Written questions by Duncan-Jordan.

With reference to the Children's Commissioner's report entitled Growing up in a low-income family: Children’s experiences, published in July 2025, whether she plans to accept that report's recommendations.

The Child Poverty Taskforce, of which my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education is co-chair, is committed to listening to the voices of children and families and bringing in the voices of these families directly into our work. The Office of the Children’s Commissioner’s report ‘Growing up in a low-income family: Children's experiences’ was commissioned by the Child Poverty Taskforce to provide evidence on children’s lived experience of poverty to support the development of an ambitious child poverty strategy. This valuable research forms part of the department’s ongoing wider work to ensure those voices are a central part of strategy development.The Child Poverty Unit, based in the Cabinet Office, worked closely with the Office of the Children’s Commissioner on the report, including at research design and reporting stages, and the findings have already been considered as part of our strategy development.I am planning to meet with the Children's Commissioner for England to discuss the report in detail and I will also be co-chairing a Children’s Commissioners roundtable with the Minister for Employment in September to bring together all four Children’s Commissioners for a broader discussion on child poverty.The government is considering the report’s recommendations in advance of publication of the strategy in the autumn.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of the recommendations made in the Children's Commissioner's report entitled Growing up in a low-income family: Children’s experiences, published in July 2025.

The Child Poverty Taskforce, of which my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education is co-chair, is committed to listening to the voices of children and families and bringing in the voices of these families directly into our work. The Office of the Children’s Commissioner’s report ‘Growing up in a low-income family: Children's experiences’ was commissioned by the Child Poverty Taskforce to provide evidence on children’s lived experience of poverty to support the development of an ambitious child poverty strategy. This valuable research forms part of the department’s ongoing wider work to ensure those voices are a central part of strategy development.The Child Poverty Unit, based in the Cabinet Office, worked closely with the Office of the Children’s Commissioner on the report, including at research design and reporting stages, and the findings have already been considered as part of our strategy development.I am planning to meet with the Children's Commissioner for England to discuss the report in detail and I will also be co-chairing a Children’s Commissioners roundtable with the Minister for Employment in September to bring together all four Children’s Commissioners for a broader discussion on child poverty.The government is considering the report’s recommendations in advance of publication of the strategy in the autumn.

Whether she plans to publish a formal response to the Children's Commissioner's report entitled Growing up in a low-income family: Children’s experiences, published in July 2025.

The Child Poverty Taskforce, of which my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education is co-chair, is committed to listening to the voices of children and families and bringing in the voices of these families directly into our work. The Office of the Children’s Commissioner’s report ‘Growing up in a low-income family: Children's experiences’ was commissioned by the Child Poverty Taskforce to provide evidence on children’s lived experience of poverty to support the development of an ambitious child poverty strategy. This valuable research forms part of the department’s ongoing wider work to ensure those voices are a central part of strategy development.The Child Poverty Unit, based in the Cabinet Office, worked closely with the Office of the Children’s Commissioner on the report, including at research design and reporting stages, and the findings have already been considered as part of our strategy development.I am planning to meet with the Children's Commissioner for England to discuss the report in detail and I will also be co-chairing a Children’s Commissioners roundtable with the Minister for Employment in September to bring together all four Children’s Commissioners for a broader discussion on child poverty.The government is considering the report’s recommendations in advance of publication of the strategy in the autumn.

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of job losses at (a) Bournemouth University and (b) the wider higher education sector on the (i) quality of education and (ii) range of courses available to (A) existing and (B) future students.

The department recognises that some higher education (HE) providers are making difficult decisions around staffing in order to safeguard their financial sustainability. Ultimately the sector is independent from government and as such must continue to make the necessary and appropriate financial decisions to ensure their long-term sustainability.However, we expect providers to work with staff, using their knowledge and experience to help identify how best to operate efficiently. All efficiency measures taken by the sector should provide a better long-term future for students, staff and the country.The government provides funding through the Strategic Priorities Grant (SPG) on an annual basis to support teaching and students in HE. This includes funding to support teaching of expensive-to-deliver subjects such as science and engineering, access and participation of students from under-represented groups, and world-leading specialist providers.  The total SPG for the 2025/26 financial year will be £1.348 million in recurrent programme grant and £84 million for capital to support teaching and learning.

