Access to Further Education

Leigh Ingham Excerpts

Thursday 2nd July 2026 Commons Chamber

[Leigh Ingham (Stafford) (Lab)]

Investment in our colleges is essential to this country’s future and to our manufacturing sector, our house building targets and our NHS. In Stafford, it is clear that we have no shortage of ambitious young people—I know this, as I meet them weekly—but we must invest in their futures. We must invest in our colleges to make sure that their futures are all they can be. I am proud of what this Government’s investment has delivered so far. Our advanced manufacturing tech is going to change the landscape in Stafford, and that work, done in combination with our local employers—hand in glove—shows exactly what can be achieved by an ambitious Labour Government.

I want to take this opportunity to raise something put to me directly by my local college and by Make UK, because it gets to the heart of the problem of how we fund our manufacturing and technical education. Right now, the payment per pupil is the same regardless of whatever course is being delivered, so an A-level student doing three A-levels in a classroom attracts the same funding as a student on a technical engineering apprenticeship, despite the fact that the equipment, the facilities, the staffing and the delivery costs are so different. At a place like Stafford college, which genuinely excels in exactly this kind of high-cost, high-value technical provision, that is really unfair and a direct disincentive to deliver the courses that matter most. If we are serious about making technical education genuinely world class, we have to fund it as though we mean it.

That is why I am so pleased and it is such an honour— I talk about it all the time—to have the best college in the country in my constituency. [Interruption.] It is widely accepted to be the best college in the country! I am also very pleased that the Government have taken substantial steps to invest in further education and vocational courses, so I would like to ask the Minister: what further investment is planned in our college estate, and how can the course funding imbalance be addressed to ensure that we have the best facilities and the best staff, and that we create the best possible opportunities?

Oral Answers to Questions

Leigh Ingham Excerpts

Monday 20th April 2026 Commons Chamber

[Josh MacAlister]

I thank my hon. Friend for making such an important point. There are a few ways to address this question. Too many of our coastal areas do not have the school standards in place to enable children to make the progress needed to access those opportunities. We need to ensure that there are real routes for young people to get into work opportunities, which is why the new deal that this Government are setting out will give a £2,000 grant for small and medium-sized enterprises taking on 16 to 24-year-olds who are new to work. There will be a new £3,000 youth jobs guarantee for hiring apprentices aged 18 to 24 who have been out of work and on universal credit for six months, and we are fully funding apprenticeship training in SMEs for young people.

[Leigh Ingham (Stafford) (Lab)]

Stafford college already delivers an outstanding apprenticeship achievement rate of 77.5%, which is an extraordinary 15% above the national average. Last week, it was announced that it will be one of the four new technical excellence colleges for advanced manufacturing. Its bid was built on its existing brilliant relationships with local employers, such as GE Vernova, Hitachi, Siemens and Moog. However, we know that there is always more to do, so will the Minister set out how the Government will support those extending colleges, such as the Newcastle and Stafford Colleges Group, and those employers already backing Britain by investing in skills here, so that more apprentices can go through our programmes?

[Josh MacAlister]

I congratulate my hon. Friend on her efforts in campaigning for that technical excellence college. We announced 19 TECs last week, and our package of measures to create another 50,000 apprenticeships for young people will give power to the elbow of institutions such as Stafford college, so that they can continue to make progress.

Oral Answers to Questions

Leigh Ingham Excerpts

Monday 2nd March 2026 Commons Chamber

[Georgia Gould]

We already teach British values, and we are proud to teach our British heritage and our past to set us up for the future.

[Leigh Ingham (Stafford) (Lab)]

Given that this is Colleges Week, may I take the opportunity to mention Stafford college, which is widely accepted to be the best college in the country? It already has 1,150 students on manufacturing courses, and works with 250 local employers in the sector. Does the Minister agree that if Newcastle and Stafford Colleges Group were made an advanced manufacturing technical excellence college, it could build on its excellent relationship with manufacturers locally?

[Josh MacAlister]

I gladly congratulate Newcastle and Stafford Colleges Group on its recent Ofsted rating, which is fantastic, and I note my hon. Friend’s support for its application to become a wave 2 technical excellence college. The applications closed on 16 February, and we expect to make and announce a decision next month.

Educational Outcomes: Disadvantaged Boys and Young Men

Leigh Ingham Excerpts

Tuesday 3rd February 2026 Westminster Hall

[Leigh Ingham (Stafford) (Lab)]

It is an honour to serve under your chairship, Sir John. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Hitchin (Alistair Strathern) on securing this incredibly important debate.

