Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which schools are included in the scope of the School Rebuilding Programme in Huntingdon constituency.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government has given a long-term commitment for funding through to 2034/35 to improve the condition of schools and colleges across England. The department is investing almost £20 billion in the school rebuilding programme (SRP), delivering rebuilding projects at over 500 schools across England within the existing programme. The department is also expanding the SRP, with a further 250 schools to be selected within the next two years.
The department invited responsible bodies to nominate schools to be considered for the SRP in early 2022. There are currently no schools in the constituency of Huntingdon in the programme. The department will set out further details about the selection process for the additional 250 schools to be selected for the SRP later this year.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many days were lost to sickness absence by civil servants in their Department (a) in total and (b) on average per employee between 5 July 2024 and 4 July 2025.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Sickness absence data for the Civil Service, including departmental breakdowns, is published annually, and is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/sickness-absence.
The next update will be for the year ending 31 March 2025.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy, CP 1337, published on 23 June 2025, what his Department's approach is to placements within industry.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is developing a comprehensive strategy for post‐16 education and skills, to break down barriers to opportunity, support the development of a skilled workforce, and drive economic growth through our Industrial Strategy.
T Levels are a key element of our skills strategy and all T Levels contain a mandatory industry placement of at least 45 days with an employer, focused on developing practical and technical skills for that area. Providers are responsible for arranging these placements. To support employers, funding is available in 2025/26 to help cover essential costs.
The government has announced a £625 million skills package for the construction sector. This will include measures designed to raise awareness, boost access and improve the quality of training available, ensuring that more young people are equipped with the skills the construction sector urgently needs. As part of this package, the government has committed £100 million alongside a £32 million contribution from the Construction Industry Training Board to fund up to 40,000 Industry Placements each year for all level 2 and level 3 construction learners.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent progress she has made in establishing defence technical excellence colleges.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is introducing Technical Excellence Colleges (TECs) to specialise in training skilled workforces which industry needs in growth-driving priority sectors. The UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy confirmed that we will establish Defence Technical Excellence Colleges, provide funding for courses for defence related skills, and invest in cutting edge university facilities to increase places for defence skills provision. Delivering this package will be a joint endeavour between government and industry. The department has been working with the Ministry of Defence on this and further detail will be set out in the forthcoming Defence Industrial Strategy.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the potential merits of revising how the high needs national funding formula is calculated.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department’s aim is to establish a fair education funding system that directs resources to where they are most needed and enable improved support and outcomes for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
The department is therefore considering the funding required for future years and how it is to be allocated, following the conclusion of the recent spending review. Our objective is that future funding for SEND supports our plans for reforming the SEND system to boost children’s outcomes, which will be set out in further detail in a White Paper this autumn.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether a Best Start Family Hub will be located within the (a) Huntingdon constituency and (b) Huntingdonshire District Council local authority area.
Answered by Janet Daby
Ensuring every child has the best start in life and the chance to achieve and thrive is the foundation of the government’s Opportunity Mission.
We will spend close to £1.5 billion over the next three years on improving family services and early years education. We will fund Best Start Family Hubs in every local authority to ensure that children and families who need support the most, especially those from low-income backgrounds or with additional vulnerabilities, can access it. These hubs will be open to all families but will be located in disadvantaged communities where support is most needed, ensuring services are both inclusive and targeted.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many EHCPs were issued in Cambridgeshire in each year between 2014-15 and 2024-25 inclusive.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
Information on the number of education, health and care (EHC) plans issued by Cambridgeshire is available as part of the statistical release which can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/education-health-and-care-plans/2025.
This includes information at a local authority level and covers the calendar years from 2019 to 2024. Information for earlier years is available as part of the 2024 edition of the publication, which can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/education-health-and-care-plans/2024.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many applications for the Special Educational Needs Inclusion Fund were made in Cambridgeshire in each year between 2014-15 and 2024-25 inclusive.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
Since the 2017/18 financial year, all local authorities have been required to have a special educational needs inclusion fund (SENIF) for all eligible children for the entitlements and who have special educational needs.
Local authorities should establish their SENIFs using funding from the early years block and/or the high needs block of their dedicated schools grant, considering pressures on high needs and early years budgets locally.
The department gives local authorities the autonomy to set SENIF budgets and to decide on eligibility criteria locally, as they are best placed to meet local need. The department does not collect information on how many applications are made to local authorities.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what criteria her Department will use to determine the location of the 3,000 (a) new and (b) expanded school-based nurseries.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Phase one of the School-Based Nurseries Capital Grant 2024/25 was open to all state-funded primary-phase schools across England.
The criteria used to determine the location of the new and expanded school-based nurseries included local demand for nursery places, availability of surplus space, delivery of high-quality early education and support for the most disadvantaged children, including those with special education needs and disabilities (SEND).
The department will learn from this initial phase and continue collaborating closely with the sector to aid our planning of future phases.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many of the 3,000 (a) new and (b) expanded school-based nurseries will be in Huntingdon constituency.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
No schools in the Huntingdon constituency were awarded school-based nurseries capital funding in the first phase.
In the Spending Review 2025, we announced almost £370 million of further funding to create tens of thousands of places in new and expanded school-based nurseries to help ensure more children can access the high-quality early education they deserve and get the best start in life.
This is a significant investment and the department will shortly be sharing next steps, where we will encourage schools, working with their local authority, to consider the opportunity to get involved in the programme.