Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent steps her Department has taken alongside local authorities to help tackle persistent absence in schools in Slough constituency.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Tackling absence is at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity.
Thanks to the efforts of schools, absence is moving in the right direction, with children attending over 5.31 million more days this year compared to last. However, around one in five pupils are still missing 10% or more of school, which is why the department is continuing to drive further improvement.
Steps taken to improve attendance includes developing real-time data tools that allows schools to compare attendance against similar schools and enable earlier intervention as well as investing in targeted support, including £15 million to set up the attendance mentors programme supporting 10,800 pupils.
The department has also started to establish new Attendance and Behaviour Hubs, where up to 90 hubs led by schools with excellent attendance and behaviour practice will support more than 4,500 schools to improve.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to monitor progress toward the target of training 40,000 construction learners by 2029 through the Construction Technical Excellence Colleges.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Ten Construction Technical Excellence Colleges (CTECs) have commenced their delivery of high quality construction skills provision from the start of this academic year. 40,000 construction learners will benefit from excellent teaching and curricula to set them up with the skills for well-paid jobs in the construction sector. The department is working with CTECs, mayoral strategic authorities, and other partners in the skills system to understand best practice in delivering quality construction skills in alignment with the Technical Excellence Colleges core objectives and we will monitor progress against these on a regular basis.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the University of Manchester article entitled From aspirational thinking to strategic planning – breaking down the barriers of inequality for children and young people, what progress she has made on implementing the 2023 careers guidance inquiry recommendations.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government’s Opportunity Mission is improving outcomes for disadvantaged children and young people at every life stage.
The research rightly highlights the importance of giving disadvantaged young people the skills and career guidance they need to overcome barriers to opportunity, and the key role the national curriculum plays in this. That is why the revised national curriculum will remain knowledge-rich and focus on enhancing disciplinary skills, setting students up to achieve in life and work.
Alongside this, the department will improve careers advice in schools and deliver two weeks’ worth of work experience for every young person to support their skills development and work readiness. We are targeting additional support through careers hubs in disadvantaged areas where there is the greatest need.
The department has made inclusion and impact prominent themes in careers statutory guidance. There is a strong emphasis on highlighting progression routes and career pathways from all curriculum subjects.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the recommendations of the University of Manchester article entitled From aspirational thinking to strategic planning – breaking down the barriers of inequality for children and young people.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government’s Opportunity Mission is improving outcomes for disadvantaged children and young people at every life stage.
The research rightly highlights the importance of giving disadvantaged young people the skills and career guidance they need to overcome barriers to opportunity, and the key role the national curriculum plays in this. That is why the revised national curriculum will remain knowledge-rich and focus on enhancing disciplinary skills, setting students up to achieve in life and work.
Alongside this, the department will improve careers advice in schools and deliver two weeks’ worth of work experience for every young person to support their skills development and work readiness. We are targeting additional support through careers hubs in disadvantaged areas where there is the greatest need.
The department has made inclusion and impact prominent themes in careers statutory guidance. There is a strong emphasis on highlighting progression routes and career pathways from all curriculum subjects.
Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to Table 4.1 entitled Budget 2025 policy decisions’ in the Budget Red Book, line item 42, National Year of Reading: Fund state-funded secondary schools in England to increase book supplies, whether these funds will be supplemented by funding from Dormant Assets.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
As part of the National Year of Reading, state-funded secondary schools in England will receive funding to purchase books to support and encourage reading enjoyment amongst their pupils.
Funding will be distributed by the Department for Education, during the National Year of Reading 2026. This separate from the Dormant Assets Fund which will be used to fund libraries in primary schools and is administered by the Department for Culture Media and Sport.
Details about the allocation of funds will be communicated in the coming months.
This £5 million funding for books will accompany new continuous professional development training for secondary schools. The ‘Unlocking Reading’ programme starts in January 2026 and will equip schools with assessment tools and evidence-based strategies to support pupils with reading.
Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to Table 4.1 entitled Budget 2025 policy decisions in the Budget Red Book, line item 42, National Year of Reading: Fund state-funded secondary schools in England to increase book supplies, how these funds will be allocated to schools.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
As part of the National Year of Reading, state-funded secondary schools in England will receive funding to purchase books to support and encourage reading enjoyment amongst their pupils.
