Written questions by Ellis.

What the level of attainment was of (a) girls and (b) boys under 11 in (i) maths and (ii) sciences in Ribble Valley constituency in the latest period for which data is available.

The percentage of girls and boys in the Ribble Valley constituency at the end of key stage 2, that met the expected standard in mathematics and science in 2023/24, is provided in the table below. MathematicsScienceGirls78%88%Boys80%84%

How many people have (a) applied for and (b) been awarded Pension Credit in Ribble Valley constituency since 10 July 2024.

The Department is not currently able to provide constituency data on Pension Credit applications and awards. Statistics on Pension Credit application volumes, for Great Britain only, were published on 29th May 2025. This includes numbers of applications that were received, awarded and not awarded, and outstanding, from week commencing 3rd April 2023 up to week commencing 19th May 2025: Pension Credit applications and awards: May 2025. The next quarterly release of Pension Credit applications and awards statistics for Great Britian has been announced for late-August 2025: Pension Credit Applications and Awards Statistics: August 2025 - Official statistics announcement - GOV.UK.

What assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of trends in levels of rural crime in Ribble Valley constituency; and what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to support (a) local police forces and (b) rural communities in tackling rural crime.

Rural crime can have devastating consequences for countryside communities and the agricultural sector. That is why this Government is committed to reducing crime in rural areas.Under our Safer Streets Mission reforms, rural communities will be safeguarded, with tougher measures to clamp down on anti-social behaviour, strengthened neighbourhood policing and stronger measures to prevent theft of farm equipment and fly-tipping.The Government is committed to strong neighbourhood policing for everyone in England and Wales, wherever they live. On 10 April, the Prime Minister outlined further details about our Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, including that by July, every community, including rural communities, will have named and contactable officers dedicated to addressing local issues.This financial year we will be providing the first Home Office funding since 2023 for the National Rural Crime Unit (NRCU), as well as continuing funding for the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU). The funding boost of over £800,000 in total will help the units tackle those crimes that predominantly affect our rural communities.This will allow these specialist units to continue their work in tackling rural and wildlife crime which can pose unique challenges for policing given the scale and isolation of rural areas.The National Police Chiefs’ Council Wildlife and Rural Crime Strategy 2022-2025 provides a framework through which policing, and its partners can work together to tackle the most prevalent threats and emerging issues which predominantly affect rural communities NPCC-Wildlife-Rural-Crime-Strategy-2022-2025.pdf (nwcu.police.uk). We are working closely with the NPCC and Defra to deliver the next iteration of their strategy, to ensure the Government’s Safer Streets Mission benefits every community no matter where they live, including rural communities.

Media and Sport, if her Department will make an assessment of the sustainability of local news outlets in (a) Ribble Valley and (b) Lancashire.

Sustainability of local journalism across the country is an area of particular concern for this Government, including in Ribble Valley and Lancashire. The Government understands the important work that local news does across the UK, including outlets such as the Lancs Live and the Lancashire Telegraph. We are developing a Local Media Strategy, in recognition of the importance of this vital sector. Our vision is a thriving local media that can continue to play an invaluable role as a key channel of trustworthy information at local level, reporting on the issues that matter to communities, reflecting their contributions and perspectives, and helping to foster a self-confident nation in which everyone feels that their contribution is part of an inclusive national story.We are working across Government and with other stakeholders as the Strategy develops, and we recently held a roundtable discussion with local news editors to discuss our planned approach and collaboration with industry on the Strategy. An industry working group has now been set up to consider the issues in more detail and we will announce more in the coming months.

Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to provide financial support to professionals in the creative sector.

The government provides financial support to creative professionals through DCMS funding programmes, grants from arm’s length bodies and wider government support, including through InnovateUK.The Creative Industries Sector Plan sets out an ambitious target to increase annual investment in the Creative Industries from £17 billion to £31 billion by 2035 and delivers £380 million of targeted spending in the sector over the next Spending Review. This builds on the £40 million in funding announced earlier this year, supporting cross-sector initiatives plus programmes in music, video games, film and TV.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of changes to employer National Insurance contributions on care home providers.

The Government did consider the cost pressures facing adult social care as part of the wider consideration of local government spending within the Spending Review process in 2024.To enable local authorities to deliver key services such as adult social care, the Government has made available up to £3.7 billion of additional funding for social care authorities in 2025/26, which includes an £880 million increase in the Social Care Grant.

What steps his Department is taking to increase the availability of beds in psychiatric intensive care units in (a) Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust and (b) other NHS trusts.

