Asked by: Gavin Williamson (Conservative - South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of the policies of some schools to close toilets during lesson times on pupils' wellbeing; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Department trusts head teachers to develop tailored policies on the use of toilets which reflect their school’s individual contexts and needs. The 2015 Advice on Standards for School Premises is clear that suitable toilet and washing facilities must be provided for the sole use of pupils.
It is for schools to find reasonable ways, in accordance with the law, to balance every child’s right to access clean and safe toilet facilities when they need them, with every child’s right to have a safe and calm environment to learn in. In the rare cases where parents or pupils may have concerns, they should speak to their school in the first instance.
Asked by: Gavin Williamson (Conservative - South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to improve school infrastructure in (a) South Staffordshire constituency, (b) Staffordshire and (c) the West Midlands.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Well maintained, safe school buildings are a priority for the Department.
The Department has allocated over £13 billion to improve the condition of school buildings since 2015, including £1.8 billion committed for the current 2022/23 financial year.
The Department recently announced that eligible schools will also receive an allocation from an additional £447 million in capital funding in 2022/23 for capital improvements to buildings and facilities, prioritising works to improve energy efficiency. This includes £709,572 for schools in South Staffordshire constituency, £7,266,813 for schools in the Staffordshire Local Authority and £49,563,732 for schools in the West Midlands.
Condition allocations are published online at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/school-capital-funding. As the funding of many of these allocations is determined at a local level, and because many responsible bodies, such as large academy trusts, cut across local boundaries, it is not possible to break the total spend down to constituency or Local Authority level.
In addition, the School Rebuilding Programme (SRP) will carry out major rebuilding and refurbishment projects at 500 schools across England, with buildings prioritised based on their condition. There are now 400 projects in the programme, with the most recent set of 239 schools announced in December 2022. Confirmed projects can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-rebuilding-programme.
In total, fifty schools in the West Midlands have been provisionally selected for SRP to date. Of these, four are within Staffordshire, two of which are within the South Staffordshire constituency. These are Brindley Heath Junior School Academy and Wombourne High School.
Seven schools within Staffordshire Local Authority were part of the Priority School Building Programme (PSPB), two of which are still in progress.
Asked by: Gavin Williamson (Conservative - South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when pay rates for foster carers will next be reviewed.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
Foster parents deserve high quality support to provide safe and loving homes for children in their care. The department is working with stakeholders to understand the impact of financial pressures on foster carers, particularly in the context of the cost of living. The department is also in the process of looking at the annual uplift to the national minimum allowance (NMA), with the next update to come into effect in April 2023. The NMA is not considered a wage or income for the foster parent but money to support the child in the family.
It is the responsibility of fostering service providers to set their own payment structures in accordance with local needs, using the NMA. This includes reviewing their rates each year and setting out a clear policy on what payments their foster carers can expect. This policy should include how other necessary expenses are covered for the care, education, and reasonable leisure interests for any child living with them in a fostering placement and any additional fees that the foster carer is entitled to. In 2021, the department wrote to any local authority that failed to provide the NMA.
Foster carers can also benefit from reformed tax and benefit allowances which ensure they receive the best support for their individual financial circumstances, in recognition of their role. As with all aspects of the tax system, the government will keep tax reliefs under review and any decisions on future changes will be taken by the Chancellor in the context of the wider public finances.