Department for Education

The department does not hold data on the historical costs of climate-related extreme weather. Education settings are not required to report such incidents, and responsible bodies are responsible for the repair and maintenance of their estates through the normal funding channels provided by the department, such as the Schools Condition Allocation and Condition Improvement Fund.

Ensuring schools and colleges have the resources and buildings they need is a key part of the department’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every young person the best start in life.

This government has given a long-term commitment through to the 2034/35 financial year to improve the condition of our schools and colleges across England. The department is investing almost £3 billion per year by the 2034/35 financial year in capital maintenance and renewal to improve the condition of the school and college estate, rising from £2.4 billion in 2025/26.

The department is also investing almost £20 billion in the School Rebuilding Programme through to the 2034/35 financial year, delivering rebuilding projects at over 500 schools across England within the existing programme and expanding rebuilding, with a further 250 schools to be selected within the next two years.

The government has given a long-term commitment for capital investment through to the 2034/35 financial year to improve the condition of schools and colleges across England. We are investing almost £3 billion per year by the 2034/35 financial year in capital maintenance and renewal to improve the condition of the school and college estate, rising from £2.4 billion in 2025/26.

The Aces Academies Trust, the responsible body for Hinchingbrooke School, has been allocated £761,926 in capital funding for the 2025/26 financial year to decide how to invest across its schools, based on their own prioritisation of need. Future allocations will be confirmed in due course.

The government has also announced almost £20 billion of investment for the School Rebuilding Programme through to the 2034/35 financial year, delivering rebuilding projects at over 500 schools across England within the existing programme, with a further 250 schools to be selected within the next two years. We plan to set out further details about the process for selecting additional schools later this year.

The department has recently announced the extension of the holiday activities and food programme (HAF) with over £600 million for the next three financial years. This means nutritious meals and exciting activities for more than half a million children across the country every year, helping them to thrive during the school holidays.

The department will also be publishing a new Enrichment Framework by the end of this year, supporting schools to create a broad and accessible enrichment offer for all pupils.

The department recognises the impact the cost of living may have on children’s participation in a variety of enrichment activities and is working to ensure that all children have access to beneficial opportunities of this sort. We continue to collect data on pupil participation in enrichment through our omnibus surveys.

The government is committed to promoting inclusive education and welcomes the teaching of British Sign Language (BSL) in schools. Schools may choose to offer BSL as part of their school curriculum, or as an extracurricular activity.

Following the British Sign Language Act 2022, BSL was formally recognised as a language. In line with this, the department has worked closely with stakeholders to develop a GCSE in BSL. The final subject content was published on GOV.UK in December 2023. As is the usual process for introducing a qualification, Ofqual conducted a public consultation on its proposed assessment arrangements in spring 2025. Ofqual expects to confirm its decisions on the qualification rules this autumn. Exam boards will then be able to develop detailed specifications which will form the basis of course content to be taught in schools and colleges.

To support delivery, the department recognises the importance of a skilled teaching workforce. We are engaging stakeholders, including school leaders and BSL organisations, to consider how to support workforce development.

The Curriculum and Assessment Review will be informed by evidence, data and input from experts, stakeholders and the public, including over 7,000 responses to the call for evidence, and a range of research and polling.

The Review’s interim report demonstrates a continued support for a high quality, knowledge-rich curriculum that drives excellence in education across a broad range of subjects and pathways.

The Review set out that it would consider whether there is sufficient coverage of knowledge and skills that are essential to prepare children and young people for future life and to thrive in a fast-changing world.

The Curriculum and Assessment Review is independent and ongoing. The Review’s final report and recommendations will be published in autumn, at which point the government will respond.

The government is working with education experts, teachers, and parents to ensure the very best for children.

The department has not promoted the work of Schools of Sanctuary to any local authority or educational setting.

This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.

There is significant work underway to ensure there is an appropriate training offer in place to support teachers and school leaders to create an inclusive school environment. We have recently reviewed the Initial Teacher Training Core Content Framework and the Early Career Framework which includes significantly more content on adaptive teaching and supporting pupils with SEND.

