Written questions by Darling.

What guidance her Department provides to schools on supporting (a) autistic girls (b) girls masking symptoms of autism in educational settings.

The department wants all children and young people to be able to receive the right support to succeed in their education and we recognise that children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) often require access to additional support.The department also provides continuing professional development to the school and further education workforce through the Universal SEND Services programme, led by the National Association for Special Educational Needs (NASEN). From April 2025, NASEN are developing a new autism specific online training offer to support the workforce’s understanding of autism, which will include ‘train the trainer' packages and webinars to support teachers and leaders to deliver autism training in their settings.The department has also invested in the Partnerships for Inclusion of Neurodiversity in Schools (PINS) programme, which is a national programme backed by £22 million of investment.PINS deploys specialists from both health and education workforces to build teacher and staff capacity to identify and better meet the needs of neurodivergent children including pupils with autism.

Whether she plans to take steps to close the pay gap between (a) school teachers and (b) college teachers to achieve equity within the higher education sector.

Further education (FE) colleges, rather than government, are responsible for setting and negotiating pay within colleges. Colleges are not bound by the national pay and conditions framework for school teachers but are free to implement their own pay arrangements in line with their own local circumstances.On 22 May, the department announced an investment of £160 million for colleges and other 16-19 providers in the 2025/26 financial year. This funding will boost opportunities for learners across the country and drive forward delivery of the critical skills needed to grow our economy.Additional funding of over £30 million will also be included within 16-19 allocations. This funding comes from within the overall funding envelope of £615 million for 2025/26, announced alongside the 2025/26 school teachers’ pay award. Together, this means that a total additional sum of over £190 million will be available for 16-19 funding in the 2025/26 financial year.

What steps her Department is taking to ensure children in care are not moved during (a) exam periods and (b) other critical periods in their education.

The government recognises the critical importance of continuity and stability throughout a looked-after child’s life. Under the ‘Care planning, placement and case review’ guidance and regulations, the child’s allocated social worker should do everything possible to minimise disruption to their education. This should include the involvement of the local authority’s virtual school head. School changes should be minimised, and any necessary transitions well planned and supported. Where a change to a looked-after child’s educational arrangements is unavoidable, their Personal Education Plan should set out arrangements to minimise disruption to education and training, especially during exam periods and other critical periods in their education.

What steps her Department is taking to help support care leavers to develop (a) skills, (b) confidence and (c) opportunities to (i) find and (ii) maintain employment.

Care leavers up to age 25 are entitled to a personal advisor who works with them to develop a pathway plan. This includes advice and guidance to support career aspirations and further education, training or employment.As part of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, the department will require local authorities to provide ‘Staying Close’ support to care leavers, helping them to find and keep safe and stable accommodation, alongside targeted, intensive support around education, training, wellbeing and living independently.Care leavers who take up an apprenticeship can claim a £3,000 bursary.We fund the Care Leaver Covenant, an offer of support from private, public or third sector organisations to care leavers. Over 600 organisations have signed the Covenant, offering pre-employment training, job opportunities and practical support.The cross-government Civil Service Internship Scheme for care leavers has benefitted around 1,000 young people to date.Care leavers will benefit from our new Youth Guarantee, which will provide tailored support to young people aged 18 to 21 to help them access high-quality education, training and employment opportunities. £45 million has been allocated to test the guarantee in eight locations.

What progress she has made on split site funding for schools.

The split sites factor in the schools national funding formula (NFF) allocates additional funding for schools operating across multiple sites. The split sites factor was formularised in 2024/25, ensuring that funding is allocated consistently and fairly across the country, and that all eligible split site schools receive funding towards the additional costs they face from operating across multiple separate sites.In 2025/26, the schools NFF allocates a £54,000 lump sum payment for each of a school’s additional eligible sites, up to a maximum of three additional sites. On top of that, schools whose sites are separated by more than 100 metres will receive distance funding. The distance funding varies depending on how far apart the sites are, up to a maximum of £27,000 for sites which are at least 500 metres away from the main site. In the 2025/26 NFF, the department allocated a total of £35 million through the split sites factor to 443 schools.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of reductions in the level of funding for holiday activities and food programmes on children from lower-income backgrounds.

The department invests in free holiday club places for children in low-income families, with all 153 local authorities in England delivering in the Easter, summer and Christmas holidays.The holiday activities and food (HAF) programme is delivered by local authorities to provide healthy meals, enriching activities and free childcare places to children from low-income families, benefiting their health, wellbeing and learning.As well as food provision, HAF lets children and young people continue their development outside of term time in a safe environment and opens opportunities for parents on low incomes to work extra shifts and support their families.Based on reporting from local authorities, over Summer 2024, local authorities reported that over 628,000 children and young people attended the HAF programme. Of these participating children, over 511,000 were funded directly by the HAF programme and over 433,000 were receiving benefits-related free school meals.Over Easter 2024, local authorities reported that over 377,000 children attended the programme, of which over 324,000 were funded directly by the HAF programme and over 276,000 were receiving benefits-related free school meals.Over Christmas 2024, local authorities reported that over 270,000 children attended the programme, of which over 250,000 were funded directly by the HAF programme and over 215,000 were receiving benefits-related free school meals.

How many teachers have been served with redundancy by (a) local authority area, (b) multi academy trust and (c) local authority in the last three months.

Supporting our expert teachers is critical to the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and boost the life chances for every child, as the within-school factor that makes the biggest difference to a young person’s educational outcomes is high-quality teaching. This is why the department will recruit 6,500 new expert teachers. Schools have the autonomy to make staffing and employment decisions as headteachers and school leaders are best placed to make workforce decisions that take into account local context and the needs of their pupils. As such, the department does not hold data on teacher redundancy. Information on the school workforce, including the number of teachers entering and leaving service in state-funded schools, is published in the ‘School workforce in England’ statistical publication which is available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-workforce-in-england.

