Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
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 provisions within (a) the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill and (b) other relevant legislation intended to promote school attendance on children required to take extended absences from school following a cancer diagnosis.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
If a child is too unwell to attend school, local authorities have a duty under section 19 of the Children's Act 1996 to provide suitable and (normally) full-time education for children of compulsory school age who, because of exclusion, illness or other reasons, would not receive suitable education.
Ofsted holds local authorities to account for the sufficiency and commissioning of alternative provision as part of their area special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) inspections.
Where full-time education is not possible due to a child’s health needs, local authorities must arrange part-time education on whatever basis they consider to be in the child's best interests.
Full and part-time education should still aim to be equivalent to the education the child would receive in their mainstream school. Any part-time education should be reviewed regularly, with the aim of eventually increasing the number of hours up to full-time as soon as the child’s health allows.
The law places a duty on parents to ensure that their child of compulsory school age who is registered at school attends regularly. However, section 444 of the Education Act 1996 sets out exemptions to this duty. This includes where the child cannot attend due to illness. Parents cannot be penalised if their child is ill and unable to attend to school.
There is nothing in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill that has a direct impact on children being absent from school due to illness. The full suite of impact assessments of the measures in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill can be found on GOV.UK here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/childrens-wellbeing-and-schools-bill-impact-assessments.
Educational provision for children who cannot receive their education in school for health reasons, including those in hospital, is funded from local authorities’ high needs budgets.
Following the Autumn Budget 2024, the department is providing an increase of £1 billion for high needs budgets in England in the 2025/26 financial year, bringing total high needs funding to over £12 billion.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of educational provision for children diagnosed with cancer.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
If a child is too unwell to attend school, local authorities have a duty under section 19 of the Children's Act 1996 to provide suitable and (normally) full-time education for children of compulsory school age who, because of exclusion, illness or other reasons, would not receive suitable education.
Ofsted holds local authorities to account for the sufficiency and commissioning of alternative provision as part of their area special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) inspections.
Where full-time education is not possible due to a child’s health needs, local authorities must arrange part-time education on whatever basis they consider to be in the child's best interests.
Full and part-time education should still aim to be equivalent to the education the child would receive in their mainstream school. Any part-time education should be reviewed regularly, with the aim of eventually increasing the number of hours up to full-time as soon as the child’s health allows.
The law places a duty on parents to ensure that their child of compulsory school age who is registered at school attends regularly. However, section 444 of the Education Act 1996 sets out exemptions to this duty. This includes where the child cannot attend due to illness. Parents cannot be penalised if their child is ill and unable to attend to school.
There is nothing in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill that has a direct impact on children being absent from school due to illness. The full suite of impact assessments of the measures in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill can be found on GOV.UK here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/childrens-wellbeing-and-schools-bill-impact-assessments.
Educational provision for children who cannot receive their education in school for health reasons, including those in hospital, is funded from local authorities’ high needs budgets.
Following the Autumn Budget 2024, the department is providing an increase of £1 billion for high needs budgets in England in the 2025/26 financial year, bringing total high needs funding to over £12 billion.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of introducing a national funding scheme to support the education of children diagnosed with cancer.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
If a child is too unwell to attend school, local authorities have a duty under section 19 of the Children's Act 1996 to provide suitable and (normally) full-time education for children of compulsory school age who, because of exclusion, illness or other reasons, would not receive suitable education.
Ofsted holds local authorities to account for the sufficiency and commissioning of alternative provision as part of their area special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) inspections.
Where full-time education is not possible due to a child’s health needs, local authorities must arrange part-time education on whatever basis they consider to be in the child's best interests.
Full and part-time education should still aim to be equivalent to the education the child would receive in their mainstream school. Any part-time education should be reviewed regularly, with the aim of eventually increasing the number of hours up to full-time as soon as the child’s health allows.
The law places a duty on parents to ensure that their child of compulsory school age who is registered at school attends regularly. However, section 444 of the Education Act 1996 sets out exemptions to this duty. This includes where the child cannot attend due to illness. Parents cannot be penalised if their child is ill and unable to attend to school.
There is nothing in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill that has a direct impact on children being absent from school due to illness. The full suite of impact assessments of the measures in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill can be found on GOV.UK here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/childrens-wellbeing-and-schools-bill-impact-assessments.
Educational provision for children who cannot receive their education in school for health reasons, including those in hospital, is funded from local authorities’ high needs budgets.
Following the Autumn Budget 2024, the department is providing an increase of £1 billion for high needs budgets in England in the 2025/26 financial year, bringing total high needs funding to over £12 billion.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of increasing funding for educational support for children with a cancer diagnosis on costs to the public purse.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
If a child is too unwell to attend school, local authorities have a duty under section 19 of the Children's Act 1996 to provide suitable and (normally) full-time education for children of compulsory school age who, because of exclusion, illness or other reasons, would not receive suitable education.
Ofsted holds local authorities to account for the sufficiency and commissioning of alternative provision as part of their area special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) inspections.
Where full-time education is not possible due to a child’s health needs, local authorities must arrange part-time education on whatever basis they consider to be in the child's best interests.
Full and part-time education should still aim to be equivalent to the education the child would receive in their mainstream school. Any part-time education should be reviewed regularly, with the aim of eventually increasing the number of hours up to full-time as soon as the child’s health allows.
The law places a duty on parents to ensure that their child of compulsory school age who is registered at school attends regularly. However, section 444 of the Education Act 1996 sets out exemptions to this duty. This includes where the child cannot attend due to illness. Parents cannot be penalised if their child is ill and unable to attend to school.
