Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of Education, Health and Care Plan assessments for children in the Middlesbrough and Thornaby East constituency were completed within the statutory 20-week timescale in the last year; and how many decisions in those cases were subsequently overturned or amended following SEND tribunal proceedings.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Information on the number of education, heath and care (EHC) plans issued with 20 weeks during 2024, in both Middlesbrough and Stockton on Tees local authorities, is available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/d93eb816-ebba-4148-eb03-08de29d3af56.
Information on the number of EHC needs assessments undertaken, their outcomes and the numbers which were subject to a tribunal during 2024 is shown in the table below:
Number of EHC needs assessments where the outcome was to issue an EHC plan | Number of EHC needs assessments where the outcome was not to issue an EHC plan | |
Middlesbrough | ||
Total number of EHC needs assessments | 314 | 0 |
Number of tribunals related to the assessment decision | 0 | 0 |
Number of tribunals related to the assessment for other reasons | 7 | 0 |
Stockton on Tees | ||
Total number of EHC needs assessments | 433 | 41 |
Number of tribunals related to the assessment decision | 9 | 4 |
Number of tribunals related to the assessment for other reasons | 10 | 0 |
An EHC needs assessment may be subject to a tribunal relating to the outcome of the assessment, or for other reasons relating to the content of any EHC plan that is subsequently issued.
Information at constituency level is not available.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many (a) specialist school places and (b) resourced mainstream places for pupils with Education, Health and Care Plans are available in (i) Middlesbrough local authority area and (ii) Stockton-on-Tees local authority area; and what plans she has to increase specialist provision in those areas.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
As of May 2024, Middlesbrough has 681 special school places, and 369 special educational needs (SEN) unit or resourced provision places. Stockton-on-Tees has 667 special school places and 207 SEN unit or resourced provision places.
The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places, including for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), sits with local authorities. The department supports local authorities to provide suitable school places for children and young people with SEND through annual high needs capital funding, including through the £740 million confirmed for the 2025/26 financial year. Of this funding, Middlesbrough has been allocated £1.4 million and Stockton-on-Tees has been allocated £2.2 million.
This funding is intended to create resourced provision adapted to support pupils needs. It can also be used to adapt mainstream schools to be more accessible and to create special school places for pupils with the most complex needs.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on the number of GP appointments (a) offered, (b) attended and (c) cancelled by practices in Middlesbrough and Thornaby East constituency in the most recent year for which data is available; and if will make it his policy to monitor trends in practice-cancelled appointments.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
General Practice Appointment Data is published monthly by NHS England and captures information on appointments that have occurred, rather than those that are offered. The data also only includes appointments that were attended or marked as 'Did Not Attend' (DNA), not those that are cancelled.
Since cancelled slots can often be rebooked and used by other patients, the most reliable and meaningful data to collect are both attended appointments and DNAs.
In September 2025, in the Middlesbrough and Thornaby East Constituency, 1.04 million appointments were delivered, and 54,000 appointments were not attended.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many households owed a homelessness duty by (a) Middlesbrough Council and (b) Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council were placed in temporary accommodation (i) within the local authority area, (ii) elsewhere in the Tees Valley Combined Authority area and (iii) outside that area in each of the last three years; and what information his Department holds on the distance from the placing authority area in such cases.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government publishes quarterly homelessness statistics which is available on gov.uk here.
We must build more homes in the areas where they are needed so we can reduce the need for out of area placements and reduce the number of people in temporary accommodation, which is why we will deliver the biggest increase to social and affordable housing in a generation.
We have also increased funding for homelessness services by £316 million to a total of more than £1 billion in 2025/26 to support local authorities to deliver homelessness services. This includes a £10.9 million top up announced last month to support households in the worst forms of temporary accommodation, such as bed & breakfast or out of area accommodation.
We are publishing a cross-Government homelessness strategy later this year that will get us back on track to ending homelessness.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many households are living in temporary accommodation (a) in England, (b) in Middlesbrough local authority area and (c) in Stockton-on-Tees local authority area; and what the i) average and ii) median lengths of stay in temporary accommodation are in each of those areas.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government publishes quarterly homelessness statistics which is available on gov.uk here.
We must build more homes in the areas where they are needed so we can reduce the need for out of area placements and reduce the number of people in temporary accommodation, which is why we will deliver the biggest increase to social and affordable housing in a generation.
We have also increased funding for homelessness services by £316 million to a total of more than £1 billion in 2025/26 to support local authorities to deliver homelessness services. This includes a £10.9 million top up announced last month to support households in the worst forms of temporary accommodation, such as bed & breakfast or out of area accommodation.
We are publishing a cross-Government homelessness strategy later this year that will get us back on track to ending homelessness.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to reduce (a) the duration of stays in temporary accommodation and (b) the use of out-of-area placements for households from Middlesbrough and Thornaby East.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Government publishes quarterly homelessness statistics which is available on gov.uk here.
