Asked by: Luke Charters (Labour - York Outer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the reasons for which there has been an increase in the number of SEND tribunal appeals in the last academic year.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
The increase in special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) tribunal appeals for the last academic year reflects, in part, the increase in the number of children and young people with an education, health and care (EHC) plan. 576,000 had an EHC plan as of January 2024, up 11.3% from 2023.
Although most EHC plans and assessments are concluded without a tribunal hearing, the department recognises that dissatisfaction with the SEND system continues to grow and that too many parents and carers struggle to get their children the support they need and deserve. The department also knows that the tribunal can be costly for both families and local authorities, but we do not collect any data centrally.
The department understands the urgency and the need to drive improvements but also are mindful that there are no quick fixes and want to take a considered approach to deliver sustainable system reform. The department is working closely with experts on SEND reform, recently appointing a strategic advisor for SEND, who will play a key role in engaging the sector, including leaders, practitioners, children, and families, as we consider next steps.
The department has published independently commissioned insight that suggests if the system was extensively improved, using early intervention and better resourcing of mainstream schools, it could lead to tens of thousands more children and young people having their needs met without the need to go through a long and stressful EHC plan and appeals process.
We continue to work with HM Courts and Tribunal Service, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and the judiciary to understand the reasons for high appeal rates and to improve the efficiency of the SEND tribunal. The MoJ has recently recruited and trained 50 new tribunal judges who are now conducting appeal hearings, along with increasing funding for extra staff to process appeals. In an effort to settle appeals more quickly, they have also expanded their use of judicial case management powers and are continually developing ways to increase the speed of disposal. The Tribunal Procedure Committee have also just closed a consultation on a rule change to allow more appeals to be heard on paper, without the need for a full oral hearing.
The department is exploring what more we can do to support local authorities to improve their decision-making, particularly those with high appeal rates. As a first step, last year we jointly delivered eight training sessions on SEND and the law for local authority SEND caseworkers with the Independent Provider of Special Educational Advice and the Council for Disabled Children.
Asked by: Luke Charters (Labour - York Outer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of the education, health and care plan appeals system.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
The increase in special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) tribunal appeals for the last academic year reflects, in part, the increase in the number of children and young people with an education, health and care (EHC) plan. 576,000 had an EHC plan as of January 2024, up 11.3% from 2023.
Although most EHC plans and assessments are concluded without a tribunal hearing, the department recognises that dissatisfaction with the SEND system continues to grow and that too many parents and carers struggle to get their children the support they need and deserve. The department also knows that the tribunal can be costly for both families and local authorities, but we do not collect any data centrally.
The department understands the urgency and the need to drive improvements but also are mindful that there are no quick fixes and want to take a considered approach to deliver sustainable system reform. The department is working closely with experts on SEND reform, recently appointing a strategic advisor for SEND, who will play a key role in engaging the sector, including leaders, practitioners, children, and families, as we consider next steps.
The department has published independently commissioned insight that suggests if the system was extensively improved, using early intervention and better resourcing of mainstream schools, it could lead to tens of thousands more children and young people having their needs met without the need to go through a long and stressful EHC plan and appeals process.
We continue to work with HM Courts and Tribunal Service, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and the judiciary to understand the reasons for high appeal rates and to improve the efficiency of the SEND tribunal. The MoJ has recently recruited and trained 50 new tribunal judges who are now conducting appeal hearings, along with increasing funding for extra staff to process appeals. In an effort to settle appeals more quickly, they have also expanded their use of judicial case management powers and are continually developing ways to increase the speed of disposal. The Tribunal Procedure Committee have also just closed a consultation on a rule change to allow more appeals to be heard on paper, without the need for a full oral hearing.
The department is exploring what more we can do to support local authorities to improve their decision-making, particularly those with high appeal rates. As a first step, last year we jointly delivered eight training sessions on SEND and the law for local authority SEND caseworkers with the Independent Provider of Special Educational Advice and the Council for Disabled Children.
