Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 13 June 2025 to Question 57348 on Universities: Freedom of Expression, what steps she has taken to ensure enforcement of those regulations.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The Office for Students (OfS) published regulatory advice on 19 June 2025, providing guidance to the higher education (HE) sector on how they should fulfil their free speech duties under the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023 (the Act) and examples of how providers should fulfil their duties.
In addition, on 26 June 2025, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education published a policy paper on the future of the Act, setting out further details following the announcement on 15 January 2025. This paper sets in detail the duties and powers the OfS will be granted, when a legislative vehicle is secured, in order to regulate HE providers in relation to fulfilment of their free speech duties, and to put in place a complaints scheme to decide on free speech complaints from staff, external speakers and members of registered HE providers.
The OfS will be able to take regulatory action where HE providers breach their duties under the Act, including monetary penalties.
The OfS also has existing registration conditions in place requiring HE providers to uphold both freedom of speech and academic freedom as part of its management and governance conditions. The OfS’s investigation of the University of Sussex found that it was in breach of these conditions. This investigation, and the monetary penalty that the OfS subsequently issued to the university, demonstrates that the OfS can and will take robust action on free speech and similar issues.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 13 June 2025 to Question 57348 on Universities: Freedom of Expression, what steps she plans to take in response to breaches of those regulations.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The Office for Students (OfS) published regulatory advice on 19 June 2025, providing guidance to the higher education (HE) sector on how they should fulfil their free speech duties under the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023 (the Act) and examples of how providers should fulfil their duties.
In addition, on 26 June 2025, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education published a policy paper on the future of the Act, setting out further details following the announcement on 15 January 2025. This paper sets in detail the duties and powers the OfS will be granted, when a legislative vehicle is secured, in order to regulate HE providers in relation to fulfilment of their free speech duties, and to put in place a complaints scheme to decide on free speech complaints from staff, external speakers and members of registered HE providers.
The OfS will be able to take regulatory action where HE providers breach their duties under the Act, including monetary penalties.
The OfS also has existing registration conditions in place requiring HE providers to uphold both freedom of speech and academic freedom as part of its management and governance conditions. The OfS’s investigation of the University of Sussex found that it was in breach of these conditions. This investigation, and the monetary penalty that the OfS subsequently issued to the university, demonstrates that the OfS can and will take robust action on free speech and similar issues.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing mandatory prison sentences for people operating unregulated care homes for children.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
This government is clear that all providers of children’s social care accommodation such as children’s homes should register with Ofsted as per the Care Standards Act (CSA) 2000.
Ofsted has existing powers to prosecute persons carrying on a children’s home or supported accommodation (formally an unregulated placement) without registering.
Where a person is found guilty of running an unregistered children’s home or supported accommodation, the court can issue an unlimited fine, and for a second or subsequent conviction for the same offence, or where the person’s registration has been suspended and they continue to carry on the provision, imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months and/or an unlimited fine.
The government is further strengthening Ofsted’s powers, via the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, to enable them to issue monetary penalties for breaches of the CSA, including an unlimited fine for operating a children’s home without being registered. This will allow Ofsted to take action at pace and act as a significant deterrent.
Taken together, the set of powers that will be in place after the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill is passed will allow Ofsted and the courts to take the appropriate enforcement action according to each circumstance.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of Qatari funding on British universities.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
As autonomous bodies independent of government, it is for universities to decide on effective business models and to how to manage their finances. The sector is free to attract foreign investment, including from Qatar and China, which can and does make a valuable contribution to our universities and wider economy. The latest data indicates that overall education-related exports and transnational education activity generated £32.29 billion in revenue for UK institutions in 2022, and developing international partnerships is a key strength of our system.
When collaborating with any international partners, the department expects the sector to be alert to a range of risks and conduct appropriate due diligence to comply with legislation and regulatory requirements. These range from financial sustainability responsibilities, to research security requirements and expectations to safeguard values, such as freedom of speech. As the independent regulator in England, it is the role of the Office for Students to monitor and assess registered providers’ compliance with all its conditions of registration.
The department, along with the Department for Business and Trade and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, is currently conducting a review of the international education strategy to ensure that it continues to be an effective tool in increasing the value of education exports and reflects the priorities of education stakeholders, businesses and Ministers.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of Chinese funding on universities.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
As autonomous bodies independent of government, it is for universities to decide on effective business models and to how to manage their finances. The sector is free to attract foreign investment, including from Qatar and China, which can and does make a valuable contribution to our universities and wider economy. The latest data indicates that overall education-related exports and transnational education activity generated £32.29 billion in revenue for UK institutions in 2022, and developing international partnerships is a key strength of our system.