A review of our National Professional Qualifications is also underway, which includes a key focus on including further best practice for teaching pupils with SEND.

This core offer is supplemented by further SEND-specific training that is easy to access at any point in your career through the Universal SEND Services contract. This programme aims to support the school and further education workforce, particularly in mainstream settings, to identify and meet the needs of children and young people with SEND, including those with autism, earlier and more effectively.

While school leaders have the autonomy and authority to make recruitment decisions, as they are best placed to understand their own context and pupils’ needs, the government is supporting them by increasing the core schools budget by £3.7 billion in 2025/26, meaning it will total £65.3 billion, compared to almost £61.6 billion in 2024/25.

This additional funding provides an above real-terms per pupil increase on the core schools budget, taking per-pupil funding to its highest ever level, enabling us to transform the SEND system.

The department will fund Best Start Family Hubs in every local authority to ensure that children and families who need support the most can access it. Local authorities not currently funded through government Family Hubs programmes, which includes Surrey, will receive a development grant in 2025/26 to plan and begin setting up services to ensure national rollout from April 2026 when full funding is awarded. The role of local authorities will include identifying family hub sites. Services will vary depending on local needs. Surrey received £351,991 in October 2025.

In addition, last year the national rollout of Family Help, multi-agency child protection and family group decision making reforms through the Families First Partnership programme was confirmed. In 2025/26 the reforms are backed nationally by £541 million. Surrey received around £2.5 million in additional funding. The programme team have received and reviewed Surrey’s draft delivery plan and will be discussing shortly.

Surrey has already established a strong Early Help Partnership Board to analyse the needs of their communities and the Surrey Safeguarding Children Partnership executive has endorsed plans to form a partnership project team to lead community engagement, develop shared data insights, and coordinate reform implementation. This team will feed into the Board.

The department will fund Best Start Family Hubs in every local authority to ensure that children and families who need support the most can access it. Local authorities not currently funded through government Family Hubs programmes, which includes Surrey, will receive a development grant in 2025/26 to plan and begin setting up services to ensure national rollout from April 2026 when full funding is awarded. The role of local authorities will include identifying family hub sites. Services will vary depending on local needs. Surrey received £351,991 in October 2025.

In addition, last year the national rollout of Family Help, multi-agency child protection and family group decision making reforms through the Families First Partnership programme was confirmed. In 2025/26 the reforms are backed nationally by £541 million. Surrey received around £2.5 million in additional funding. The programme team have received and reviewed Surrey’s draft delivery plan and will be discussing shortly.

Surrey has already established a strong Early Help Partnership Board to analyse the needs of their communities and the Surrey Safeguarding Children Partnership executive has endorsed plans to form a partnership project team to lead community engagement, develop shared data insights, and coordinate reform implementation. This team will feed into the Board.

The department recognises the need for trusts, local authorities and Members of Parliament to have certainty about projects as soon as possible, and we will provide them with an update on next steps in due course.

We have engaged with trusts, local authorities and other stakeholders in relation to individual projects in scope of the review, including gathering evidence on the local need for places, value for money, and the distinctiveness of the educational offer compared to what is already available locally.

The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill contains provisions requiring local authorities to maintain registers of children who are not in school. These registers are intended to aid local authorities in identifying children who are missing education and support them.

The department is aware of the importance of protecting personal data. Existing laws, including the Data Protection Act and UK-GDPR, will apply to all data that is processed as part of the duty to maintain registers. These laws put in place robust restrictions on data collection, storage and sharing as well as respecting the rights of the individuals to access, rectification and erasure. However, there are circumstances where data sharing is essential, particularly when it concerns a child’s safety or wellbeing. The Bill provides a restricted list of individuals and agencies with whom data may be shared, solely for the purposes of safeguarding a child’s education or welfare. Any breach of these protections by a local authority could be subject to penalties or regulatory action by the Information Commissioner.

