Written questions by Lowe.

How many teachers have had their employment terminated, broken down by reason, for each year in the last five years.

Information on the school workforce is published in the ‘School Workforce in England’ statistical publication, accessible here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-workforce-in-england.The attached table provides details of the reported reason teacher contracts were terminated in the 2018/19 to 2022/23 academic years, which reflects the latest data available.Teachers may have more than one contract, therefore individuals may be counted more than once. Figures for ‘Other reasons’ includes teachers who had a change of contract but remained at the school. Figures differ to the published number of teachers leaving service, which are based on the full-time equivalent number of qualified teachers who are not employed in a state-funded school the following year.

What steps she is taking to prevent the teaching of gender ideology in schools.

Compulsory relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) should help pupils to understand that society consists of a diverse range of people. By the end of their secondary education, pupils are taught about equality and the law relating to protected characteristics, which includes sex and gender reassignment. It is important that the content schools teach is factual, age-appropriate and presents political issues in a balanced way.The department is currently reviewing the RSHE statutory guidance. My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, has been clear that children’s wellbeing must be at the heart of both the RSHE and gender questioning guidance for schools. The government is looking carefully at the public consultation responses for both sets of guidance and discussing with stakeholders. We will consider all the relevant evidence, including the Cass Review which has since been published, before setting out next steps.

How many complaints have been received by Ofsted from parents on teaching practices in schools in each of the last five years broken down by reason.

This is a matter for His Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Sir Martyn Oliver. I have asked him to write to the hon. Member for Great Yarmouth directly and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

If she will make an estimate of the number of children who are (a) irregular migrants and (b) were on school rolls on 4 December 2024 broken down by age.

The information requested is not held centrally.All children of compulsory school age living in England, including foreign national children, are required by law to receive a suitable full-time education. As such, the department does not collect, or hold, information on the migration status of school pupils.Guidance on school access rights for foreign national students is published on GOV.UK and can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/schools-admissions-applications-from-overseas-children.The guidance sets out how local authorities and admissions authorities in England should process applications from families living outside of England and foreign national families.

If she will take steps to ensure that Bovaer is not used within the school supply chain.

The Food Standards Agency has advised milk from cows given Bovaer, an authorised feed additive that is used to reduce methane emissions, is safe to drink. Bovaer has undergone a rigorous safety assessment and is approved for use in Great Britain.The School Food Standards defines the foods and drinks that must be provided, those which are restricted, and those which must not be provided. Beyond this, schools are responsible for the provision of school meals and how they source their food.

How many international (a) air miles and (b) flights have been completed by (i) Ministers and (ii) officials in their Department since 5 July 2024.

Data on Ministers’ overseas travel and on senior civil servants’ business expenses is published on a quarterly basis. This can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dfe-business-expenses-and-hospitality-for-senior-officials.

How many teachers have formally raised concern about the age of irregular migrant students in each of the last five years.

Concerns of this nature would be raised with the individual local authority children’s services team which has responsibility for the unaccompanied asylum-seeking child, therefore the department does not hold data on this.

How many and what proportion of people who took an English for Speakers of Other Languages class claimed Universal Credit in the last 12 months; and what the cost to the public purse was of the provision of those classes in the same period.

The information requested is not held centrally and is therefore not readily available. The department does hold data on the number of people who took an English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) qualification, but this only includes learners funded through the adult skills fund (ASF), therefore excluding learners in devolved areas and those who studied ESOL courses funded through tailored learning. In 2023/24 145,730 people studied an ESOL qualification funded through the ASF.

What the total amount of fines collected for taking children out of school during term time was in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority.

The department collects information from local authorities on penalty notices issued for unauthorised absence, including numbers of penalty notices issued, paid within 21 days, paid within 28 days, and other outcomes. This is published in the statistical release ‘parental responsibility measures’ and can be accessed here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/parental-responsibility-measures.The amount payable was £60 if paid within 21 days of receipt, rising to £120 if paid between 22 and 28 days. From August 2024, the fine for school absences is £80 if paid within 21 days, or £160 if paid within 28 days. In the case of repeated fines, if a parent receives a second fine for the same child within any three-year period, this will be charged at the higher rate of £160.The number of penalty notices issued, paid within 21 days, paid within 28 days, and other outcomes, by local authorities and for England, can be accessed here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/3d370ede-53eb-454f-f8ae-08dd0adc50ad.

