Department for Education

The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places, including for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), rests with local authorities. To support this, we are investing at least £3.7 billion in high needs capital funding between 2025/2026 and 2029/2030. In 2025/26 and 2026/27, Hertfordshire has been allocated just over £11.1 million and circa £17.3 million respectively through high needs provision capital allocations.

This funding can be used to create specialist facilities within mainstream schools to deliver more tailored support. It can also be used to improves accessibility in mainstream settings and to create special school places for pupils with the most complex needs.

Hertfordshire County Council will receive over £220 million through the high needs funding block of its 2026/27 dedicated schools grant, following a 10% per-head increase in its high needs revenue funding last year.

Across Hertfordshire, the rate of education, health and care plans issued within 20 weeks was 94% in January 2026, 97% in February, and 93% in March.

The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places, including for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), rests with local authorities. To support this, we are investing at least £3.7 billion in high needs capital funding between 2025/2026 and 2029/2030. In 2025/26 and 2026/27, Hertfordshire has been allocated just over £11.1 million and circa £17.3 million respectively through high needs provision capital allocations.

This funding can be used to create specialist facilities within mainstream schools to deliver more tailored support. It can also be used to improves accessibility in mainstream settings and to create special school places for pupils with the most complex needs.

Hertfordshire County Council will receive over £220 million through the high needs funding block of its 2026/27 dedicated schools grant, following a 10% per-head increase in its high needs revenue funding last year.

Across Hertfordshire, the rate of education, health and care plans issued within 20 weeks was 94% in January 2026, 97% in February, and 93% in March.

The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places, including for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), rests with local authorities. To support this, we are investing at least £3.7 billion in high needs capital funding between 2025/2026 and 2029/2030. In 2025/26 and 2026/27, Hertfordshire has been allocated just over £11.1 million and circa £17.3 million respectively through high needs provision capital allocations.

This funding can be used to create specialist facilities within mainstream schools to deliver more tailored support. It can also be used to improves accessibility in mainstream settings and to create special school places for pupils with the most complex needs.

Hertfordshire County Council will receive over £220 million through the high needs funding block of its 2026/27 dedicated schools grant, following a 10% per-head increase in its high needs revenue funding last year.

Across Hertfordshire, the rate of education, health and care plans issued within 20 weeks was 94% in January 2026, 97% in February, and 93% in March.

The department will crack down on abuse of our immigration system by strengthening requirements for universities. This will involve tighter enforcement by government on visa approvals and course enrolments and completions. The Immigration White Paper set out that we will retain the graduate visa but reduce its duration from 2 years to 18 months, whilst maintaining the 3-year duration for PhD students. This will maintain our competitive post-study offer whilst ensuring individuals on this route obtain employment in graduate level roles and contribute to the country’s skills needs more quickly.

The new International Education Strategy has confirmed this government's continued commitment to welcome legitimate international students who meet the requirements to study in the UK. International students positively impact our HE sector and become global ambassadors for the UK.

Over 85,000 students have enrolled on a T Level since their launch in 2020. in the 2024/25 academic year, T Level entrants were almost evenly split between male and female learners. This represents a more balanced intake than either of the previous two academic years, where male learners made up slightly more than half of all entrants. Entrant data for the 2025/26 academic year can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/t-level-and-t-level-foundation-year-entrant-data-2025-to-2026/t-level-and-t-level-foundation-year-entrant-data-2025-to-2026.

To challenge gender stereotypes which may hold young people back from applying, the department showcases a range of student case studies in our communications, for example females studying construction and males studying health. In addition, our 1,200-member-strong T Level Ambassador Network use their influence and personal experience to inspire employers and young people to explore the opportunities offered by T Levels and technical education.

The special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) reform proposes a duty on schools and colleges to produce an Individual Support Plan (ISP) for every child or young person who receives targeted or specialist support, ensuring help keeps pace with their development, prevents challenges from escalating, and reduces the risk of them disengaging from learning.

The ISP will be tailored in line with the layers of support, with guidance to support settings in creating high quality plans. We are consulting widely on proposals to reform the SEND system, including with the education sector, children, young people and families, teachers and leaders and schools and trusts. The consultation, which includes specific questions on ISPs, is available at: https://consult.education.gov.uk/send-strategy-division/send-reform-putting-children-and-young-people-firs/.

It is also essential to update the 0-25 SEND Code of Practice (the Code) to ensure it reflects the changes we are proposing across the SEND system. We will undertake a separate, full public consultation on proposed changes to the Code, in line with statutory requirements. We will share further details on this following the government’s response to the SEND Consultation.

