Department for Education

The most recent data held by the department covers the 2023/24 academic year and is available in the statistical release on parental responsibility measures, which can be accessed here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/parental-responsibility-measures/2023-24.

The information requested covering the last 12 months is not held by the department. Data for 2024/25 will be published in early 2026.

This government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity and tackling child poverty. We have now announced that we are extending free school meals to all children from households in receipt of Universal Credit from September 2026. This will lift 100,000 children across England out of poverty and put £500 back in families’ pockets, supporting parents in decisive action to improve lives ahead of the Child Poverty Strategy coming later this year.

Providing over half a million children from the most disadvantaged backgrounds with a free, nutritious lunchtime meal every school day will also lead to higher attainment, improved behaviour and better outcomes, meaning children get the best possible education and chance to succeed in work and life.

We have published data on the number of children who could benefit from expanded provision by constituency/region/local authority and this can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/free-school-meals-expansion-impact-on-poverty-levels.

This government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity and tackling child poverty. We have now announced that we are extending free school meals (FSM) to all children from households in receipt of Universal Credit from September 2026. This will lift 100,000 children across England out of poverty and put £500 back in families’ pockets, supporting parents in decisive action to improve lives ahead of the Child Poverty Strategy coming later this year.

Providing over half a million children from the most disadvantaged backgrounds with a free, nutritious lunchtime meal every school day will also lead to higher attainment, improved behaviour and better outcomes, meaning children get the best possible education and chance to succeed in work and life.

For 2024/25, the department’s data on FSM can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics/2024-25. To find the total number of pupils in the Preston constituency, see the ‘School level underlying data 2025 (csv, 22 Mb)’ under ‘additional supporting files’.

For 2025/26, the department has published data on the number of children who could benefit from expanded provision by constituency/region/local authority. This can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/free-school-meals-expansion-impact-on-poverty-levels.

We are aiming to enter contract later this year and are currently on track. The current planned timescale is for pupils to be in the permanent accommodation from September 2026. This is also on track, but we will need to continue to monitor this as normal throughout the build period.

We are aiming to enter contract later this year and are currently on track. The current planned timescale is for pupils to be in the permanent accommodation from September 2026. This is also on track, but we will need to continue to monitor this as normal throughout the build period.

The responses to Written Parliamentary Questions 56436 and 56437 were published on 20 June 2025.

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

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, in every region of the country, the best start in life.

In the 2025/26 financial year, the government has committed £27.7 million to support and drive high and rising standards in reading and writing.

This includes supporting the teaching of phonics, early language and reading for pleasure via the English Hubs programme. The 34 English Hubs across England provide support to the schools in their region, with a focus on supporting children making the slowest progress in reading, many of whom come from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The English Hubs also deliver a reading for pleasure continuous professional development programme, ‘Transforming Schools Reading Culture’, in which over 2,000 schools have participated since 2021.

The department is also strengthening our tools for more effective school improvement by launching new regional improvement for standards and excellence (RISE) teams to break down the barriers to opportunity and end the link between background and success. Supported by over £20 million in the 2025/26 financial year, RISE teams will provide both targeted intervention and universal support which will act as a catalyst for collaboration and improvement across all schools.

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 recognise that the early identification of need and support is critical to improving outcomes for children and young people with SEND, including those with dyslexia. There are already a number of measures to help teachers do this, including the phonics screening check and statutory assessments at the end of key stage 2.

To improve early identification, we have commissioned evidence reviews from University College London, which will highlight what the best available evidence suggests are the most effective strategies to identify and support children and young people with different types of needs in mainstream schools.

Additionally, the ‘What Works in SEND’ research programme will research tools that schools can use to identify the needs of neurodivergent children. The research is expected to be completed by March 2026.

The English Hubs programme is dedicated to improving the teaching of reading, with a focus on supporting children making the slowest progress in reading. As part of the continuous professional development provided by the English Hubs, the ‘Reading Ambition for All’ programme has been launched to improve outcomes for children who need additional support with reading, including those with SEND. Nottinghamshire’s nearest English Hub is Flying High English Hub.

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 recognise that the early identification of need and support is critical to improving outcomes for children and young people with SEND, including those with dyslexia. There are already a number of measures to help teachers do this, including the phonics screening check and statutory assessments at the end of key stage 2.