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of a national digital rollout of evidence-based parenting programmes similar to Australia.

Giving children the best start in life is the foundation of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity. That is why we have set the milestone of a record proportion of children starting school ready to learn in the classroom. Developmental areas include language, mathematics and literacy, and personal, social and emotional development. Accessible and integrated baby and early childhood services are required to build the foundations for future success in meeting these development goals. The Department for Education and the Department for Health and Social Care are delivering critical elements of the government’s Plan for Change. This includes the announcement of £126 million of funding to continue delivery of the Family Hubs and Start for Life programme, a joint programme between both departments. This investment included:£36.5 million for bespoke perinatal mental health and parent-infant relationship support.£10.7 million to help parents create rich home learning environments to support early childhood development.£20 million to enhance parenting support for expectant parents and those with babies aged 0 to 2. All types of evidence-based parenting programmes are being considered, including in-person and digital. This is because of the importance of parent-child relationships during this critical period of development. 75 of the most disadvantaged local authorities in England currently receive funding from the department to deliver support to parents as part of the Family Hubs and Start for Life programme. Evidence shows that high-quality parenting programmes alongside wider integrated support for parents can improve child and parent outcomes across different areas of development. These 75 local authorities are expected to provide evidence-based interventions to parents. Evidence-based interventions are a key approach to improving consistency and quality of parenting support services. They include increasing practitioners’ knowledge of scientifically proven theories of change and providing them with effective methods for engaging vulnerable families – including those experiencing poverty. This allows local authorities to reach the most disadvantaged families through universal and targeted support, and to address early challenges during this critical period of development. Local authorities must use the Early Intervention Foundation guidebook, or similar, to select programmes that are strongly evidence-based and best suit their local needs and circumstances. Evidence-based programmes included in the guidebook include Triple P and Incredible Years. From the rigorous assessment that is required for programmes to be included in the guidebook, we know that these programmes have a demonstrated impact on outcomes. These include language and mathematics skills, as well as personal, social and emotional development outcomes, like self-regulation and building relationships, all of which are critical to meeting the milestone for good levels of development by 2028. Over the next spending review period, the department will continue to work with local authorities, its voluntary community sector partners and other ‘what works’ bodies. This enables us to test and learn the best ways to provide parents with support and access to evidence-based parenting programmes.

Whether she has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the potential merits of evidence-based parenting programmes as part of the Plan for Change.

Giving children the best start in life is the foundation of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity. That is why we have set the milestone of a record proportion of children starting school ready to learn in the classroom. Developmental areas include language, mathematics and literacy, and personal, social and emotional development. Accessible and integrated baby and early childhood services are required to build the foundations for future success in meeting these development goals. The Department for Education and the Department for Health and Social Care are delivering critical elements of the government’s Plan for Change. This includes the announcement of £126 million of funding to continue delivery of the Family Hubs and Start for Life programme, a joint programme between both departments. This investment included:£36.5 million for bespoke perinatal mental health and parent-infant relationship support.£10.7 million to help parents create rich home learning environments to support early childhood development.£20 million to enhance parenting support for expectant parents and those with babies aged 0 to 2. All types of evidence-based parenting programmes are being considered, including in-person and digital. This is because of the importance of parent-child relationships during this critical period of development. 75 of the most disadvantaged local authorities in England currently receive funding from the department to deliver support to parents as part of the Family Hubs and Start for Life programme. Evidence shows that high-quality parenting programmes alongside wider integrated support for parents can improve child and parent outcomes across different areas of development. These 75 local authorities are expected to provide evidence-based interventions to parents. Evidence-based interventions are a key approach to improving consistency and quality of parenting support services. They include increasing practitioners’ knowledge of scientifically proven theories of change and providing them with effective methods for engaging vulnerable families – including those experiencing poverty. This allows local authorities to reach the most disadvantaged families through universal and targeted support, and to address early challenges during this critical period of development. Local authorities must use the Early Intervention Foundation guidebook, or similar, to select programmes that are strongly evidence-based and best suit their local needs and circumstances. Evidence-based programmes included in the guidebook include Triple P and Incredible Years. From the rigorous assessment that is required for programmes to be included in the guidebook, we know that these programmes have a demonstrated impact on outcomes. These include language and mathematics skills, as well as personal, social and emotional development outcomes, like self-regulation and building relationships, all of which are critical to meeting the milestone for good levels of development by 2028. Over the next spending review period, the department will continue to work with local authorities, its voluntary community sector partners and other ‘what works’ bodies. This enables us to test and learn the best ways to provide parents with support and access to evidence-based parenting programmes.