Education should be the great leveller in this country, but for too many disadvantaged boys and young men it is drastically falling short. I was genuinely shocked by how poorly boys in Staffordshire are doing, particularly once they reach secondary school, but the warning signs start early. At the end of primary school, 79% of boys meet the expected standard in science, compared with 86% of girls. Although the gap sounds small on paper, it is the start of a stark trajectory that we see repeated again and again as boys move through their education. By the time they reach their GCSEs, the picture is deeply concerning. In 2024, just 36.3% of Staffordshire boys achieved grade 5 or above in English or maths, and that figure had fallen from the year before. Behind every single one of those percentage point drops is a young man whose life, aspirations, opportunities and future are being narrowed.

Research from the Higher Education Policy Institute shows that boys who fall behind in education are more likely not only to struggle at school but to face poorer outcomes in life. Boys who disengage from education are less likely to progress into further or higher education, and are more likely to experience economic inactivity. The report also warns that a combination of underachievement, weak employment prospects—which my hon. Friend spoke about—and social marginalisation can leave some young men more vulnerable to political alienation.

When boys struggle with learning, their difficulties are too often labelled as behavioural problems, leading to sanctions instead of support and a widening of the gaps. Targeted support too often arrives late, once the disadvantage has become entrenched. I ask the Minister, what more is being done to identify and support disadvantaged boys early, before those small gaps turn into lifelong barriers?

Disadvantaged boys and young men have talent and potential in abundance. If we care about boys’ education, we must stop being surprised—like I was—by those outcomes, and start acting earlier and more robustly.

Care Leavers

Leigh Ingham Excerpts

Monday 3rd November 2025 Commons Chamber

[Sally Jameson]

I do agree. Having a holistic approach that is the same across all local authorities is really important, especially because children in care often move around a lot and have to get used to new social workers, teams and support systems. We definitely need to move towards having one support package in place.

According to the charity Become, nearly 4,000 children nationally either moved home or left care during their A-level exams in the academic year 2023-24, and 60 of those children were in my home city of Doncaster. Accounts that have been sent to me from care leavers in Doncaster show the stark reality of life after care. Young people report losing weight, becoming ill, feeling self-conscious when going to a food bank, and being unable to access regular or healthy meals because they cannot afford them.

[Leigh Ingham (Stafford) (Lab)]

I thank my hon. Friend for securing this really important debate. One issue that came up in my life previous to becoming an MP, and that has come up since, is access to period products for care-experienced young people, particularly as they transition out of care. My hon. Friend has spoken about the postcode lottery, and not all local authorities necessarily provide that support. Although some can access period products through education, care leavers may leave education and not be able to access them. Does my hon. Friend agree that it is important that we move away from this postcode lottery and ensure that there is wraparound care, including for care leavers who are not in the education system?

[Sally Jameson]

I completely agree. Period poverty can often be overlooked when thinking about the whole system, but for young women in care and leaving care who cannot access those products, it can be debilitating to their ability to access all the other services that we are talking about.

One care leaver in Doncaster said:

“Even though I’m not homeless now and I’m safe and secure, it worries me that that will be the next step. It has happened before and it could happen again”.

Another said:

“I don’t think anyone who hasn’t experienced homelessness could understand how scared I was.”

Many in temporary hotel accommodation and still under corporate parentship have to face the choice between affording food or washing their clothes. One said:

“The government are my corporate parents, and they don’t act like it. Would a parent allow a child to go a week without washing their clothes? Would a reasonable parent allow their child to be homeless or not eat?”

The answer to that is no.

Further Education Institutions

Leigh Ingham Excerpts

Wednesday 16th July 2025 Westminster Hall

[Alison Bennett (Mid Sussex) (LD)]

rose—

[Leigh Ingham (Stafford) (Lab)]

rose—

[Anna Dixon]

I will take the intervention from my hon. Friend the Member for Mid Sussex (Alison Bennett) first.

[Leigh Ingham]

I thank my hon. Friend for calling the debate. I am proud to represent the best FE college in the country—I am sorry to everyone else—because I have Newcastle and Stafford Colleges Group in my constituency. The work that it is doing to increase social mobility is incredibly important, but by the end of this decade it is facing a shortfall of 30% of places to allocate to my constituents. Does my hon. Friend agree that it is important that investment is given to colleges—not just revenue for lecturers’ wages, but capital to build the spaces we need?