We will outline in statutory guidance how local authorities must balance the need to share data for safeguarding and educational support purposes with individuals’ right to privacy.

The government is committed to ensuring that all pupils, regardless of location, have access to a high quality language education. This includes increasing the number of students studying languages at GCSE and ensuring that those who wish to continue to A level are able to do so.

The department is continuing to fund the National Consortium for Languages Education (NCLE) to deliver a new model of support for schools. The programme offers free continuous professional development via Language Educators Online (LEO), supported by 14 Strategic Learning Networks and locally responsive National Priority Projects. It is research-informed, helping teachers collaborate and tackle key challenges in language education. Language teachers can join the NCLE Language Network in their area and sign up to LEO to keep up to date with current and evolving teaching practice in language education.

To further support languages education, the government is offering a £20,000 tax-free bursary for trainee language teachers starting courses in 2026, or alternatively, a £22,000 tax-free scholarship for those training to teach French, German, or Spanish.

The government is committed to ensuring that all pupils, regardless of location, have access to a high quality language education. This includes increasing the number of students studying languages at GCSE and ensuring that those who wish to continue to A level are able to do so.

The department is continuing to fund the National Consortium for Languages Education (NCLE) to deliver a new model of support for schools. The programme offers free continuous professional development via Language Educators Online (LEO), supported by 14 Strategic Learning Networks and locally responsive National Priority Projects. It is research-informed, helping teachers collaborate and tackle key challenges in language education. Language teachers can join the NCLE Language Network in their area and sign up to LEO to keep up to date with current and evolving teaching practice in language education.

To further support languages education, the government is offering a £20,000 tax-free bursary for trainee language teachers starting courses in 2026, or alternatively, a £22,000 tax-free scholarship for those training to teach French, German, or Spanish.

The government is continuing to fund the National Consortium for Languages Education (NCLE). NCLE is delivering a new model of support for schools that can potentially reach a greater number of schools nationally. The new programme, which replaces Language Hubs, has national reach as it is not constrained by geography or limited by the number of schools it can support.

NCLE launched Language Educators Online (LEO) on 16 September 2025. LEO provides free continuous professional development to all language teachers in England. This is supported by 14 Strategic Learning Networks and locally responsive National Priority Projects. It is research-informed, helping teachers collaborate and tackle key challenges in language education. Language teachers can join the NCLE Language Network in their area and sign up to LEO to keep up to date with current and evolving teaching practice in language education.

The government is continuing to fund the National Consortium for Languages Education (NCLE). NCLE is delivering a new model of support for schools that can potentially reach a greater number of schools nationally. The new programme, which replaces Language Hubs, has national reach as it is not constrained by geography or limited by the number of schools it can support.

NCLE launched Language Educators Online (LEO) on 16 September 2025. LEO provides free continuous professional development to all language teachers in England. This is supported by 14 Strategic Learning Networks and locally responsive National Priority Projects. It is research-informed, helping teachers collaborate and tackle key challenges in language education. Language teachers can join the NCLE Language Network in their area and sign up to LEO to keep up to date with current and evolving teaching practice in language education.

Effective early identification and intervention is critical in improving the outcomes of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Many settings already have mechanisms in place to identify needs early and effectively.

The department wants to build on best practice and use further research to develop and support settings with evidence-based approaches for identifying needs early, whenever those needs may emerge, from early years through to post-16, and across all genders.

Recently published evidence reviews from University College London aim to help to drive inclusive practices by highlighting the most effective tools, strategies and approaches for teachers and other relevant staff to identify and support children and young people with different types of needs. In addition, the ‘What works in SEND’ research programme, led by a team from the University of Warwick, is researching tools that settings can use to identify the needs of neurodivergent children and young people.

The department knows there are lots of great examples of mainstream schools delivering specialist provision through resourced provision and special educational needs (SEN) units. They have an important role to play in a more inclusive mainstream system, enabling children to achieve and thrive in a local school.

We are committed to encouraging schools and local authorities to set up resourced provision and SEN units to increase capacity in mainstream schools.

