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Written Question
Hearing Impairment: Children
Tuesday 26th March 2024

Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of access to auditory-visual therapy for deaf children; and what steps she is taking to ensure sufficient access to that therapy as part of SEND support in schools.

Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department’s ambition is that all children and young people, no matter their needs, receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life.

The department is creating a new single national special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and alternative provision system for how needs are identified and met across education, health and care. This new single national system will set standards on what support should be made available in mainstream settings, including for children with hearing impairments.

Early intervention of SEND can allow children to thrive and the early years sector plays an important role in ensuring that the right support is put in place for children as they prepare for school. That is why Level 2 and 3 early years educator qualifications include SEND content. Alongside this, the Early Years Education Recovery Programme includes training for up to 7,000 early years special educational needs coordinators (SENCOs) and a variety of training offers with SEND content, including Child Development Training and the national professional qualification in early years leadership.

The department is committed to ensuring a steady supply of teachers of children with hearing impairments in both specialist and mainstream settings. To teach a class of pupils with hearing impairments, a teacher is required to hold the relevant Mandatory Qualification for Sensory Impairment (MQSI). There are currently six providers of the MQSI, with a seventh from September 2024. In addition, the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE) is developing a new occupational standard for teachers of Sensory Impairment, expected to be available from September 2025. Finally, children and young people with special educational needs have more access to assistive technology (AT) following investment in remote education and accessibility features, which can reduce or remove barriers to learning.


Written Question
Job Creation and Skilled Workers: Bury South
Tuesday 27th February 2024

Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what fiscal steps she is taking to support (a) training programmes, (b) apprenticeships and (c) other efforts to promote (i) job creation and (ii) skills development in Bury South constituency.

Answered by Robert Halfon

The government is committed to creating a world leading skills system which is employer-focused, high quality and fit for the future. The government’s reforms are strengthening higher education (HE) and further education (FE) to help more people get good jobs and upskill and retrain throughout their lives, as well as to improve national productivity and economic growth. The government’s reforms are backed with an additional investment of £3.8 billion over the course of this Parliament to strengthen HE and FE.

This additional funding will help providers such as those in Bury to deliver high quality education and training.

Bury College serves the Bury South constituency and received £25.3 million to deliver learning and skills training programmes in 2022/23 for 16 to18 year olds and apprentices for local employers. Bury College has also received capital investment of over £12 million since 2019.

Bury College offers a wide range of post-16 education and training from pre-entry level qualifications, A levels, T Levels, vocational courses at Levels 1 to 3, and apprenticeships in health and public services, business administration, engineering, retail and commercial enterprise, and education and training. It also has a University Centre and works in partnership with several local universities to deliver a range of HE courses at Higher National Diploma, Foundation Degree and Degree level to the local community. Bury College also receives funding for adult education programmes via Greater Manchester Combined Authority.

Bury College is a partner of the Greater Manchester Institute of Technology, led by The University of Salford, and has received £1.353 million of funding for refurbishments and specialist equipment in Heath Innovation, Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, Enterprise and Sports provision. Bury College will account for 25% of all learners at the Institute of Technology. This equates to approximately 200 learners in 2023/24.

The area is also served by Holy Cross College, a Catholic sixth form college, which received £12.89 million to deliver learning programmes for 16 to18 year olds in 2022/23. It delivers a largely academic Level 3 programme and a small Level 2 cohort. Holy Cross College has a University Centre delivering HE both through a direct contract with Office for Students and in partnership with Liverpool Hope University.

The department is increasing investment in the apprenticeships system in England to £2.7 billion by 2024/25 to support employers of all sizes and in all areas of the country, including Bury South, to grow their businesses with the skilled apprentices they need. Since 2010, there have been 11,380 apprenticeship starts in Bury South.

The department has introduced the Free Courses for Jobs scheme which enables eligible adults to gain a qualification for free. Residents in Bury can access provision in a range of sector subject areas delivered through colleges and training providers in the area.

