Asked by: Baroness Wolf of Dulwich (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many people were enrolled on courses leading to Higher Technical Qualifications in the academic years 2023–4 and 2024–5.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
As of September 2025, there were 281 qualifications approved as Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQs). These encompass thirteen occupational routes:
The list of approved qualifications is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/approved-higher-technical-qualifications.
In the 2023/24 academic year, the second year of the HTQ rollout, the department estimates that 4,370 students were enrolled on HTQs based on data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency and Individualised Learner Record student records.
Data covering participation and completion rates for HTQs in the 2024/25 academic year is not currently available.
Asked by: Baroness Wolf of Dulwich (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many qualifications are currently approved as Higher Technical Qualifications.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
As of September 2025, there were 281 qualifications approved as Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQs). These encompass thirteen occupational routes:
The list of approved qualifications is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/approved-higher-technical-qualifications.
In the 2023/24 academic year, the second year of the HTQ rollout, the department estimates that 4,370 students were enrolled on HTQs based on data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency and Individualised Learner Record student records.
Data covering participation and completion rates for HTQs in the 2024/25 academic year is not currently available.
Asked by: Baroness Wolf of Dulwich (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the procedures required for recognition as a Higher Technical Qualification have been changed, or are in line to be changed, as a result of (1) the creation of Skills England and the abolition of the Institute for Apprenticeship and Technical Education, and (2) the transfer of Skills England to the Department for Work and Pensions.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Following its creation, Skills England continues to accept Higher Technical Qualification (HTQ) applications on a rolling basis. This function moved with Skills England when it transferred to be an executive agency of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
Asked by: Baroness Wolf of Dulwich (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many people were employed by the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel in total in (1) 2015, and (2) 2025; and how many of those people were employed as (a) counsel, and (b) support staff, in each of those years.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The number of staff broken down by grade in the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel is provided in the table below for both 2015 and 2025.
Grade | 2015 Headcount | 2025 Headcount |
Permanent Secretary | 1 | 1 |
Parliamentary Counsel Grades | 44 | 46 |
Delegated Civil Servant Grades | 13 | 7 |
Asked by: Baroness Wolf of Dulwich (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Smith of Malvern (HL8283), what assessment they have made of whether clause 46 of the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill, which refers to school teachers' qualifications and induction, applies to 16–19 academies.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Qualified teacher status (QTS) has never been a requirement for further education (FE) settings. QTS is the professional qualification for teachers in primary and secondary schools, therefore the requirement established through clause 46 of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill will apply to primary and secondary state funded schools in England, with some limited exemptions set out in regulations.
High quality teacher training qualifications are available that are specifically targeted to those wishing to teach in FE settings.
The government has liaised extensively with stakeholders from a range of settings to ensure that the exemptions to the requirement for QTS set out in regulations will continue to provide them with the flexibility to employ individuals with the specialist skills and experience to support the needs of their pupils.
Asked by: Baroness Wolf of Dulwich (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether a sixth form college that has moved to academy status will be covered by the provisions in the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Children’s Wellbeing and School Bill will provide a core guarantee of quality education in every school. It will create a floor but no ceiling, enabling healthy competition and innovation beyond a core framework to bring all schools to the level of the very best.
16 to 19 academies are principally concerned with the education of young people above compulsory school age and below the age of 19. They are defined separately to academy schools under the Academies Act 2010 and operate within a policy, financial and operational framework that reflects the type of education that they provide. In keeping with the existing regulatory approach, 16 to 19 academies, including those that were previously sixth-Form colleges, remain out of scope of most of the measures in the Bill that will apply to schools, including academy schools. Under clause 36 of the Bill, 16 to 19 academies remain outside of the scope of Chapter 1 of Part 4 of the Education and Skills Act 2008, which is the main regulatory framework for independent schools, including academy schools.
Clause 49, which introduces a power to secure the performance of an academy proprietor’s duties, will apply to 16 to 19 academies, as well as academy schools. Robust accountability mechanisms play a critical role in the school system by setting clear requirements and expectations, encouraging behaviours that put children first, help them to achieve and thrive, and keep them safe.
This measure will allow my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education to direct any academy trust to comply with their legal duties and address unreasonable actions in a way that is more proportionate than the current intervention regime provided through academy funding agreements.
Asked by: Baroness Wolf of Dulwich (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many employers were liable to pay the apprenticeship levy in (1) 2022–23, and (2) 2023–24.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
In 2022-23, 34,200 employers paid the apprenticeship levy, and in 2023-24, 36,000 employers paid the apprenticeship levy.
In 2024-25, 36,900 employers paid the apprenticeship levy; this figure is based on outturn as the tax year has completed. No estimate has been made for the number of employers projected to pay the apprenticeship levy in 2025-26.
Asked by: Baroness Wolf of Dulwich (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assumptions they use when calculating the budget for future apprenticeship training to estimate the number of employers that will pay the apprenticeship levy, and what estimate they have made of the number employers who will pay that levy in (1) 2024–25, and (2) 2025–26.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
In 2022-23, 34,200 employers paid the apprenticeship levy, and in 2023-24, 36,000 employers paid the apprenticeship levy.
In 2024-25, 36,900 employers paid the apprenticeship levy; this figure is based on outturn as the tax year has completed. No estimate has been made for the number of employers projected to pay the apprenticeship levy in 2025-26.
Asked by: Baroness Wolf of Dulwich (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their definition of (1) a teacher, (2) a school, and (3) a qualified teacher.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The definition of a teacher, school and qualified teacher is outlined in the relevant statistics that the department publishes. The methodology section of ‘School workforce in England’ publication outlines the following definitions in the context of the school workforce census. The full methodology section can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/methodology/school-workforce-in-england.
A teacher in school is defined as anyone who is employed by a school as a:
A school includes:
Qualified teachers are defined as those holding any of the following:
The methodology section of ‘Further education workforce’ publication outlines the following definitions in the context of the further education workforce census. The full methodology section can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/methodology/further-education-workforce.
A teacher in further education is defined as member of staff with teaching responsibilities. Main Roles which would determine whether a staff member is a “Teacher”:
Schools are not defined within the scope of the further education workforce.
Qualified teachers are defined as those holding any of the following:
Asked by: Baroness Wolf of Dulwich (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many apprenticeship starts in hairdressing there were, by region and level, for each of the English regions in each of the years from 2015 to the present.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The attached file contains apprenticeship starts for the 2015/16 to 2024/25 academic years, broken down by region and level, for hairdressing apprentices. These were last published in March 2025. They include full year figures from 2015/16 to 2023/24, and year to date figures for 2024/25 (August 2024 to January 2025).
The most recent years’ data are available in the published ‘Apprenticeships’ statistics, which have been included in the attached file, and can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/apprenticeships/2024-25.