The department has published allocations for £740 million high needs capital in 2025/26 to support children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or who require alternative provision, including setting up resourced provision or SEN units in mainstream schools.

It is the responsibility of local authorities to ensure there are sufficient school places for pupils in their area, including those with SEND. If a local authority identifies a shortage of places, resulting in a significant number of pupils needing to travel a long way to access a placement, they should consider creating, adapting, or expanding provision to meet that need.

I refer the hon. Member for South Basildon and East Thurrock to the answer of 28 February 2025 to Question 31700.

This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.

The department is providing total high needs funding of over £12 billion in 2025/26 for children and young people with complex SEND in England. Warrington Borough Council is being allocated over £36 million through the high needs funding block of the dedicated schools grant.

The department is considering the funding required for future years and how it is to be allocated, following the conclusion of the recent spending review. Our objective is that future funding for SEND supports our plans for reforming the SEND system, which will be set out in further detail in an upcoming White Paper.

The government recognises the challenges girls face participating in PE and sport and is committed to ensuring they can access equal opportunities to be physically active and experience the many known benefits of sports.

In June, my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister launched a new approach to PE and school sport. A new partnerships model will be created, supported by the new Enrichment Framework, to ensure all children and young people, including girls, have equal access to high-quality extra-curricular activities.

The partnerships will:

• Increase collaboration to expand high-quality PE, increase physical activity, maximise use of facilities, and strengthen teacher continuing professional development.
• Build stronger links to create clear pathways for children and young people to stay active.

Following the announcement, the department, along with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department of Health and Social Care, has held design meetings with over 25 stakeholders, including schools, NGBs, SGOs, and sector bodies, to identify and build on effective practice from current and past programmes.

Additionally, the School Games Mark, funded by the government and managed by the Youth Sport Trust, introduced mandatory equality criteria for PE, school sport and physical activity participation. Schools can review their provision as part of their planning and delivery. Best practice from the School Games Mark will be shared with all schools to enhance equal access to sport.

Where a new plan type is introduced, the terms, including the length of the loan, are considered as a whole. The new terms are not applied retrospectively to borrowers who have signed up to previous plans in existence at the time of their study. They are then set in legislation to apply to that specific loan type.

Although both pre-2006 and post-2006 Plan 1 loans retained the Plan 1 title, these are different plan types.

Plan 1 post-2006 included a shorter loan term of 25 years, however, tuition fee increases resulted in higher loan balances on course completion than for pre-2006 borrowers. Pre-2006 borrowers, whose loan term ends aged 65, benefitted from lower tuition fee loans and a lower loan balance on completion of their course.

There are no plans to review pre-2006 Plan 1 terms and conditions, including the age 65 write-off term.

This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) receive the right support to succeed in their education.

Schools, further education colleges, sixth form colleges, and 16 to 19 academies are required to identify and address the special educational needs (SEN) of the pupils they support and, in the case of mainstream settings, to use their ‘best endeavours’ to make sure that a child or young person who has SEN gets the support they need.

All schools should apply the ‘graduated approach’ that is outlined in the ‘SEND code of practice: 0 to 25 years’, which means identifying a child’s needs, planning appropriate support, implementing and reviewing the support regularly to ensure it continues to meet the identified needs. Through this, schools should develop personalised approaches to supporting the unique needs of individual pupils. The code of practice can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/send-code-of-practice-0-to-25.

To support settings to identify need early, we are strengthening the evidence base of what works to improve early identification in mainstream settings. For example, evidence reviews from University College London have recently been published. These will help to drive inclusive practices as they highlight what the best available evidence suggests are the most effective tools, strategies and approaches for teachers and other relevant staff in mainstream settings to identify and support children and young people with different types of needs.

In 2023/24, there were 72,410 child in need episodes where ‘alcohol misuse: concerns about parent’ were recorded.

Our statutory guidance, “Working together to safeguard children”, sets out that practitioners should be alert to the need for early help for a child who is in a family circumstance presenting challenges for them, such as alcohol misuse. The guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-safeguard-children--2.