The number of mental health inpatient beds required to support a local population is dependent on both local mental health need and the effectiveness of the whole local mental health system in providing timely access to care and supporting people to stay well in the community, therefore reducing the likelihood of an inpatient admission being necessary. The Department expects individual trusts and local health systems to effectively assess and manage bed capacity and the ‘flow’ of patients being discharged or moving to another setting. Over the past few years, the National Health Service has been developing the community mental health framework to improve community support for people with severe mental illness, thus avoiding the need for an inpatient admission where possible, and freeing up more beds. The 2025/26 NHS Planning Guidance sets out the expectation that ICBs should work with providers to improve patient flow through mental health crisis and acute pathways, reducing the average length of stay in adult acute beds, and improving access to children and young people’s mental health services. As part of our mission to build an NHS fit for the future, we will make sure more mental health care is delivered in the community, close to people’s homes, through new models of care and support, so that fewer people need to go into hospital.

What steps her Department is taking to ensure that male members of staff are available if requested by callers to the Rape and Sexual Abuse Support line.

Supporting victims and survivors of sexual violence and abuse is a priority for this Government.The MOJ-commissioned 24/7 Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Line grant, delivered by Rape Crisis England and Wales, provides free and confidential emotional and listening support to all victims and survivors of rape and sexual abuse aged 16 and over, regardless of gender. Where appropriate, the service will signpost victims to longer-term support services, including therapeutic support.Whilst it is not possible for callers to request the gender of their call handler, the service receives a high level of positive feedback from survivors of all genders, and call handlers receive extensive training to equip them to support all victims and survivors of sexual violence, regardless of any protected characteristics. The Department works closely with the provider to ensure the service remains responsive, inclusive and trauma-informed so that it can continue to provide high quality support.

Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of mandating sustainable urban drainage systems in future planning developments to tackle (a) climate challenges, (b) water availability and (c) flood resilience.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to Question UIN 44742 on 22 April 2025.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of exempting parents from fines for school absences caused by their child's (a) neuro diverse needs and (b) pathological demand avoidance.

Tackling absence is at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity. Thanks to the efforts of the sector, overall absence is moving in the right direction, with children attending over 3.1 million more days this year compared to last, and over 100,000 fewer children persistently absent.Some children face complex barriers to attendance, such as pupils who have special educational needs and disabilities. Whatever the cause of absence, school staff should always first work with families and pupils to understand the barriers to attendance and provide support where possible. This might include providing pastoral support or making reasonable adjustments where a pupil has a disability. Our statutory guidance expects this ‘support first’ approach from all types of school. The guidance can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-improve-school-attendance.The law does not exempt parents from receiving penalty notices for absence based solely on their child’s characteristics. It is up to the school and the local authority to decide whether to issue a penalty notice for unauthorised absence or not. They retain discretion about whether to issue a penalty notice because only they know the specific facts of the particular case.The decision to issue a penalty notice must be made on an individual case by case basis and should only be used in cases where it is deemed likely to change parental behaviour and improve attendance, and in cases where support has already been provided and has not worked or not been engaged with or is not appropriate. For example, in cases of holidays taken in term-time.

How many people were recruited into National Institute for Health and Care Research supported phase 3 trials for (a) dementia, (b) cancer, (c) stroke and (d) coronary heart disease in the last five years.

A table showing the number of participants recruited into phase three trials in England, supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research, for dementia, cancer, stroke, and coronary heart disease in the last five years is attached. It should be noted that this includes studies on atherothrombosis and the prevention of coronary artery disease.The numbers of participants declined between the years 2020/21 and 2021/22. While it is not possible to confirm the exact reasons for this decline, this is likely due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the focus on recruiting participants to urgent COVID-19 studies over these years. Other fluctuations are likely due to large sample size studies within the dataset, which have since opened or closed recruitment.

How much additional funding her Department has allocated for special educational needs provision to Lancashire County Council since the Autumn Budget 2024.

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 over £12 billion. Of that total, Lancashire County Council is being allocated over £219 million through the high needs funding block of the dedicated schools grant (DSG), an increase of £18 million on this year’s DSG high needs block, calculated using the high needs national funding formula (NFF). This NFF allocation is an 8.8% increase per head of their 2-18 year old population, on their equivalent 2024/25 NFF allocation.In addition, local authorities will receive a separate core schools budget grant for high needs in the 2025/26 financial year. We plan to publish individual local authorities’ allocations later in May 2025.

What discussions he has had with the Care Quality Commission on whether the increase in the level of NHS-funded nursing care has increased the quality of care provided in care homes.

There have been no discussions between the department and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) on NHS-funded nursing care (FNC).The department is responsible for FNC policy and for setting the FNC rate each year. NHSE and integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for the implementation of FNC, including paying the FNC rate direct to care homes with nursing.The FNC rate for 2025/26 increased by 7.7% from the 2024/25 rate. From the 1 April 2025, this increases the standard weekly rate per eligible individual from £235.88 to £254.06 and from £324.50 to £349.50 for the higher rate payment. FNC contributes to the provision of nursing care by a registered nurse and does not cover the costs of wider non-nursing care or accommodation. The rate increase accounts for the increase in the cost of providing nursing care.Providers registered with CQC are expected to comply with the fundamental standards under the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. CQC monitor and assess services and publish their findings, and can take regulatory and enforcement action if services are not providing people with safe, effective, compassionate, high-quality care.