The School Census requires schools to indicate if a child has been identified as a young carer, and if so, by whom. Young carers can be identified by parents, the pupil themselves or by the school.

The return of this data is a requirement for all schools, except nurseries, and data must be returned in the Spring Census each year. Schools do not need to seek the permission of the pupil or parent to return this data to the department.

Data on young carers has been collected since the 2022/23 academic year and is published each summer.

On 27 March, the government published guidance on screen time for children aged 0 to 5 on the Best Start in Life website. The guidance is informed by an expert panel’s independent report on quantitative and qualitative research, including engagement with parents, carers and stakeholders, which also published on 27 March.

We have also launched our ‘You Won’t Know Until You Ask’ campaign, providing parents with practical advice on how to talk to their children about harmful online content.

The consultation on children’s digital wellbeing launched on 2 March looks at further measures to keep children safe online. It will run until 26 May, with the government reporting back in the summer. Later this year, we will publish guidance on screen time for parents of children aged 5 to 16, which will be informed by the consultation and a separate a call for evidence.

We are monitoring the policies of other countries, including Australia, and are working with counterparts to share learnings and best practice on screen time. Ministers from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology will also be visiting Australia to understand their approach.

To deliver these reforms, the department is putting more money into the education system, with £7 billion more being spent on special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) support compared to 2025/26. The department’s budgets will increase above previously planned funding at Autumn Budget 2025 by £3.5 billion in 2028/29 to support investment in the SEND system. In every year of this parliament, core funding for schools and SEND is expected to increase, subject to future Spending Reviews. As we invest in the system, we will update the SEND Code of Practice and legal requirements for support to be provided in all mainstream education settings from early years to post-16, thereby strengthening the law to make sure children and young people receive the help and support they need.

The government is committed to improving allergy safety in schools.

On 25 March, the House of Lords agreed a government amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, requiring all schools in England to put allergy safety measures into place. Schools will be required to have allergy safety policies, review them at least annually and publish them on their website. A Regulation-making power will permit the Secretary of State to place specific allergy safety duties, including requiring schools to stock adrenaline devices, to secure allergy awareness training, the recording and reporting of incidents and the content of allergy safety policies.

Schools will be required to have regard to statutory guidance. Draft statutory guidance was published for consultation on 6 March. The consultation closes on 1 May, so the new guidance can be published in the summer and come into effect from September 2026.

The ‘Every Child Achieving and Thriving’ White Paper sets a clear path to ensuring every child can achieve and thrive, from tackling the scourge of child poverty to securing the highest school standards for all young people.

When children born under this government finish secondary school, it is our ambition that all children achieve higher standards and the disadvantage gap will be halved. We will take children’s education experience from narrow to broad. This includes a renewed curriculum, setting children up to thrive in the modern world. Our reformed curriculum will deliver high standards for all, delivering strong foundations in oracy, reading, writing and maths, and offering a triple science entitlement for all pupils. This is alongside improving transitions and providing an enrichment entitlement for every child.

We will ensure children who for too long have been sidelined are included, raising standards and providing stretch and challenge for all no matter their starting point, targeting deprivation funding to boost outcomes for the most disadvantaged children and launching two place-focused missions to provide a blueprint for national change. Our ambitious special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) reforms will ensure children and young people with SEND get the support they need. The government consultation on SEND is ongoing until 18 May 2026.

We will move children and communities from withdrawn to engaging with education. We will introduce a new pupil engagement framework, support schools to improve behaviour, attendance and parental engagement, and give parents a clearer view of their child’s education.

To deliver this change, we will strengthen the foundations of our education system. We will invest in high quality staff, promote school collaboration, drive standards through new Regional Improvement for Standards and Excellence teams and realise opportunities from data, artificial intelligence and technology.

Advice on safe sleeping is provided to parents through health visitors, midwives and early years professionals at key points during pregnancy and a child’s early months, in line with nationally recognised guidance. Best Start Family Hubs act as a front door to this support, bringing together health, early years and family services so parents can easily access trusted, in-person advice on infant care, including safe sleeping.

Alongside this, the Best Start in Life website, which launched on 1 September 2025, brings together information and support from across government in one place, making it easier for parents to find clear, reliable guidance on topics such as safe sleeping when they need it.