What assessment she has made on the effectiveness of (a) Triple P, (b) Incredible Years and (c) other evidence-based parenting programmes to help ensure that 75% of five year-olds reach a good level of development in the Early Years Foundation Stage assessment.

Giving children the best start in life is the foundation of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity. That is why we have set the milestone of a record proportion of children starting school ready to learn in the classroom. Developmental areas include language, mathematics and literacy, and personal, social and emotional development. Accessible and integrated baby and early childhood services are required to build the foundations for future success in meeting these development goals. The Department for Education and the Department for Health and Social Care are delivering critical elements of the government’s Plan for Change. This includes the announcement of £126 million of funding to continue delivery of the Family Hubs and Start for Life programme, a joint programme between both departments. This investment included:£36.5 million for bespoke perinatal mental health and parent-infant relationship support.£10.7 million to help parents create rich home learning environments to support early childhood development.£20 million to enhance parenting support for expectant parents and those with babies aged 0 to 2. All types of evidence-based parenting programmes are being considered, including in-person and digital. This is because of the importance of parent-child relationships during this critical period of development. 75 of the most disadvantaged local authorities in England currently receive funding from the department to deliver support to parents as part of the Family Hubs and Start for Life programme. Evidence shows that high-quality parenting programmes alongside wider integrated support for parents can improve child and parent outcomes across different areas of development. These 75 local authorities are expected to provide evidence-based interventions to parents. Evidence-based interventions are a key approach to improving consistency and quality of parenting support services. They include increasing practitioners’ knowledge of scientifically proven theories of change and providing them with effective methods for engaging vulnerable families – including those experiencing poverty. This allows local authorities to reach the most disadvantaged families through universal and targeted support, and to address early challenges during this critical period of development. Local authorities must use the Early Intervention Foundation guidebook, or similar, to select programmes that are strongly evidence-based and best suit their local needs and circumstances. Evidence-based programmes included in the guidebook include Triple P and Incredible Years. From the rigorous assessment that is required for programmes to be included in the guidebook, we know that these programmes have a demonstrated impact on outcomes. These include language and mathematics skills, as well as personal, social and emotional development outcomes, like self-regulation and building relationships, all of which are critical to meeting the milestone for good levels of development by 2028. Over the next spending review period, the department will continue to work with local authorities, its voluntary community sector partners and other ‘what works’ bodies. This enables us to test and learn the best ways to provide parents with support and access to evidence-based parenting programmes.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of evidence-based parenting programmes in supporting families in poverty.

