Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to actively monitor Cambridgeshire’s recovery plan to reduce EHCP backlogs.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department is providing targeted help for Cambridgeshire, including a specialist special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) adviser and sector-led improvement support from Islington Council. Officials collect monthly data on Cambridgeshire’s education, health and care plan timeliness and this informs monthly discussions on SEND performance with the local area.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that the cost of school transport for students outside London is affordable and does not place a disproportionate financial burden on families; and whether her Department plans to review school transport policy to address disparities in access and cost between London and other areas.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The government is committed to creating opportunities for all children so that they can achieve and thrive. The department’s home-to-school travel policy aims to make sure that no child is prevented from accessing education by a lack of transport. Local authorities are responsible for arranging free home-to-school travel for eligible children. A child is eligible if they are of compulsory school age, 5 to 16, attend their nearest school and would not be able to walk there because of the distance, their special educational needs, disability or mobility problem, or the safety of the route. There are extended rights to free travel for children from low-income families. The department does not currently have any plans to change the existing statutory framework.
Public transport has an important role to play too. The Bus Services Act 2025 puts the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders right across England. This will enable them to ensure local bus services meet the needs of local communities, including supporting access to education.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to page 22 of the policy paper entitled SEND Reform: Putting Children and Young People First, published on 23 February 2026, CP1509, how (a) schools, (b) colleges and (c) early years settings in Huntingdonshire will access the capital funding.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
We are investing at least £3.7 billion in high needs capital funding between 2025/26 and 2029/30 to support local authorities to provide places for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), or who require alternative provision. This funding is expected to fund a transformative expansion of inclusion bases, as well as adaptations to improve the accessibility and inclusivity of mainstream settings. It can also be used to create special school places for pupils with the most complex needs.
This reflects the statutory responsibility of local authorities to ensure there are sufficient school places for pupils in their area, including those with SEND. Accordingly, schools, colleges and early years settings in Huntingdonshire access this investment through Cambridgeshire County Council. In 2025/26, Cambridgeshire County Council received £7.1 million high needs capital. We will publish local authority high needs capital allocations for 2026/27 in Spring 2026.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester Rusholme)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her department has made of the potential impact on schools of ongoing uncertainty around future national funding for physical education and school sports.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for Manchester Rusholme, to the answer of 03 March 2026 to Question 115304.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential implications for the quality of education of the use of digital tablets for learning in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools in Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Technology plays an important role in broad, rich learning experiences in classrooms across the country, and it is essential that children learn to use technology confidently and safely, so they are prepared for a rapidly evolving world of work.
Equally, we understand concerns about excessive screen time and agree that unmonitored or unlimited personal use can carry risks and recognise that we must get the balance right. That’s why we are consulting on how we can deliver a safer digital childhood, developing screen time guidance for children and taking touch action against online harms – in addition to ensuring schools are always phone free. We have also committed to publishing guidance on early years screentime shortly.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number of redundancies in higher education in the last year.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government greatly values the hard work of staff across the higher education (HE) sector who continue to deliver for students and universities during what is a challenging period.
We are aware that some providers are making difficult decisions around staffing to safeguard their financial sustainability.
Given that universities are independent, the government does not have a role in intervening with specific providers in pay and staffing matters, nor does it collect specific data on redundancies within HE.
We encourage providers to work constructively with their staff to develop sustainable models that retain talent and expertise, and provide stability for the workforce and the institution.
We are committed to putting our world-leading universities onto a secure financial footing so they can face the challenges of the next decade. Our decision to raise tuition fees annually in line with inflation, alongside refocusing the Office for Students on monitoring the sector’s financial health, demonstrates this commitment.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much and what proportion of university fee income is derived from international students in each of the last five years.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) is responsible for collecting and publishing data on the UK higher education (HE) sector. These data are shared with the department and includes a wide range of information on UK higher education providers (HEPs), including the income they receive through tuition fees.
Between 2019/20 and 2023/24, the proportion of HE tuition fee income that is attributed to international students in UK HE has steadily increased from 39% in 2019/20 to 47% in 2023/24.
The below table shows international tuition fee income as a proportion of total tuition fee income for UK HEPs:
Academic year | 2019/20 | 2020/21 | 2021/22 | 2022/23 | 2023/24 |
International tuition fee income as a proportion of total tuition fee income (sector) | 39% (£8.2 billion) | 39% (£8.8 billion) | 43% (£10.4 billion) | 46% (£12.1 billion) | 47% (£12.7 billion) |
HESA university finance data returns for the 2024/25 academic year are not complete therefore have not been included.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has made an assessment of the effectiveness of tuition fee-based funding model for higher education.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Around £10.8 billion in tuition fee loans administered by the Student Loans Company were paid directly to higher education providers in the 2024/25 financial year.
To provide long-term funding certainty for the sector, so that it can focus on reform, we will increase tuition fee caps for all higher education providers in line with forecast inflation of 2.71% in 2026/27 and 2.68% in 2027/28 and then legislate when parliamentary time allows to increase tuition fee caps automatically for future years.
We expect the sector to demonstrate that, in return for the increased investment that we are asking students to make, they deliver the best outcomes for those students and the country.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent estimate she has made of the financial return to the economy of public investment in higher education.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Research by London Economics estimates that teaching and learning activities provided by the UK higher education (HE) sector generated £94.8 billion, which was equivalent to an average £13 return for every £1 of public investment in 2021/22. The combined research and knowledge exchange activities of UK universities generated a total economic impact of approximately £62.84 billion. This equates to an average of £9.90 for every £1 invested. Spending by UK HE providers also produces indirect effects, positively impacting the economy.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of schools’ mobile phone policies in preventing disruption in learning.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Mobile phones have no place in schools.
Research from the Children’s Commissioner, published in April 2025, shows that the overwhelming majority of schools, 99.8% of primary schools and 90% of secondary schools, already have policies in place that limit or restrict the use of mobile phones during the school day.
The department’s recently strengthened guidance on mobile phones in schools is clear that all schools should be mobile phone-free by default. Pupils should not have access to their devices during lessons, break times, lunch times, or between lessons.
The guidance will be implemented through behaviour management in schools, and by setting out clear expectations for teachers and school staff. Our attendance and behaviour hub lead schools will support other schools to implement and enforce a mobile phone policy where needed.
From April, Ofsted will also check school mobile phone policy on every inspection, with schools expected to be mobile phone-free by default. Ofsted will examine both schools' mobile phone policies and how effectively they are implemented when judging behaviour during inspections.