There is nothing in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill that has a direct impact on children being absent from school due to illness. The full suite of impact assessments of the measures in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill can be found on GOV.UK here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/childrens-wellbeing-and-schools-bill-impact-assessments.
Educational provision for children who cannot receive their education in school for health reasons, including those in hospital, is funded from local authorities’ high needs budgets.
Following the Autumn Budget 2024, the department is providing an increase of £1 billion for high needs budgets in England in the 2025/26 financial year, bringing total high needs funding to over £12 billion.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has plans to restore the core schools budget to 2010 in real terms.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
Overall core revenue funding for schools totals almost £61.6 billion for the 2024/25 financial year. The overall core schools budget (CSB) is increasing by £3.2 billion in 2025/26, meaning the CSB will total over £64.8 billion.
The latest schools funding statistics release from 30 January shows that, adjusted for inflation using the GDP deflator, funding per pupil for 5 to16-year-olds stood at a little under £7,400 in the 2010/11 financial year in 2024/25 prices. This has risen to £8,020 in the 2025/26 financial year in 2024/25 prices. This does not take into account the increase of over £900 million this government is also providing for schools and high needs settings to support them with the cost of National Insurance contributions increases. Funding per pupil in the 2025/26 financial year is therefore higher than the level reached in the 2010/11 financial year, in real terms.
These increases, against the backdrop of a challenging fiscal picture, demonstrate the government’s commitment to enabling every child to achieve.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to raise awareness of the impact of migraines on children’s education.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
This government’s ambition is that all children and young people receive the right support to succeed and thrive in their education and as they move into adult life.
Pupils at school with medical conditions should be properly supported so that they have full access to education. In 2014, the government introduced a duty on schools to support pupils with all medical conditions and has published statutory guidance intended to help governing bodies meet their legal responsibilities. This guidance sets out the arrangements they will be expected to make, based on good practice. Schools should ensure they are aware of any pupils with medical conditions and should have policies and processes in place to ensure these can be well managed.
The government recognises that migraines can impact a child or young person’s concentration and school attendance. As a result, schools must use their best endeavours to make sure a child or young person gets the special educational provision they need. This includes monitoring the progress of pupils regularly and putting support in place where needed, including arranging diagnostic tests where appropriate.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has considered alternative models for the (a) oversight and (b) registration of foster carers; and if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of alternative models on the adequacy of (i) safeguarding and (ii) consistency.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is considering the merits of a national register of foster carers. We will continue to review the costs and benefits of a national register versus our other investments into foster care.
We recognise that some stakeholders are in favour of a register, but we are also mindful of increasing any burden on local authorities and social workers, given our wider drive to reduce workload and unnecessary bureaucracy in the system.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of changes made by exam boards on pupils (a) with SEND and (b) with poor working memory.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
It is vital that students with special educational needs and disabilities can access exams and assessments without disadvantage. The Equality Act 2010 requires exam boards to make reasonable adjustments where a student with disabilities would be at a substantial disadvantage in undertaking an exam or an assessment.
Ofqual, who are the independent regulator of qualifications, exams and assessments in England, require exam boards to publish their arrangements for making adjustments, including how a student qualifies for an adjustment, and what adjustments might be made.
The Joint Council for Qualifications sets out the guidance on access arrangements and reasonable adjustments on behalf of the exam boards. This guidance is updated for each academic year.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that (a) GCSE and (b) equivalent assessments in (i) Mathematics and (ii) English prioritise the evaluation of students' analytical and problem-solving skills.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
High and rising school standards, with excellent foundations in reading, writing and mathematics, are at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity.
The government has established an independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, covering ages 5 to 18, chaired by Professor Becky Francis CBE. This is reviewing the existing national curriculum and qualification pathways, including GCSEs, to ensure they are fit for purpose and prepare young people for life and work.
The review group has now published a well-evidenced, clear interim report, which sets out its interim findings and confirms the key areas for further work. This highlights the successes of the current system, making clear that the most trusted and valued aspects of our system will remain, whilst setting a positive vision for the future. This report can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/curriculum-and-assessment-review-interim-report.
The Review is committed to ensuring a high quality, knowledge-rich curriculum that drives excellence in education across a broad range of subjects and pathways. The next phase of work will consider whether there is sufficient coverage of knowledge and skills in the current curriculum and associated qualifications that are essential to sufficiently prepare children and young people for future life and to thrive in a fast-changing world.
The government will consider any changes it wishes to make to the curriculum, assessment and qualifications whilst the Review is conducted, and will respond to the final recommendations in autumn.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support care leavers after the age of 21 to help ensure that they have stable living arrangements.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Supporting care leavers to make a successful transition from care to independence is a priority for this government.
Housing and concerns about accommodation rank as one of the highest worries for care leavers, and for professionals trying to support them.
The department is introducing, through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, a new duty for local authorities to consider whether former relevant children, up to age 25, require support to find and keep suitable accommodation, and support to access services relating to health and wellbeing, relationships, education and training, employment and participating in society. If support is required, the local authority should then provide this in the form of a ‘staying close’ arrangement.
The Bill also introduces an additional requirement on local authorities to publish the arrangements they have in place for the purpose of supporting and assisting care leavers in their transition to adulthood. This information in the local authority’s local offer will aid care leavers to look at all the options open to them and help them make informed decisions when deciding upon accommodation and other support they might wish to access.
The Bill also includes a measure to ensure that where a council is their corporate parent, no care leaver can be found to have become homeless intentionally.
All care leavers are entitled to support from a Personal Adviser (PA) until they are 25. PAs help care leavers to access services like housing, health and benefits, as well as providing practical and emotional support for independent living. PAs also work with care leavers to create a mandatory pathway plan outlining the support provided by the local authority.