Asked by: Luke Charters (Labour - York Outer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking with the Secretary of State for Justice on improving the efficiency of the SEND tribunal system.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
The increase in special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) tribunal appeals for the last academic year reflects, in part, the increase in the number of children and young people with an education, health and care (EHC) plan. 576,000 had an EHC plan as of January 2024, up 11.3% from 2023.
Although most EHC plans and assessments are concluded without a tribunal hearing, the department recognises that dissatisfaction with the SEND system continues to grow and that too many parents and carers struggle to get their children the support they need and deserve. The department also knows that the tribunal can be costly for both families and local authorities, but we do not collect any data centrally.
The department understands the urgency and the need to drive improvements but also are mindful that there are no quick fixes and want to take a considered approach to deliver sustainable system reform. The department is working closely with experts on SEND reform, recently appointing a strategic advisor for SEND, who will play a key role in engaging the sector, including leaders, practitioners, children, and families, as we consider next steps.
The department has published independently commissioned insight that suggests if the system was extensively improved, using early intervention and better resourcing of mainstream schools, it could lead to tens of thousands more children and young people having their needs met without the need to go through a long and stressful EHC plan and appeals process.
We continue to work with HM Courts and Tribunal Service, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and the judiciary to understand the reasons for high appeal rates and to improve the efficiency of the SEND tribunal. The MoJ has recently recruited and trained 50 new tribunal judges who are now conducting appeal hearings, along with increasing funding for extra staff to process appeals. In an effort to settle appeals more quickly, they have also expanded their use of judicial case management powers and are continually developing ways to increase the speed of disposal. The Tribunal Procedure Committee have also just closed a consultation on a rule change to allow more appeals to be heard on paper, without the need for a full oral hearing.
The department is exploring what more we can do to support local authorities to improve their decision-making, particularly those with high appeal rates. As a first step, last year we jointly delivered eight training sessions on SEND and the law for local authority SEND caseworkers with the Independent Provider of Special Educational Advice and the Council for Disabled Children.
Asked by: Luke Charters (Labour - York Outer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help improve the early identification of special educational needs in children.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
The department knows that children’s early years are crucial to their development, health and life chances, and we recognise the importance of the early identification of needs to ensure the right support is put in place as early as possible to ensure children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and emerging special educational needs can get the best start in life.
The department is working as quickly as possible to ensure every child has the best chance in life, by prioritising early intervention and inclusive provision in mainstream settings.
The department knows that early intervention prevents unmet needs from escalating, and that it supports children and young people to achieve their goals alongside their peers. That is why we are currently funding three specific early intervention programmes:
The PINS programme deploys specialists from both health and education workforces to strengthen training and resources for school staff to identify and meet the needs of neurodiverse children. It will upskill around 1,600 (10%) mainstream primary schools by March 2025.
11,100 schools are registered for the NELI programme, which has improved the speech and language skills of an estimated 211,700 children aged 4 to 5 between September 2020 and July 2024.
Over 640,000 primary school children have been screened to identify those with language development difficulties.
Evaluation of NELI shows the programme improved the development of oral language skills by 4 months’ progress for pupils receiving the intervention. Children eligible for free school meals (FSM) made 7 months additional progress compared to children eligible for FSM that did not receive the intervention.
In partnership with NHS England, we are funding the ELSEC pathfinders within our SEND and alternative provision Change Programme.
When a child is aged between two and three, educators must review their progress and provide parents and / or carers with a short, written summary of their child’s development in the prime areas, known as the EYFS progress check at age 2. It highlights areas in which a child is progressing well, where additional support might be needed and describes the strategies the educator intends to adopt to address any concerns.
The progress check at age two and the Healthy Child Programme review both offer opportunities to identify additional needs for children aged two to three and to work in partnership with parents or carers and relevant professionals.
