Written questions by Fleet.

How many people who are claiming PIP and who reside in the Bolsover constituency are (a) in work and (b) not in work.

The information requested is not readily available.Information on the impacts of the Pathways to Work Green Paper will be published in due course, and some information was published alongside the Spring Statement. These publications can be found in ‘Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working Green Paper’. A further programme of analysis to support development of the proposals in the Green Paper will be developed and undertaken in the coming months.

What discussions her Department has had with motorway service area operators on the renewal of leases of those areas.

Government owns the freehold of 19 motorway service areas. The DfT is in discussions with the operators regarding the future of the leases, recognising that many of these expire from around 2030. The nature of these discussions means they are commercially confidential.

What steps her Department is taking to support the roll out of (a) parking and (b) welfare facilities for HGV drivers at motorway service areas.

The Department for Transport (DfT) and industry are jointly investing up to £43.5 million to upgrade HGV parking and driver welfare facilities across England, including at independent truck stops and motorway service areas. This is on top of up to £26 million joint investment by National Highways and industry in lorry parking facilities, including Motorway Service Areas, along the strategic road network. This investment is supporting operators across 30 counties in England to improve security, toilets, showers and refreshment facilities and increase lorry parking spaces.DfT also established an industry-led Task and Finish Group (TGF) on HGV facilities, which commenced in February 2024. The TFG was a 12-month, industry-led forum focused on increasing capacity for safe and secure HGV parking, and driving industry adoption of existing HGV parking standards. DfT is considering the conclusions of this group.

What steps her Department is taking to encourage public-private collaboration in the (a) investment and (b) delivery of welfare facilities for HGV drivers.

The Department for Transport (DfT) and industry are jointly investing up to £43.5 million to upgrade HGV parking and driver welfare facilities across England, including at independent truck stops and motorway service areas. This is on top of up to £26 million joint investment by National Highways and industry in lorry parking facilities, including Motorway Service Areas, along the strategic road network. This investment is supporting operators across 30 counties in England to improve security, toilets, showers and refreshment facilities and increase lorry parking spaces.DfT also established an industry-led Task and Finish Group (TGF) on HGV facilities, which commenced in February 2024. The TFG was a 12-month, industry-led forum focused on increasing capacity for safe and secure HGV parking, and driving industry adoption of existing HGV parking standards. DfT is considering the conclusions of this group.

How many defence jobs (a) supported by direct expenditure by his Department and (b) in SMEs in the supply chain there are in Bolsover constituency.

The number of direct and indirect jobs supported by Ministry of Defence (MOD) expenditure with UK industry in 2022-23 by region can be found in the MOD supported employment estimates 2022/23 report on gov.uk. This shows MOD expenditure with UK industry in the East Midlands supported 5,500 direct jobs. The MOD does not hold the information in the format required to provide a more specific breakdown.

What estimate she has made of the number of 18 year olds achieving three or more A level passes in (a) Bolsover constituency and (b) its neighbouring constituencies.

The requested data can be found in the attached table. The table shows the number and proportion of students entering at least 3 A levels, broken down by the number of A level entries in the Bolsover constituency and the bordering constituencies of Amber Valley, Ashfield, Bassetlaw, Chesterfield, Derbyshire Dales, Mansfield, North East Derbyshire, and Rother Valley. There were zero A level students in the Bolsover constituency in the 2023/24 academic year. Data is based on students attending schools and colleges located in, rather than those resident in, each constituency who have reached the end of 16-18 study.

How many bus routes have been registered in Derbyshire in each of the last five years.

The Traffic Commissioners for Great Britain only publish data on a Traffic Area wide basis. The North Western Traffic Area includes the counties of Derbyshire, Cumbria, Lancashire, Cheshire, and the metropolitan boroughs of Merseyside and Greater Manchester. Between the 2019-20 and 2023-24 reporting years the Traffic Commissioner annual reports detail the following: Applications Processed Live local bus registrationsNewVariationsExisting registrations cancelled2023-24166554110147522022-23202842015696172021-22267948719525602020-21284725823932542019-2031775481875577 An existing registration being cancelled does not always mean a bus route was closed. For example, a registration could have been cancelled and replaced with another registration that covers much of the same route, or the route continues to be served by different operator.It should also be noted that prior to 2019-20 the total number of live local bus service registrations included an element of double-counting as services running across multiple local authority areas were recorded multiple times, e.g. a service running between Derbyshire and Greater Manchester was presented as two services when it should have been counted as a single service. This has now been rectified.