Funding will be distributed by the Department for Education, during the National Year of Reading 2026. This separate from the Dormant Assets Fund which will be used to fund libraries in primary schools and is administered by the Department for Culture Media and Sport.
Details about the allocation of funds will be communicated in the coming months.
This £5 million funding for books will accompany new continuous professional development training for secondary schools. The ‘Unlocking Reading’ programme starts in January 2026 and will equip schools with assessment tools and evidence-based strategies to support pupils with reading.
Asked by: Damian Hinds (Conservative - East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to Table 4.1 entitled Budget 2025 policy decisions in the Budget Red Book, line item 42, National Year of Reading: Fund state-funded secondary schools in England to increase book supplies, which Department will disburse these funds.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
As part of the National Year of Reading, state-funded secondary schools in England will receive funding to purchase books to support and encourage reading enjoyment amongst their pupils.
Funding will be distributed by the Department for Education, during the National Year of Reading 2026. This separate from the Dormant Assets Fund which will be used to fund libraries in primary schools and is administered by the Department for Culture Media and Sport.
Details about the allocation of funds will be communicated in the coming months.
This £5 million funding for books will accompany new continuous professional development training for secondary schools. The ‘Unlocking Reading’ programme starts in January 2026 and will equip schools with assessment tools and evidence-based strategies to support pupils with reading.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the economic impact of improving access to out-of-school aged childcare, including potential increases in workforce participation and GDP growth.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
This government is investing in a modern childcare system that supports families. When developing our programmes, we look at previous schemes, including internationally, as well as receiving representations from families and providers.
In February 2024, 24% of parents of primary-aged pupils reported that the availability of wraparound childcare affected the working patterns or hours of their household. The government is committed to rolling out free breakfast clubs in every state-funded school with primary-aged children. So far, we have delivered 2.6 million breakfasts in 750 early adopter schools and an additional 2,000 schools will join the programme next year.
Since September 2024, the National Wraparound Programme has provided over 50,000 additional full childcare places, allowing more parents to access opportunities for work and study. In the 2026/27 financial year, we are providing local authorities with £12.9 million of funding to continue to sustain these places to ensure sufficiency of school-age childcare and facilitate national rollout of free breakfast clubs.
Eligible parents can access government subsidies, such as Tax-Free Childcare and Universal Credit Childcare, to support them with their childcare costs.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what international comparisons her Department has reviewed regarding funding models for wraparound childcare, and what evidence has been considered from countries such as Australia and Ireland.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
This government is investing in a modern childcare system that supports families. When developing our programmes, we look at previous schemes, including internationally, as well as receiving representations from families and providers.
In February 2024, 24% of parents of primary-aged pupils reported that the availability of wraparound childcare affected the working patterns or hours of their household. The government is committed to rolling out free breakfast clubs in every state-funded school with primary-aged children. So far, we have delivered 2.6 million breakfasts in 750 early adopter schools and an additional 2,000 schools will join the programme next year.
Since September 2024, the National Wraparound Programme has provided over 50,000 additional full childcare places, allowing more parents to access opportunities for work and study. In the 2026/27 financial year, we are providing local authorities with £12.9 million of funding to continue to sustain these places to ensure sufficiency of school-age childcare and facilitate national rollout of free breakfast clubs.
Eligible parents can access government subsidies, such as Tax-Free Childcare and Universal Credit Childcare, to support them with their childcare costs.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what evidence her Department has gathered on the number of parents unable to increase their working hours or return to work due to access to affordable, reliable out-of-school childcare.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
This government is investing in a modern childcare system that supports families. When developing our programmes, we look at previous schemes, including internationally, as well as receiving representations from families and providers.
In February 2024, 24% of parents of primary-aged pupils reported that the availability of wraparound childcare affected the working patterns or hours of their household. The government is committed to rolling out free breakfast clubs in every state-funded school with primary-aged children. So far, we have delivered 2.6 million breakfasts in 750 early adopter schools and an additional 2,000 schools will join the programme next year.
Since September 2024, the National Wraparound Programme has provided over 50,000 additional full childcare places, allowing more parents to access opportunities for work and study. In the 2026/27 financial year, we are providing local authorities with £12.9 million of funding to continue to sustain these places to ensure sufficiency of school-age childcare and facilitate national rollout of free breakfast clubs.
Eligible parents can access government subsidies, such as Tax-Free Childcare and Universal Credit Childcare, to support them with their childcare costs.