What consultations her Department is holding with public schools in relation to the removal of VAT exemptions.

The government carried out a technical consultation from 29 July to 15 September 2024 and published a response alongside a tax information and impact note on 30 October. The documents are published on GOV.UK and are available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/vat-on-private-school-fees-removing-the-charitable-rates-relief-for-private-schools.The government received over 17,000 written responses during the consultation period, all of which were carefully considered.During the consultation period, the government also held a series of meetings with stakeholders who represent private schools. As the regulator of private schools, the department will continue to have regular meetings with representatives of private schools.

How many children in the care system are from non-UK citizenship families; and what the total cost to the public purse is of their care.

The information on the nationality of children looked after by local authorities in England is not held centrally by the department. Therefore, we are not able to provide the figures requested.

How many school days were lost due to school closures during the Covid lockdowns.

The department does not hold information on total school days lost due to school closures during the COVID-19 lockdowns.However, during the COVID-19 pandemic the department did collect and publish information on attendance in education and early years settings. This information can be found in the following statistical release: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/attendance-in-education-and-early-years-settings-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak.

Pursuant to the Answer of 6 November 2024 to Question 11711 on Students: Loans, for what reason there was an increase in the amount of debt written off between 2022-23 and 2023-24.

The table below shows the amount that has been cancelled or written off in the 2022/23 and 2023/24 financial years, broken down by reason.ReasonAmount cancelled or written off during the financial year (£m) 2022/232023/24Because of death35.573.8Because of age20.124.0Because of disability2.92.8Because of bankruptcy--On completion of Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA)--Trivial balances--Losses through fraud (including phishing)0.20.4Other--Total58.6101.1In the 2023/24 financial year, the department approved the Student Loans Company (SLC) to close or write off accounts confirmed as deceased by HMRC. Previously, when notifications were received from HMRC, SLC would be required to obtain the death certificate copy which would result in delays in closing the account formally (the account would sit at 'Deceased Notified'). The SLC are working through a backlog of cases, hence increased numbers of such write-offs in the 2023/24 financial year.Write-offs do not include trivial balance write-offs. Trivial balance write-offs occur if there is a positive or negative balance on an account of £25 or less and no contact can be established with the borrower (customers can request for this to be reversed). In the context of these figures, these borrowers are considered fully repaid and are therefore not included. Cancellations involve the clearance of the remaining debt in line with the terms of the loan, for example, when reaching a specific age or becoming permanently disabled. Write-offs for bankruptcy, Individual Voluntary Arrangement or trust deed are no longer allowed against student loans balances. Any figures arise from retrospective clear up exercises.These figures have been taken from SLC’s student loans in England publication which is updated in June each year. The publication, Student loans in England: 2023 to 2024 can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/student-loans-in-england-2023-to-2024.The figures were published in ‘Table 1A’ here: https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.publishing.service.gov.uk%2Fmedia%2F6672d0e2f92bc4be25da7e13%2Fslcsp012024.xlsx&wdOrigin=BROWSELINK.

What data his Department holds on the average class size at (a) primary and (b) secondary schools in (i) Great Yarmouth constituency and (ii) England in each of the last twenty years.

The department holds data on average class sizes in the ‘Schools, pupils and their characteristics’ publication, which is available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics. This publication holds average class size at national level, local authority and school level. School level data from before 2010 is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/schools-pupil-and-their-characteristics-2002-to-2009-data.Parliamentary constituencies are based on their boundaries at the time of the January school census each year. Therefore, the 2024 parliamentary boundaries do not reflect the changes made in the summer of 2024.Where statistics were published prior to the changes in parliamentary constituency boundaries, they will be updated to reflect the new boundaries in the next publication of statistics. This is expected to be in June 2025 for the ‘Schools, pupils and their characteristics’ publication.Class size data is published at school level. This can be combined with information from the Get Information About Schools (GIAS) website to identify parliamentary constituency, which is available here: https://get-information-schools.service.gov.uk/. GIAS currently reflects the changes made following the general election parliamentary constituency changes. Updates to geographical data are made on a quarterly basis using data published by the Office for National Statistics.

How many apprentices there were in her Department in each of the last five years.

The table below is a breakdown of apprentices in the department for the last five financial years:DateNumber of Apprentices31 March 202032431 March 202146831 March 202245131 March 202354031 March 2024515

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of allowing parents to take their children out of school during term time for up to five days per year.

