Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she made of the potential impact of Local Government Reorganisation upon the secondary school places in Huntingdonshire.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department is reviewing all local government reorganisation proposals to consider the potential impact on children’s services, including school places. Huntingdonshire is in tranche three of the local government reorganisation process and the statutory consultation on proposals is expected to launch in Spring 2026. I encourage all local areas to respond to the consultation.
There will then be a transition period during which the department will work with local areas to support children’s services in the new authorities, including plans to ensure there are sufficient school places.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of funding SEND provision from within her Department’s existing RDEL core budget of £69 billion in 2028-29 on provision of existing Educational resources.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The government has set out its position on page 105 of the budget document, confirming that special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) pressure will be absorbed within the overall government departmental expenditure limits (DEL) budget from the financial year 2028/29 onwards such that we would not expect local authorities to need to fund future special educational needs costs from general funds.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what Government funding had been allocated to the development of Godmanchester Secondary Academy prior to its cancellation.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Godmanchester Secondary Academy was approved into pre-opening in 2017 as part of Free Schools Wave 12. Delivery was provisionally anticipated for September 2022, but the project never achieved approval to move into the construction stage. The trust formally withdrew the project in April 2020 with the opening forecast not changing during the interim.
Due to the early stage that it reached, only the following funding was allocated to this project:
Capital costs for project manager fees and staff costs: | £3,731.31 |
Project development grant: | £30,000.00 |
TOTAL | £33,731.31 |
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the delivery timeline was of Godmanchester Secondary Academy prior to its cancellation.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Godmanchester Secondary Academy was approved into pre-opening in 2017 as part of Free Schools Wave 12. Delivery was provisionally anticipated for September 2022, but the project never achieved approval to move into the construction stage. The trust formally withdrew the project in April 2020 with the opening forecast not changing during the interim.
Due to the early stage that it reached, only the following funding was allocated to this project:
Capital costs for project manager fees and staff costs: | £3,731.31 |
Project development grant: | £30,000.00 |
TOTAL | £33,731.31 |
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, in what year Godmanchester Secondary Academy was approved to be built.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Godmanchester Secondary Academy was approved into pre-opening in 2017 as part of Free Schools Wave 12. Delivery was provisionally anticipated for September 2022, but the project never achieved approval to move into the construction stage. The trust formally withdrew the project in April 2020 with the opening forecast not changing during the interim.
Due to the early stage that it reached, only the following funding was allocated to this project:
Capital costs for project manager fees and staff costs: | £3,731.31 |
Project development grant: | £30,000.00 |
TOTAL | £33,731.31 |
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
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 on funding SEND provision of the mainstream school spending per pupil on page 122 of the Office for Budget Responsibility’s Economic Financial Outlook.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The government has set out its position on page 105 of the budget document, confirming that special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) pressure will be absorbed within the overall government Departmental Expenditure Limits (DEL) budget from the financial year 2028/29 onwards such that we would not expect local authorities to need to fund future special educational needs costs from general funds.
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) have illustrated the impact in the funding required for this, estimated at £6 billion, if these costs were met by diverting mainstream schools funding. However, that is only an indicative example and does not reflect government policy. We have confirmed that SEND pressure will be absorbed within the overall government DEL budget from 2028/29 onwards, not that it will be absorbed within the core schools budget.
Furthermore, the £6 billion figure quoted by the OBR is based on current spending trajectories and does not take account of future government decisions on reforms to the SEND system, details of which will be set out in the Schools White Paper in the new year.
Budgets from 2028/29 onwards, including the core schools budget, will be confirmed at the 2027 Spending Review.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what is the total cost to the public purse of the decision to extend the statutory override for the cost of SEND to 2027-28.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The statutory override is an accounting measure, designed to keep Dedicated Schools Grant deficits separate from local authorities’ wider financial position. The extension of the override to the end of the 2027/28 financial year does not affect local authorities’ statutory duties to provide support for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), nor does it change how much they spend to fulfil those duties. As these duties remain unchanged and, as with the previous government’s decision to extend the statutory override to the end of 2025/26, the extension itself does not result in any additional cost to the public purse.
The government recognises many local authorities are likely to continue to accrue deficits due to their spending on high needs, as we have seen in recent years, as they ensure that there are sufficient resources to secure provision for children and young people with SEND in mainstream or in specialist education. We will set out our plans to support local authorities with historic and accruing deficits through the upcoming Local Government Finance Settlement.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of funding the cost of SEND provision from RDEL allocations on local authorities.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The government has set out its position on page 105 of the budget document, confirming that special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) pressure will be absorbed within the overall government Departmental Expenditure Limits (DEL) budget from the financial year 2028/29 onwards such that we would not expect local authorities to need to fund future special educational needs costs from general funds.
The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) have illustrated the impact in the funding required for this, estimated at £6 billion, if these costs were met by diverting mainstream schools funding. However, that is only an indicative example and does not reflect government policy. We have confirmed that SEND pressure will be absorbed within the overall government DEL budget from 2028/29 onwards, not that it will be absorbed within the core schools budget.
Furthermore, the £6 billion figure quoted by the OBR is based on current spending trajectories and does not take account of future government decisions on reforms to the SEND system, details of which will be set out in the Schools White Paper in the new year.
Budgets from 2028/29 onwards, including the core schools budget, will be confirmed at the 2027 Spending Review.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment has she made of the potential implications for her policies of the outcome of the joint Ofsted and CQC Area SEND Inspection published on 13 May 2025.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Cambridgeshire local area partnership was inspected by Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) from 27 to 31 January 2025. The inspection outcome was that the local areas partnership’s arrangements lead to inconsistent experiences and outcomes for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Five areas for improvement were identified and the department is working with the local partnership to monitor improvement in these five areas.
Where a council does not meet its duties, the department can take action that prioritises children’s needs and supports local areas to bring about rapid improvement. We offer a range of universal, targeted and intensive support through department-managed programmes, such as our sector led improvement Partners.
The current Ofsted/CQC area SEND inspection framework was launched in January 2023. All local areas are due to receive a full inspection under this framework by the end of 2027, driving better outcomes and standards in the system.
As part of our Plan for Change, the department is determined to fix the SEND system and restore the trust of parents. We will bring forward a full Schools White Paper early in the new year.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which legacy systems will be (a) decommissioned and (b) replaced following the completion of the Data Futures Project.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The Data Futures Programme is led by the Office for Students (OfS) in collaboration with sector partners. The programme is primarily focused on enhancing data collection and reporting within the higher education sector.
The programme is not directly managed by the department, and its scope and development are matters for the OfS. The department maintains an interest in its progress and continues to engage with relevant stakeholders as appropriate.
Decisions regarding system changes or replacements in relation to the programme fall under the remit of the OfS and its delivery partners. The department does not hold specific information on system decommissioning linked to the programme. Any consideration of its relevance to operational data, including border movements, would be subject to further engagement with the OfS and other responsible bodies.
The OfS, in collaboration with delivery partners including Jisc, are working to implement recommendations highlighted in the Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC) review published in January 2025.