The department is continuing to invest in Best Start Family Hubs, strengthening their role as a universal access point for families and ensuring parents can benefit from both high-quality local support and joined-up digital services. These hubs are part of a wider Best Start in Life strategy, backed by over £900 million over the next three years, to expand family services, bring support together in one place, and make it easier for parents to get the help they need. Hundreds of Best Start Family Hubs are now open across England, with more on the way as we work towards having hubs in every local authority by 2028.

We are also updating the wording in the Early Years Foundation stage statutory framework to make the safe sleep requirements clearer. This new wording will come into force in September 2026, subject to parliamentary procedure. I have sent a letter to early years providers via Ofsted outlining these changes. Additionally, we have published a safer sleep article on the ‘Help for early years providers’ platform to help early years settings understand how to ensure babies and children are kept safe whilst sleeping.

The department requires ministers and officials to follow the Non-Corporate Communications Channels (NCCCs) Guidance issued by the Government Digital Service: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/non-corporate-communication-channels-for-government-business.

This government recognises the concerns caused by high student loan account balances and interest rates, resulting from loan plans designed by previous governments. That is why we are capping the maximum interest rates on Plan 2 and Plan 3 student loans at 6% for the 2026/27 academic year, protecting students and graduates from the risk of short-term inflationary pressures.

Interest rates affect lifetime repayments for those who repay in full, which includes borrowers with small balances as well as higher earners. Monthly repayments depend solely on earnings above the repayment threshold, and those earning below this level are not required to make any repayments. Outstanding balances are cancelled at the end of the loan term.

The government publishes annual forecasts for student loans in England. These include statistics on borrower repayments. The latest publication can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/student-loan-forecasts-for-england/2024-25.

I refer the hon. Member for Harborough, Oadby and Wigston to the answer of 22 April 2026 to Question 124528.

Central government funding for home-to-school travel is provided through the Local Government Finance Settlement administered by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. The Settlement uses relative needs formulae to assess each local authority’s relative need to spend on specific services. From the 2026/27 financial year, we have introduced a new specific relative needs formula for home-to-school travel which estimates each authority’s relative need to spend based on pupil numbers and home-to-school distances. This ensures funding reflects real journeys to school including those for rural local authorities.

I refer the hon. Member for Maidenhead to the answer of 24 March 2026 to Question 121419.

Information on children looked after is published in the annual statistical release available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/children-looked-after-in-england-including-adoptions/2024. The latest available data on children ceasing care and the reasons they left care for the reporting year ending 31 March 2025 can be found in table ‘CLA ceasing during the year - characteristics - by local authority’ in the latest statistical release, available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/6095935f-9f20-411c-35c4-08de9a2bfa8c.

The Schools White Paper sets clear expectations for the quality and timeliness of special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision delivered by local authorities, supported by significant investment to drive system transformation.

In March 2026, the department commissioned local authorities, working with Integrated Care Boards, to develop SEND reform plans and will hold them to account for delivering strong outcomes for children and young people with SEND, intervening decisively where progress stalls and using our full intervention powers where failure persists.

The department publishes annual SEN2 data on education, health and care (EHC) plans and assessments, including timeliness, which informs performance monitoring. Where this highlights a concern around local authority failure to meet statutory duties on EHC plan timeliness, we take action that prioritises children’s needs. Support and challenge is delivered through expert improvement advisers, commissioners and managed support programmes to drive sustained improvement.

Where a council does not meet its duties, the department can take action that supports local areas to bring about rapid improvement, including the issuing of Improvement Notices or Statutory Directions to drive urgent improvements.

Information on children looked after is published in the annual statistical release available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/children-looked-after-in-england-including-adoptions/2024.

Full information on the former placement arrangements of children looked after who are in a relative or friend foster placement is not held in the form requested. Due to the way in which the data is held, analysts in the department would not be able to provide this information you have requested without exceeding the cost threshold applicable to central government.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.

The department is committed to ensuring that all pupils, including those in rural schools, have access to high‑quality science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) education. All our STEM programmes can be accessed across England, regardless of location.

The department funds a range of programmes for teachers to support STEM education, including the Subject Knowledge for Physics Teaching programme, the National Centre for Computing Education, and the Advanced Maths Support Programme (AMSP).

For pupils, the AMSP offers the Maths into Data Science and artificial intelligence programme, an online, assessed course for post-16 learners.

The government continues to fund the STEM Ambassadors programme, a nationwide network of more than 28,000 volunteers registered from over 7,500 employers, reaching over 3 million young people every year. These volunteers engage with young people to spark interest in STEM subjects and showcase the wide variety of STEM careers by sharing their personal experiences.

