Written questions by Duncan-Jordan.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of providing free school milk to the end of reception year for all children.

Awaiting answer.

What steps her Department is taking to ensure that independent faith schools meet independent school standards.

All private schools are required to comply with the Independent School Standards (ISS). Schools that fail to meet the ISS at inspection are subject to regulatory action as per the ‘Independent Schools: Regulatory and Enforcement Action’ policy statement.

If she will set out the support available for children in care to help them prepare for life post-18 years.

Local authorities have the primary responsibility for supporting care leavers and must publish their ‘local offer’ for care leavers, setting out their legal entitlements, plus any further discretionary support they provide. All care leavers are entitled to support from a Personal Adviser (PA), whose role is to help care leavers access support from mainstream services, such as housing, healthcare, benefits, and to provide practical and emotional support to help them prepare for the challenges of adulthood. PAs work with the young person to develop a pathway plan which should include their career aspirations and ambitions, providing access to high quality information, advice and guidance to inform their plans for continuing education, training or employment.The department is going further through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, placing a new duty on local authorities to provide Staying Close support to care leavers up to the age of 25 where their welfare requires it. The bill also requires local authorities to publish information on their arrangements for supporting care leavers’ transition to adulthood, and seeks to change housing legislation so that care leavers cannot be found intentionally homeless.

What assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the level of financial support for foster carers.

Foster carers do not foster for financial reward, but need adequate support to ensure that they, and the children in their care, can achieve and thrive.The department has set the National Minimum Allowance to cover the cost of looking after a child. The amount depends on the age and location of the child, but ranges from £176 to £309 per week, and increases annually along with tax relief and in line with inflation to reflect the cost of living.The department recognises that wider support, such as fees and expenses, remain inconsistent. To better understand this variation and the impact this has on recruitment and retention, we have committed to an in-depth study of fostering finances. Alongside this, we will work closely with local authorities to understand and promote the full range of incentives they offer to carers, such as council tax discounts or exemptions and reduced rate local authority parking.

What assessment has she made as to the suitability of the teachers' contractual obligation to work for a maximum of 1265 hours over 195 days in a year.

Directed and undirected time is a contractual provision unique to teaching, and we know that many teachers work significantly more than 1265 hours; so, this year’s remit asked for the School Teachers Review Body’s (STRB) views on the benefits and drawbacks of the current working hours arrangements within the ‘School teachers pay and conditions’ document, to gather information as part of work to reduce working hours and make teaching a more attractive profession. To be clear, the department has not proposed the removal, or a specific change, to the current 1265 directed hours limit, which is a key teacher protection. We will take into account the Review Body’s views and evidence from statutory consultees, including unions, before considering whether to pursue any change to the provision for teachers or leaders. No policy change is being recommended or decided upon at this stage.

What plans she has to review teachers' contractual obligation to work for a maximum of 1265 hours over 195 days in a year.

Directed and undirected time is a contractual provision unique to teaching, and we know that many teachers work significantly more than 1265 hours; so, this year’s remit asked for the School Teachers Review Body’s (STRB) views on the benefits and drawbacks of the current working hours arrangements within the ‘School teachers pay and conditions’ document, to gather information as part of work to reduce working hours and make teaching a more attractive profession. To be clear, the department has not proposed the removal, or a specific change, to the current 1265 directed hours limit, which is a key teacher protection. We will take into account the Review Body’s views and evidence from statutory consultees, including unions, before considering whether to pursue any change to the provision for teachers or leaders. No policy change is being recommended or decided upon at this stage.

What assessment has her Department made as to the impact of having to sit SATS on SEND children.

Statutory tests and assessments at primary school help measure the attainment of pupils in relation to the standards set out in the national curriculum and help teachers and parents identify where pupils may need additional support in a certain subject area.The key stage 2 tests are subject to robust test development processes, which include reviews involving serving teachers and experts in special educational needs (SEN) and trials with hundreds of Year 6 pupils. Children with SEN have a range of needs and abilities, and it is important they are able to participate in assessments to demonstrate their achievements. Schools are able to utilise a range of access arrangements where appropriate, while for any children with SEN and others who are working below the standards of the national curriculum assessments there are alternative teacher assessments.Primary assessments were reviewed as part of the independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, led by Professor Becky Francis. The review panel, which included an expert in SEN, published their final report in November, concluding that the primary assessment system is generally working well and that the assessments are important for evaluating pupils’ progress.

