Jess Phillips

The Crown Prosecution Service (‘CPS’) maintains a central record of the number of offences in which a prosecution commenced, including offences charged by way of the Modern Slavery Act 2015. This data may be further disaggregated by the child abuse case monitoring flag. The CPS definition of child abuse covers any case where the victim was under 18 years of age at the time of the offence and includes allegations or crimes perpetrated by both adults and under 18s.

Section 1 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 provides an offence of slavery, servitude and forced or compulsory labour; Section 2 provides for a single offence of human trafficking covering sexual and non-sexual exploitation; and, Section 4 provides that it is an offence to commit another offence with a view to committing a trafficking offence under Section 2.

Since the Act came into force and up to the end of March 2020, the number of Modern Slavery Act offences flagged as child abuse is as follows:

This data does not indicate the number of individual defendants prosecuted for these offences or the final outcome of the charged offence.

It is not possible to separately report the nature of, or type of exploitation carried out on victims of modern slavery or trafficking offences other than by manually examining case files at disproportionate cost.

The Crown Prosecution Service (‘CPS’) maintains a central record of the number of offences in which a prosecution commenced, including offences charged by way of the Modern Slavery Act 2015. This data may be further disaggregated by the child abuse case monitoring flag. The CPS definition of child abuse covers any case where the victim was under 18 years of age at the time of the offence and includes allegations or crimes perpetrated by both adults and under 18s.

Section 1 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 provides an offence of slavery, servitude and forced or compulsory labour; Section 2 provides for a single offence of human trafficking covering sexual and non-sexual exploitation; and, Section 4 provides that it is an offence to commit another offence with a view to committing a trafficking offence under Section 2.

Since the Act came into force and up to the end of March 2020, the number of Modern Slavery Act offences flagged as child abuse is as follows:

This data does not indicate the number of individual defendants prosecuted for these offences or the final outcome of the charged offence.

It is not possible to separately report the nature of, or type of exploitation carried out on victims of modern slavery or trafficking offences other than by manually examining case files at disproportionate cost.

In the last round of the Energy Entrepreneurs Fund (Round 8), the average grant won by female led applications was £504,797 and the average grant won by male led applications was £516,276. The difference between these two figures is not statistically significant.

The Energy Entrepreneurs Fund has collected data on the gender of the principal applicants in all previous rounds and analysis has shown there is no statistical difference in success rates between female and male applicants. The Department will continue to monitor this in future rounds of the scheme to ensure this remains the case.

Innovate UK does not currently hold data in this form. Innovate UK are committed to encouraging diversity and inclusion in business innovation, they wish to find the best and most talented innovators from a diverse range of backgrounds, and provide them with the resources, advice and self-belief to succeed.

Programmes have been implemented to tackle the low number of female applicants, for example the Women in Innovation programme, launched in 2016, and the Young Innovators programme, launched in 2017.

Since 2017, Innovate UK have shared an EDI survey with people registering for support to gather EDI data, however, low completion rates (16%) resulting from this approach has required a change. From June 2020, all applicants for Innovate UK competitions are required to complete a new EDI survey. The survey asks questions on gender, age, ethnicity and disability status. This data will then be aggregated, anonymised and analysed to inform future actions to address under-representation across competitions.

Historic data analysis indicates that between 2013 and 2016, 14.3% of applications submitted were led by a woman. Analysis since 2016 indicates that this percentage has increased to around 24% (70% increase) and can be attributed to the focus on Women in Innovation, including the Innovate UK 2019 Women in Innovation Awards. A new competition for Women in Innovation Awards opened on 1 September 2020.

Most recently, Innovate UK’s “Business-led innovation in response to global disruption” competition (Open April 2020), 21.7% of applications were woman-led. This is in line with the levels we have seen since the growth of woman-led applications following the Women in Innovation focus.

On International Women’s Day, the Government committed almost £3 million and a package of business support to help inventions by women and young people like clean energy solutions and healthcare services. Over 100 entrepreneurial women and young people are set to benefit from government-backed funds to turn inspiring ideas into thriving businesses.

Three companies in the Arlington Group entered administration on 7 May 2020. When any company becomes insolvent and redundancies are made, it is undoubtedly a distressing time for the company’s employees and workers and my officials at the Insolvency Service’s Redundancy Payments Service are ensuring that relevant payments are made. Former employees of the Arlington Group can claim redundancy payments and other contractual amounts (subject to statutory limits) such as unpaid wages, notice pay and outstanding holiday pay from the National Insurance Fund.