What steps she is taking to protect bus services in Derbyshire that travel to (a) hospitals, (b) leisure attractions and (c) other key out of town locations.

The government introduced the Bus Services (No.2) Bill on 17 December as part of its ambitious plan for bus reform. The Bill puts the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders and is intended to ensure bus services reflect the needs of the communities that rely on them right across England, including ensuring access to vital local services such as hospitals or providing links to leisure attractions. The government has committed to increasing accountability by including a measure on socially necessary services so that local authorities and bus operators have to have regard for alternatives to changing or cancelling services. In addition, the government has confirmed £955 million for the 2025 to 2026 financial year to support and improve bus services in England outside London. This includes £243 million for bus operators and £712 million allocated to local authorities, of which East Midlands Combined County Authority has been allocated £40.5 million. Local authorities can use this funding to introduce new bus routes, make services more frequent and protect crucial bus routes for local communities.

How many and what proportion of key stage four students who completed their GCSEs went on to each destination in (a) Bolsover, (b) Derbyshire and (c) England in each of the last five academic years for which data is available.

The department publishes information on the percentage of pupils continuing to a sustained education, apprenticeship or employment destination in England in the year after completing key stage 4 study (after year 11) from state-funded mainstream schools.The data in the links below contain the data requested.Bolsover: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/4125b56e-229e-4fa5-800f-08dd45163c72.Derbyshire: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/d0be6793-1dd3-41a7-800e-08dd45163c72.England: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/3b73cf3a-e357-4b8a-800d-08dd45163c72.

What proportion of 18-year-olds have taken (a) three or (b) more A-levels in (i) Bolsover constituency, (ii) Derbyshire and (iii) England in each of the last five academic years.

The attached table shows the number and proportion of students entering at least three A levels in England, the Bolsover constituency and the Derbyshire local authority over the past five academic years, broken down by the number of A level entries.There were zero A level students in the Bolsover constituency in the years in question.Data is based on students attending schools and colleges located in each geographic area who have reached the end of 16-18 study.

What steps she is taking to ensure all children who require a special school place are provided with one in Derbyshire.

In 2023, the department collected data from local authorities on available capacity in special schools, special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) units and resourced provision for the first time. The capacity data tells us approximately how many places local authorities think were available on 1 May 2023. In Derbyshire, there were approximately 1150 special school places.The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places, including for pupils with 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.We have now announced £740 million of capital for high needs funding in the 2025/26 financial year. 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.The department understands that local authorities will want certainty about the allocation of the high needs provision capital funding for the 2025/26 financial year as soon as possible, in order to develop their approach to supporting children and young people with SEND or who require alternative provision in their area. We will confirm allocations for the £740 million funding later in the spring.

How many special school places exist in Derbyshire; and if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of this number.

In 2023, the department collected data from local authorities on available capacity in special schools, special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) units and resourced provision for the first time. The capacity data tells us approximately how many places local authorities think were available on 1 May 2023. In Derbyshire, there were approximately 1150 special school places.The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places, including for pupils with 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.We have now announced £740 million of capital for high needs funding in the 2025/26 financial year. 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.The department understands that local authorities will want certainty about the allocation of the high needs provision capital funding for the 2025/26 financial year as soon as possible, in order to develop their approach to supporting children and young people with SEND or who require alternative provision in their area. We will confirm allocations for the £740 million funding later in the spring.

What recent discussions she has had with National Highways on works to improve congestion at junction 28 of the M1.

Officials from my Department regularly engage with National Highways on the progress of proposals to improve the safety and performance of Junction 28 of the M1. The proposals are in early stages of development and are being considered for possible delivery as part of a future Road Investment Strategy.

