ personal development and wellbeing. Ofsted has proposed a new role of ‘Nominee’, a member of staff who works closely with the inspection team, with the intention of making the inspection event more of a professional dialogue.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of including (a) pupil wellbeing and (b) staff retention data in school performance tables.

The department currently publishes school and college performance data on its compare school and college performance service. This service can be accessed at: https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/.The department continues to keep the performance measures published on compare school and college performance under review. We draw on a range of data, including school censuses and Individualised Learner Records, and data submitted directly by Awarding Organisations. We carry out extensive validation and quality assurance checks on the data as well as the resulting performance measures.The department is currently consulting on school accountability reform. This includes a proposal to introduce school profiles, an accessible one-stop shop for information on schools, incorporating new Ofsted report cards but also presenting a range of up-to-date performance data and other information that matters to parents, all in one place. We are inviting views on which information we should include on school profiles, which could include, for example, school workforce information or information about pupil wellbeing. The consultation on school accountability reform is inviting responses until 28 April 2025 and can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/school-accountability-reform.

What research her Department has conducted on the effectiveness of lighter-touch testing compared to mandatory SATs in assessing pupil progress.

Key stage 2 assessments are essential to check all pupils’ progress in mastering the basics of reading, writing and mathematics. They are also essential to identify any children who may need extra support and prepare them to achieve and thrive at secondary school. The assessments help teachers identify where pupils need more support in comparison to national expectations. They also allow the department to hold schools to account to ensure they support all pupils, regardless of background or prior attainment, to achieve sufficient progress and attainment, helping secure high and rising standards.It is important that schools encourage their pupils to do their best in the tests, however, the department does not recommend that pupils in primary school devote excessive preparation time for the assessment and not at the expense of their mental health and wellbeing.Our independent Curriculum and Assessment Review panel have been clear that SATs assessments are an important part of assessing children’s progress throughout primary school, and that the system of primary assessment is currently working well. As the Review moves into its second phase, it will consider how to build on effective systems to support the attainment of all children.

Whether her Department has made an assessment of the impact of Ofsted inspections on teacher (a) wellbeing and (b) retention in the past five years.

In 2024, Ofsted conducted its Big Listen, which was the largest consultation in its history, receiving more than 20,000 responses. It listened to the views of a wide range of parents, teachers, school leaders and others about the impact of inspection and where change was needed. Ofsted published its ‘Big Listen action monitoring report’ in December 2024 to show what progress it has made in responding to feedback from parents, pupils and education staff and an updated report was published earlier this month. It can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/big-listen-action-monitoring-reports.In February 2025, the department and Ofsted launched public consultations on proposals for a better accountability system. Ofsted’s consultation includes proposals for a revised school inspection framework, with the outcomes of inspection presented in a report card. The report card will cover key areas, including the school’s curriculum and pupils’ personal development and wellbeing. Ofsted has proposed a new role of ‘Nominee’, a member of staff who works closely with the inspection team, with the intention of making the inspection event more of a professional dialogue.

What steps her Department is taking to improve the \(a) accuracy and (b) breadth of school performance indicators to ensure they reflect (i) pupil wellbeing and (ii) teacher satisfaction alongside academic outcomes.

The department currently publishes school and college performance data on its compare school and college performance service. This service can be accessed at: https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/.The department continues to keep the performance measures published on compare school and college performance under review. We draw on a range of data, including school censuses and Individualised Learner Records, and data submitted directly by Awarding Organisations. We carry out extensive validation and quality assurance checks on the data as well as the resulting performance measures.The department is currently consulting on school accountability reform. This includes a proposal to introduce school profiles, an accessible one-stop shop for information on schools, incorporating new Ofsted report cards but also presenting a range of up-to-date performance data and other information that matters to parents, all in one place. We are inviting views on which information we should include on school profiles, which could include, for example, school workforce information or information about pupil wellbeing. The consultation on school accountability reform is inviting responses until 28 April 2025 and can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/school-accountability-reform.

What steps her Department is taking to reduce teaching to the test in primary schools to improve pupils' (a) engagement and (b) learning outcomes.