Innovation and Technology, what steps his Department is taking to support innovation in areas without mayoral devolution agreements.

We want to support local leaders to unlock their regions’ innovation potential – ensuring everyone benefits from innovation-led growth. Regardless of whether they have a Mayor or are a local authority. That’s why UK Research and Innovation invests in innovation across the UK, including through the £316 million Strength in Places Fund and £80 million Launchpads programmes. These are bolstering clusters in areas with and without devolution agreements. UKRI has awarded £85,000 to Ultraframe UK in the Ribble Valley, to develop high quality retrofit solutions.

What steps his Department is taking to improve pain management treatment for people with chronic urinary tract infections.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) guidelines are evidence-based recommendations for health and care in England and Wales. They help health and social care professionals to prevent ill health, promote good health, and improve the quality of care and services. Practitioners are expected to refer to the NICE’s guidance when assessing, signposting to, and prescribing pain relief medications, including for chronic urinary tract infections (UTIs).When providing clinical care for conditions such as chronic UTIs, it is a prescriber’s duty to prescribe medicines, including for pain relief, when they have adequate knowledge of the patient’s health and are satisfied that the medicine is clinically suitable for the patient.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help increase local authority capacity to recycle plastics.

Defra officials have engaged extensively with local authorities and representative bodies such as the Local Government Association and the Local Authority Recycling Advisory Committee on the introduction of the Simpler Recycling reforms to both workplaces and households. Through Simpler Recycling, every household and workplace across England will be able to recycle the same materials in the following core waste streams: metal, glass, plastic, paper and card, food waste, and garden waste (for households only). This includes some items which are not currently widely collected for recycling, such as cartons. From 31 March 2027, this will also include kerbside plastic film collections. Alongside Extended Producer Responsibility for packaging and a Deposit Return Scheme, these reforms should guarantee a consistent supply of recyclable materials. This should provide certainty, increasing investor confidence and unlocking investment in waste infrastructure. We are working with the waste management sector to explore opportunities for infrastructure development and how we support them to create these conditions. We recently published a Recycling Infrastructure Capacity Analysis in partnership with WRAP, setting out the size of the investment opportunity. Those looking to invest in waste management infrastructure are encouraged to engage with the National Wealth Fund.

What proportion of eligible families are receiving Healthy Start in Ribble Valley constituency.

The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) operates the Healthy Start scheme on behalf of the Department. Monthly figures for the number of people on the digital Healthy Start scheme are published on the NHS Healthy Start website, which is available at the following link:https://www.healthystart.nhs.uk/healthcare-professionals/The NHSBSA does not hold data on the number of families receiving Healthy Start. The number of people on the scheme in March 2025 for Ribble Valley was 104. The NHSBSA does not currently hold data on the number of people who are eligible for the scheme. An issue was identified with the source data that is used to calculate uptake of the NHS Healthy Start scheme. The NHSBSA has therefore removed data for the number of people eligible for the scheme and the uptake percentage from January 2023 onwards. The issue has only affected the data on the number of people eligible for the scheme. It has not prevented anyone from joining the scheme or continuing to access the scheme if they were eligible.

With reference to her Department's ambition for 75% of five-year-olds to be school ready by 2028, whether she plans to set sub-targets on outcomes for children with Special Education Needs and Disabilities.

Children’s early years are crucial to their development, health and life chances. That is why the Plan for Change set out the government’s ambition for a record proportion of children starting school ready to learn in the classroom. The department will measure our progress through 75% of children reaching a good level of development in the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile assessment by 2028.We are clear that in driving progress towards our milestone we must deliver better early education experiences and outcomes for children from low-income families and children with special educational needs and disabilities. The department will set out further plans in due course.

What assessment she has made of the sustainability of childcare in breakfast and after school clubs which rely on volunteers.

Schools have the discretion to identify the most appropriate workforce to deliver their breakfast and after school clubs, depending on their school’s context, existing staff contracts and arrangements and the mix of skills and experience required.The department does not collect data on the number of breakfast and after school clubs run by volunteers, however these clubs can be led by various individuals, including teachers, teaching assistants, school catering staff, volunteers such as parents or others specifically hired to deliver the role. As such, the department has not made any specific assessment of the sustainability of breakfast and after school clubs that rely on volunteers.

Whether her Department plans to set targets for the school readiness of children from low-income families.

Children’s early years are crucial to their development, health and life chances. That is why the Plan for Change set out the government’s ambition for a record proportion of children starting school ready to learn in the classroom. The department will measure our progress through 75% of children reaching a good level of development in the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile assessment by 2028.We are clear that in driving progress towards our milestone we must deliver better early education experiences and outcomes for children from low-income families and children with special educational needs and disabilities. The department will set out further plans in due course.