The Schools White Paper sets clear expectations for local authorities in regard to special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision and we are backing that with significant investment to support transformation of the system.

We have written to local authorities and Integrated Care Boards requesting SEND reform plans on improving outcomes for children.

We will hold them to account to deliver strong outcomes for children and young people with SEND and intervene decisively wherever needed.

We want more children with special educational needs and disabilities to achieve and thrive in their local mainstream school which is why we are investing in making mainstream schools more accessible.

We also recognise the need for more specialist places which is why we’re supporting councils with £3.7 billion in high needs capital between 2025 and 2030. This will fund a transformative expansion of inclusion bases, accessibility adaptations, and special school places for those that need them.

The government is prioritising early, local support for families by strengthening family services and access to high quality early education for children with additional needs. Officials from the Department of Health and Social Care and the Department for Education are working together through the 10 Year Health Plan, Best Start Family Hubs, Healthy Babies and neighbourhood health. New clinical guidelines on alcohol treatment released in November includes guidance on supporting mothers to reduce alcohol use to improve maternal outcomes.

Service families make extraordinary sacrifices for our country. The department continues to support Service children in a range of ways, principally through the Service Pupil Premium, targeted funding that state schools in England are allocated so that they can provide pastoral and academic support, tailored to the specific needs of Service pupils to mitigate disruptions from frequent school moves and parental deployments.

The government keeps the Service Pupil Premium under regular review to ensure it is meeting the intended objectives and providing value for money. We will continue to monitor how funding streams support children’s outcomes and consider future funding decisions as part of the normal budget and spending review processes.

It should also be noted that schools which experience major changes in their pupil cohort from year to year, including those serving Armed Forces communities, attract additional funding through the “mobility factor” in the schools national funding formula. In the 2026/27 financial year, schools will attract £985 for eligible primary pupils and £1,415 for eligible secondary pupils, above a threshold of 6% of the schools’ pupil numbers, where more than 6% of the school’s pupil numbers are classified as mobile.

The government is capping the maximum interest rates on Plan 2 and Plan 3 student loans at 6%, instead of the Retail Prices Index (RPI) plus 3%, for the 2026/27 academic year. This short term measure will protect students and graduates from the potential of inflationary pressures due to the situation in the Middle East.

Student loan interest rates are ordinarily set for each academic year by reference to the RPI value for the year to the preceding March. On that basis, interest rates for the 2026/27 academic year would normally be determined using the RPI figure for March 2026, which is due to be published on 22 April 2026.

The impact of the interest rate cap on long term repayments for graduates, and on forecast cost impacts for the public purse, will depend on the March RPI value. Costs will be set out at Budget in the usual way.

The government is capping the maximum interest rates on Plan 2 and Plan 3 student loans at 6%, instead of the Retail Prices Index (RPI) plus 3%, for the 2026/27 academic year. This short term measure will protect students and graduates from the potential of inflationary pressures due to the situation in the Middle East.

Student loan interest rates are ordinarily set for each academic year by reference to the RPI value for the year to the preceding March. On that basis, interest rates for the 2026/27 academic year would normally be determined using the RPI figure for March 2026, which is due to be published on 22 April 2026.

The impact of the interest rate cap on long term repayments for graduates, and on forecast cost impacts for the public purse, will depend on the March RPI value. Costs will be set out at Budget in the usual way.

The government is capping maximum interest rates on Plan 2 and Plan 3 (postgraduate) student loans at 6%, instead of the Retail Prices Index (RPI) plus 3%, for the 2026/27 academic year.

This short-term protective measure will apply from the 1 September 2026 to the 31 August 2027 and removes the risk of a temporary increase in inflation causing loan balances to compound at an unsustainable rate.

Student loan interest rates are ordinarily set for each academic year by reference to the RPI value for the year to the preceding March. On that basis, interest rates for the 2026/27 academic year would normally be determined using the RPI figure for March 2026, due to be published on 22 April 2026.

The impact of the interest rate cap on the public purse will depend on the March RPI value.

The UK Government recognises the important contribution that universities across the UK make to our economic growth, innovation and international standing. Our recently published International Education Strategy supports strong and sustainable long-term international partnerships for UK universities by promoting the whole of the UK’s education offer overseas, including research collaboration and driving growth through high quality UK transitional education.

The department will continue to work with the UK’s education sector, devolved governments and key partners such as the British Council to support the contribution of British universities, including in Scotland, to growth, innovation and international partnerships. Steps to strengthen this collaboration include the ministerially-chaired Education Sector Action Group, which brings together stakeholders to identify opportunities and remove barriers to growth, and the recent publication of the sector-led brochure ‘Advancing Talent with UK Education – Building Global Partnerships’.