How many and what proportion of parliamentary constituencies in England do not have sixth form provision within their constituency boundaries.

Information on each educational establishment in England is available on the Get Information About Schools service, which is available here: https://get-information-schools.service.gov.uk/. In particular, the establishment fields download indicates which establishments have a sixth form and the parliamentary constituency they are in, available here: https://get-information-schools.service.gov.uk/Downloads.

What estimate she has made of when the review into the proposed North Derbyshire University Academy free school project in Bolsover will be completed.

The mainstream free schools review is ongoing and departmental officials are reviewing the latest information from Redhill Academy Trust and Derbyshire County Council. No decisions have been made yet and the department will not take decisions without considering the key evidence and data.The department will update all trusts and local authorities on next steps shortly. We will also provide an update on the overall review in due course.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of (a) the level of transport related social exclusion and (b) cuts to community transport by Derbyshire County Council on people in Bolsover constituency.

The government understands that a modern transport network is vital to kickstarting economic growth, providing access to services and preventing isolation. Good local transport services are an essential part of prosperous and sustainable communities, connecting people and enabling access to employment, education and essential services. The Government confirmed almost £1bn to support bus funding across England. Derbyshire County Council, which is now part of East Midland Combined Authority (EMCA), will benefit from a total bus funding of more than £40m which will be allocated to the EMCA to support, improve and protect bus services and keep fares down. The Bus Service Improvement Plan for Derbyshire County Council can be found here. We encourage local transport authorities to engage with community transport operators when preparing their Bus Service Improvement Plans, which are vital in setting out long-term plans for bus services and how they will be improved.

Communities and Local Government, how many care homes were referred to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman in (a) Bolsover constituency and (b) Derbyshire in each of the last five years; and how many were (i) privately-owned and (ii) local authority-owned.

The Local Government & Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) records complaints by the individual local authority or care provider, and not by geographical area. The LGSCO received 18 complaints about Derbyshire County Council’s adult social care services in the 2019-20 financial year, 19 in 2020-21, 22 in 2021-22, 29 in 2022-23 and 29 in 2023-24.

How many people are waiting for their asylum claims to be processed in Bolsover constituency.

The Home Office publishes data on asylum in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on asylum seekers awaiting an initial decision is published in table Asy_D03 of the ‘Asylum applications, initial decisions and resettlement detailed datasets’. This table is not broken down by local authority or constituency.Data on asylum seekers on support by local authority is published in table Asy_D11 of the ‘Asylum applications, initial decisions and resettlement detailed datasets’. Please note that not all asylum seekers awaiting a decision will be on support.Information on how to use the datasets can be found in the ‘Notes’ page of the workbooks.

How many people have been prosecuted for non-payment of a television licence in each of the last three years for which data is available in Bolsover constituency; and what form that prosecution took.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of prosecutions at magistrates’ courts in England and Wales for non-payment of a television licence, in the Outcomes by Offence data tool. This includes breakdowns by police force area. The data tool can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice System statistics quarterly: June 2024 - GOV.UK.Published data includes the police force area of prosecutions, but it is not possible to separately identify Bolsover constituency as this information is not available in the Court Proceedings Database held by the Ministry of Justice.

How many families in Bolsover constituency have been affected by the two-child benefit cap in each year since 2017.

Affected Universal Credit households (reporting a third or subsequent child born on or after 6 April 2017) in Bolsover constituency, by year YearNumber of UC householdsApril 2018-April 201940April 2020160April 2021280April 2022420April 2023530April 2024660 Notes:Base: Universal Credit households that had an assessment period that ended in April of each year.Data for April 2024 is latest available, in line with the most recent published data on this policy.DWP does not hold data on CTC households affected by the two-child limit.Figures rounded to two significant figures (to a minimum of 10), and values less than 10 are suppressed in line with disclosure rules.The difference between these figures and published statistics for Bolsover constituency is because the published stats are for those that do not receive some amount of child element due to the policy, whereas these figures include households that have an exception for all children affected by the policy.