In addition, the department has also introduced Skills Bootcamps, which are free, flexible courses of up to 16 weeks, giving people the opportunity to build up sector-specific skills and fast track to an interview with an employer. In each of the 2023/24 and 2024/25 financial years, the department has allocated £7.5 million to Greater Manchester Combined Authority to deliver Skills Bootcamps in the Greater Manchester area, including in Bury South via grant funding.

T Levels will equip more young people with the skills, knowledge and experience to access skilled employment or further study. From September 2023, 18 T Levels will be available and will be delivered through nearly 300 providers across all regions of the country. Bury college is delivering T Levels in business administration, legal, financial, and accounting, education and childcare, and health and engineering in 2023/24. The college intends to introduce further T Levels in catering and hospitality, construction and the built environment, creative and digital, and hair and beauty in 2024/25.


Written Question
Childcare: Bury North
Thursday 19th October 2023

Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 14 September 2023 to Question 198639 on Childcare, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure the adequacy of (a) trained staff, (b) safe premises and (c) registered places in Bury North constituency by the start of September 2025 to offer eligible children aged nine months and above access to 30 hours a week of free childcare for 38 weeks each year until the end of the term before they start primary school.

Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Having enough staff in place to deliver high-quality education and care will be key to ensuring the successful delivery of our record expansion of early years entitlements. Driving up interest in early years careers and ensuring there are enough opportunities for career development is a priority for this government.

In the government’s Spring Budget 2023, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced transformative reforms to childcare for parents, children and the economy. By 2027/28, this Government will expect to be spending in excess of £8 billion every year on free hours and early education, helping working families with their childcare costs. This represents the single biggest investment in childcare in England ever.

The department is developing a range of new workforce initiatives including the launch of a new national campaign, planned for the beginning of 2024, to boost interest in the sector and support the recruitment and retention of talented staff. To increase interest in early years, we are working to remove unnecessary barriers to entering the sector as well as considering how to make early years qualifications more accessible, coordinated and relevant.

Over the summer the department launched a competition for Early Years Skills Bootcamps with a pathway to an accelerated level 3 Early Years Educator apprenticeship, and we will consider degree apprenticeship routes so everyone from junior staff to senior leaders can easily move into or indeed enhance their career in the sector. We are also working across government to boost early years career awareness by collaborating with the Department for Work and Pensions and Careers & Enterprise Company to promote the importance and value of a career in early years.

Regarding safe premises, with a growing number of staff joining the sector, the safety of our youngest children remains as important as ever. All new and existing early years providers must keep children safe and promote their welfare. The Early Years Foundation Stage statutory framework sets the standards that all early years providers in England must meet to ensure that children are kept healthy and safe. More information can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1170108/EYFS_framework_from_September_2023.pdf.

Under these requirements, all owners and managers of childcare settings have a responsibility to ensure that their premises, including overall floor space and outdoor spaces, are fit for purpose and suitable for the age of children cared for and the activities provided on the premises. All providers must also comply with the requirements of health and safety legislation, including fire safety and hygiene requirements. At all times when children are present, at least one person who has a current paediatric first aid certificate must be on the premises.

Under Section 6 of the Childcare Act 2006, local authorities are responsible for ensuring that the provision of childcare is sufficient to meet the requirements of parents in their area. Part B of the Early education and childcare statutory guidance for local authorities highlights that local authorities should report annually to elected council members on how they are meeting their duty to secure sufficient childcare, and to make this report available and accessible to parents. More information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-education-and-childcare--2.

The Department has regular contact with each local authority in England about their sufficiency of childcare and any issues they are facing. Where local authorities report sufficiency challenges, we discuss what action the local authority is taking to address those issues and where needed support the local authority with any specific requirements through our childcare sufficiency support contract.


Written Question
Childcare: Bury South
Thursday 19th October 2023

Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 14 September 2023 to Question 198639 on Childcare, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure the adequacy of (a) trained staff, (b) safe premises and (c) registered places in Bury South constituency by the start of September 2025 to offer eligible children aged nine months and above access to 30 hours a week of free childcare for 38 weeks each year until the end of the term before they start primary school.

Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Having enough staff in place to deliver high-quality education and care will be key to ensuring the successful delivery of our record expansion of early years entitlements. Driving up interest in early years careers and ensuring there are enough opportunities for career development is a priority for this government.

In the government’s Spring Budget 2023, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced transformative reforms to childcare for parents, children and the economy. By 2027/28, this Government will expect to be spending in excess of £8 billion every year on free hours and early education, helping working families with their childcare costs. This represents the single biggest investment in childcare in England ever.

The department is developing a range of new workforce initiatives including the launch of a new national campaign, planned for the beginning of 2024, to boost interest in the sector and support the recruitment and retention of talented staff. To increase interest in early years, we are working to remove unnecessary barriers to entering the sector as well as considering how to make early years qualifications more accessible, coordinated and relevant.

Over the summer the department launched a competition for Early Years Skills Bootcamps with a pathway to an accelerated level 3 Early Years Educator apprenticeship, and we will consider degree apprenticeship routes so everyone from junior staff to senior leaders can easily move into or indeed enhance their career in the sector. We are also working across government to boost early years career awareness by collaborating with the Department for Work and Pensions and Careers & Enterprise Company to promote the importance and value of a career in early years.

Regarding safe premises, with a growing number of staff joining the sector, the safety of our youngest children remains as important as ever. All new and existing early years providers must keep children safe and promote their welfare. The Early Years Foundation Stage statutory framework sets the standards that all early years providers in England must meet to ensure that children are kept healthy and safe. More information can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1170108/EYFS_framework_from_September_2023.pdf.

Under these requirements, all owners and managers of childcare settings have a responsibility to ensure that their premises, including overall floor space and outdoor spaces, are fit for purpose and suitable for the age of children cared for and the activities provided on the premises. All providers must also comply with the requirements of health and safety legislation, including fire safety and hygiene requirements. At all times when children are present, at least one person who has a current paediatric first aid certificate must be on the premises.

Under Section 6 of the Childcare Act 2006, local authorities are responsible for ensuring that the provision of childcare is sufficient to meet the requirements of parents in their area. Part B of the Early education and childcare statutory guidance for local authorities highlights that local authorities should report annually to elected council members on how they are meeting their duty to secure sufficient childcare, and to make this report available and accessible to parents. More information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-education-and-childcare--2.

The Department has regular contact with each local authority in England about their sufficiency of childcare and any issues they are facing. Where local authorities report sufficiency challenges, we discuss what action the local authority is taking to address those issues and where needed support the local authority with any specific requirements through our childcare sufficiency support contract.


Written Question
National Tutoring Programme
Friday 14th July 2023

Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the National Tutoring Programme.

Answered by Nick Gibb

Since 2020, the National Tutoring Programme (NTP) has delivered over 3 million courses of tutoring to pupils most in need of catch up following the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic. There is extensive evidence that tutoring is one of the most effective ways to accelerate academic progress. This is why the Department is providing more than £1 billion for tutoring, so that pupils can catch up through accessing high quality tuition.

The Year 2 Implementation and Process Evaluation report explored the implementation of the NTP, particularly the School Led Tutoring (SLT) route, which was new in the 2021/22 academic year. It also explored teacher and leader perceptions of whether the NTP has affected workloads, the effect of the NTP on pupil premium spend on tutoring, reasons for non engagement in the NTP overall or its individual routes, and perceptions of impact on pupils, staff and schools.

The Year 2 Implementation and Process evaluation report was published in October 2022 and is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-tutoring-programme-year-2-implementation-and-process-evaluation.

The Year 2 Implementation and Process Evaluation report found most school leaders were satisfied with the NTP programme overall, and with the individual routes they were participating in. It found that all three routes of the NTP were perceived by head teachers to be having a positive effect on pupils’ attainment, self-confidence, and helping them catch up with their peers. It also found that most schools were prioritising pupil premium eligible pupils for tutoring across all routes.

The Year 2 Implementation and Process Evaluation compliments a quantitative impact evaluation, which explores the impact of NTP in its second year on educational attainment outcomes for pupils. This is due to be published in the autumn, alongside the Year 3 Implementation and Process Evaluation.