Our Families First Partnership programme, backed by over £500 million investment per year over the next three years from 2025/26, is rolling out reforms to family help and multi-agency child protection. Funding will be increased by at least £300 million between 2026/27 and 2027/28, as part of the £555 million investment from the transformation fund.

These reforms will produce a fundamental shift in the way we respond to children and families who need help, including supporting those living with alcohol dependent parents.

In 2023/24, there were 72,410 child in need episodes where ‘alcohol misuse: concerns about parent’ were recorded.

Our statutory guidance, “Working together to safeguard children”, sets out that practitioners should be alert to the need for early help for a child who is in a family circumstance presenting challenges for them, such as alcohol misuse. The guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-safeguard-children--2.

Our Families First Partnership programme, backed by over £500 million investment per year over the next three years from 2025/26, is rolling out reforms to family help and multi-agency child protection. Funding will be increased by at least £300 million between 2026/27 and 2027/28, as part of the £555 million investment from the transformation fund.

These reforms will produce a fundamental shift in the way we respond to children and families who need help, including supporting those living with alcohol dependent parents.

All children and young people should have every opportunity to succeed. However, the system is not working for all, including white working-class children, who are one of the biggest and lowest-performing groups.

This is unacceptable. The upcoming Schools White Paper will set out our vision for a school system that delivers educational excellence for all children, no matter their background.

The department is driving standards and outcomes through regional improvement for standards and excellence teams’ attainment conferences focused on disadvantage and the Maths Hubs programme, supported by the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics. As part of a £2 million investment in reading and writing, secondary schools can access support to foster a strong whole-school reading culture, as well as the Unlocking Reading programme to boost the reading of pupils who need the most support, launching in January.

We will ensure future work to support white working-class children draws on evidence and expertise, including from the independent inquiry into white working-class educational outcomes.

High and rising school standards, with excellent foundations in reading, writing and mathematics, are at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best start in life.

The English Hubs programme supports the teaching of phonics, early language development and reading for pleasure. Romford is served by New Vision English Hub.

In the 2025/26 financial year, the government has committed £27.7 million to support and drive high and rising standards in reading. This funding will deliver a range of support for schools, including new training for primary schools, delivered through the English Hubs programme, to help children progress from the early stages of phonics through to reading fluently by the time they leave primary school, and new support and training for secondary schools to support reading at key stage 3.

The department also published a writing framework in July, which will support schools in delivering high quality writing provision across England.

We have been clear that a more inclusive education system is needed to give children and young people opportunities they need to achieve and thrive. All schools have a duty to support children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

Settings are held to account for their support for pupils with SEND through Ofsted, who are focusing on inclusion in their new approach to inspection. Their renewed education inspection framework sets out expectations for how leaders should be aware of and responsive to some pupils’ increased need for help and protection, including those with SEND.

There remains a crucial role for special schools, not only in supporting children and young people with particularly complex needs, but also in building capability across the system.

To help break down barriers to opportunity, this government will deliver a curriculum which is rich and broad, inclusive and innovative, and ensures that all young people get the opportunity to learn digital and creative skills as part of their education, with digital skills becoming increasingly important to the economy and our growth mission.

To meet this ambition, the government commissioned the independent Curriculum and Assessment Review to advise on how to refresh the curriculum to ensure that young people leave compulsory education with the knowledge, skills and attributes they need to thrive, including digital skills. The Review is also looking at whether the current assessment system for young people aged 5 to 19, including qualification pathways, can be improved, while protecting the important role of examinations.

The Review’s final report and recommendations will be published in the autumn, at which point the government will respond.

To help break down barriers to opportunity, this government will deliver a curriculum which is rich and broad, inclusive and innovative, and ensures that all young people get the opportunity to learn digital and creative skills as part of their education, with digital skills becoming increasingly important to the economy and our growth mission.