[Anna Dixon]

Absolutely; it is vital that we get more capital as well as more revenue funding into FE.

Giving Every Child the Best Start in Life

Leigh Ingham Excerpts

Wednesday 16th July 2025 Commons Chamber

[Leigh Ingham (Stafford) (Lab)]

rose—

[David Williams]

I give way to my hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle-under-Lyme (Adam Jogee).

[David Williams]

I completely agree with that sentiment. My hon. Friend and I often discuss this issue, so I welcome his comments.

[Leigh Ingham]

I am grateful to see so many Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent MPs in the Chamber today. I am especially pleased to be here today, because I have a group of brilliant young people from my own constituency of Stafford, Eccleshall and the villages participating in my first ever summer school; they are up in the Public Gallery. They have been learning about how Parliament works and how they can use their voices to make change happen. Does my hon. Friend agree that if we are serious about giving every child the best start in life, we need to ensure that that includes youth services and comprehensive citizenship education, where they are able to see the difference they can make?

[David Williams]

I welcome and echo my hon. Friend’s comments. I have supported citizenship over many years—certainly from when I worked for the YMCA locally.

The Conservatives unforgivably turned their backs on our children and young people when they needed our support the most. I am so proud to be a Labour MP, working alongside a Labour Government who are firmly on the side of children, young people and their families. We are beginning to see the righting of the past 14 years of wrongs.

I have been to Milton and Greenways primary academies in my constituency and visited the breakfast clubs that are being rolled out. I have seen at first hand how the kids arrive tired and hungry, but then they start their day ready to learn and full of energy—no longer with hungry bellies.

I am proud, too, that this Labour Government are extending free school meals. That will feed more than 6,700 children across Stoke-on-Trent North and Kidsgrove from next year. Being well fed means that children learn better, and it is also a critical step in lifting kids out of poverty—something on which I have focused my whole working career.

I am so pleased also that Stoke-on-Trent North and Kidsgrove has one of the very first school-based nurseries, which is being rolled out at the brilliant Smallthorne primary academy. This will not only ease pressures on hard-working families who need a helping hand; it will help kids to prepare for the transition to school, and will help to close the development gap early on. This is exactly what a Labour Government are all about: supporting our kids and young people to thrive. I am proud to be playing my role in helping to transform the lives of families across my constituency of Stoke-on-Trent North and Kidsgrove.

Educational Attainment of Boys

Leigh Ingham Excerpts

Thursday 10th July 2025 Commons Chamber

[Leigh Ingham (Stafford) (Lab)]

I commend my hon. Friend the Member for Bishop Auckland (Sam Rushworth) on securing this incredibly important debate. We are here to talk about boys in education—their engagement, their outcomes, and their future. The truth is that too many boys are falling behind. In Staffordshire, just 36.3% of boys achieved a grade 5 or above in English and maths GCSE last year. That is 1 percentage point down from the year before. Behind every percentage point is a lad whose life chances are narrowing. They could be our future engineers, our carers, our bricklayers, our paramedics or our entrepreneurs—full of potential but maybe starting to think that school just is not for them. That should worry us all.

What is clear is that it is not just about what happens in secondary school; the signs are there so much earlier. We know that boys are far less likely than girls to finish reception with a good level of development. That early gap often sets the tone for the years ahead. This is about far more than teaching; it is about whether families can get into a nursery, whether health services are in place and whether parents feel supported in the early years. We cannot fix educational inequality without looking at the bigger picture. That includes children’s mental health, family support and, vitally, investment in our towns and villages. When a place is left behind, the young people who live there are left behind too, and we know from the data that it is particularly boys who are being left behind.

I am calling on the Government today to continue being bold: to invest in the wraparound support that helps children to thrive, to expand mental health support in schools and to strengthen the ties between schools, families and local services, because when those links are strong, children do better. We know that intervention is found not only in education, but in community. My hon. Friend the Member for North Warwickshire and Bedworth (Rachel Taylor) spoke of the value of sport, which is incredibly important in creating opportunities.