BEIS officials are working closely with the administrators to identify and offer support to ensure that employees who may require assistance because of a disability, are helped to submit claims so that they can be paid as soon as possible. I also understand that officials in the Solihull Jobcentre have been supporting affected employees by providing help and explaining the support that is available through Jobcentre plus.

The new pro-competition regime will remove the obstacles to competition and drive growth in digital markets, delivering lower prices for UK families, and giving consumers more choice and control over the services they use online.

The Draft Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer Bill was announced as part of the Queen's Speech 2022 and will be published as soon as parliamentary time allows. Arrangements for pre-legislative scrutiny will be decided in due course.

The government has great sympathy for those affected by historical adoption practices. Our hearts go out to the parents and children of those involved. Although from a modern perspective these practices are clearly wrong, they took place at a time when society shared very different values.

Thankfully society today takes a very different attitude to single parents. Lessons of the time have been learned and led to significant changes to legislation and practice. Single parents are now supported to help ensure that children and their families stay together, and children are only removed permanently by a court, without the consent of the parents, if it is satisfied that the child is suffering significant harm or is likely to suffer significant harm.

Parents now have legal representatives appointed to support them, to ensure their views are heard and that evidence put forward can be challenged. In addition, NHS maternity services now have robust policy guidance and processes in place to safeguard care for vulnerable women and babies.

A range of help and support is available for those affected by historical adoption practices. For example, they can access intermediary services, provided by local authorities, voluntary adoption agencies and registered adoption agencies, to help them trace their birth children or birth parents and establish whether contact is possible. Birth relatives and adopted adults can also add their details to the Adoption Contact Register at the General Register Office to find a birth relative or an adopted person.

We recognise that none of the above can change the heartbreak and impact of things done in the past and repeat again our deepest sympathy for all those affected.

The Department is committed to supporting schools to implement relationships, sex, and health education (RSHE) and has published non statutory implementation guidance titled ‘Plan your Relationships, Sex and Health Curriculum’, alongside teacher training materials. Both are designed to provide teachers with further clarity and practical advice on how to implement the RSHE curriculum, to help all teachers increase their confidence and quality of teaching.

The teacher training module on intimate and sexual relationships, including sexual health, covers contraception, fertility, and abortion. Information on this is available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/teaching-about-relationships-sex-and-health. Specifically, pupils will be taught the facts about contraception, reproductive health, and medically and legally accurate, impartial information regarding pregnancy.

Schools must be aware of issues such as everyday sexism, misogyny, homophobia, and gender stereotypes, and take positive action to build a culture where these are not tolerated, and that any occurrences are identified and tackled. As part of the statutory Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE) curriculum, all pupils should be taught, at an age-appropriate point, how stereotypes, particularly stereotypes based on sex, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation or disability, can cause damage.

To support the teaching of these subjects, the Department has published implementation guidance and teacher training modules to equip all schools to construct a comprehensive curriculum.

There are many external resources available to support the delivery of RSHE lessons. The Department does not play a role in assessing these. Any material used should align with the teaching requirements set out in the statutory guidance. Schools should assess all resources carefully to ensure they are age appropriate, meet the outcome of the relevant part of the curriculum, and are in line with the school’s legal duties in relation to impartiality and the Equality Act.

Schools must be aware of issues such as everyday sexism, misogyny, homophobia, and gender stereotypes, and take positive action to build a culture where these are not tolerated, and that any occurrences are identified and tackled. As part of the statutory Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE) curriculum, all pupils should be taught, at an age-appropriate point, how stereotypes, particularly stereotypes based on sex, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation or disability, can cause damage.

To support the teaching of these subjects, the Department has published implementation guidance and teacher training modules to equip all schools to construct a comprehensive curriculum.

There are many external resources available to support the delivery of RSHE lessons. The Department does not play a role in assessing these. Any material used should align with the teaching requirements set out in the statutory guidance. Schools should assess all resources carefully to ensure they are age appropriate, meet the outcome of the relevant part of the curriculum, and are in line with the school’s legal duties in relation to impartiality and the Equality Act.

