Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions she has had with Teachers' Pensions to ensure retired teachers (a) receive their rollback statement in a timely manner and (b) are informed of the timeline for the receipt of their rollback statement.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Teachers’ Pensions continue to issue members with their Remediable Service Statements whilst experiencing high levels of member contact. The department is in active discussions with Teachers’ Pensions regarding capacity planning and are continually exploring ways to improve waiting times and customer service, which includes recruiting additional staff and automating functions wherever possible.
Teachers’ Pensions are also monitoring factors that affect the progress of issuing Remediable Service Statements, such as average handling times, response rates and levels of enquiries. Updates are provided to members via the Teachers’ Pensions website. The latest update is available here: https://www.teacherspensions.co.uk/news/public-news/2025/04/delay-in-issuing-remediable-service-statements-rss.aspx.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure adequate funding for children and families.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The Spending Review, announced by my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, on 11 June 2025, ensures this government can drive forward progress on its mission to break the link between background and success.
Children’s early years are crucial to their development, health and life chances. Through the government’s Plan for Change, we will ensure every child gets the best start in life, investing in the strongest evidence-based interventions to ensure a record proportion of five year-olds have a good level of development by 2028 and transforming outcomes for children and young people.
The Spending Review includes an additional £1.6 billion a year by 2028/29 for childcare entitlements for working parents, giving children the best start in life and supporting more parents to balance family life and work. It also includes funding to expand a network of family hubs to support families when they need it and get a record proportion of children ready for school.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support (a) blind and (b) partially sighted young people to access Further Education.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Support for people with visual impairments in further education is guided by legal duties under the Equality Act 2010 and the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) code of practice, with tailored provisions depending on the needs of the individual.
All education and training providers, have a duty to make reasonable adjustments for people with disabilities, including those with visual impairments, so they are not placed at a substantial disadvantage compared to non-disabled students.
Reasonable adjustments can include things such as adapting teaching methods (providing materials in accessible formats), using assistive technology (such as screen readers and magnifiers, speech synthesizers, accessible computers and tablets) modifying assessments (offering extra time or alternative formats), and offering personalised support services (including note-takers, interpreters, or mental health support).
From year 9 it is mandatory for education, health and care plan reviews to support learners in preparing for the transitions to further education and/or employment.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking alongside the Teachers' Pension Scheme to ensure retired teachers (a) receive their pensions in a timely manner and (b) are informed of the timeline for this.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
As part of the Transitional Protection (McCloud) remedy, affected members of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme (TPS) have the option to choose either final salary or career average benefits for the remedy period (April 2015 to March 2022). Members who had not taken TPS benefits before the remedy took effect on 1 October 2023 make that choice immediately before retirement. As calculations of the options are complex, TPS members are advised to apply six months before their intended retirement date to ensure there is sufficient time to receive and respond to their Remediable Service Statement which will set out that choice.
The need to apply six months in advance is clearly set out on the Teachers’ Pensions website and in related member guidance, which can be found here: www.teacherspensions.co.uk/members/planning-retirement/how-to-apply.aspx.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of promoting a culture of reading for pleasure in the home on the development of children (a) in early years and (b) of school age.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
This government is committed to strengthening the home learning environment to support literacy and school readiness as part of the Plan for Change. In 2025/26, we are investing £10.7 million through Family Hubs in home learning environment services to help parents create language-rich, nurturing settings that support early communication and confidence. In the recent Spending Review, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, confirmed that the government will continue to invest in and expand the Family Hubs programme as part of the Spending Review 2025.
Our Little Moments Together campaign provides free resources and advice to encourage parents to chat, play and read with their children, simple actions that make a lasting difference. Promoting a culture of reading for pleasure at home supports children’s language development, emotional wellbeing and cognitive growth, particularly in the early years. These benefits extend into later childhood, contributing to improved educational outcomes and a lifelong engagement with learning.
For school-age children, we continue to encourage parental engagement in reading and learning at home, recognising that strong early foundations are key to long term educational success.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will publish plans to strengthen the home learning environment to support literacy (a) in the early years and (b) for school age children.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
This government is committed to strengthening the home learning environment to support literacy and school readiness as part of the Plan for Change. In 2025/26, we are investing £10.7 million through Family Hubs in home learning environment services to help parents create language-rich, nurturing settings that support early communication and confidence. In the recent Spending Review, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, confirmed that the government will continue to invest in and expand the Family Hubs programme as part of the Spending Review 2025.
Our Little Moments Together campaign provides free resources and advice to encourage parents to chat, play and read with their children, simple actions that make a lasting difference. Promoting a culture of reading for pleasure at home supports children’s language development, emotional wellbeing and cognitive growth, particularly in the early years. These benefits extend into later childhood, contributing to improved educational outcomes and a lifelong engagement with learning.
For school-age children, we continue to encourage parental engagement in reading and learning at home, recognising that strong early foundations are key to long term educational success.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of parents and carers reading to children in the early years on the mental wellbeing of (a) children and (b) parents and carers.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Reading with young children supports not only early literacy but also emotional wellbeing, for both children and their parents or carers. Shared reading helps build secure attachments, supports emotional regulation and creates positive routines that help children feel safe and connected. These everyday interactions can also reduce stress and strengthen communication. Through our ‘Little Moments Together’ campaign and investment in home learning services, the department is helping families make the most of these moments. Family Hubs can play a key role in this, offering accessible, community-based support to help parents build strong, nurturing relationships that support both learning and wellbeing.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of community activities at supporting families with children in the early years.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The government recognises the important role of community-based activities in supporting families during the early years. Through Family Hubs, we are working with local authorities and voluntary sector partners to deliver place-based, peer-led support for families with babies and young children. Activities such as stay-and-play sessions and parenting groups help build parental confidence, reduce isolation and promote early learning through everyday interactions. Our investment in home learning services includes funding for outreach and community engagement, ensuring that families, particularly those facing disadvantage, can access the support they need to give their children the best start in life.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of learning through play in early years education.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The early years foundation stage (EYFS) statutory framework sets the standards and requirements that all early years providers must follow to ensure every child has the best start in life and is prepared for school. The framework is clear that children learn through play and that play is essential for children’s development. For example singing songs helps to develop language comprehension, vocabulary, self-expression and literacy. Practitioners should carefully organise enabling environments and cultures for high-quality play and are encouraged to create games and provide opportunity for play both indoors and outdoors. 'The Children of the 2020s' study is part of a programme of departmental research that will improve our understanding of children’s progress throughout key phases of learning and education and aid future policy development. The study follows more than 8500 families and their babies, born in England between September and November 2021. The first wave of data published in 2023 showed that more than half of primary caregivers engaged in physical or turn-taking play, singing, pretend games and noisy play with their babies several times a day. These activities were linked to improved early language development. The second wave of data is due to be published in the autumn, and we will assess that to consider how we shape future policy for early education, including anything it tells us about learning through play.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she plans to establish family hubs across the country.
Answered by Janet Daby
On 11 June, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, set out plans for spending and public sector reforms through the Spending Review 2025. This announcement confirmed departmental budgets for 2026/27 onwards and committed that, the government will continue to invest in and expand the Family Hubs programme, working with parents to help give children the best start in life.
This builds upon my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister’s Plan for Change, published in December 2024, which outlined the ambition to give children the best start in life by strengthening and joining up family services to improve support through pregnancy and early childhood.
We are working within the department and the Department of Health and Social Care to share further information about what the Spending Review settlement means for the continuation and expansion of the programme. We recognise the importance of providing local authorities with certainty of future funding across the whole programme and will share further information when we are able to.