Asked by: Manuela Perteghella (Liberal Democrat - Stratford-on-Avon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of local authority compliance with the national legislation establishing the threshold of (a) 10 sessions of unauthorised absence and (b) a rolling 10-school-week period for issuing fixed penalty notices.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The National Framework for Penalty Notices, which was designed to embed our support-first approach and improve consistency and fairness across the country, was introduced in August 2024.
Every local authority must draw up, and is expected to publish, a local code of conduct, which must be adhered to by all parties issuing a penalty notice. Amongst other things, each code is expected to include details of the national threshold and local arrangements for determining if the support provided has been sufficient. Further details are listed in paragraph 197 of our statutory attendance guidance, which is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/66bf300da44f1c4c23e5bd1b/Working_together_to_improve_school_attendance_-_August_2024.pdf#page=60.
Local authorities are also expected to supply details related to the use of penalty notices in their area as part of the parental responsibility measures census, which is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/parental-responsibility-measures-statistics-guide.
Data is collected annually for the previous academic year. The department expects the first set of data related to after the introduction of the National Framework to be published in January 2026.
Asked by: Melanie Onn (Labour - Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of early years SEND support capacity in North East Lincolnshire; and what support her Department is providing to ensure early identification and intervention for children aged under five.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
We aim to set up every child, in every local authority, to have the best start in life and this includes delivering access to high quality early education and childcare for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
On 7 July, we published our commitment to Giving Every Child the Best Start in Life. This means a stronger focus on early identification, inclusive access to early years education, and tailored family support. We also will increase the funding available to early years providers to support children with SEND.
On 4 December, we announced access to early SEND support across the country through Best Start Family Hubs. In every local authority next year, councils are being tasked with recruiting a dedicated SEND practitioner for every Hub to provide direct, family-facing support. The new offer will help parents understand their child’s development, identify emerging needs sooner, and support vital join-up between early years settings, health visitors and SEND teams.
We have also invested in the Early Language Support for Every Child (ELSEC) programme, and the Nuffield Early Language Intervention (NELI) supporting children in the early years with their speech and language.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number of young people who have been off-rolled by schools and colleges while awaiting Education, Health and Care Plans in England.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The department does not hold data on the number of children or young people who have been off-rolled while waiting for an education, health and care plan assessment.
This government is clear that off-rolling in any form is unacceptable, and we will continue to work closely with Ofsted to tackle it.
Pupils may leave a school roll for many reasons, including permanent exclusion, transfer to another school, or change of circumstances. All schools are legally required to notify the local authority when a pupil’s name is removed from the admissions register.
The law is clear that a pupil’s name can only be deleted from the admission register on the grounds prescribed in Regulation 9 of the School Attendance (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2024.
Our ambition is that all children with special educational needs (SEN) receive the right support to succeed. We are committed to strengthening the accountability system and to providing earlier intervention in mainstream schools for pupils with SEN.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the price of school uniforms.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Education is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
The cost of school uniform, particularly of branded items, remains a key concern for parents. Parentkind recently found that more than a quarter of parents will go without heating or eating to be able to afford school uniform. Whilst uniforms play a valuable role in creating a sense of common identity among pupils and reducing visible inequalities, too many schools still require high numbers of branded uniform items despite statutory guidance stating branded items should be kept to a minimum.
This is why the department has introduced legislation to limit the number of branded items of uniform and PE kit that schools can require, to bring down costs and remove barriers to accessing sport and other school activities. This will allow parents greater flexibility to make spending decisions that suit them. The department intends to introduce this limit from September 2026.
Asked by: Wera Hobhouse (Liberal Democrat - Bath)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she will set out the reasons for the reduction in the Fair Access Limit for the Adoption and Special Guardianship Support Fund from £5,000 to £3,000 from April 2025; and what assessment she has made of the potential impact of this reduction on the provision of therapeutic support for adoptive families and special guardians.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The new criteria for the adoption and special guardianship support fund will enable as many children and families as possible to access support. So far this year, nearly 14,000 applications have been approved. The department continues to monitor and assess the impact of the changes and is engaging with stakeholders.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of (a) the number of pupils suspended or sent home for not wearing the required school uniform and (b) lost school days as a result for the most recent year the data is available.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The department does not hold the requested information. While statistics on suspension are collected by reason category, ‘not wearing the required school uniform’ is not included as a separate category.