The UK Government recognises the important contribution that universities across the UK make to our economic growth, innovation and international standing. Our recently published International Education Strategy supports strong and sustainable long-term international partnerships for UK universities by promoting the whole of the UK’s education offer overseas, including research collaboration and driving growth through high quality UK transitional education.

The department will continue to work with the UK’s education sector, devolved governments and key partners such as the British Council to support the contribution of British universities, including in Scotland, to growth, innovation and international partnerships. Steps to strengthen this collaboration include the ministerially-chaired Education Sector Action Group, which brings together stakeholders to identify opportunities and remove barriers to growth, and the recent publication of the sector-led brochure ‘Advancing Talent with UK Education – Building Global Partnerships’.

It is the department’s ambition that all families, including those from Armed Forces and Veteran communities, have access to high-quality, affordable and flexible early education and care, giving every child the best start in life and delivering on our Plan for Change.

In April 2026, over 200 new Best Start Family Hubs in areas not previously funded are now open to families, backed by over £900 million of investment. These hubs act as welcoming, one-stop shops rooted in local communities, supporting families from pregnancy through to early childhood with everything from infant feeding support and parenting advice to help with the cost of living and early identification of special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Support will also extend beyond dedicated hubs into up to 2,000 community venues, known as Best Start Network Sites, by 2028, ensuring families can access help.

The department's guidance for Best Start Family Hubs sets out minimum expectations for supporting Armed Forces and Veteran families. Hub staff are expected to be aware of the unique challenges these families can face, including the cumulative impact of mobility, separation, deployment, life after service and bereavement, and to signpost families to relevant support services including the Ministry of Defence’s (MOD) Education Advisory Team and the dedicated Armed Forces Families Federations.

Best Start Family Hub staff are also expected to be familiar with the joint non-statutory guidance 'Service Pupils in Schools' (April 2025) and the MOD Local Authority Partnership (MODLAP) principles for supporting Service children with SEND through school transitions. The guidance also encourages the establishment of a dedicated military champion in every hub, linked to existing Armed Forces Covenant commitments.

Veteran families who are based in England can apply for government funded childcare through the Childcare Service or through their local authorities. Families may also be eligible for support if they receive Universal Credit.

Current service families may be eligible for 30 hours (over 38 weeks of the year) funded childcare support, which is available to eligible working parents from the term after their child turns nine months old until they start school. Parents must earn at least the equivalent of 16 hours a week at the national minimum wage and under £100,000 adjusted net income per year to be eligible. In a two-parent household, both parents must meet the eligibility criteria.

All three- and four-year-olds are eligible for 15 hours free early education per week (over 38 weeks of the year), regardless of family circumstances. This is available the term after the child’s third birthday. Tax-Free Childcare and Universal Credit Childcare are also available to families to help with childcare costs.

The department wants to ensure that parents are aware of and are accessing all the government funded childcare support they are eligible for. The department is raising awareness of the government funded childcare support available via the Best Start in Life Parent Hub website to stimulate increased take up by eligible families, because we know this could make a significant financial difference to families. The website can be accessed here: https://www.beststartinlife.gov.uk/.

Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only. All schools are expected to actively promote fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, and mutual respect and tolerance for those of different faiths and beliefs.

The government’s response to the Curriculum and Assessment Review committed to making citizenship statutory at primary and strengthening primary and secondary content, including on democracy and the rule of law. Applied knowledge and skills in media and digital literacy and subject-specific disciplinary skills, including critical thinking and problem solving, will be embedded in the refreshed programmes of study. Pupils will also have opportunities to develop social and emotional attributes such as resilience.

Working closely with the sector, we are working towards a first teaching of the new curriculum from September 2028.

The statutory requirements for maintained schoolteachers' pay are set nationally subject to recommendations from the School Teachers’ Review Body. In 2023/24, the median FTE salary for teachers in secondary schools was £47,666.

Further education (FE) colleges have statutory autonomy over the pay of their staff. Colleges should have the freedom to meet local technical skills needs within their own local circumstances, and the government does not set college teacher pay. In 2023/24, the median FTE average salary for teachers on permanent or fixed term contracts in FE colleges was £36,316 and £47,133 in sixth form colleges.

