Every parliamentary written question tabled by Neil Duncan-Jordan this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 121–136 of 136 · Department for Education
If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of parent-delivered early language interventions for young children with Down Syndrome.
Parents and carers have an important role to play in the learning and development of their child. Practitioners should work jointly with parents and carers to support a child’s speech, language and communication needs in the home environment.The departmen...
What steps she is taking to increase collaborative working at local authority level to improve school attendance.
The statutory ‘working together to improve school attendance’ guidance sets out that schools, trusts and local authorities should work together to tackle absence. The guidance makes clear that local authorities are expected to work with the child’s parent...
What assessment her Department has made of the merits of ensuring that the Staying Close programme is accessible to all Looked After Children.
This government is committed to providing support for care leavers to ensure they have the practical and emotional support they need as they move towards independence. The department intends to legislate, when parliamentary time allows, to ensure all loca...
What estimate she has made of the number of (a) children of school age with complex SEND needs and (b) specialist educational places required for such children in the next five academic years.
This government has inherited a growing tide of unmet need amongst children and young people.The government does not forecast the number of school-aged pupils with complex needs as a specific category, but has produced national level estimates of the numb...
What assessment she has made of the potential merits of embedding (a) social and (b) emotional learning interventions into curriculums.
The government has established an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, covering ages 5 to 18, which is chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE.The review will seek to deliver a curriculum that ensures children and young people leave compulsory edu...
Whether she plans to restore funding to the Career Change Programme.
Career changers make a valuable contribution to the teaching profession and the department remains committed to recruiting and supporting them into initial teacher training. The department’s wider offer to all potential teachers, including career changers...
What assessment she has made of the impact of living in a low income household on rates of school absences.
The department publishes absence data for pupils broken down by pupil characteristic. This includes data for pupils who are eligible for free school meals (FSM). The latest absence data can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/pupil-absen...
What the criteria were for award of the contract for Research on the operation and impact of Safety Valve agreements on children, young people and their families.
In April 2024, all suppliers registered with the Crown Commercial Service’s RM6126 Research & Insights Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS), with the relevant skills and experience, were invited to apply to conduct a research project in relation to the Saf...
What her Department's policy is on the future of the SEND Change Programme.
Change Programme Partnerships (CPP) have provided valuable insights and learning across the special educational needs and disabilities and alternative provision system. This includes informing government’s thinking about effective, inclusive, mainstream p...
What steps she is taking to provide financial support to local authorities for SEND provision after March 2026.
Funding for special educational needs and disabilities provision beyond March 2026 will be determined in the next stage of the government's spending review, in spring 2025.
What assessment she has made of the reasons for the increase in the number of children with Special Educational Needs.
Over the last ten years, there has been an international increase in children identified with special educational needs (SEN). Between 2016/17 and 2021/22, England saw a 40% increase in pupils with an official SEN designation. For France it was 49% and fo...
If she will amend regulations on school meals so that there is no obligation to serve animal-derived foods.
It is important that children eat nutritious food at school and the department encourages schools to have a whole school approach to healthy eating. The School Food Standards regulate the food and drink provided at lunchtime and at other times of the scho...
If she will take steps to enforce Section 96(1)(1) of the Children and Families Act 2014 on providing a needs assessment for all young carers.
Young carers were added, as a specific group within the education system, to the school census in the 2022/23 academic year. Ofsted has committed to developing and consulting upon a revised schools’ inspection framework for September 2025. This will suppo...
If she will hold discussions with Ofsted on the potential merits of identifying young carers as a specific group within the education system.
Young carers were added, as a specific group within the education system, to the school census in the 2022/23 academic year. Ofsted has committed to developing and consulting upon a revised schools’ inspection framework for September 2025. This will suppo...
Whether she plans to continue (a) funding and (b) support for Local Skills Improvement Plans.
Local Skills Improvement Plans are a valuable source of information for local skills training providers, employers and stakeholders, and will provide important intelligence for the newly established Skills England. The current grant-funding period for the designated employer representative bodies leading the development, implementation and review of each Local Skills Improvement Plan runs until March 2025. Future funding arrangements for Local Skills Improvement Plans will be considered as part of the current Spending Review.
What assessment she has made of the adequacy of SEND provision in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole; and what steps she plans to take to support the local authority in that area to improve the funding and delivery of SEND services.
The department has been working closely with all statutory partners involved in delivering special educational needs and disability (SEND) services in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole since their local area SEND inspection in June 2021.The department holds regular formal monitoring meetings with the local authority and partners as part of holding the local area to account for making the necessary improvements in services. The latest monitoring meeting highlighted that the local authority and partners are taking positive steps to improve services, with some evidence of early impact, but that there are still ways to go to ensure that all children and families receive the service they require and deserve.The department has put in place robust support for the local authority and their partners through the appointment of a Sector Led Improvement Partner and SEND advisor support. The department will continue to work with the local area to ensure they deliver further improvements in services.It is also important that the department has a fair education funding system that directs funding to where it is needed. Budgets for the 2025/26 financial year have not been set. This means that decisions on high needs funding for children and young people with complex SEND, and the publication of allocations to local authorities for that year, will not be to the usual timescales.