To improve early identification, we have commissioned evidence reviews from University College London, which will highlight what the best available evidence suggests are the most effective strategies to identify and support children and young people with different types of needs in mainstream schools.

Additionally, the ‘What Works in SEND’ research programme will research tools that schools can use to identify the needs of neurodivergent children. The research is expected to be completed by March 2026.

The English Hubs programme is dedicated to improving the teaching of reading, with a focus on supporting children making the slowest progress in reading. As part of the continuous professional development provided by the English Hubs, the ‘Reading Ambition for All’ programme has been launched to improve outcomes for children who need additional support with reading, including those with SEND. Nottinghamshire’s nearest English Hub is Flying High English Hub.

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 does not hold data on reasons why special schools have changed their school day or week.

To support children with SEND in special schools, the department is providing an increase of £1 billion for high needs budgets in England in the 2025/26 financial year. Total high needs funding for children and young people with complex SEND is over £12 billion in 2025/26. Of this total, Hertfordshire County Council is being allocated over £207 million through the high needs funding block of the dedicated schools grant (DSG), to support SEND provision in Hertfordshire. This is an increase of £17.6 million on their 2024/25 DSG high needs block, calculated using the high needs national funding formula (NFF), and a 9.8% increase per head of their 2 to 18 year-old population, on their equivalent 2024/25 NFF allocation.

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 does not hold data on reasons why special schools have changed their school day or week.

To support children with SEND in special schools, the department is providing an increase of £1 billion for high needs budgets in England in the 2025/26 financial year. Total high needs funding for children and young people with complex SEND is over £12 billion in 2025/26. Of this total, Hertfordshire County Council is being allocated over £207 million through the high needs funding block of the dedicated schools grant (DSG), to support SEND provision in Hertfordshire. This is an increase of £17.6 million on their 2024/25 DSG high needs block, calculated using the high needs national funding formula (NFF), and a 9.8% increase per head of their 2 to 18 year-old population, on their equivalent 2024/25 NFF allocation.

The government’s approach to supporting young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in further education (FE) aims to ensure that all students with SEND receive appropriate support tailored to their needs.

All education and training providers have a duty under Section 20 of the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments for disabled people, including those with visual impairments, so they are not placed at a substantial disadvantage compared to non-disabled students. Section 20 of the Equality Act 2010 can be read in full here: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2010/15/section/20.

Local authorities receive high needs funding which they distribute to FE colleges to support students with SEND. However, the allocation and use of this funding is flexible, allowing colleges to address the diverse needs of their student population, rather than being restricted to specific disability types. Providers should keep both funding levels and methodologies under consideration to ensure value for money.

To support children with SEND in special schools, the department is providing an increase of £1 billion for high needs budgets in England in the 2025/26 financial year. Total high needs funding for children and young people with complex SEND is over £12 billion in 2025/26.

This is a matter for Ofqual, the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation. I have asked its Chief Regulator, Sir Ian Bauckham, to write to the hon. Member for St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire directly and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

I refer the hon. Member for Harpenden and Berkhamsted to the answer of 29 January 2025 to Question 26397.

I refer the hon. Member for Fylde to the answer of 9 April 2025 to Question 43513.

Schools and colleges are a place of protection, as well as education. There is no place for antisemitism in our society, and it is essential that Jewish students feel safe in education.

The Holocaust is the only historic event which is compulsory within the current national curriculum for history at key stage 3, and teaching about antisemitism is integral to teaching this event.

There are many other opportunities in the existing curriculum for schools to teach about antisemitism, including through citizenship, relationships and religious education.

The department’s ‘Tackling Antisemitism in Education’ programme, backed by £7 million of funding, seeks to improve confidence and resilience in tackling antisemitism across settings including schools, colleges and universities. It includes an Innovation Fund, which will be launching in the summer. This fund will support the creation of mechanisms to educate young people about antisemitism and provide them with key skills in areas such as media literacy.

The department is also supporting teachers through our Educate Against Hate website, which provides teachers with a range of free, quality assured resources, including on building resilience to antisemitism, teaching about tolerance and rejecting discrimination.

At the Spending Review 2025, the government announced that funding for schools will increase by £4.7 billion per year by 2028/29, compared to the 2025/26 core schools budget, which was published at the Spring Statement 2025.