When she plans to respond to the letter of 3 February 2025 on (a) mental health support for school staff and (b) automated external defibrillators governance and compliance from the Hon. Member for Torbay.

I can confirm that a response to the correspondence dated 3 February 2025 from the hon. Member for Torbay was sent on 26 February 2025.

What plans her Department has to enhance arts and culture in the national curriculum.

The department has announced a new National Centre for Arts and Music Education. The National Centre will promote arts education, including signposting to careers guidance and opportunities for children and young people to pursue their artistic and creative interests in school. It will drive excellent arts teaching through a new continuing professional development offer to schools and support partnerships between schools and cultural providers. To complement the curriculum, the department will also work with experts to develop an Enrichment Framework to be published before the end of the year. This will identify the range of different enrichment activity that pupils should access and reflect best practice in supporting schools to plan a high-quality enrichment offer. The government has established an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, covering ages 5 to 18, chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE. The Review seeks to deliver a rich, broad, inclusive and innovative curriculum that equips young people with the knowledge, skills and attributes needed to thrive in life and work. The Review Group has now published its interim findings and set out the next phase of work. The interim report can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/curriculum-and-assessment-review-interim-report. The government will respond to the Review’s final recommendations in the autumn.

If she will pause the safety valve scheme until it's review is published.

Over time, 38 local authorities have been supported to manage their high needs budgets through the Safety Valve programme. We will continue to work with local authorities with Safety Valve agreements to deliver their plans, and to provide the additional funding support set out in those agreements where plans are being delivered. The department has already said that it will not enter into any more Safety Valve agreements, pending wider reform of the whole system to prioritise early intervention, properly supporting councils to bring their finances under control.

Which local authorities are part of the review into safety valve schemes.

The areas taking part in this research are: Barnsley, Croydon, Darlington, Hammersmith and Fulham, Kent, Kirklees, Torbay, Salford, Surrey and York.

What steps her Department is taking to help low-income families pay for after-school clubs.

Improving the cost, choice, and availability of childcare for working parents is a priority for this government. We want all families to benefit from the childcare support they are entitled to, helping them with the cost of childcare, enabling parents to work and giving children the best start in life. This includes ensuring that after school clubs are available and accessible. The government is improving access to before and after school care through the national wraparound childcare programme. The programme has provided local authorities with more than £160 million to deliver the expansion of new before and after school places for primary school-aged children. This government’s ambition is that, by 2026, all parents and carers of primary school-aged children who need it will be able to access term-time childcare in their local area from 8am to 6pm. To support with costs, parents may also be eligible for childcare support through Tax-Free Childcare or Universal Credit Childcare. Parents can check what childcare support they are entitled to via the Childcare Choices website, which can be accessed here: https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/. On 23 September 2024, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced that up to 750 state-funded schools with primary aged pupils will begin delivering free breakfast clubs from April 2025. The funding will allow these schools to run free breakfast clubs for their pupils starting in the summer term as part of a ‘test and learn’ phase to inform delivery of a national rollout. This new offer will also support parents to have more choices on when to work and will support families with the cost of childcare.

What guidance her Department has issued to sixth form academies on securing capital funding for new school buildings when existing buildings are no longer fit for purpose.

Ensuring schools, including sixth form college academies, have the resources and buildings they need is a key part of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every young person the best start in life.Responsibility for keep...

When she plans to announce the allocation by local authority for the £740 million of SEND funding.

The department allocates capital funding to local authorities to support them to meet their statutory duty to provide sufficient school places for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or who require alternative provision. Earlie...

What steps she is taking to improve access to (a) university and (b) other further education and training opportunities for people living in coastal resorts in (i) the South West and (ii) the rest of the countr

This new government will be mission-led, with the Opportunity Mission building opportunities for all by giving every child the best start in life, helping them achieve and thrive, build skills for opportunity and growth and ensure family security.Building...

What steps the Government is taking to ensure local authorities have the necessary (a) resources and (b) training to effectively safeguard children receiving elective home education.

The department has collected termly data from local authorities concerning their cohorts of home-educated children since autumn 2022.The most recent published data shows an estimated 92,000 children in home education in October 2023, a rise of around 12,0...

What steps her Department is taking to ensure children with special educational needs and disabilities that are educated at home receive appropriate support.

The department has collected termly data from local authorities concerning their cohorts of home-educated children since autumn 2022.The most recent published data shows an estimated 92,000 children in home education in October 2023, a rise of around 12,0...

What steps her Department is taking to ensure families that opt for elective home education have access to adequate (a) resources and (b) guidance to support the educational needs of their children.

The department has collected termly data from local authorities concerning their cohorts of home-educated children since autumn 2022.The most recent published data shows an estimated 92,000 children in home education in October 2023, a rise of around 12,0...

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of recent trends in the number of families choosing elective home education for their children on (a) local authorities, (b) schools and (c) the wider educat

The department has collected termly data from local authorities concerning their cohorts of home-educated children since autumn 2022.The most recent published data shows an estimated 92,000 children in home education in October 2023, a rise of around 12,0...

How much funding per (a) primary and (b) secondary school student is provided In (i) Cornwall, (ii) Plymouth, (iii) Torbay, (iv) Devon and (v) in the five local authorities with the highest level of education a

Mainstream schools receive the majority of their core school funding through the schools block of the dedicated schools grant (DSG). DSG has funding data for Cornwall, Plymouth, Torbay and Devon. It does not include funding in respect of the ‘local author...