The challenges of how to be a man in 21st-century Britain are brilliantly portrayed in the BAFTA-winning series “Big Boys”, where young men grapple not only with the pressures of being working class at university, but with the simple yet profound question of how to be both kind and “masculine”. My hon. Friend the Member for East Thanet (Ms Billington), who is my good friend, could not be here today, but she has been doing vital work championing the 93% Club, which supports working-class university students and graduates. I am also a proud member of that club. She often references the character of Danny in “Big Boys” as an example and an inspiration. It is a powerful reminder that policy must meet young people where they are and lift them to where they deserve to be.

If we want a fairer, more productive Britain, we cannot keep writing off young working-class boys who are struggling to find their place in education. We owe them better, and I know that the teachers, schools and wider community in Stafford, Eccleshall and the villages are ready to deliver when we give them the tools to do so.

Children with Allergies: School Safeguarding

Leigh Ingham Excerpts

Thursday 3rd July 2025 Westminster Hall

[Chris Bloore]

My hon. Friend is a little ahead of the rest of my speech, but I completely agree, and I will give reasons for that. An allergy tsar who can cross Departments —Health, Education and others—could have a huge impact on how we deal with children with allergies.

[Leigh Ingham (Stafford) (Lab)]

I thank my hon. Friend for securing this debate. I do not usually speak much about my family in the Chamber, but it is interesting that my hon. Friend spoke about his personal experience with his son. I phoned my nephew yesterday—it was his first day at primary school and he had his taster day—to show him Big Ben, which was going off at the time. When I did, he had hugely swollen eyes; he had had an allergic reaction at school, which had also been happening at nursery. He has an egg allergy. The nursery updated parents daily to say what they were having for lunch—I do not know whether my hon. Friend has seen these apps—and my brother phoned me one day to tell me that he had been told that my nephew had had quiche. Although it is important that we make sure we have these provisions in school settings, does my hon. Friend agree that we should make sure they are also there in early years settings?

[Chris Bloore]

I completely agree. Those family apps are a daily part of my life, as I see what my son is eating. I still have a little jittery feeling every time I see what food is going to him and whether he will have a reaction.

Allergy provisions in schools are unfortunately inconsistent, leaving children vulnerable and families sometimes fearful. There is no comprehensive national framework to safeguard children with allergies effectively. Approximately 70% of UK schools do not have basic protections in place, which has led some families to resort to home education, denying their children the opportunity to learn alongside their peers. One in three schools has no allergy policy at all, and many that do simply say “no nuts”. Half of schools do not have spare adrenalin auto-injector pens on site, and over 60% do not provide training to staff on how to manage allergies.

The impact on attendance is significant. Research by the Natasha Allergy Research Foundation found that 70% of parents reported that their allergic child had missed school because of their allergy. Reasons include illness and medical appointments and, crucially, anxiety about safety and bullying. Two thirds of parents believe allergies negatively affect their children’s educational attainment. Allergies should never be a barrier to education and success. The mental health impact is equally serious. Data show that 83% of people with food allergies say it significantly impacts their wellbeing. Many children face bullying and teasing related to their allergies, causing feelings of isolation, fear and anxiety. Around 32% of children surveyed have been bullied due to food allergies at least once.

Some school practices worsen the isolation. I have heard of children being made to sit alone at lunch or missing out on treats given to other children on special occasions. Many parents restrict their children’s activities because of safety concerns, and some consider removing their children from mainstream education altogether. Allergy UK’s research shows that 61% of children with food allergies avoid social situations to reduce risk.

The lack of understanding can have tragic consequences. Eighty per cent of parents believe that their child’s allergies are not taken seriously at school, and such indifference can lead to delays in treatment and, heartbreakingly, to children not returning home from school.

Members from all parties have referenced the inconsistent and dangerous approach to allergy safety in schools. A brief look at Hansard reveals statements made by Ministers from all parties over the last 15 years about how an inconsistent approach to allergies causes dangers in our schools. To agree with the hon. Member for Rutland and Stamford, who is not here today, the root cause of these issues is a lack of clarity in the Department for Education’s guidance, and a lack of accountability mechanisms to ensure that existing guidance is followed properly.

We must also remember that allergies are simply not a dietary issue. They are a medical issue requiring proper medical protocols and support. Yes, schools should lead on allergy policies, but freedom of information requests and research done by the Benedict Blythe Foundation show that not enough of them are doing so. We cannot blame schools for those failures. They must be provided with the right leadership, resources and support to implement consistent allergy safety measures. Teachers and staff want to protect children, but cannot do so without proper training and guidance.