Key stage 2 assessments are essential to check all pupils’ progress in mastering the basics of reading, writing and mathematics. They are also essential to identify any children who may need extra support and prepare them to achieve and thrive at secondary school. The assessments help teachers identify where pupils need more support in comparison to national expectations. They also allow the department to hold schools to account to ensure they support all pupils, regardless of background or prior attainment, to achieve sufficient progress and attainment, helping secure high and rising standards.It is important that schools encourage their pupils to do their best in the tests, however, the department does not recommend that pupils in primary school devote excessive preparation time for the assessment and not at the expense of their mental health and wellbeing.Our independent Curriculum and Assessment Review panel have been clear that SATs assessments are an important part of assessing children’s progress throughout primary school, and that the system of primary assessment is currently working well. As the Review moves into its second phase, it will consider how to build on effective systems to support the attainment of all children.

What steps her Department is taking to ensure that independent schools are subject to the same inspection standards as state-funded schools.

The regulatory regime for private schools, as set out in the 2008 Education and Skills Act, is based on compliance with the independent school standards, and failure can lead to a notice to improve, restrictions being placed on school operations or, following long-term or very serious failures, deregistration which requires closure. Private schools do not receive public funding, so are regulated to ensure that they provide a safe and suitable education as required by the independent school standards, whilst being able to operate as independent private businesses.

If she will make the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund permanent.

An announcement on funding for the adoption and special guardianship support fund will be made as soon as possible. All future funding decisions will be considered as part of the next spending review.

If she will make an assessment of the adequacy of the availability of SEND places in schools in Devon.

Following the Autumn Budget 2024, the department is providing an increase of £1 billion for high needs budgets in England in the 2025/26 financial year, bringing total high needs funding for children and young people with complex special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) to £11.9 billion. Of that total, Devon County Council is being allocated over £125 million through the high needs funding block of the dedicated schools grant (DSG), an increase of £8.9 million on this year’s DSG high needs block, calculated using the high needs national funding formula (NFF). This NFF allocation is a 7.7% increase per head of their 2 to 18-year-old population, on their equivalent 2024/25 NFF allocation.Additionally, we have announced £740 million of capital for high needs funding in 2025/26. This can be used to deliver new places in mainstream and special schools, as well as other specialist settings. It can also be used to improve the suitability and accessibility of existing buildings. We will confirm allocations for the £740 million funding later in the spring.Regarding special school places, in 2023 the department for the first time collected data from local authorities on capacity in special schools, SEND units and resourced provision in mainstream schools. This data is published at local authority level in the annual school capacity publication, which can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-capacity. The latest available data shows that, as at 1 May 2023, there were approximately 1,830 special school places and 86 SEN Unit and resourced provision places in mainstream schools in Devon.The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places, including for pupils SEND, sits with local authorities. The department supports local authorities to provide suitable school places for children and young people with SEND through annual high needs capital funding.

Whether she plans to make additional increases in (a) funding and (b) placements for special schools in Devon .

Following the Autumn Budget 2024, the department is providing an increase of £1 billion for high needs budgets in England in the 2025/26 financial year, bringing total high needs funding for children and young people with complex special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) to £11.9 billion. Of that total, Devon County Council is being allocated over £125 million through the high needs funding block of the dedicated schools grant (DSG), an increase of £8.9 million on this year’s DSG high needs block, calculated using the high needs national funding formula (NFF). This NFF allocation is a 7.7% increase per head of their 2 to 18-year-old population, on their equivalent 2024/25 NFF allocation.Additionally, we have announced £740 million of capital for high needs funding in 2025/26. This can be used to deliver new places in mainstream and special schools, as well as other specialist settings. It can also be used to improve the suitability and accessibility of existing buildings. We will confirm allocations for the £740 million funding later in the spring.Regarding special school places, in 2023 the department for the first time collected data from local authorities on capacity in special schools, SEND units and resourced provision in mainstream schools. This data is published at local authority level in the annual school capacity publication, which can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-capacity. The latest available data shows that, as at 1 May 2023, there were approximately 1,830 special school places and 86 SEN Unit and resourced provision places in mainstream schools in Devon.The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places, including for pupils SEND, sits with local authorities. The department supports local authorities to provide suitable school places for children and young people with SEND through annual high needs capital funding.

If she will make an assessment of the adequacy of the number of special school places available in Devon.