This additional funding will enable us to transform the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system to make mainstream schools more inclusive, improve outcomes and stop parents having to fight for support.

Details of the government's intended approach to SEND reform will be set out in a Schools White Paper in the autumn. The department will also provide further details on the national funding formulae for schools and high needs for 2026/27.

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

The department knows that reading for pleasure is hugely important and brings a range of benefits. As well as a number of strong links with attainment, pupils who read regularly report heightened levels of social and emotional wellbeing.

Evidence from the National Literacy Trust shows that in 2024, one in eight children who received free school meals (FSM) said they did not own a book of their own. There was a 4.4 percentage point gap in book ownership between children and young people who did and did not receive FSM, with 87.6% of those who received FSM having a book compared with 92.0% of their peers who did not.

The department recognises and welcomes the important work of charities such as the National Literacy Trust, the Book Trust, the Reading Agency, World Book Day and many others in supporting and encouraging reading.

The government has implemented a range of measures to support reading for pleasure. The English Hubs programme supports the teaching of phonics, early language development and reading for pleasure. Furthermore, the government’s Reading Framework provides guidance on improving the teaching of reading, to ensure that every child is not only able to read proficiently but also develops a genuine love of reading.

There is currently no national industrial action taking place in schools. There is no requirement for schools to report instances of local industrial action in schools and the department does not collect data on local strike action.

The department’s guidance ‘Handling strike action in schools’ makes clear that headteachers should take all reasonable steps to keep schools open for as many pupils as possible and minimise disruption to their education. In the event of industrial action during public exams, it is recommended that schools should remain open for exams and exam candidates where possible, even if the school is closed or restricting attendance.

Headteachers remain accountable for the conduct of the exams and provision of facilities in their centre, and schools are encouraged to review contingency plans well in advance of each exam or assessment series. The full guidance is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6523d331aea2d0000d2199bf/Handling_strike_action_in_schools.pdf.

There is currently no national industrial action taking place in schools. There is no requirement for schools to report instances of local industrial action in schools and the department does not collect data on local strike action.

The department’s guidance ‘Handling strike action in schools’ makes clear that headteachers should take all reasonable steps to keep schools open for as many pupils as possible and minimise disruption to their education. In the event of industrial action during public exams, it is recommended that schools should remain open for exams and exam candidates where possible, even if the school is closed or restricting attendance.

Headteachers remain accountable for the conduct of the exams and provision of facilities in their centre, and schools are encouraged to review contingency plans well in advance of each exam or assessment series. The full guidance is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6523d331aea2d0000d2199bf/Handling_strike_action_in_schools.pdf.

The changes made to the criteria for the adoption and special guardianship support fund ensure that each child can still access a significant package of support. The department always considers the impact of decisions on vulnerable children.

The changes made to the criteria for the adoption and special guardianship support fund ensure that each child can still access a significant package of support. The department always considers the impact of decisions on vulnerable children.

Ofqual is the independent regulator of qualifications and assessments for England and is responsible for setting relevant rules and guidance, including in relation to malpractice. Ofqual published its approach to regulating the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the qualifications sector in 2024, including its approach to managing malpractice risks associated with coursework. The policy document is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ofquals-approach-to-regulating-the-use-of-artificial-intelligence-in-the-qualifications-sector/ofquals-approach-to-regulating-the-use-of-artificial-intelligence-in-the-qualifications-sector.

The Joint Council for Qualifications has also published guidance to give clarity to schools and colleges about the role they play in securing the authenticity of students’ work. This guidance, last updated in April 2025, provides schools and colleges with recommendations for both secure delivery of assessments and approaches for detection of where AI may have been inappropriately used.

The department wants to ensure that, where required, education, health and care (EHC) plan assessments are progressed promptly and, if needed, plans are issued as quickly as possible so that children and young people can access the support they need.

Local authorities have a statutory responsibility to assess whether children and young people have special educational needs that require an EHC plan. Plans must be issued within twenty weeks of the needs assessment commencing so that children and young people can access the support they need.

The department continues to monitor and work closely with local authorities that have issues with EHC plan timeliness. Where there are concerns about a local authority’s capacity to make the required improvements, we help them to identify the barriers to this and put in place an effective recovery plan. This includes, where needed, securing a specialist special educational needs adviser.

In the 2023 calendar year, 50.3% of new EHC plans were issued within twenty weeks. This is a slight increase compared to 2022, when the figure was 49.2%.