Children and young people with education, health and care (EHC) plans are expected to attend education settings if, following a risk assessment, it is determined that their needs can be as safely or more safely met in the educational environment.

We have recently published guidance that sets out how schools should be supporting children and young people with EHC plans as schools and colleges prepare for wider opening: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-send-risk-assessment-guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-send-risk-assessment-guidance. In that guidance, we are clear that children and young people with EHC plans in mainstream and Alternative Provision settings who have not been attending and are in eligible year groups, should experience the same return to settings as their peers, informed by their risk assessment. Specialist settings should work towards welcoming back as many children and young people as can be safely catered for in their setting.

However, there are various reasons as to why it may not possible for all children and young people to attend education settings on a full time basis (for example, because they are clinically extremely vulnerable, or they attend a specialist setting that is operating an attendance rota). As a result, it may be impossible for local authorities and commissioning health bodies to carry out their normal statutory duty to secure or arrange in full the special educational provision that would normally be delivered through a full-time placement in an education setting. Examples of this include social skills training in small groups, or the delivery of a personalised curriculum with 1-1 support from a teaching assistant.

Because of these exceptional circumstances, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, has issued a notice to modify temporarily this duty, so that they can discharge this by using their ‘reasonable endeavours’. The modified duty applies to all local authorities and health commissioning bodies in England. The current notice is in force from 1 June to 30 June 2020 (inclusive), following a notice that was issued for the month of May. The Secretary of State can issue a further notice if necessary.

The modified duty relates to the provision for each individual child and young person. Local authorities and health commissioning bodies must not apply blanket policies about the provision to be secured or arranged. Instead, in deciding what provision must be secured or arranged in discharge of its modified duty, the local authority and health commissioning body should work with education settings and other partners to consider: specific local circumstances; the needs of, and circumstances specific to, each child and young person with an EHC plan; and the views of children, young people and their parents as to what might be appropriate.

We are committed to ceasing this temporary change to the duty on local authorities and health commissioning bodies at the earliest opportunity and are keeping this under close review.

The Control of Pollution Act 1974 enables local authorities to serve a notice imposing requirements on construction or demolition works, including the hours during which the works may be carried out. Generally, local authorities require construction work to be carried out between the hours of 8am and 6pm on Monday-Friday, and 8am-1pm on Saturdays, with no working on Sundays and Bank Holidays.

We do not consider it appropriate to specify permitted hours for construction works in national law. Local authorities are the main enforcers of the Control of Pollution Act 1974 and decisions around managing noise are best taken by them using their knowledge of the specific context.

The Planning Practice Guidance (PPG) outlines that noise needs to be considered when development may create additional noise, or would be sensitive to the prevailing acoustic environment. The PPG details how noise, including during construction, should be considered during both plan making and decision making. The National Planning Policy Framework also states that planning policies and decisions should mitigate and reduce to a minimum potential adverse impacts resulting from noise from new development – and avoid noise giving rise to significant adverse impacts on health and the quality of life.

Defra has convened the Interdepartmental Group for Costs and Benefits (Noise subject group) to review the available evidence relating to the health effects from environmental noise exposure. This includes construction noise, and the group has published two reviews on this subject which are available at:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32357581/ and

https://icl-ref-dryad.maxarchiveservices.co.uk/index.php/j-arup-2020-review-of-evidence-relating-to-environmental-noise-exposure-and-specific-health-outcomes-in-the-context-of-the-interdepartmental-group-on-costs-and-benefits-pdf

It is not possible to have a single objective noise-based measure which would apply to all situations without giving rise to unintended consequences. This is because effect levels are likely to be different for different noise sources, different people and at different times. We therefore consider it best to allow local authorities some flexibility to make decisions using their specific knowledge of the local context.

The Control of Pollution Act 1974 enables local authorities to serve a notice imposing requirements on construction or demolition works, including the hours during which the works may be carried out. Generally, local authorities require construction work to be carried out between the hours of 8am and 6pm on Monday-Friday, and 8am-1pm on Saturdays, with no working on Sundays and Bank Holidays.

We do not consider it appropriate to specify permitted hours for construction works in national law. Local authorities are the main enforcers of the Control of Pollution Act 1974 and decisions around managing noise are best taken by them using their knowledge of the specific context.