Fifty per cent of parents believe that staff and teachers should have more training on allergies. This training should include allergy awareness management and emergency response training, including administration of adrenalin auto-injectors. It must be consistent, evidence-based and delivered in collaboration with medical professionals. Schools are under-resourced and need proper funding. A recent NASUWT survey found that 67% of school staff had not received allergy awareness training because of funding issues.

Alongside training, every school should have a specific allergy policy that includes an anaphylaxis plan. This ensures everyone knows their role in allergy safety, and families can be assured that a safe environment has been created. Safeguarding guidance should be strengthened to specifically reference children with allergies. Each child with a diagnosed allergy should have an individual healthcare plan developed with parents, schools and healthcare professionals, providing clear guidance on risk management and emergency procedures. All schools should record and report allergic reactions and near misses. A centralised database would allow better tracking of trends, identification of risks and improvements in policy.

Every school should be funded to hold in-date spare adrenalin auto-injectors, with staff trained in their use. Those devices should be as commonplace and accessible as defibrillators are now. Half of our schools do not have spare medication, and timely use of AAIs can mean the difference between life and death. We must also challenge stigma and raise awareness across our schools. Providing dairy-free alternatives to free milk for under-fives, ensuring free school meals and breakfast clubs are allergy inclusive, and including allergy in anti-bullying policies will foster compassionate, inclusive environments.

The Minister who will reply to this debate is the Under-Secretary of State for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Portsmouth South (Stephen Morgan), but a cross-Government approach is essential. Charities have long called for an allergies tsar to co-ordinate efforts across Departments such as Education and Health. The role would champion collaboration, advocate for evidence-based changes and help embed effective policies on the ground. Access to prompt diagnosis and treatment is critical. Allergy UK proposes placing allergy nurses and dietitians in GP surgeries, reducing waiting times from months to weeks and supporting schools in creating healthcare plans.

Before I finish, I have several specific questions for the Minister. The debate has made clear the urgent need for stronger, more consistent protections for children with allergies in our schools. I respect the challenges our schools face, but the safety and wellbeing of our children must come first. I therefore ask the Minister to consider making allergy training, fully funded and supported by the DFE, mandatory for all school staff. That training must be comprehensive, evidence-based and regularly updated.

We should require every school to hold spare adrenalin and AAI pens, with clear protocols for their proper storage, maintenance and use. Those lifesaving devices must, as I have mentioned, be as accessible as defibrillators. Working closely with our colleagues at the Department for Health and Social Care, every child diagnosed with an allergy should have an individual healthcare plan, developed collaboratively with parents, schools and healthcare professionals and embedded within safeguarding policies. We should strengthen reporting requirements so that all allergic reactions and near misses in school are recorded centrally, enabling data-driven improvements in policy. We should support the appointment of an allergy tsar and make sure that organisations such as Ofsted consider a school’s approach to allergies in their inspections.

These policies, set out by various organisations, would provide a real road map to not only meet but exceed international standards for allergy safety in schools. Following these recommendations will help us to create a safer and more consistent environment in which every child with allergies is truly protected and supported. Laws that exist but are not properly implemented are not fit for purpose.

Next week, I will introduce the Schools (Allergy Safety) Bill to legislate for the mandatory training of school staff, allergy policies and spare medication at schools. It is time we took allergies seriously and enabled schools to create safe environments for children to learn and flourish. I hope that, after countless debates in this place and in the House of Commons, we can finally put this issue to bed and put our children’s safety first.

Free School Meals

Leigh Ingham Excerpts

Thursday 5th June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Stephen Morgan]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right; this is the stark choice that people voted for at the last election, and I am really proud that we are getting on with delivering the change that our country so desperately needs.

[Leigh Ingham (Stafford) (Lab)]

I welcome this announcement from the Government. In Stafford, Eccleshall and the villages, it means a massive 47% increase in eligibility for free school meals, but the work will not be done until all children who are eligible for free school meals are able to access them, and I have asked my local council leader to do everything they can to ensure that. I know that the Government are considering this, but does the Minister agree that councils need to be doing everything they can to ensure that all children who are eligible are able to access their free school meals?

[Stephen Morgan]

I know from my hon. Friend’s previous contributions in the House that she is a real champion on these issues. Making all children in households claiming universal credit eligible for free school meals makes it straightforward for parents to know whether they are eligible. We are supporting this by taking forward a programme of work, including improvements to our own systems, and we are working across Government to make that happen.