What rationale does her Department use to support the use of SATS for SEND children.

Statutory tests and assessments at primary school help measure the attainment of pupils in relation to the standards set out in the national curriculum and help teachers and parents identify where pupils may need additional support in a certain subject area.The key stage 2 tests are subject to robust test development processes, which include reviews involving serving teachers and experts in special educational needs (SEN) and trials with hundreds of Year 6 pupils. Children with SEN have a range of needs and abilities, and it is important they are able to participate in assessments to demonstrate their achievements. Schools are able to utilise a range of access arrangements where appropriate, while for any children with SEN and others who are working below the standards of the national curriculum assessments there are alternative teacher assessments.Primary assessments were reviewed as part of the independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, led by Professor Becky Francis. The review panel, which included an expert in SEN, published their final report in November, concluding that the primary assessment system is generally working well and that the assessments are important for evaluating pupils’ progress.

What steps she is taking to ensure access for pre-school children with additional needs to nursery places in the Poole constituency.

We want every child, including those with additional needs, to be able to access a childcare setting where they can get the best start in life. The special educational needs and disability (SEND) reforms we announced in February, will give early years settings the training, evidence-based tools and expert input they need to welcome children with diverse needs into their settings and provide the right support from day one. We are investing over £200 million to strengthen the SEND offer in Best Start Family Hubs, including funding a family-facing practitioner in every hub to join up support across early years settings, health visitors and SEND teams.Alongside this, we will work with local authorities to strengthen their childcare sufficiency planning for children with SEND and improve data on the availability of suitable places. This will provide parents greater confidence that their children can access the early education and childcare they are entitled to.

What steps are being taken to ensure that nursery places are available to children with a range of special needs in Poole constituency.

We want every child, including those with additional needs, to be able to access a childcare setting where they can get the best start in life. The special educational needs and disability (SEND) reforms we announced in February, will give early years settings the training, evidence-based tools and expert input they need to welcome children with diverse needs into their settings and provide the right support from day one. We are investing over £200 million to strengthen the SEND offer in Best Start Family Hubs, including funding a family-facing practitioner in every hub to join up support across early years settings, health visitors and SEND teams.Alongside this, we will work with local authorities to strengthen their childcare sufficiency planning for children with SEND and improve data on the availability of suitable places. This will provide parents greater confidence that their children can access the early education and childcare they are entitled to.

What assessment the Department has made of the potential implications for its policies of the findings of Magic Breakfast’s recent report entitled Root Causes of Child Morning Hunger.

The department appreciates the publication of the report and look forward to giving it our full consideration. We agree that a healthy breakfast at the start of the school day sets children up ready to learn. This is why the department is committed to delivering on the pledge to provide free breakfast clubs in every state-funded school with primary-aged children. Since April 2025, we have delivered over seven million breakfasts and offered places to almost 180,000 pupils across the country. We are investing a further £80 million to fund approximately 2,000 additional schools between April 2026 and March 2027.Alongside the rollout of free breakfast clubs, we are going further in our mission to lift 100,000 children out of poverty by expanding free school meals to children in all households receiving Universal Credit from the 2026/27 school year.

What recent assessment she has made of the prevalence of child morning hunger across early years, primary and secondary school settings in England and its impact on school readiness and attendance.

The department appreciates the publication of the report and look forward to giving it our full consideration. We agree that a healthy breakfast at the start of the school day sets children up ready to learn. This is why the department is committed to delivering on the pledge to provide free breakfast clubs in every state-funded school with primary-aged children. Since April 2025, we have delivered over seven million breakfasts and offered places to almost 180,000 pupils across the country. We are investing a further £80 million to fund approximately 2,000 additional schools between April 2026 and March 2027.Alongside the rollout of free breakfast clubs, we are going further in our mission to lift 100,000 children out of poverty by expanding free school meals to children in all households receiving Universal Credit from the 2026/27 school year.

If she will set out how much of the teacher training proposed in the Schools White Paper will be delivered in person.

Great teaching is the most important lever schools have for improving children’s attainment.The department provides a range of funded offers to schools to help them access high-quality professional development, which includes the new courses on Reception and special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) as part of the teacher training entitlement referenced in the Schools White Paper.When designing new training, the department is careful to consider how it will work with the schedules of teachers and schools, with many of them including a flexible, self-study element.For example, we have confirmed that the SEND and inclusion courses for teachers and leaders in schools and colleges will include a mixture of online self-study sessions and live facilitated sessions.We have also announced a package of materials for schools and colleges to support the development and delivery of in-house, in person training.