Giving children the best start in life is the foundation of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity. That is why we have set the milestone of a record proportion of children starting school ready to learn in the classroom. Developmental areas include language, mathematics and literacy, and personal, social and emotional development. Accessible and integrated baby and early childhood services are required to build the foundations for future success in meeting these development goals. The Department for Education and the Department for Health and Social Care are delivering critical elements of the government’s Plan for Change. This includes the announcement of £126 million of funding to continue delivery of the Family Hubs and Start for Life programme, a joint programme between both departments. This investment included:£36.5 million for bespoke perinatal mental health and parent-infant relationship support.£10.7 million to help parents create rich home learning environments to support early childhood development.£20 million to enhance parenting support for expectant parents and those with babies aged 0 to 2. All types of evidence-based parenting programmes are being considered, including in-person and digital. This is because of the importance of parent-child relationships during this critical period of development. 75 of the most disadvantaged local authorities in England currently receive funding from the department to deliver support to parents as part of the Family Hubs and Start for Life programme. Evidence shows that high-quality parenting programmes alongside wider integrated support for parents can improve child and parent outcomes across different areas of development. These 75 local authorities are expected to provide evidence-based interventions to parents. Evidence-based interventions are a key approach to improving consistency and quality of parenting support services. They include increasing practitioners’ knowledge of scientifically proven theories of change and providing them with effective methods for engaging vulnerable families – including those experiencing poverty. This allows local authorities to reach the most disadvantaged families through universal and targeted support, and to address early challenges during this critical period of development. Local authorities must use the Early Intervention Foundation guidebook, or similar, to select programmes that are strongly evidence-based and best suit their local needs and circumstances. Evidence-based programmes included in the guidebook include Triple P and Incredible Years. From the rigorous assessment that is required for programmes to be included in the guidebook, we know that these programmes have a demonstrated impact on outcomes. These include language and mathematics skills, as well as personal, social and emotional development outcomes, like self-regulation and building relationships, all of which are critical to meeting the milestone for good levels of development by 2028. Over the next spending review period, the department will continue to work with local authorities, its voluntary community sector partners and other ‘what works’ bodies. This enables us to test and learn the best ways to provide parents with support and access to evidence-based parenting programmes.

Whether reducing the cost of school will be considered as part of the Child Poverty Strategy.

Tackling child poverty is at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and improve the life chances for every child. For too many children, living in poverty robs them of the opportunity to learn and to prosper.The Child Poverty Taskforce, which is co-chaired by my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education and my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, will harness all available levers to drive forward action across government to reduce child poverty. The Taskforce is progressing urgent work to publish the Child Poverty Strategy as soon as possible.The Taskforce is listening to experts and campaigners and engaging with families, charities, campaigners and leading organisations across the UK to shape and inform these plans. To date, the department has had over 200 engagements with stakeholders, including through over 50 events across the UK. This has included the Cabinet Office’s Child Poverty Unit, supporting the Taskforce, meeting with Parentkind on a number of occasions, including as part of the panel at the launch event for their report, in Parliament, on 25 February.The Taskforce recognises that the costs of attending school can cause financial pressures for low-income families and it is one of the essential costs that are being considered in the Child Poverty Strategy.The department is already taking steps to reduce the cost of the school day through action on the high cost of branded school uniforms and commitment to roll out free breakfast clubs for primary school-aged children from the start of this summer term.

What assessment he has made of the implications for his Department’s policies of the report entitled Missing Chapter by Parentkind, published in March 2025.

Tackling child poverty is at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and improve the life chances for every child. For too many children, living in poverty robs them of the opportunity to learn and to prosper.The Child Poverty Taskforce, which is co-chaired by my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education and my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, will harness all available levers to drive forward action across government to reduce child poverty. The Taskforce is progressing urgent work to publish the Child Poverty Strategy as soon as possible.The Taskforce is listening to experts and campaigners and engaging with families, charities, campaigners and leading organisations across the UK to shape and inform these plans. To date, the department has had over 200 engagements with stakeholders, including through over 50 events across the UK. This has included the Cabinet Office’s Child Poverty Unit, supporting the Taskforce, meeting with Parentkind on a number of occasions, including as part of the panel at the launch event for their report, in Parliament, on 25 February.The Taskforce recognises that the costs of attending school can cause financial pressures for low-income families and it is one of the essential costs that are being considered in the Child Poverty Strategy.The department is already taking steps to reduce the cost of the school day through action on the high cost of branded school uniforms and commitment to roll out free breakfast clubs for primary school-aged children from the start of this summer term.

Whether she plans to increase funding for (a) free school meals and (b) universal infant free school meals to help source school meals from British produce.

The department spends approximately £1.5 billion annually on free lunches for 2.1 million school age pupils under benefits-based free school meals, over 90,000 disadvantaged students in further education, and around 1.3 million infant pupils under the Universal Infant Free School Meal scheme to ensure they receive a nutritious lunchtime meal.Funding is not ring-fenced, meaning that schools have autonomy over delivery, including entering into catering contracts with suppliers and allocation of funding within their budgets.The department regularly speaks to food industry representatives on a range of issues including sector challenges such as funding.As with all government programmes, the department will keep our approach to free school meals, including funding, under continued review.