The department knows that many children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) struggle to find a suitable school placement that is close to their home and meets their needs.

We want more children and young people to receive the support they need to thrive in their local mainstream school, reducing the need for pupils to travel a long way to access a specialist placement. Many mainstream settings are already committed to delivering specialist provision locally, including through resourced provision and special educational needs units. We also recognise the vital role that special schools play in catering to children and young people with the most complex needs.

The department has published allocations for £740 million high needs capital in 2025/26 to support children and young people with SEND or who require alternative provision. Local authorities can use this funding to adapt classrooms to be more accessible for children with SEND, create specialist facilities within mainstream schools that can deliver more intensive support adapted to suit pupils’ needs, alongside continuing to provide places to support pupils in special schools with the most complex needs.

School level data on state-funded schools with capacity in any of the year groups from reception to year 11 is published in the annual ‘School capacity’ statistical publication. The most recent publication is available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-capacity/2023-24. This publication contains the latest available data as at 1 May 2024.

School level data on secondary school capacity and unfilled places can be found in the ‘capacity_school_200910-202324.csv’ data file. Data on secondary school capacity and unfilled places is inclusive of sixth form places. School level data on sixth form places and sixth form pupils is published in the ‘sixth-form-capacity_school_201718-202324.csv’.

The ‘School capacity’ data can be combined with information from ‘Get Information about Schools’, which has the functionality to download data on the schools and colleges within the stated distances from Escrick.

The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places sits with local authorities.

School level data on state-funded schools with capacity in any of the year groups from reception to year 11 is published in the annual ‘School capacity’ statistical publication. The most recent publication is available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-capacity/2023-24. This publication contains the latest available data as at 1 May 2024.

School level data on secondary school capacity and unfilled places can be found in the ‘capacity_school_200910-202324.csv’ data file. Data on secondary school capacity and unfilled places is inclusive of sixth form places. School level data on sixth form places and sixth form pupils is published in the ‘sixth-form-capacity_school_201718-202324.csv’.

The ‘School capacity’ data can be combined with information from ‘Get Information about Schools’, which has the functionality to download data on the schools and colleges within the stated distances from Escrick.

The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places sits with local authorities.

High quality teaching is the in-school factor that has the biggest positive impact on a child or young person’s outcomes in schools and colleges. This is why the government’s Plan for Change is committed to recruiting an additional 6,500 new expert teachers across secondary and special schools, and in our colleges, over the course of this Parliament.

We recognise that workforce shortages are more acute in some subjects and we have put in place a range of measures to boost recruitment and retention in these areas. We announced a £233 million initial teacher training (ITT) financial incentives package for 2025/26, which includes bursaries worth £29,000 tax-free and scholarships worth £31,000 tax-free, to encourage talented trainees to subjects such as mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing, where there is a particular need to boost recruitment. The complete list can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/funding-initial-teacher-training-itt/funding-initial-teacher-training-itt-academic-year-2025-to-2026#postgraduate-bursaries-and-scholarships.

To support retention in key subjects, in 2025/26, the department is offering a targeted retention incentive worth up to £6,000 after tax for mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing teachers in the first five years of their careers who choose to work in disadvantaged schools or teach technical subjects in further education colleges.

The department undertakes regular reviews to ensure we are prioritising the subjects where teachers are needed most, for example through our ITT bursaries, which are reviewed annually to reflect teacher supply need in each subject.

All education settings have duties under the Equality Act 2010 towards individual disabled children and young people. Part 6 of the Equality Act outlines that schools must make reasonable adjustments, including the provision of auxiliary aids and services for disabled children, to prevent them being put at a substantial disadvantage.

The government announced £740 million of high needs capital for the 2025/26 financial year to support children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and/or who are in alternative provision. This funding can be used to adapt classrooms to better meet the needs of all children, including the provision of sensory equipment within mainstream schools, alongside continuing to provide and adapt spaces to support pupils with the most complex needs in special schools. Local authorities may additionally wish to consider using this funding to invest in assistive technology interventions as a means of supporting pupils in mainstream schools.

The last local area SEND inspection by Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission for West Sussex was in November 2023, which found inconsistent experiences and outcomes for children and young people with SEND. The department’s regional team has put in place systems to track outcomes against the five areas for improvement highlighted by the report, including one area specific to the sufficiency of high quality provision, and the progress made by children and young people with SEND.