Written Question
Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education
Friday 18th November 2022

Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help improve young people’s understanding of buy-now-pay-later schemes.

Answered by Nick Gibb

Education on financial matters helps to ensure that young people are prepared to manage their money well, make sound financial decisions and know where to seek further information when needed.

Finance education forms part of the citizenship National Curriculum, at Key Stages 3 and 4, but can be taught by all schools at all Key Stages. Citizenship covers the functions and uses of money; the importance of personal budgeting; money management; and managing financial risk. At secondary school, pupils are taught information on income and expenditure; credit and debt; insurance, savings and pensions; financial products and services and the need to understand financial risk, including any emerging financial trends. Further information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/national-curriculum.

The current mathematics curriculum at primary level includes financial education and relevant skills, including calculations with money and using percentages, which provides young people with the knowledge and financial skills to make important financial decisions. The secondary mathematics curriculum develops pupils’ understanding and skills in relation to more complex personal finance issues, such as calculating loan repayments, interest rates and compound interest.

The Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) published financial education guidance for primary and secondary schools in England in November 2021, to support school leaders to enhance their financial education provision. The guidance is available at: https://maps.org.uk/2021/11/11/financial-education-guidance-for-primary-and-secondary-schools-in-england/. This guidance includes links to quality assured resources for schools, including content and activities on cryptocurrencies and buy now, pay later schemes. It also sets out the knowledge and skills pupils need to protect their personal data, critically evaluate online content and identify scams.

The Department is working with MaPS on a series of joint financial education webinars during the 2022/23 academic year, to help both primary and secondary schools, to improve pupils’ skills and knowledge and build teachers’ confidence in this area.


Written Question
Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education
Friday 18th November 2022

Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to improve young people’s understanding of credit products; and if she will make a statement.

Answered by Nick Gibb

Education on financial matters helps to ensure that young people are prepared to manage their money well, make sound financial decisions and know where to seek further information when needed.

Finance education forms part of the citizenship National Curriculum, at Key Stages 3 and 4, but can be taught by all schools at all Key Stages. Citizenship covers the functions and uses of money; the importance of personal budgeting; money management; and managing financial risk. At secondary school, pupils are taught information on income and expenditure; credit and debt; insurance, savings and pensions; financial products and services and the need to understand financial risk, including any emerging financial trends. Further information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/national-curriculum.

The current mathematics curriculum at primary level includes financial education and relevant skills, including calculations with money and using percentages, which provides young people with the knowledge and financial skills to make important financial decisions. The secondary mathematics curriculum develops pupils’ understanding and skills in relation to more complex personal finance issues, such as calculating loan repayments, interest rates and compound interest.

The Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) published financial education guidance for primary and secondary schools in England in November 2021, to support school leaders to enhance their financial education provision. The guidance is available at: https://maps.org.uk/2021/11/11/financial-education-guidance-for-primary-and-secondary-schools-in-england/. This guidance includes links to quality assured resources for schools, including content and activities on cryptocurrencies and buy now, pay later schemes. It also sets out the knowledge and skills pupils need to protect their personal data, critically evaluate online content and identify scams.

The Department is working with MaPS on a series of joint financial education webinars during the 2022/23 academic year, to help both primary and secondary schools, to improve pupils’ skills and knowledge and build teachers’ confidence in this area.


Written Question
Primary Education: Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education
Friday 18th November 2022

Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the disparities in (a) access to and (b) quality of financial education in primary schools.

Answered by Nick Gibb

Financial education is taught within the compulsory mathematics curriculum at primary level, which provides young people with the knowledge to make important financial decisions. There is a strong emphasis on the essential arithmetic that pupils should be taught. This is vital, as a strong grasp of arithmetic will underpin pupils’ ability to manage budgets and money, including, for example, using percentages. The mathematics curriculum also includes specific content on financial education, such as calculations with money.