FE teachers are central to delivering high-quality technical education. Last year, we announced an additional £190 million broadly equivalent to the pay award in schools for colleges and other 16 to 19 providers to help them address the recruitment and retention of specialist FE teachers. Our targeted retention incentive offer is designed to retain eligible FE teachers in technical subjects with payments of up to £6,000 after tax. In its first year, nearly 6,000 teachers received a payment.

The government has committed £76 million per year for the Music Hubs programme, including the 2025/26 academic year. The 43 Music Hubs partnerships across England offer a range of services, including musical instrument tuition, instrument loaning, and whole-class ensemble teaching. To widen access to musical instruments, the government is invested £25 million in capital funding for musical instruments, equipment, and technology across the 2024/25 and 2025/26 academic years. The grant can be used predominantly to purchase instruments and equipment, including where they have been adapted or developed to meet the needs of those with special educational needs or disabilities. In addition, all hubs are required to have a named inclusion lead and a published inclusion strategy. Most music hubs provide remissions or targeted provision aimed at supporting pupils who are from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The independent interim evaluation report into Music Hubs, published in February 2026, reported that 77% of teachers expected increased access to instruments, and 68% an increase in disadvantaged pupil participation under the new model. The report can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/music-hubs-evaluation-interim-report.

The statutory guidance, ‘Supporting pupils at school with medical conditions’, is issued under section 100 of the Children and Families Act 2014. This requires local authority-maintained schools, academies and pupil referral units to make arrangements for supporting pupils with medical conditions, and to have regard to statutory guidance.

As part of the department’s consultation on revised statutory guidance on medical conditions at school, we are inviting views on whether we should seek to extend the section 100 duty to cover independent schools, non-maintained special schools and post-16 institutions. This would ensure the guidance is statutory guidance for all types of school.

As part of the department’s wider work to protect public money in higher education, we take swift and proportionate action to identify fraud and error in the student finance system.

We work closely with the Student Loans Company (SLC) to ensure student finance is delivered in line with statutory eligibility requirements and funding rules set by Ministers. Where courses are found to be ineligible, the department actively engages with the SLC to implement the appropriate actions in accordance with established processes.

The government recognises the importance of minimising disruption to students where errors in funding eligibility occur and will carefully consider the impact on affected students.

As part of the department’s wider work to protect public money in higher education, we take swift and proportionate action to identify fraud and error in the student finance system.

We work closely with the Student Loans Company (SLC) to ensure student finance is delivered in line with statutory eligibility requirements and funding rules set by Ministers. Where courses are found to be ineligible, the department actively engages with the SLC to implement the appropriate actions in accordance with established processes.

The government recognises the importance of minimising disruption to students where errors in funding eligibility occur and will carefully consider the impact on affected students.

The government has taken decisive action to cap the maximum interest rates on Plan 2 and Plan 3 (postgraduate) student loans at 6%, instead of the Retail Prices Index (RPI) plus 3%, for the 2026/27 academic year. This short term protective measure removes the risk of a temporary increase in inflation causing loan balances to compound at an unsustainable rate.

The interest rate cap follows changes we have already made to the student finance system to improve it and make it fairer for students, graduates and taxpayers. This includes increasing the repayment threshold for Plan 2 loans to £28,470 in April 2025, its first increase since 2021, and increasing it again on 6 April this year, to £29,385. The department is also reintroducing targeted, means-tested maintenance grants from the 2028/29 academic year, providing students from low income households with up to £1,000 extra support that will not need to be repaid.

The statutory requirements for maintained schoolteachers' pay are set nationally subject to recommendations from the School Teachers’ Review Body. In 2023/24, the median full-time equivalent (FTE) salary for teachers in secondary schools was £47,666.

Further education (FE) colleges have statutory autonomy over the pay of their staff. There is value in colleges having the freedom to meet local technical skills needs within their own local circumstances, and the government does not set college teacher pay. In 2023/24, the median FTE average salary for teachers on permanent or fixed term contracts in FE colleges was £36,316 and £47,133 in sixth form colleges.

FE teachers are central to delivering high-quality technical education. Last year, we announced an additional £190 million broadly equivalent to the pay award in schools for colleges and other 16-19 providers to help them address the recruitment and retention of specialist FE teachers. Our targeted retention incentive offer is designed to retain eligible FE teachers in technical subjects with payments of up to £6,000 after tax. In its first year, nearly 6,000 teachers received a payment.

The responses to these Written Parliamentary Questions have been issued.

The responses to these Written Parliamentary Questions have been issued.

The responses to these Written Parliamentary Questions have been issued.

The responses to these Written Parliamentary Questions have been issued.

The responses to these Written Parliamentary Questions have been issued.