The Planning Practice Guidance (PPG) outlines that noise needs to be considered when development may create additional noise, or would be sensitive to the prevailing acoustic environment. The PPG details how noise, including during construction, should be considered during both plan making and decision making. The National Planning Policy Framework also states that planning policies and decisions should mitigate and reduce to a minimum potential adverse impacts resulting from noise from new development – and avoid noise giving rise to significant adverse impacts on health and the quality of life.

Defra has convened the Interdepartmental Group for Costs and Benefits (Noise subject group) to review the available evidence relating to the health effects from environmental noise exposure. This includes construction noise, and the group has published two reviews on this subject which are available at:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32357581/ and

https://icl-ref-dryad.maxarchiveservices.co.uk/index.php/j-arup-2020-review-of-evidence-relating-to-environmental-noise-exposure-and-specific-health-outcomes-in-the-context-of-the-interdepartmental-group-on-costs-and-benefits-pdf

It is not possible to have a single objective noise-based measure which would apply to all situations without giving rise to unintended consequences. This is because effect levels are likely to be different for different noise sources, different people and at different times. We therefore consider it best to allow local authorities some flexibility to make decisions using their specific knowledge of the local context.

The quickest and easiest way to make an application to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) is by using its extensive suite of online services. There are no delays in successful online applications and customers should receive their documents within a few days.

However, many people still choose or have to make a paper application. The DVLA receives around 60,000 items of mail every day and industrial action by members of the Public and Commercial Services union has led to delays for customers. The DVLA has been working with a significantly reduced number of staff on site to ensure social distancing in line with Welsh Government requirements. The current increased demand for the DVLA’s services has also contributed to delays with paper applications.

The DVLA has introduced additional online services and recruited additional staff. The DVLA is urgently securing extra office space to house more staff as surge capacity accommodation and resource to help reduce waiting times while providing future resilience and business continuity.

The DVLA understands the impact that delays can have on people’s everyday lives and is working as quickly as possible to process paper applications and return people’s documentation to them.

Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) provides support for all homeowners who qualify for an income related benefit and unable to meet their mortgage repayments due to short or long-term illness, unemployment, a personal crisis, or other income shock. SMI helps people maintain their existing, reasonable mortgage commitments so they can remain in their home providing effective protection against repossession for as long as they need it.

As announced in the Autumn Statement, from 3^rd April, we will extend the support SMI provides by reducing the qualifying period from nine months to three and extending eligibility to Universal Credit (UC) claimants with earnings. These changes will strengthen the protection SMI provides by offering support quicker and to more people. There are no planned further changes.

No assessment has been made of the potential merits of introducing alternative mortgage products for those who are in receipt of benefits on a long-term basis.

In autumn 2021, the Department commissioned an independent review of ways in which the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) supports survivors of domestic abuse. The Review was completed in April 2022.

The final report and recommendations are currently being reviewed by the department.

The CMS continues to take the safety of all its customers extremely seriously and has processes in place to ensure parents experiencing domestic abuse are supported and can set up a child maintenance arrangement safely.

The Secretary of State undertakes an annual review of benefits and pensions with reference to the Consumer Prices Index (CPI). All benefit up-rating since April 1987 has been based on the increase in the relevant price inflation index in the 12 months to the previous September. The relevant benefits are increasing by 3.1% from April.

The latest statistics on the number and proportion of children who are in low income families by local area, covering the seven years, 2014/15 to 2020/21, can be found in the annual publication: Children in low income families: local area statistics 2014 to 2021 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). In the Birmingham, Yardley constituency 32.3% (9,058) of children were in families in absolute low income before housing costs in 2021.

With almost 1.32 million vacancies across the UK, our plan for tackling poverty is firmly focussed on supporting people to move into and progress in work. Our approach is based on clear evidence about the importance of parental employment - particularly where it is full-time – in substantially reducing the risks of child poverty and in improving long-term outcomes for families and children.

The latest statistics show that in the UK in 2020/21 there were 200,000 fewer children in absolute poverty, before housing costs, than in 2009/10 and 540,000 fewer children in workless households.

This plan includes our multi-billion-pound Plan for Jobs has been expanded by £500 million and Way to Work, which is a concerted drive across the UK to help half a million currently out of work people into jobs by the end of June 2022. We have recruited around 13,500 additional work coaches who are all trained to develop a detailed knowledge of their local labour market and to offer claimants the tailored support they need to take advantage of new opportunities wherever they live in the UK.