Following the Autumn Budget 2024, the department is providing an increase of £1 billion for high needs budgets in England in the 2025/26 financial year, bringing total high needs funding for children and young people with complex special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) to £11.9 billion. Of that total, Devon County Council is being allocated over £125 million through the high needs funding block of the dedicated schools grant (DSG), an increase of £8.9 million on this year’s DSG high needs block, calculated using the high needs national funding formula (NFF). This NFF allocation is a 7.7% increase per head of their 2 to 18-year-old population, on their equivalent 2024/25 NFF allocation.Additionally, we have announced £740 million of capital for high needs funding in 2025/26. This can be used to deliver new places in mainstream and special schools, as well as other specialist settings. It can also be used to improve the suitability and accessibility of existing buildings. We will confirm allocations for the £740 million funding later in the spring.Regarding special school places, in 2023 the department for the first time collected data from local authorities on capacity in special schools, SEND units and resourced provision in mainstream schools. This data is published at local authority level in the annual school capacity publication, which can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-capacity. The latest available data shows that, as at 1 May 2023, there were approximately 1,830 special school places and 86 SEN Unit and resourced provision places in mainstream schools in Devon.The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places, including for pupils SEND, sits with local authorities. The department supports local authorities to provide suitable school places for children and young people with SEND through annual high needs capital funding.

What additional SEND (a) funding and (b) assistance has been made available for Devon since 5 July 2024.

As announced at the Autumn Budget 2024, the department is providing an additional £1 billion for high needs budgets in England in the 2025/26 financial year, bringing total high needs funding for children and young people with complex special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) to £11.9 billion. Of that total, Devon County Council is being allocated over £125 million through the high needs funding block of the dedicated schools grant (DSG). This represents an increase of £8.9 million on this year’s DSG high needs block, calculated using the high needs national funding formula (NFF). This NFF allocation is an increase of 7.7% per head of their 2 to 18 year-old population, against their equivalent 2024/25 NFF allocation.In addition to the DSG, local authorities will also receive a separate core schools budget grant (CSBG), and funding in relation to the increase in employers’ National Insurance contributions, in the 2025/26 financial year. The CSBG, alongside other separate grants payable this year, are designed to help special schools and alternative provision with the costs of teachers’ pay and pension increases, as well as other staff pay increases. Individual local authorities’ allocations of this funding for 2025/26 will be published in due course.The department has also been working closely with all statutory partners involved in delivering SEND services in Devon since their local area SEND inspection in May 2022, which found that insufficient progress had been made against the four areas of significant weakness identified during their previous inspection in December 2018.In response to these findings, the department issued an Improvement Notice in September 2022, and an Accelerated Progress Plan was developed with the local authority and integrated care board. In addition, the department and NHS England have both deployed SEND advisers to assist the local area and to offer advice and support.As part of the department’s intervention, there are robust monitoring arrangements in place. The department is holding regular formal monitoring meetings with the local authority and partners to hold the local area to account for making the necessary improvements in services and to consider what further support can be provided as part of our SEND intervention in Devon.My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education has now also announced £740 million for high needs capital funding in 2025/26 to support children and young people with SEND or who require alternative provision.This new funding can be used to adapt classrooms to be more accessible for children with SEND and create specialist facilities within mainstream schools that can deliver more intensive support adapted to suit the pupils’ needs, alongside continuing to provide places to support pupils in special schools with the most complex needs.We will confirm plans to allocate funding for the 2025/26 financial year later in the spring.

If she will publish the waiting times for (a) SEND assessments, (b) EHCP packages, (c) places at SEND schools and (d) total SEND provision in Devon.

Where a request is made, a local authority must decide within a statutory six-week deadline, unless exceptions apply, whether to conduct an education, health and care (EHC) needs assessment for a child or young person. Where appropriate, the local authority must then draw up a plan which names a setting within a statutory twenty-week deadline, unless exceptions apply. In some circumstances the local authority will name a special school on an EHC plan and the school must then admit the pupil. This is the usual way in which a pupil gets a place at such a school.Information relating to the time between the date of a request for an assessment and the date of an assessment outcome at local authority level was released in the answer of 29 July 2024 to Question 2202.The department publishes official statistics on EHC plans annually here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/education-health-and-care-plans. This includes data at local authority level on the rate of EHC plans issued within the statutory deadline of twenty weeks.The department does not collect information on waiting times for placements for specialist provision.