If she will ringfence school meal funding.

The department spends approximately £1.5 billion annually on free lunches for 2.1 million school age pupils under benefits-based free school meals, over 90,000 disadvantaged students in further education, and around 1.3 million infant pupils under the Universal Infant Free School Meal scheme to ensure they receive a nutritious lunchtime meal.Funding is not ring-fenced, meaning that schools have autonomy over delivery, including entering into catering contracts with suppliers and allocation of funding within their budgets.The department regularly speaks to food industry representatives on a range of issues including sector challenges such as funding.As with all government programmes, the department will keep our approach to free school meals, including funding, under continued review.

Whether she has had discussions with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on the potential impact of the 50% Buying British ambition on school caterers.

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education and my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs have met to discuss a range of issues and projects.The government is committed to increasing the procurement of food that meets higher environmental standards, supporting local suppliers, and upholding ethical sourcing practices across public sector contracts. The department is considering the policy options available to deliver these aims. Any future policies will be informed by the review of the provenance of food sourced by the public sector, announced recently. Schools and caterers can additionally voluntarily follow the government buying standards.

What steps her Department is taking to implement (a) a workforce development strategy, (b) apprenticeships and (c) career pathways for the independent advice sector.

An appropriately trained workforce of careers advisers, available to work with young people and adults in a range of settings, is a key part of our approach to careers provision. The department wants to ensure that people from all backgrounds can access the expert advice they need to explore a range of career pathways and labour market opportunities. This supports the development of a skilled workforce across all sectors, driving economic growth through our Industrial Strategy.The department works closely with the Career Development Institute (CDI), the UK’s professional body for careers work, which provides training and professional development. The current offer includes a bespoke department-funded programme for National Careers Service advisers and a programme, funded by the Gatsby Foundation, targeted on raising awareness of technical education pathways amongst careers advisers working in schools and colleges.The CDI maintains the UK Register of Career Development Professionals with members adhering to a code of ethics and committing to regular professional development. The CDI also provides advice on the right qualifications for various roles and how to conduct effective personal guidance meetings.Secondary schools and colleges are legally required to secure independent and impartial careers guidance for all learners up to the age of 18 and for 19 to 24-year olds with an education, health and care plan. Careers statutory guidance sets a clear expectation that schools and colleges should make sure that careers advisers providing personal guidance to learners are trained to the appropriate level. The department recommends that schools and colleges use the CDI’s register to find suitable careers advisers qualified to at least level 6 in a career development subject. The main level 6 and 7 qualifications for careers advisers are the level 6 Diploma in Career Guidance and Development, the level 6 Higher Apprenticeship: Career Development Professional and the Qualification in Career Development at level 7.Over 760 careers advisers form the bedrock of our National Careers Service, providing free, up to date, impartial information, advice and guidance on careers and the labour market in England. National Careers Service prime contractors must make sure that all advisers hold career development qualifications appropriate to their role and demonstrate in their workforce development strategy that they are committed to employing staff in line with the standards set by the CDI. The government is committed to bringing the National Careers Service and Jobcentre Plus closer together and we will set out further details on this soon.

What recent estimate she has made of the number of children who are not receiving their free milk entitlement; and if she will take steps to monitor compliance with school food standards.

Under the School Food Standards, schools must ensure milk is available to all pupils who want it during school hours, which includes any time during a school session or a break between sessions. Section 512ZB (3) of the Education Act 1996 sets out the requirement that milk must be provided free of charge to pupils eligible for free school meals (FSM). The department does not hold data on the number of children who are not receiving their free milk entitlement through FSM.Compliance with the School Food Standards is mandatory for maintained schools, academies and free schools.  Governors have a responsibility to ensure compliance and should appropriately challenge the headteacher and the senior leadership team to ensure the school is meeting its obligations. The department is keeping our approach to school food compliance under review.

What assessment she has made of the Office for Students registered theological colleges’ compliance with academic freedom and freedom of speech obligations.

I refer the hon. Member for Poole to the answer of 9 April 2025 to Question HL6374.

What steps her Department is taking to ensure schools fulfil their legal obligations under school food standards to provide free milk for students with their free school (a) breakfast and (b) meal.

