Written questions by Yang.

What recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the system for supporting children with special educational needs and disabilities.

There are challenges in the special educational needs and disabilities system. We will make mainstream education more inclusive through early identification of needs, effective support and high quality teaching while ensuring special schools can support the most complex needs.We are engaging with children, parents and experts and experts on wider reforms.

What estimate she has made of the cost for (a) universities and (b) students of implementing the Equality and Human Rights Commission's revised code of practice for services, public functions and associations.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission is updating its code of practice for services, public functions and associations and seeking views from affected stakeholders through their consultation which closes on 30 June. We would encourage all interested parties, including universities and students, to ensure their views are heard by submitting a response to the consultation.

What recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the (a) pay and (b) other conditions of teaching assistants in schools.

Teaching assistants play a vital role in children’s education.Most school support staff, including teaching assistants, are currently employed on National Joint Council (NJC) for local government services pay and conditions. The NJC is a negotiating body made up of representatives from trade unions and local government employers. Local government employees covered by the NJC for local government services pay and conditions were offered a flat cash uplift of £1,290 from 1 April 2024. In October 2024 an agreement was reached on the 2024/25 pay award for these employees, which covers the period 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025.This government values and recognises the professionalism of the entire school workforce, which is why the department is reinstating the School Support Staff Negotiating Body (SSSNB) through the Employment Rights Bill, introduced in Parliament on 10 October 2024.The SSSNB will mean that employers and employee representatives come together to negotiate terms and conditions, and pay for school support staff, to ensure that support staff are properly recognised and rewarded for the work they do. The SSSNB will also be tasked with establishing a national terms and conditions handbook and advising on suitable training and career progression routes that recognise the varied and vital roles support staff undertake.The SSSNB will give a voice to support staff, who make up roughly half of the school workforce, but are currently employed on terms and conditions negotiated by a wider framework for local government employees rather than a school specific body.It will help address the recruitment and retention challenges state-funded schools are facing for support staff. This in turn will support work to drive high and rising standards in schools and ensure we give children the best possible life chances.