The physical education (PE) and sport premium helps all eligible primary schools to make additional and sustainable improvements to the PE, sport and physical activity they provide. Schools can decide how to use it, in line with the conditions of the grant. It does not fund specific provision.

The government has provided £320 million of funding for the primary PE and sport premium in this academic year and has recently committed to continuing this level of funding for the 2025/26 academic year. As in previous years, the funding will be provided in two payments, in the autumn and spring terms.

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

As part of statutory relationships, sex and health education (RSHE), pupils are taught about online safety and harms, including the implications of sharing private or personal data (including images) online, harmful content and contact, cyberbullying, and the risks associated with over-reliance on social media. Cyber safety is also embedded across all key stages of the computing curriculum, with progression in content to reflect the different and escalating risks that young people may encounter.

The department is currently reviewing the RSHE curriculum. We are looking carefully at the consultation responses, considering the evidence, and talking to key stakeholders before issuing revised guidance.

The government has established an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, which seeks to deliver a rich, broad, inclusive and innovative curriculum that readies young people for life and work. The Review’s interim report notes the rise of artificial intelligence and trends in digital information, and that it is necessary that the curriculum keeps pace with these changes. The Review’s final report and recommendations will be published in autumn with the government’s response.

The reference to school uniform in my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s Spending Review announcement on 11 June, relates to the government’s existing proposals in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill to cut the cost of school uniforms by capping the number of compulsory branded uniform items.

School uniforms play an important role in establishing a common sense of identity and school belonging which can be supported by a small number of branded items. However, too many schools require high numbers of branded uniform items. This is why the department has introduced legislation to bring down costs for parents by limiting the amount of branded uniform items schools can require. This will give parents more choice in where to purchase uniform and allow them greater flexibility to make the spending decisions that suit their circumstances.

There are no plans to introduce a financial cap on the cost of school uniform.

The department does not hold this data.

The adoption and special guardianship support fund (ASGSF) is continuing to play an important role in the overall stability of adoptive families, alongside other forms of support. This government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity. The ASGSF is an important part of this, but other sources of support are available to adoptive children and families. For example, this year, we are making £500 million available to local authorities to roll out Family Help and Child Protection nationally to transform services and transition towards earlier intervention.

The 37 academy trusts listed in the October 2024 publication on GOV.UK were engaged with on executive pay to ensure compliance with the Academy Trust Handbook.

The Academy Trust Handbook requires that:

• An academy trust’s board of trustees ensures its decisions, when setting levels of executive pay (including salary and any other benefits), follow a robust evidence-based process.
• Academy trusts’ decisions on pay must be a reasonable and defensible reflection of the individual’s role and responsibilities.
• No individual can be involved in deciding their remuneration.
• Academy trusts must be transparent on pay and publish the number of employees whose benefits exceed £100,000 on their websites in £10,000 bandings. Where employees are also trustees, this information must be disclosed in £5,000 bandings.

Following provision of evidence from the academy trusts, all 37 were found to be compliant with the Academy Trust Handbook.

Statutory tests and assessments at primary school are an important part of ensuring that all pupils master the basics of reading, writing and mathematics to prepare them to achieve and thrive at secondary school. They are subject to robust test development processes, which include reviews involving teachers and experts in special educational needs (SEN). Schools can utilise a range of access arrangements where appropriate, and pupils should only take tests if, in the view of the head teacher, they are in a fit physical and mental state to do so.

Although it is important that schools encourage their pupils to do their best in the tests, the department does not recommend that pupils in primary school devote excessive preparation time to assessments, and not at the expense of pupils’ mental health and wellbeing. Schools should support a culture of wellbeing amongst staff and pupils, including for pupils with anxiety and SEN.

The department has published non-statutory guidance on developing a school uniform policy, which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-uniform/school-uniforms. The guidance sets out that it is for the governing body of a school to decide rules about appearance and the design of any uniform they choose to have. Schools must have regard to their obligations under the Human Rights Act 1998 and the Equality Act 2010 and need to consider the impact of their policy on pupils who share a protected characteristic.

The department does not collect data on individual schools’ uniform policies.