Under the School Food Standards, schools must ensure milk is available to all pupils who want it during school hours, which includes any time during a school session or a break between sessions. Section 512ZB (3) of the Education Act 1996 sets out the requirement that milk must be provided free of charge to pupils eligible for free school meals (FSM). The department does not hold data on the number of children who are not receiving their free milk entitlement through FSM.Compliance with the School Food Standards is mandatory for maintained schools, academies and free schools.  Governors have a responsibility to ensure compliance and should appropriately challenge the headteacher and the senior leadership team to ensure the school is meeting its obligations. The department is keeping our approach to school food compliance under review.

What steps her Department is taking to help improve the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of school teachers.

High quality teaching is the most important in-school factor to a child’s educational outcomes. Recruiting and retaining more qualified, expert teachers is therefore critical to the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity, boost the life chances for every child, reset the relationship with the sector and restore the status of the teaching profession. This is why the department will recruit 6,500 new expert teachers, get more teachers into shortage subjects, support areas that face recruitment challenges and tackle retention issues.The department is making good progress through delivery of key initiatives to recruit and retain more high quality teachers. We announced an initial teacher training financial incentives package for the 2025/26 recruitment cycle worth £233 million, a £37 million increase on the last cycle. This includes a range of measures, including bursaries worth £29,000 tax-free and scholarships worth £31,000 tax-free, to encourage talented trainees to key subjects such as mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing.Fair pay is key to ensuring teaching is an attractive and respected profession, which is why this government has accepted the School Teachers’ Review Body’s recommendation of a 5.5% pay award for teachers and leaders in maintained schools from September.For the 2024/25 and 2025/26 academic year, the department is also offering a Targeted Retention Incentive worth up to £6,000 after tax for mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing teachers in the first five years of their careers who choose to work in disadvantaged schools. This will support recruitment and retention of specialist teachers in these subjects, in the schools and areas that need them most.To further support retention, the department has made available a range of resources to help address teacher workload and wellbeing and support schools to introduce flexible working practices. The department’s Improve Workload and Wellbeing for School Staff service , developed alongside school leaders, includes a workload reduction toolkit to support schools to identify opportunities to cut excessive workload, as well as the Education Staff Wellbeing Charter, which sets out commitments from the government, Ofsted, schools, and colleges to protect and promote the wellbeing of staff. The department’s improve workload and wellbeing for school staff service can be found here: https://improve-workload-and-wellbeing-for-school-staff.education.gov.uk/.The department will continue to work alongside the sector to further develop our delivery plan and seek to re-establish teaching as an attractive profession and will share further details in due course.

What steps she is taking to help improve the terms and conditions of teachers in the public sector.

There is a statutory process for making revisions to the pay and conditions of teachers, and any change must first be referred by my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, to the independent School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB).The department’s written evidence for the 2025/2026 pay round asks the STRB to consider how schools can support teachers from all backgrounds and promote flexible working, which will improve the experience of teaching and help deliver the best possible education for students.The department is also asking the STRB to consider how additional responsibility payments can be more fairly managed for part-time teachers.The department will also use the new powers in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill to make changes to the teacher pay and conditions framework to create a pay floor with no ceiling, to enable healthy competition and innovation beyond a core framework, which will help to improve all state schools.

What steps she plans to take to increase funding for the early years childcare sector.

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education has been clear in her commitment to early years. Despite tough decisions to get our public finances back on track, this government has increased investment in the early years sector to drive forward progress towards our plan for change target of a record number of children starting school ready to learn.In the 2025/26 financial year alone, this government plans to spend over £8 billion on early years entitlements. We have also announced the largest ever uplift to the early years pupil premium, increasing the rate by over 45% compared to the 2024/25 financial year, raising it to the equivalent of up to £570 per eligible child per year.On top of this we are providing further supplementary funding of £75 million for the early years expansion grant to support the sector to provide the additional places and workforce needed by September 2025.We are also providing £25 million through the forthcoming Employer National Insurance Contributions Grant for public sector employers in the early years.Future spending decisions beyond the 2025/26 financial year will be announced at the next spending review.