We recognise that some people require additional support and from April, the government is providing an additional £500 million to help households with the cost of essentials, on top of what we have already provided since October 2021, bringing the total funding for this support to £1 billion. Under the first round of funding, Birmingham City Council was allocated £12,791,135.04 of funding, and they are provisionally allocated the same amount again for the extension of the fund.

The Department has been working closely with HMRC since Universal Credit went live in 2013 to support and inform employers who report earnings to emphasise the importance of timely reporting via the Real Time Information (RTI) system.

The waiting time for an earnings dispute can depend on the complexity of the query. DWP will triage all disputes and are able to resolve non-complex queries internally, where the query is more complex DWP will seek support of HMRC to resolve, we aim to resolve disputes, both complex and non-complex, within 7 working days.

There are variations in regional demand, and some areas are currently experiencing waiting times in excess of 7 working days, which we are working to bring back in line.

HMRC have been embarking on employer education to reduce future occurrences of error. Large employers have dedicated customer compliance leads that work with employers to mitigate the risk of high volumes of citizens being impacted at any one time. HMRC have guidance to reiterate to employers the importance of reporting accurate dates and the impact on payment cycles; the Financial Secretary to the Treasury is also working closely with HMRC and employers to encourage accurate reporting dates.

The information requested is published and can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-maintenance-service-statistics-data-to-september-2021-experimental

The department acknowledges there has been a rise in outstanding changes of circumstances in the last reported quarter from end of June 2021 to the end of September 2021. The Department has redeployed resources to address this rise in outstanding work since the publication of these statistics and estimates that this will show an arresting of growth in the next statistical release.

The National Sexual Assault Referral Centre’s (SARC) Service Specification, as reviewed and updated in June 2023, now reflects the offence of non-fatal strangulation (NFS). The specification states: Appropriate medical and forensic interventional support is provided to all service users presenting with sexual assault and/or sexual abuse where the presenting need also indicates non-fatal strangulation. It is widely acknowledged that many victims of sexual assault will have also experienced domestic abuse.

For cases of non-fatal strangulation not associated with sexual assault, victims’ immediate healthcare needs can be treated in other acute healthcare settings such as emergency departments. The Institute for Addressing Strangulation recently published guidelines for clinical management of non-fatal strangulation in acute and emergency care services.

The National Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) Service Specification as reviewed and updated in June 2023 now reflects the offence of non-fatal strangulation. The specification states ‘Appropriate medical and forensic interventional support is provided to all service users presenting with sexual assault and/or sexual abuse where the presenting need also indicates non-fatal strangulation.’ It also references the Institute for Addressing Strangulation guidelines. From April 2024, all SARCs will collect data on incidences of non-fatal strangulation where it is part of a sexual assault/rape and thus has necessitated attendance at a SARC.

Patients who do not qualify for the HTCS and are on low incomes may be able to claim the costs from the Department for Work and Pensions through the Universal Credit or Personal Independence Payment schemes.

The following table shows the number of patients on the transplant waiting list in the West Midlands as of 28 November 2022. Suspended patients refers to those who have been temporarily removed from the list.

Source: NHS Blood and Transplant

NHS Blood and Transplant does not hold the data on the average waiting time for organ donation in the West Midlands or the number of people removed from the waiting list in the West Midlands due to a clinical decision.

The following table shows the number of transplants which took place in the West Midlands in 2021/22 and 2022/23 as of 28 November.

Source: NHS Blood and Transplant

NHS England is working with general practitioner IT system providers to reproduce the Dementia Quality Toolkit (DQT) using SNOMED coding. The DQT includes system searches which can be used by general practitioners to identify people whose records suggest that they might have dementia, but do not have a recorded diagnosis. Publication of the toolkit is anticipated by April 2023.

In 2021/22, the Government made £17 million available to clinical commissioning groups to address dementia waiting lists and increase the number of diagnoses. This included identifying areas of good practice in dementia diagnosis and provision of pre and post diagnostic support, which will be shared with dementia clinical networks and stakeholders. In 2022/23, NHS England has initiated a project to fund two trusts in each region to pilot the Diagnosing Advanced Dementia Mandate tool to improve diagnosis of dementia in care homes.