Asked by: Lord Kempsell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the reasons for the fall in the overall number of teachers in state-funded schools in 2024–25; and how they are spending the money raised by charging VAT on independent school fees.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
Recruiting and retaining high-quality teachers is critical to the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and boost the life chances for every child. This is why the government’s Plan for Change has committed to recruiting an additional 6,500 new expert teachers in secondary and special schools, and in our colleges, over the course of this Parliament.
We are already seeing positive signs that our investment in teacher recruitment and retention is starting to deliver. The workforce has grown by 2,346 full-time equivalent teachers between 2023/24 and 2024/25, in secondary and special schools, the schools where they are needed most. This includes 1,435 more secondary school teachers and 911 more special and pupil referral unit teachers compared to last year.
There are currently 4.6 million children in primary schools, 60,000 (1.3%) fewer than last year, down by around 172,000 (3.6%) compared to the 2018/19 peak, and numbers are forecasted to fall by another 165,000 (3.7%) between 2024/25 and 2027/28.
Measures to end private school tax breaks are expected to raise around £1.8 billion per year by 2029/30.
In the 2024/25 financial year, the department spent just over £600 million to support school teacher training, recruitment and retention.
Asked by: Lord Kempsell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to improve attainment in numeracy of primary school pupils, particularly in regard to basic arithmetic.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
High and rising standards are at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best life chances.
The department funds the Maths Hubs programme, which is supported by the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics. Local Maths Hubs provide school-to-school support focussed on mathematics subject knowledge and pedagogy training for teachers. The national network of Maths Hubs across England aims to raise the standard of mathematics education from reception to age 18. Maths Hubs deliver the Mastering Number programme, which is designed to encourage the use of mastery methods to teach solid number sense, to primary schools.
Through the department’s Accelerator Fund, we are also supporting up to 800 nurseries to complete the Maths Champions programme this year. Maths Champions is an evidence based professional development programme, proven to improve children’s mathematics and language outcomes by an average of three additional months.
Asked by: Lord Kempsell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to teach artificial intelligence skills in state schools.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
Programming, algorithms and the use of information technology are taught to pupils through the statutory national curriculum subject of computing from key stage 1 to key stage 4, providing the foundation for further study in areas such as artificial intelligence (AI).
To support the teaching of AI in schools, the department funds the National Centre for Computing Education (NCCE), which delivers a range of courses for teachers on machine learning and AI, ethics, and teaching about AI in primary and secondary computing. For example, this includes ‘AI in key stage 3 computing’, which supports teachers to understand what AI is and how it can be used for asset creation, equipping them with the knowledge required to promote the effective and safe use of AI tools. The government’s continued investment in the NCCE for the 2025/26 financial year will ensure that teachers can access the support they need to be able to teach about AI, and other computing topics, effectively and confidently.
The government has established an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, covering ages 5 to 18, chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE. The review seeks to deliver a curriculum that readies young people for life and work, building the knowledge, skills and attributes needed to thrive. This includes considering how young people will acquire the key digital skills needed for future life. The review group will publish an interim report in early spring setting out its interim findings and confirming the key areas for further work, and will publish its final report with recommendations this autumn. The department will take decisions on what changes to make to the curriculum in light of these recommendations.
Asked by: Lord Kempsell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many pupils or students in state-funded schools and colleges in England took (1) core mathematics, (2) mathematics, (3) further mathematics, and (4) statistics, qualifications post-16 in each academic year since 2015.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
The information requested can be found in the attached spreadsheet and at the links below. Due to the amount of data requested, it is provided as an attachment rather than within the main body of the answer.
The numbers of entries by students aged 16 to 18 in England for A level pure mathematics, mathematics, further mathematics and statistics from the 2015/16 to 2023/24 academic years are published by the department in the ‘A level and other 16 to 18 results’ statistical release is attached and can be found at the following links:
Data relating to Core Mathematics have been published on the Compare School and College Performance website since 2021/22 is attached and can be accessed at the following links:
Core Mathematics qualifications were introduced in 2014 to provide students who achieved a grade 9-4 in mathematics at GCSE, but are not taking AS or A level mathematics, with the opportunity to continue the subject within 16-19 study. The qualifications focus on the use and application of mathematics and statistics in real life scenarios and aims to prepare students for the mathematical demands of university study.