What steps her Department plans to take to increase (a) salaries for and (b) retention of teaching assistants in Devon.

This government values and recognises the professionalism of the entire school workforce, which is why we are reinstating the School Support Staff Negotiating Body (SSSNB) through the Employment Rights Bill, introduced in Parliament on 10 October 2024.The SSSNB will mean that employers and employee representatives come together to negotiate terms and conditions and pay for school support staff, to ensure that support staff are properly recognised and rewarded for the work they do. The SSSNB will also be tasked with establishing a national terms and conditions handbook and advising on suitable training and career progression routes that recognise the varied and vital roles support staff undertake.The SSSNB will help address the recruitment and retention challenges state-funded schools are facing for support staff. This in turn will support work to drive high and rising standards in schools and ensure we give children the best possible life chances.To support schools with overall costs, this government committed to providing almost £1.1 billion in additional funding in the 2024/25 financial year. Further to this, at the Autumn Budget 2024 the government announced an additional £2.3 billion for mainstream schools and children and young people with high needs for 2025/26, compared to 2024/25.Most school support staff, including teaching assistants, are currently employed on National Joint Council (NJC) for local government services pay and conditions. The NJC is a negotiating body made up of representatives from trade unions and local government employers. Local government employees covered by the NJC for local government services pay and conditions were offered a flat cash uplift of £1,290 from 1 April 2024. In October 2024 an agreement was reached on the 2024/25 pay award for these employees, which covers the period 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025.Teaching assistants (TAs) play a vital role in children’s education. There are 282,925 full-time equivalent TAs in state-funded schools in England – up by approximately 1,800 since last year. The number of TAs has increased year on year since 2017/18.

If she will provide wage support to the lowest paid teaching (a) staff and (b) assistants in SEND schools in Devon.

This government values and recognises the professionalism of the entire school workforce, which is why we are reinstating the School Support Staff Negotiating Body (SSSNB) through the Employment Rights Bill, introduced in Parliament on 10 October 2024.The SSSNB will mean that employers and employee representatives come together to negotiate terms and conditions and pay for school support staff, to ensure that support staff are properly recognised and rewarded for the work they do. The SSSNB will also be tasked with establishing a national terms and conditions handbook and advising on suitable training and career progression routes that recognise the varied and vital roles support staff undertake.The SSSNB will help address the recruitment and retention challenges state-funded schools are facing for support staff. This in turn will support work to drive high and rising standards in schools and ensure we give children the best possible life chances.To support schools with overall costs, this government committed to providing almost £1.1 billion in additional funding in the 2024/25 financial year. Further to this, at the Autumn Budget 2024 the government announced an additional £2.3 billion for mainstream schools and children and young people with high needs for 2025/26, compared to 2024/25.Most school support staff, including teaching assistants, are currently employed on National Joint Council (NJC) for local government services pay and conditions. The NJC is a negotiating body made up of representatives from trade unions and local government employers. Local government employees covered by the NJC for local government services pay and conditions were offered a flat cash uplift of £1,290 from 1 April 2024. In October 2024 an agreement was reached on the 2024/25 pay award for these employees, which covers the period 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025.Teaching assistants (TAs) play a vital role in children’s education. There are 282,925 full-time equivalent TAs in state-funded schools in England – up by approximately 1,800 since last year. The number of TAs has increased year on year since 2017/18.

If she will provide additional support for adopted children impacted by (a) abuse, (b) neglect and (c) violence before adoption.

Adoption England is committed to improving support for families and is working to ensure every child has an individual adoption support plan at the point of placement, which will identify current and future needs. The adoption and special guardianship support fund (ASGSF) provides trauma and attachment support for adoptive children, many of whom will have suffered abuse, neglect and violence before adoption. Previously, the Institute of Public Care (IPC), at Oxford Brookes University carried out a three-year mixed-method evaluation on behalf of the department between 2018 and 2021. Their report can be accessed at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6391c41a8fa8f53ba783e8ad/Evaluation_of_the_Adoption_Support_Fund_2018_to_2022_-_summary_.pdf. The report found that “a high proportion (83%) parents and guardians participating in the longitudinal survey found the funded support helpful or very helpful overall”. The IPC report also found “a statistically significant (substantial, with large effect size) improvement in parent and guardian estimates of the extent to which the main aim of the funded support had been met by the end of the intervention” and reported that parents and guardians scored on average “7 out of 10 in relation to a question about the extent to which positive change(s) for their child and/or family had been sustained 6 months since the conclusion of ASF-funded support”. The impact of the therapies available within the ASGSF is currently being assessed from multiple angles. The National Institute for Health Research is currently conducting a randomised control trial into Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP), one of the main therapies the ASGSF funds. This research is currently in its third and final phase and it will provide robust evidence regarding the effectiveness of DDP. The department started to collect data from outcomes measurement tools for ASGSF-funded therapies in December 2023. As therapy treatment comes to an end, this data will give an overall picture of the impact and adequacy of individual ASGSF-funded therapies.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the adoption and special guardianship support fund on families.