To meet this ambition, the government commissioned the independent Curriculum and Assessment Review to advise on how to refresh the curriculum to ensure that young people leave compulsory education with the knowledge, skills and attributes they need to thrive, including digital skills. The Review is also looking at whether the current assessment system for young people aged 5 to 19, including qualification pathways, can be improved, while protecting the important role of examinations.

The Review’s final report and recommendations will be published in the autumn, at which point the government will respond.

To help break down barriers to opportunity, this government will deliver a curriculum which is rich and broad, inclusive and innovative, and ensures that all young people get the opportunity to learn digital and creative skills as part of their education, with digital skills becoming increasingly important to the economy and our growth mission.

To meet this ambition, the government commissioned the independent Curriculum and Assessment Review to advise on how to refresh the curriculum to ensure that young people leave compulsory education with the knowledge, skills and attributes they need to thrive, including digital skills. The Review is also looking at whether the current assessment system for young people aged 5 to 19, including qualification pathways, can be improved, while protecting the important role of examinations.

The Review’s final report and recommendations will be published in the autumn, at which point the government will respond.

The department continues to support improvements in special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) provision in Somerset, including in Yeovil.

This financial year, Somerset Council received £8.4 million through the High Needs Provision Capital Allocation to expand specialist provision and improve accessibility in mainstream schools.

Six primary schools in Yeovil are also participating in the Partnerships for Inclusion of Neurodiversity in Schools programme. This initiative brings together health and education professionals, and expert parent carers, to strengthen whole school SEND provision, upskill staff, and improve outcomes for neurodivergent pupils.

The department and NHS England continue to engage with the Somerset SEND partnership and are occasional observers to their SEND partnership board to support system-wide improvement.

We also support educational outcomes through academy trust oversight and regional improvement for standards and excellence initiatives.

The government’s ambition is that all children and young people with SEND or in alternative provision receive the right support to succeed.

This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.

We will build a system which is grounded in evidence, identifies and supports need at the earliest opportunity, and ensures families can secure support swiftly without a fight. There will always be a legal right to additional support for children and young people with SEND.

We are continuing to engage closely with children, parents and experts as we develop plans to ensure all children and young people get the outcomes and life chances they deserve.

Educational psychologists play a critical role in the support available to children and young people, including those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). That is why we are already investing over £21 million to train 400 more educational psychologists over two cohorts, starting their studies in 2024 and 2025. This is in addition to the £10 million currently being invested in the training of over 200 educational psychologists who began their training in September 2023.

As these trainees complete their studies, they will join the workforce to support local authority educational psychology services, including contributing to statutory assessments.

The department is also working closely with the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England to improve access to community health services, including speech and language therapy, for children and young people with SEND.

The department does not hold the data requested.

We are working with the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England to consider how we might extend the availability of adrenaline auto-injectors in schools.

The department is committed to improving inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools, as well as ensuring special and alternative provision schools cater to those with the most complex needs.

The funding announced at the last Spending Review means a significant investment in the support available for special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) pupils within mainstream schools. This will support the government’s plan to deliver an excellent, inclusive education for every child, with a world class curriculum and highly trained, expert teachers.

The special educational needs coordinator (SENCO) must be a qualified teacher, or the head teacher, working at the school. On 1 September 2024, the government introduced a new mandatory leadership level National Professional Qualification (NPQ) for SENCOs. The NPQ ensures SENCOs receive high quality, evidence-based training and equips them with the knowledge and skills to work with other leaders to create an inclusive environment where everyone feels welcome, safe and that they belong. Since going live, over 10,500 members of the school workforce have started their SENCO NPQ journey.

The forthcoming Schools White Paper will set out an ambitious vision for improving outcomes for all pupils. The department is working closely with the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England to improve access to community health services, including speech and language therapy, for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

As the department sets out in ‘Giving every child the best start in life’, we will continue to ensure every reception class in state-funded schools benefits from fully funded access to proven programmes such as the Nuffield Early Language Intervention (NELI). In July 2025, the department announced that funded support for the 11,000 schools registered for the NELI programme would continue for a further four academic years until the end of the 2028/29 academic year. Reception staff will also be able to access specialist early language leads.