Asked by: Lord Kempsell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they plan to deliver the objectives they set in the AI Opportunities Action Plan while removing funding for mathematics education in schools and colleges through the Advanced Mathematics Support Programme.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
This government is committed to ensuring both learners and employers have access to crucial digital and artificial intelligence (AI) skills that have the potential to increase productivity and create new high value jobs in the UK economy. To achieve this, the department will build a responsive skills system, coordinated through Skills England, to deliver on the national, regional and local skills needs of the next decade.
The department will remain committed to ensuring all children and young people have a strong foundation in mathematics to thrive in the modern economy, regardless of background and socioeconomic status. The Advanced Maths Support programme remains a government-funded programme that continues to provide high quality teaching to increase participation and attainment in level 3 maths, to support student career progression and economic growth in technological advances.
The department also funds a national network of Maths Hubs, which is supported by the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics. This network aims to raise the standard of mathematics education from reception to age 18 and enhance the quality of mathematics teaching through a collaborative national network of mathematics educational professionals.
Asked by: Lord Kempsell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they intend to support pupils who wish to study classical languages in state schools in England.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
The study of classical languages can teach valuable lessons in history that are as relevant in the 21st century as they were for the ancient world. All schools can choose to teach classical subjects if they wish at any stage in a child’s education and can support this provision from their core funding.
Mainstream schools and young people with high needs are receiving £2.3 billion more in the 2025/26 financial year compared to 2024/25. This means core schools funding will total almost £63.9 billion next year.
Asked by: Lord Kempsell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consultations they have made, or representations they have received, before deciding to reduce funding for the Advanced Mathematics Support Programme.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
The Advanced Mathematics Support Programme (AMSP) remains a government funded programme that continues to positively impact mathematics education across England. Due to financial challenges, the department has made the difficult decision to reduce the funding for AMSP for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 academic years. The department has worked with the AMSP supplier, Mathematics Education Innovation, to ensure high quality professional development and support remains available to schools and colleges to continue rising standards in level 3 mathematics.
The department remains committed to ensuring all children and young people have a strong foundation in mathematics to thrive in the modern economy, regardless of background and socioeconomic status. Our Plan for Change will ensure every child gets a rich education that helps them achieve and thrive.
Asked by: Lord Kempsell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government, in the light of their decision to reduce funding for the Advanced Mathematics Support Programme, what plans they have to ensure young people have the opportunity to learn core mathematics in state schools.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
High and rising school standards, including in mathematics, are at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best life chances. The department is committed to ensuring all students have opportunities to study mathematics after the age of 16, including increasing participation in core mathematics qualifications for students who wish to continue studying mathematics but do not want to study A or AS level mathematics. A level mathematics continues to be the most popular A level, since 2014, with almost 100,000 entries in 2024 (98,066), which is up 11% from 2023. A level further mathematics also saw significant increases of 20% in 2024 (16,816).
In the 2024/25 academic year, we introduced the core mathematics premium of £900 per year per student to support students’ participation in programmes with core mathematics qualifications. The department’s guidance on the core mathematics premium can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/16-to-19-funding-core-maths-premium/16-to-19-funding-core-maths-premium.
The Advanced Maths Support programme remains a government-funded programme and includes support to the expansion of core mathematics by providing online and face-to-face teacher continuous professional development for new and existing core mathematics teachers, to ensure they have the capacity and capability to confidently teach advanced mathematics.
Asked by: Lord Kempsell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will reverse their decision to end funding for the Latin excellence programme; and, if not, whether they will defer the cessation of funding until pupils currently in the programme have completed their qualifications.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
The fiscal situation this new government inherited means there are difficult decisions to take on how money is spent right across the public sector to ensure we deliver on our priorities. Given this, the decision to not extend the Latin Excellence Programme beyond the end of the agreed initial three-year contract remains.
The department will work closely with the Centre for Latin Excellence to ensure that teachers currently delivering the Latin curriculum to key stage 4 pupils will be prioritised and will receive extra support in the lead up to the end of the programme on 28 February, to ensure pupils’ continuity of learning. All schools on the programme will continue to have access to the curriculum resources once the programme ends.
Asked by: Lord Kempsell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will reverse their decision to end funding for the computing hubs programme run by the National Centre for Computing Education.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
The fiscal situation this new government inherited means there are difficult decisions to take on how money is spent right across the public sector to ensure we deliver on our priorities. Given this, the decision to end funding for the computing hubs remains.
The government will continue to fund the National Centre for Computing Education to support the teaching of computing and increase participation in computer science qualifications. Teachers will still be able to access high-quality continuing professional development and teaching resources to support and enrich computing lessons. Funding beyond 2025/26 financial year to support computing education will be considered through the upcoming Spending Review.