​​Work is progressing on finalising the short lists of projects to participate in this first year of the Great British Energy Solar Partnership programme. We hope to have finalised the selection before the summer break with installs to complete in 2025/26. ​

​In the interim, we are providing support for all schools and colleges to start on their journey towards net zero via our new online sustainability support for education platform and our climate ambassador programme. More information can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/sustainability-leadership-and-climate-action-plans-in-education.

Where schools are considering the purchase of solar panels or other sustainable systems, our ‘Get help for buying’ service provides support to ensure that schemes procured are of high quality and value to the sector. More information can be found here: https://gethelpbuyingforschools.campaign.gov.uk/.

​Details of other government funding available to public bodies for sustainability can also be found at this website, prepared by the Crown Commercial Service: https://www.crowncommercial.gov.uk/social-value/carbon-net-zero/funding-and-grants.

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

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education has announced investment into two programmes of research this year, the EdTech Evidence Board pilot and the EdTech Impact Testbed. These will look at the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and digital technologies to gather comprehensive evidence on EdTech.

The EdTech Evidence Board pilot will explore how we effectively build evidence of EdTech products, helping education settings feel confident that they are choosing products that work well for them and for their classrooms. We want to incentivise more evidence generation from EdTech companies by setting product quality standards and piloting how to assess products.

The EdTech Impact Testbed will test products and practice in schools and colleges to generate evidence of impact in priority areas. In partnership with the Open Innovation Team, the department will be engaging the sector to understand what works, looking at how tools, including AI, can improve staff workload, pupil outcomes and inclusivity. To help address current gaps in evidence on the impact and scalability of promising technologies, we have committed £1 million in funding to this pilot. This will build on our work to improve evidence quality for EdTech by providing a structured environment for testing and evaluating technologies.

School buildings are integral to high and rising standards and need to be fit for the future. That is why we remain committed to improving the condition of the school estate, and the School Rebuilding Programme (SRP) continues as part of that.

The department wrote to Dartmoor Multi Academy Trust in July 2023, to inform them that Tavistock College has been placed in Group 2 of the SRP. Projects have been prioritised according to the condition of their buildings and other relevant criteria. We anticipate that Tavistock College will commence with planning and feasibility work early in 2026. SRP projects typically take between two and five years to deliver.

Specific start dates will be communicated to the school and responsible body at least a month in advance of project start and, where possible, we will bring projects forward if we are able to do so. The scope of the works will be discussed with the school and responsible body once the project enters delivery.

The table below provides the data requested on the adoption and special guardianship support fund (ASGSF).

All surrendered funding from 2023/24 and 2024/25 was repurposed for other ASGSF applications and added to the total spend.

The table below provides the data requested on the adoption and special guardianship support fund (ASGSF).

All surrendered funding from 2023/24 and 2024/25 was repurposed for other ASGSF applications and added to the total spend.

The department took a range of factors into account when setting the new £3,000 fair access limit for the adoption and special guardianship support fund (ASGSF). In the 2024/25 financial year, the average cost per ASGSF recipient was £3,170 for therapy and £2,399 for specialist assessments (£3,090 overall). In addition, since July 2024, the department has collected detailed data on the costs of applications for therapeutic interventions and specialist assessments funded by the ASGSF. Using this information, the department assessed that £3,000 could fund an average of 19-20 hours of therapy, on the basis of median hourly rates for contact time and allowing for additional costs.

Where ASGSF funding has been used for a specialist assessment, remaining funding up to the £3,000 fair access limit may be used for therapy, where this is assessed as being needed. If appropriate, local authorities and regional adoption agencies may use their own funding to offer extra therapy.

The department took a range of factors into account when setting the new £3,000 fair access limit for the adoption and special guardianship support fund (ASGSF). In the 2024/25 financial year, the average cost per ASGSF recipient was £3,170 for therapy and £2,399 for specialist assessments (£3,090 overall). In addition, since July 2024, the department has collected detailed data on the costs of applications for therapeutic interventions and specialist assessments funded by the ASGSF. Using this information, the department assessed that £3,000 could fund an average of 19-20 hours of therapy, on the basis of median hourly rates for contact time and allowing for additional costs.

Where ASGSF funding has been used for a specialist assessment, remaining funding up to the £3,000 fair access limit may be used for therapy, where this is assessed as being needed. If appropriate, local authorities and regional adoption agencies may use their own funding to offer extra therapy.