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.
Asked by: Elsie Blundell (Labour - Heywood and Middleton North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure schools are promoting reading as a substitute to social media use.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
We know that reading for pleasure is hugely important and brings a range of benefits. However, we also know that just one in three children aged 8 to 18 read in their free time, and a recent Omnibus Survey by the department found that 31% of parents of primary-aged children and 40% of parents of secondary-aged children said their child prefers spending time online or playing video games, citing this as a barrier to encouraging reading in their free time.
We have launched the National Year of Reading 2026, in collaboration with the National Literacy Trust, to address long-term declines in reading enjoyment through engaging new audiences, reshaping public attitudes and building the systems needed to embed lasting, meaningful change.
The National Year of Reading encourages everyone to see how reading, in all forms, can unlock more of our existing passions and interests, from reading a story in a print book or on an e-reader, to reading a magazine article or an online blog, to listening to an audio book on a phone or tablet. With this in mind, digital technology is not incompatible with the National Year of Reading.
The national rollout of Best Start Family Hubs is underpinned by £500 million of government investment to help families in every part of the country. This includes increased investment in home learning and parenting support in the early years, enhancing support for families through integrated advice, targeted outreach and partnerships to empower more parents and carers to chat, play, and read with their children every day to nurture early reading skills and language development from birth.
This government is also providing £5 million of funding for secondary schools to purchase books to encourage reading for pleasure, as well as committing over £10 million in funding to guarantee a library for every primary school by the end of this Parliament.
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 her Department's consultation entitled SEND reform: Putting Children and Young People First, CP1509, when she plans to implement a fast-track route to support for children under five.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department will work closely with colleagues at the Department for Health and Social Care and with parents and carers, to develop a fast-track route to support children under five years old with the most complex special educational needs to access the support they and their families need to achieve and thrive in early education. This will include exploring options to trial such a process ahead of legislation.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the budget is for the Turing scheme in 2026-27; and what the target number of UK students supported is.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Guidance on the Turing Scheme for the 2026/27 academic year has been published on GOV.UK, and applications for funding are open until 16 March 2026. The budget for 2026/27 will be confirmed in due course.
The Turing Scheme is a demand led, competitive programme, so providers can shape applications to the needs of their students. We do not set targets for the number of Turing Scheme placements in each year, as this is highly dependent on the numbers of students that individual providers intend to send, where they intend to go and how long for. Instead, we allocate funding to prioritise the participation of students from disadvantaged backgrounds and those with special educational needs and disabilities.
The UK has agreed in principle to associate with Erasmus+ from 2027, and decisions on the Turing Scheme for 2027/28 will be shared in due course.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what is the evidential basis for her view that graduates will pay back £8 more a month on average due to the freezing of the repayment threshold for student loans.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Monthly repayments for a borrower earning above the repayment threshold in a scenario with no threshold freeze was calculated as £8 lower in the 2027/28 financial year compared to the repayments of the same borrower in a scenario with a freeze. This is calculated as 9% (the repayment rate) of the difference between the frozen threshold and the non-frozen threshold. This figure was based on Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) inflation forecasts from the 2025 Spring Statement.
Following updated OBR economic forecasts released on 3 March 2026 as part of the Spring Statement, this figure has been recalculated and remains £8.
For borrowers earning less than the threshold calculated without a freeze, the increased repayments compared to the freeze scenario will be less than £8, and borrowers earning below the frozen threshold will continue to repay nothing.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the Turing scheme will be renewed for (a) 2027-28 and (b) 2028-29.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Guidance on the Turing Scheme for the 2026/27 academic year has been published on GOV.UK, and applications for funding are open until 16 March 2026. The budget for 2026/27 will be confirmed in due course.
The Turing Scheme is a demand led, competitive programme, so providers can shape applications to the needs of their students. We do not set targets for the number of Turing Scheme placements in each year, as this is highly dependent on the numbers of students that individual providers intend to send, where they intend to go and how long for. Instead, we allocate funding to prioritise the participation of students from disadvantaged backgrounds and those with special educational needs and disabilities.
The UK has agreed in principle to associate with Erasmus+ from 2027, and decisions on the Turing Scheme for 2027/28 will be shared in due course.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how her Department defines a partial closure of a Sixth Form College; and whether removal of A-Level provision constitutes a partial closure.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The arrangements for closing a standalone sixth form college are set out in the Dissolution of Further Education Corporations and Sixth Form College Corporations (Prescribed Bodies) Regulations 2012, and do not include partial closure.
It is for the college to decide the provision offered, taking into account the local authority’s statutory duty to ensure sufficient provision for 16 to 18 year-olds and their learner demographic and needs.
For school sixth forms, it is up to individual schools to decide which post-16 qualifications to offer in line with the 16 to 19 study programmes guidance.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether there is a minimum age to participate in the (a) Turing and (b) Erasmus+ scheme.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Most Erasmus+ activities do not have a specific age limit, except for youth activities which are only available to 18 to 30-year-olds. Erasmus+ is designed for a wide range of participants, including learners, trainees, and staff across higher education (HE), further education, vocational education and training, schools, adult education, youth programmes and sport programmes.
Students can participate in Turing Scheme placements if they are receiving education from an eligible provider from primary school through to HE.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent estimate she has made of the average pay gap between further education college lecturers and school teachers.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government’s role in relation to pay and conditions across schools and colleges differs.
The statutory requirements for teachers' pay and conditions within maintained schools in England are set out in the ‘School teachers’ pay and conditions’ document. This is updated each year, based on recommendations from the independent School Teachers’ Review Body.
In 2023/24, the median Full Time Equivalent (FTE) salary for classroom teachers in secondary schools was £47,666.
Further education (FE) colleges were incorporated under the terms of the 1992 Further and Higher Education Act, which gave them autonomy over the pay of their staff. The government does not set or recommend college teacher pay.
In 2023/24, the median FTE average salary for teaching staff on permanent or fixed term contracts in general further education colleges was £36,316 and £47,133 in sixth form colleges.
The school and FE pay figures are sourced from different datasets and recorded differently which may make it difficult to make direct comparisons.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many higher education institutions have sought to withdraw staff from the Teachers’ Pension Scheme in each of the past four quarters.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government recognises that the financial environment of the higher education (HE) sector is challenging for both providers and for their staff. We are aware that some providers are making difficult decisions around staffing in order to safeguard their financial sustainability, including in relation to pension arrangements.
As providers are independent, the government does not routinely collect information regarding pay and workforce matters in HE. However, we remain committed to engaging with both HE unions and the employer body to better understand the issues affecting the sector, including the workforce.
Furthermore, we appreciate both the impact of the increased Teachers’ Pension Scheme employer contribution rate on providers and that defined benefit pensions are highly valued by staff across the sector. As set out in the Post-16 Education and Skills White Paper, the government is therefore seeking to better understand concerns within the post-1992 HE sector regarding pension provision.