Tackling absence is at the heart of this government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity. If children are not in school, it does not matter how effective or well-supported teaching and learning is, they will not benefit. The government recognises school absence as a key barrier to learning.Parents have a legal responsibility to ensure that their child of compulsory school age attends school regularly. Regular school attendance is vital for children’s attainment, mental wellbeing and long-term development.Taking children out of school during term time can damage their education and cause unnecessary disruption for teachers and other pupils. There are 175 days per year when pupils are not expected to be in school which gives families various opportunities to enjoy holidays.Thanks to the sector's efforts, more students are attending school this year compared to last. However, 1.6 million children remain persistently absent, missing 10% or more of lessons.

What the value was of student loans that were written off in each of the last five years; and what this was as a proportion of all outstanding student loans.

The table below shows the amount that has been cancelled or written off during each financial year requested, the total amount outstanding at the start of the financial year including interest and loans not yet due for repayment (after adjustments) and the proportion that write offs or cancellations make out of the starting balance.The reasons for cancelled or written off loans are the following: death of borrower, age of borrower, disability, trivial balances, losses through fraud (including phishing) and other.Please note that write-offs do not include trivial balance write-offs. Trivial balance write-offs occur if there is a +/- balance on an account of £25 or less and no contact can be established with the borrower (customers can request for this to be reversed). In the context of these figures these borrowers are considered fully repaid and are therefore not included. Cancellations involve the clearance of the remaining debt in line with the terms of the loan, for example when reaching a specific age or becoming permanently disabled. Write-offs for bankruptcy, Individual Voluntary Arrangement or a trust deed, are no longer allowed against Student Loans balances. Any figures arise from retrospective clear up exercises.These figures have been taken from Student Loans Company’s Student loans in England publication that is updated in June each year. The publication, ‘Student loans in England: 2023 to 2024’ can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/student-loans-in-england-2023-to-2024, and the figures were taken from ‘Table 1A’ here: https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.publishing.service.gov.uk%2Fmedia%2F6672d0e2f92bc4be25da7e13%2Fslcsp012024.xlsx&wdOrigin=BROWSELINK.2019/202020/212021/222022/232023/24Amount cancelled or written off during the financial year (£m) 39.453.763.458.6101.1Total amount outstanding at the start of the financial year, including interest and loans not yet due for repayment (after adjustments) (£m)121,813.3140,092.8160,593.5181,612.3205,568.8Percentage of those written off out of total amount outstanding 0.03%0.04%0.04%0.03%0.05%

What proportion of children in school in each constituency do not have English as their first language.

The information requested is in the attached table. Data for the proportion and number of children who do not have English as their first language can be found at school level in the school census publication: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics. A pupil is recorded to have English as an additional language if they are exposed to a language at home that is known or believed to be other than English. This measure is not a measure of English language proficiency nor a good proxy for recent immigration. As these figures are taken from the January 2024 school census, the Parliamentary constituencies are based on pre-election boundaries. Where statistics were published prior to the changes in Parliamentary constituency boundaries, they will be updated to reflect the new boundaries in the next publication of statistics. This is expected to be in June 2025 for the Schools, Pupils and their Characteristics publication.

What steps her Department is taking to protect free speech for students in higher education.

This government is absolutely committed to freedom of speech and academic freedom. Higher education (HE) must be a space for robust discussion and intellectual rigour. This is outlined in the existing legislation, whereby universities have a legal obligation to protect lawful freedom of speech, and protections for free speech are also set out in the Office for Students’ registration conditions. The government took the decision to pause the implementation of further parts of the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act to ensure that it is workable in practice and that it protects freedom of speech for students. The department is continuing to meet with a full range of stakeholders, including academics with concerns about constraints on freedom of speech and mission groups representing the voice of students in HE. This will feed into decision making on the future of the Act and this government’s longer-term policy on protecting freedom of speech across the HE sector.

If she will make an assessment of the adequacy of the interest rate system for student loans; and if she will meet the hon. Member for Great Yarmouth to discuss that system.

The government is determined that the higher education (HE) funding system should deliver for our economy, for universities and for students. The department is considering the system and will continue to engage with stakeholders on this. The department believes that every young person, regardless of their background, should have the opportunity to attend university. That is why the department is dedicated to creating a sustainable HE funding system that supports students, expands opportunities, and upholds the excellence of our world-leading universities.