We must build more homes in the areas where they are needed so we can reduce the need for out of area placements and reduce the number of people in temporary accommodation, which is why we will deliver the biggest increase to social and affordable housing in a generation.
We have also increased funding for homelessness services by £316 million to a total of more than £1 billion in 2025/26 to support local authorities to deliver homelessness services. This includes a £10.9 million top up announced last month to support households in the worst forms of temporary accommodation, such as bed & breakfast or out of area accommodation.
We are publishing a cross-Government homelessness strategy later this year that will get us back on track to ending homelessness.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of geothermal storage of energy from wind turbines on the mitigation of curtailment fees.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Clean Power will require greater levels of energy storage. Geothermal storage is relatively nascent but holds promise – particularly when there is demand for that heat nearby. We set out our ambition to unlock more flexibility from thermal storage in the Clean Flexibility Roadmap earlier this year and will set out our strategy for heat networks in the Warm Homes Plan.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the Crime and Policing Bill on the right to protest.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The right to peaceful protest is an important part of our democratic society. Measures in the Crime and Policing Bill strengthen the police's ability to manage disruptive and dangerous protests and prevent criminality.
They will help prevent intimidation near places of worship, and protect communities affected by repeated disruption, without imposing a blanket restriction on protests.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the oral contribution of the Minister for Care of 15 October 2025 on Jhoots Pharmacy, Official Report, column 377, what estimate he has made of the number of locum pharmacists who have lost earned income as a result of the closure of Jhoots Pharmacies; and what guidance his Department has issued to ensure those pharmacists receive such payments.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 11 November, I wrote to all Members of this House with an update on actions taken to date.
The Department is currently conducting an analysis of how pharmacies are regulated to ensure that all those with contract management and registration responsibilities can swiftly take action proportionate to the scale of the failures. If this analysis identifies gaps that can be filled by legislative changes, the House will be able scrutinise any proposed legislative changes in the usual way.
Where pharmacies close, integrated care boards (ICBs) will work with other local pharmacies and general practices to ensure patients can continue to access their medicines. Patients may also use distance-selling pharmacies, which are required to deliver prescription medicines directly to patients’ homes free of charge.
The Department continues to monitor changes to the provision of pharmaceutical services to patients. Local authorities’ Health and Wellbeing Boards are also required to undertake and update pharmaceutical needs assessments to ensure that provision in their area is adequate. These assessments and any supplementary statements are published.
Pharmacy premises and pharmacy professionals are monitored and regulated by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC), and ICBs monitor and enforce adherence to the NHS Terms of Service for pharmacies. The details about actions taken by the GPhC are published on their website.
Pharmacy staff and locum pharmacists are not employed by the National Health Service but by pharmacy businesses who both provide private pharmaceutical services and hold contracts for NHS services. Any dispute between staff or employed locum pharmacists and a pharmacy business should be raised with the Advisory, Conciliation, and Arbitration Service which has powers to provide arbitration and binding decisions in such matters.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough and Thornaby East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the oral contribution of the Minister for Care of 15 October 2025 on Jhoots Pharmacy, Official Report, column 377, what mechanisms his Department has put in place to monitor the performance of (a) Jhoots Pharmacy and (b) other large pharmacy chains; and how he plans to report to Parliament on progress on that monitoring.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 11 November, I wrote to all Members of this House with an update on actions taken to date.
The Department is currently conducting an analysis of how pharmacies are regulated to ensure that all those with contract management and registration responsibilities can swiftly take action proportionate to the scale of the failures. If this analysis identifies gaps that can be filled by legislative changes, the House will be able scrutinise any proposed legislative changes in the usual way.
Where pharmacies close, integrated care boards (ICBs) will work with other local pharmacies and general practices to ensure patients can continue to access their medicines. Patients may also use distance-selling pharmacies, which are required to deliver prescription medicines directly to patients’ homes free of charge.
The Department continues to monitor changes to the provision of pharmaceutical services to patients. Local authorities’ Health and Wellbeing Boards are also required to undertake and update pharmaceutical needs assessments to ensure that provision in their area is adequate. These assessments and any supplementary statements are published.
Pharmacy premises and pharmacy professionals are monitored and regulated by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC), and ICBs monitor and enforce adherence to the NHS Terms of Service for pharmacies. The details about actions taken by the GPhC are published on their website.
Pharmacy staff and locum pharmacists are not employed by the National Health Service but by pharmacy businesses who both provide private pharmaceutical services and hold contracts for NHS services. Any dispute between staff or employed locum pharmacists and a pharmacy business should be raised with the Advisory, Conciliation, and Arbitration Service which has powers to provide arbitration and binding decisions in such matters.