In addition, the department has extended the Early Language and Support for Every Child (ELSEC) programme, in partnership with NHS England, to trial new ways of working to better identify and support children with speech, language and communication needs in early years settings and primary schools.

All state funded schools, including those in Yeovil, are required to teach first aid as part of the statutory health education curriculum in relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) education. This includes how to deal with common injuries, call the emergency services and administer CPR and understand the purpose of defibrillators.

Schools have the autonomy to decide how they teach CPR and which resources to use, often choosing to use expert organisations to deliver additional content. The department does not monitor this as schools decide what to adopt in their local areas, choosing lesson plans and materials that are relevant to them.

Ofsted are responsible for inspecting schools’ RSHE provision as part of their personal development judgement.

All state funded schools, including those in Yeovil, are required to teach first aid as part of the statutory health education curriculum in relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) education. This includes how to deal with common injuries, call the emergency services and administer CPR and understand the purpose of defibrillators.

Schools have the autonomy to decide how they teach CPR and which resources to use, often choosing to use expert organisations to deliver additional content. The department does not monitor this as schools decide what to adopt in their local areas, choosing lesson plans and materials that are relevant to them.

Ofsted are responsible for inspecting schools’ RSHE provision as part of their personal development judgement.

The department believes that more special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) disputes should be resolved earlier, with families, settings and local authorities working together to develop solutions to disagreements.

We are aware that not all families are able to access high quality, earlier dispute resolution through either local authority-commission mediation or disagreement resolution services. We are considering what more we can do to strengthen earlier dispute resolution and will set out our vision for redress in a reformed SEND system shortly.

This government inherited a special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system that has failed to meet the needs of families for far too long. This government’s ambition is that all children and young people with SEND receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.

We will build a better system which is grounded in evidence, identifies and supports need at the earliest opportunity and ensures families can secure support swiftly and easily. There will always be a legal right to additional support for children and young people with SEND.

The department is continuing to engage closely with children, parents and experts as we develop plans to ensure all children and young people get the outcomes and life chances they deserve. We will be setting out further steps later this year.

Educational psychologists play a critical role in the support available to children and young people, including those with special educational needs and disabilities. That is why we are investing over £21 million to train 400 more educational psychologists over two cohorts, starting their studies in 2024 and 2025. This is in addition to the £10 million invested in the training of over 200 educational psychologists who began their training in 2023.

As these trainees complete their studies, they will join the workforce to support local authority educational psychology services, including contributing to statutory assessments.

The latest available figures show 96% of academy trusts and 85% of local authority maintained schools are in cumulative surplus or breaking even, with an overall cumulative surplus of almost £6.5 billion, compared to a cumulative deficit of £330 million. These figures relate to 31 August 2024 for academy trusts and 31 March 2024 for maintained schools.

In the 2023/24 financial year there were 1,745 local authority maintained schools in deficit and 341 academies were in trusts that had an overall deficit.

To ensure we have sufficient, high quality teachers, the department has increased the core schools budget by £3.7 billion in 2025/26, totalling £65.3 billion. This is alongside the near 10% pay award for teachers over the last two years to ensure teaching is once again a respected and attractive profession.

In addition to improved teacher pay, the department is also providing additional financial support for trainees and teachers. For 2025/26, we announced trainee teacher bursaries worth up to £29,000 and scholarships worth up to £31,000 tax-free. We are also offering a targeted retention incentive (TRI) worth up to £6,000 after tax for teachers of key subjects in the first five years of their careers who work in disadvantaged schools, including rural areas. Three schools in Fylde constituency are eligible for the TRI.

Our interventions are having impact with 2,346 more teachers across secondary and special schools in 2024/25. In Fylde, there were 14 more teachers in secondary and special schools. We are also helping schools recruit and retain support staff, with support staff numbers increasing by 42 to 668 in Fylde in 2024/25.