The department publishes data on suspensions and permanent exclusions in state-funded schools in England. The most recent full academic year release, covering 2023/24, can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/suspensions-and-permanent-exclusions-in-england/2023-24. This has been available since 10 July 2025.
The department’s position is clear that it is for the headteacher to determine how to address breaches of the school’s uniform and appearance, in line with the school’s behaviour policy. We expect schools to respond to non-compliance, such as uniform breaches in a proportionate and fair way. Where a school imposes a sanction such as a suspension the formal exclusion process must be followed.
Asked by: Ian Lavery (Labour - Blyth and Ashington)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support is available to schools to tackle the challenges faced by pupils living in poverty, including access to (a) free school meals, (b) mental health services and (c) after-school programmes in the North East.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
We are supporting schools to tackle the challenges faced by pupils in poverty. As part of this support, schools will receive pupil premium funding worth over £3 billion in the 2025/26 financial year to support the educational outcomes of disadvantaged pupils.
The removal of the two-child limit will lift 450,000 children out of poverty, rising to around 550,000 alongside other measures announced this year, including the expansion of free school meals, which will lift 100,000 children out of poverty by the end of this Parliament and put £500 back in families’ pockets. Further, we are delivering on our pledge to provide a free breakfast club in every state-funded school with primary-aged children.
We are also providing access to specialist mental health professionals in every school by expanding mental health support teams (MHSTs). As of April 2025, 57% of pupils in schools and learners in further education in the North East region were covered by an MHST.
The department will also publish an Enrichment Framework, providing advice for schools on delivering a high-quality enrichment offer, including extra-curricular activities after school.
Since September 2024, the department has invested over £180 million in the National Wraparound Programme, which has created over 50,000 additional childcare places.
Support with costs for wraparound childcare is also available for eligible parents through the Tax-Free Childcare and the childcare element of Universal Credit.
Asked by: Saqib Bhatti (Conservative - Meriden and Solihull East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on the number of children who are attending the early adopters breakfast clubs.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The free breakfast clubs early adopter phase has been a huge success, with data showing that over 5 million breakfasts have been served so far. We continue to receive excellent feedback from schools, parents and pupils on the positive impact that the free breakfast clubs are already having. For example, schools are reporting improved punctuality, attendance and behaviour.
We want every school, every child, and every family to have the chance of those benefits and that is why we’re committed to rolling out free breakfast clubs in every school with primary age children in England.
Following the success of the early adopter phase, we are investing a further £80 million into the programme to onboard approximately 2000 additional schools between April 2026 and March 2027. This will benefit around 500,000 thousand more children.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of early language intervention on educational outcomes for deaf children.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Every child deserves the best start in life, including those who are deaf or hard of hearing. Early language skills at age five strongly predict future academic success, and timely access to specialist support is critical.
From April 2026, funding for home learning environment and parenting support within Best Start Family Hubs will focus on evidence-based interventions for 3-4-year-olds, including Auditory Verbal Therapy, for children who are deaf or use hearing technology.
The department funds proven programmes like the Nuffield Early Language Intervention which improves oral language and literacy. Independent evaluation found children made four months’ additional progress, rising to seven months for those eligible for free school meals. Whilst not a substitute for specialist therapy, many children benefit from such interventions, including some deaf children. We have also updated the early years foundation stage profile handbook, ensuring children can use their preferred mode of communication, such as signing, across all early learning goals.
Alongside this, the Early Language Support for Every Child programme trials new approaches to identify and support speech, language, and communication needs, with evaluation due autumn 2026.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of early interventions in speech and language support.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The potential merits of focusing on early intervention in providing speech and language support are clear. That is why we have invested in the Early Language Support for Every Child programme, and the Nuffield Early Language Intervention, both of which support children with their speech and language.
We are funding Family Hubs to train practitioners to support families with the home learning environment to help parents support children’s speech and communication.
We will fund local early language leads to provide training to early years settings. Reception staff will also be able to access early language and literacy support.