Adoption England is committed to improving support for families and is working to ensure every child has an individual adoption support plan at the point of placement, which will identify current and future needs. The adoption and special guardianship support fund (ASGSF) provides trauma and attachment support for adoptive children, many of whom will have suffered abuse, neglect and violence before adoption. Previously, the Institute of Public Care (IPC), at Oxford Brookes University carried out a three-year mixed-method evaluation on behalf of the department between 2018 and 2021. Their report can be accessed at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6391c41a8fa8f53ba783e8ad/Evaluation_of_the_Adoption_Support_Fund_2018_to_2022_-_summary_.pdf. The report found that “a high proportion (83%) parents and guardians participating in the longitudinal survey found the funded support helpful or very helpful overall”. The IPC report also found “a statistically significant (substantial, with large effect size) improvement in parent and guardian estimates of the extent to which the main aim of the funded support had been met by the end of the intervention” and reported that parents and guardians scored on average “7 out of 10 in relation to a question about the extent to which positive change(s) for their child and/or family had been sustained 6 months since the conclusion of ASF-funded support”. The impact of the therapies available within the ASGSF is currently being assessed from multiple angles. The National Institute for Health Research is currently conducting a randomised control trial into Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP), one of the main therapies the ASGSF funds. This research is currently in its third and final phase and it will provide robust evidence regarding the effectiveness of DDP. The department started to collect data from outcomes measurement tools for ASGSF-funded therapies in December 2023. As therapy treatment comes to an end, this data will give an overall picture of the impact and adequacy of individual ASGSF-funded therapies.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of specialist therapeutic providers.

The department knows that children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) frequently require access to additional support from a broad specialist workforce across education, health and care, including speech and language therapists and other therapy services. Across England, community health services, including therapies, are locally commissioned to enable systems to best meet the needs of their communities. The department is working closely with NHS England to improve access to community health services. As part of the government’s mission to build an NHS that is fit for the future, the department will also provide access to specialist mental health professionals in every school through expanding Mental Health Support Teams, so every young person has access to early support to address problems before they escalate.

What steps her Department is taking to increase the proportion of eligible children who claim their entitlement to a free school meal; and if she will take steps to (a) reduce the complexity of application forms, (b) provide forms in multiple languages, (c) increase awareness of the free school meal entitlement and (d) help tackle stigmas associated with claiming free school meals.

There are currently around 2.1 million pupils eligible for and claiming free school meals (FSM). The department recognises the vital role played by FSM and strongly encourages schools and local authorities to support eligible families take this entitlement up.To make claiming free meals as easy possible, we have developed a model registration form to help schools encourage parents to sign up for FSM, which is available in the department’s published guidance.The department also provides the Eligibility Checking System, which allows local authorities to quickly verify eligibility for FSM. Improvements to this system will be rolled out nationally by March 2026, to allow parents and schools to check eligibility for free meals independently from their local authorities, which has the potential to make claiming FSM easier.Further to this, the department is aware of a range of measures aimed at supporting take-up of FSM, including through approaches being trialled by local authorities. We welcome local authorities taking action to ensure government support reaches families, subject to them meeting legal requirements, including those on data protection.We continue to engage with stakeholders and other government departments to better understand potential barriers to claiming free meals, including stigma. We will consider whether further work to improve enrolment for free meals is needed through the work of the child poverty taskforce.

What assessment her Department has made of changes to National Insurance Contributions to home-to-school service contract suppliers beyond March 2025.

I refer the hon. Member for Newton Abbott to the answer of 29 January 2025 to Question 26397.