Whether the government has conducted any assessment of the efficacy of SEND reforms in Wales whilst developing the Schools White paper.

The department has already consulted with colleagues in the Welsh government on analysis published in the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) consultation document comparing rates of special education needs across both nations. The use of data to assess the efficacy of the Welsh SEND reforms introduced in 2021 was not feasible due to variation at school and local authority level.We will continue to work with the devolved governments as we progress the proposals set out in the SEND consultation document, as well as preparations for future legislation, to ensure that legislative impacts are fully understood and addressed.

Whether the government has conducted an assessment of the number and availability of trained professionals needed to meet the Experts at Hand plan published in the Schools White Paper.

I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for Poole to the answer of 24 March 2026 to Question 121419.

Whether the government has conducted a risk assessment of whether, as a result of the proposed reforms to the END system, schools could be discouraged from identifying children as having SEND due to inadequate resourcing and capacity.

Effective early identification and intervention is critical in improving the outcomes of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). In the SEND reform consultation document, we stated that the department intends to create clear statutory duties for schools, including identifying and meeting needs as early as possible and ensuring that they monitor children and young people’s progress to ensure timely and effective interventions. Parents can also continue to seek a needs assessment and obtain resolution via mediation or through appealing to the tribunal if necessary.To support schools to meet this legal duty, the department will develop National Inclusion Standards that set out evidence-informed tools, strategies and approaches for educators to draw on to identify and support children and young people with additional needs. By 2028, we will have invested up to £15 million to build the evidence base for and then bring into effect National Inclusion Standards.This comes alongside significant investment to bolster capacity and expertise. This includes £4 billion over three years, which includes £1.8 billion so every community has access to Experts at Hand, £1.6 billion directly to schools for early intervention, and over £200 million to train all staff across early years, schools and colleges.The children’s rights impact assessment conducted by the department on the proposed reforms in the SEND consultation document is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/69985b75047739fe61889ebe/SEND_reform_child_s_rights_impact_assessment.pdf.For schools and colleges, we will over time rebalance funding, by moving a portion of funding currently distributed through local authorities from high needs budgets directly into mainstream core budgets, to support earlier intervention and a more proactive approach to meeting needs. Alongside this, mainstream settings will continue to receive high needs funding from local authorities which covers the costs of delivery of a specialist provision package for those with the most complex needs, including through specialist bases.

With reference to her Department's policy paper entitled Every child achieving and thriving, published on 23 February 2026, how much and what proportion of the proposed teacher training will be delivered in person.

We are currently in the design phase of the £200 million professional development package referenced in the Every Child Achieving and Thriving White Paper. We are working with a wide range of experts, including the department’s Inclusion Expert Advisory Group and the Education Endowment Foundation, to identify what will be most impactful in supporting settings to be more inclusive.We have confirmed that the courses for teachers and leaders in schools and colleges will include a mixture of flexible online self-study sessions and live facilitated sessions. We have also announced a package of materials for schools and colleges to support the development and delivery of in-house, in person training.

What (a) estimate her Department has made of the number and (b) assessment of the adequacy of availability of trained professionals required to meet the Experts at Hand plan.

I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for Poole to the answer of 24 March 2026 to Question 121419.

With reference to the Schools White Paper 2026, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of Mission Coastal on young people in Poole.

The Schools White Paper launched Mission North East and Mission Coastal. The aim of the missions is to transform outcomes for children and young people and provide a blueprint for national change. The scope of Mission Coastal is still being developed.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of SATs on levels of school attendance of children with SEND.

The department has not identified evidence that SATs have a specific or disproportionate impact on the attendance of pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Internal analysis indicates that overall attendance patterns for pupils with SEND remain consistent during the SATs assessment period.Primary assessments are extensively trialled and reviewed by teachers and SEND specialists to ensure they are suitable for all and of appropriate difficulty, with modified papers and access arrangements available for pupils with SEND where needed.The department’s ‘Working together to improve school attendance’ guidance makes clear that pupils with SEND have the same right to education and the same attendance ambition as their peers, and that schools and local authorities should provide appropriate support to enable their attendance, including during assessment periods..