When collaborating with any international partners, the department expects the sector to be alert to a range of risks and conduct appropriate due diligence to comply with legislation and regulatory requirements. These range from financial sustainability responsibilities, to research security requirements and expectations to safeguard values, such as freedom of speech. As the independent regulator in England, it is the role of the Office for Students to monitor and assess registered providers’ compliance with all its conditions of registration.
The department, along with the Department for Business and Trade and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, is currently conducting a review of the international education strategy to ensure that it continues to be an effective tool in increasing the value of education exports and reflects the priorities of education stakeholders, businesses and Ministers.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children with dyslexia achieved a grade five or above in (a) English and (b) Maths GCSE in Ashfield constituency in each of the last five years.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The information requested is not held centrally. The department holds information on pupils’ special educational needs by 12 types of primary need. Dyslexia is usually included in the wider category of primary need ‘specific learning difficulty’.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of AI on undergraduate degree integrity.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
There are huge opportunities for artificial intelligence (AI) as it becomes more sophisticated, particularly through generative AI, and the department knows higher education (HE) and the industries they work with are at the forefront of this. There will be many benefits, and we are already seeing these, but there are also challenges in how the HE sector incorporates AI, particularly for teaching, learning and assessment.
The Quality Assurance Agency has been exploring the implications of AI, particularly in relation to academic integrity and published a briefing for its members in February 2024 focusing on the challenges. The briefing was underpinned by insights from HE sector leaders.
The experience and expertise of the sector is contributing to the department’s evidence base for how generative AI is used in education. In January 2024, the department published research entitled ‘Generative AI in education: Educator and expert views’, containing insights from interviews with teachers and experts in HE and the education technology industry. The full research paper is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/65b8cd41b5cb6e000d8bb74e/DfE_GenAI_in_education_-_Educator_and_expert_views_report.pdf.
The Office for Students set out its approach to the use of AI in HE in a recent blog post entitled ‘Embracing innovation in higher education: our approach to artificial intelligence’. The full blog post is available here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/news-blog-and-events/blog/embracing-innovation-in-higher-education-our-approach-to-artificial-intelligence/.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has had recent discussions with schools on a potential strategy to dissuade antisocial behaviour by children.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department regularly engages with teachers and headteachers and their representative bodies on a range of issues, including pupil behaviour.
As part of the Safer Streets Summer Initiative, we are setting up a working group of 16 local authorities specifically looking at preventing antisocial behaviour through our holiday activities and food (HAF) programme. The working group will strengthen collaboration among local authorities and be an opportunity for local authorities to buddy up, share best practice and improve outcomes.
The department’s existing ‘Behaviour in schools’ guidance states that schools should make clear to pupils that good behaviour does not end at the school gates.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number of schools impacted by strike action during the (a) GCSE and (b) A-level exam period.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
There is currently no national industrial action taking place in schools. There is no requirement for schools to report instances of local industrial action in schools and the department does not collect data on local strike action.
The department’s guidance ‘Handling strike action in schools’ makes clear that headteachers should take all reasonable steps to keep schools open for as many pupils as possible and minimise disruption to their education. In the event of industrial action during public exams, it is recommended that schools should remain open for exams and exam candidates where possible, even if the school is closed or restricting attendance.
Headteachers remain accountable for the conduct of the exams and provision of facilities in their centre, and schools are encouraged to review contingency plans well in advance of each exam or assessment series. The full guidance is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6523d331aea2d0000d2199bf/Handling_strike_action_in_schools.pdf.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions she has had with teachers' unions on strike action during the GCSE exam period.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
There is currently no national industrial action taking place in schools. There is no requirement for schools to report instances of local industrial action in schools and the department does not collect data on local strike action.
The department’s guidance ‘Handling strike action in schools’ makes clear that headteachers should take all reasonable steps to keep schools open for as many pupils as possible and minimise disruption to their education. In the event of industrial action during public exams, it is recommended that schools should remain open for exams and exam candidates where possible, even if the school is closed or restricting attendance.
Headteachers remain accountable for the conduct of the exams and provision of facilities in their centre, and schools are encouraged to review contingency plans well in advance of each exam or assessment series. The full guidance is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6523d331aea2d0000d2199bf/Handling_strike_action_in_schools.pdf.