Primary schools can also teach financial education through citizenship. Although this is not part of the national curriculum until Key Stage 3, the Department has published a non-statutory citizenship curriculum for Key Stages 1 and 2, to support schools in ensuring that pupils are taught how to look after their money and realise that future wants and needs may be met through saving. There also is a wide range of resources available for schools, including the Money and Pension Service’s (MaPS) financial education guidance for primary and secondary schools in England, which can be found here: https://maps.org.uk/2021/11/11/financial-education-guidance-for-primary-and-secondary-schools-in-england/.

The Department does not monitor financial education in primary schools, but it continues to work with MaPS and HM Treasury to consider the evidence and explore opportunities to promote the importance of financial education to schools. To this end, the Department is currently working with MaPS on a series of joint financial education webinars during this academic year, to promote the importance of financial education to school leaders of primary and secondary schools, and to build teachers’ confidence in this area.


Written Question
Primary Education: Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education
Friday 18th November 2022

Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of adding financial education to the primary school national curriculum.

Answered by Nick Gibb

Financial education is taught within the compulsory mathematics curriculum at primary level, which provides young people with the knowledge to make important financial decisions. There is a strong emphasis on the essential arithmetic that pupils should be taught. This is vital, as a strong grasp of arithmetic will underpin pupils’ ability to manage budgets and money, including, for example, using percentages. The mathematics curriculum also includes specific content on financial education, such as calculations with money.

Primary schools can also teach financial education through citizenship. Although this is not part of the national curriculum until Key Stage 3, the Department has published a non-statutory citizenship curriculum for Key Stages 1 and 2, to support schools in ensuring that pupils are taught how to look after their money and realise that future wants and needs may be met through saving. There also is a wide range of resources available for schools, including the Money and Pension Service’s (MaPS) financial education guidance for primary and secondary schools in England, which can be found here: https://maps.org.uk/2021/11/11/financial-education-guidance-for-primary-and-secondary-schools-in-england/.

The Department does not monitor financial education in primary schools, but it continues to work with MaPS and HM Treasury to consider the evidence and explore opportunities to promote the importance of financial education to schools. To this end, the Department is currently working with MaPS on a series of joint financial education webinars during this academic year, to promote the importance of financial education to school leaders of primary and secondary schools, and to build teachers’ confidence in this area.


Written Question
Schools: Discipline
Monday 25th October 2021

Asked by: Christian Wakeford (Labour - Bury South)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the findings of the survey by Team Teach on the Hidden Education Challenges during the Pandemic, whether he is taking steps to tackle behavioural matters arising in schools as a result of the measures taken to combat the covid-19 outbreak.

Answered by Robin Walker

Attending school or college in person plays a central role in promoting well-being for pupils. The department is pursuing an ambitious programme of work to improve behaviour in schools and to improve the mental health and well-being of pupils and teachers.

The department’s £10 million behaviour hubs programme, launched in April, is projected to support more than 500 schools over 3 years. It will support schools to learn from the best in developing excellent behaviour cultures. In June 2021, the department also launched a call for evidence on managing good behaviour and how schools’ behaviour policies have changed in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. This evidence will be considered alongside a public consultation later this year on the Behaviour and Discipline in Schools guidance. The guidance will provide practical advice to schools about how to encourage good behaviour and respond effectively to incidents of poor behaviour in and out of the classroom and support staff in tackling behavioural issues that have arisen from COVID-19.

The department’s mental health and behaviour guidance for schools includes specific information about supporting pupils’ mental health and wellbeing: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mental-health-and-behaviour-in-schools--2. This is in addition to the £79 million to boost children and young people’s mental health support announced in March 2021, which will include increasing the number of Mental Health Support Teams in schools and colleges to around 400, covering an estimated 3 million children and young people by 2023.

To provide further support for staff dealing with children and young people experiencing additional pressures from the last year, including trauma, anxiety, or grief, the government announced the £7 million additional funding for local authorities to deliver Wellbeing for Education Recovery programme in May 2021. Alongside this, we are providing £9.5 million to train a Senior Mental Health lead in up to 7,800 schools and colleges in England in this academic year; and funding an adapted ‘Link’ programme which is designed to improve partnerships between health and education leaders in local areas.