This is funding nine joint Integrated Care Boards and local area partnerships within each of our Change Programme Partnerships to trial new ways of working to better identify and support children with speech, language and communication needs in early years and primary schools, utilising pre-qualification Therapy Support Assistants. The interim report is due in February 2025, but areas like Barnet have already supported over 1000 children through their ELSEC universal and targeted offer.
Asked by: Luke Charters (Labour - York Outer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of auto-enrolment schemes for free school meals.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
There are currently around 2.1 million pupils eligible for and claiming free school meals (FSM). The department recognises the vital role played by FSM and encourages all eligible families to take up their entitlement. To make this as easy as possible the department provides the Eligibility Checking System, which allows local authorities to quickly verify eligibility for FSM.
Further to this, the department is aware of a range of measures aimed at maximising take up of FSM, including through approaches being trialled by local authorities. We welcome local authorities taking action to ensure government support reaches families, subject to them meeting legal and data protections requirements.
The department is working closely with the Department for Work and Pensions to develop a child poverty strategy to reduce child poverty by tackling its root causes and giving every child the best start in life.
As with all government programmes, the department will keep its approach to FSM under continued review.
Asked by: Luke Charters (Labour - York Outer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of demand for nursery spaces in York Outer constituency.
Answered by Stephen Morgan - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The department published management information data on the expansion to early childcare entitlements on 17 October 2024. This includes the number of eligibility codes issued to parents of children aged nine months to two years old for the autumn term 2024, as of 13 October. Data shows that at a local authority level, there were 1,348 new codes issued in York. This data is not available at constituency level.
Asked by: Luke Charters (Labour - York Outer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking with (a) universities and (b) other higher education institutions to help ensure that the UK remains an attractive place for international students to study.
Answered by Janet Daby
The government recognises that international students enrich our university campuses, forge lifelong friendships with our domestic students and become global ambassadors for the UK, as well as making a significant economic contribution to the higher education (HE) sector and our country as a whole.
The government expects the UK to remain a highly attractive study destination. The UK has four universities in the top ten, and 15 in the top 100 and we offer international students the opportunity to remain in the UK on a graduate visa for two to three years after their studies come to an end.
The department regularly engages with the HE sector to understand the emerging picture of international students’ admission for the 2024/25 academic year.
Asked by: Luke Charters (Labour - York Outer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has a planned timetable for the establishment of Skills England.
Answered by Janet Daby
My right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister and my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education announced the establishment of Skills England on 22 July 2024, launching it in shadow form with immediate effect. Since then, it has made important progress towards becoming a fully-formed Arm’s Length Body, appointing Richard Pennycook as interim chair and beginning the process for appointing Board members, and forging early relationships with key partners across government and the skills system. Skills England will continue to be established in phases over the next 9 to 12 months, expanding its work and taking on its additional functions as its staffing is built up.
Asked by: Luke Charters (Labour - York Outer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of trends in the level of per-pupil funding in York Outer constituency since 2010 on educational attainment.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
The department uses the schools national funding formula (NFF) to distribute core funding for 5 to 16 year old pupils in mainstream state-funded schools in England. The NFF distributes funding based on schools’ and pupils’ needs and characteristics.
The department cannot provide comparable funding for the York Outer constituency back to 2010, due to the changes in the funding system since that time. The earliest we can provide data from is the 2020/21 financial year. This data is provided in the table below. The scope of the per-pupil funding before this is not directly comparable. In particular, funding for the central services provided by local authorities was split out from the schools block funding in 2018/19, and instead funded separately through the central school services block from that year onwards.
NFF Schools Block per-pupil funding | |
Year (financial year) | York Outer constituency |
2020/21 | £4,632 |
2021/22 | £4,827 |
2022/23 | £4,951 |
2023/24 | £5,175 |
2024/25 | £5,456 |
Constituency per-pupil funding is calculated based on the notional schools NFF allocations for all mainstream schools in the constituency. The allocations that schools within a constituency actually receive are determined by the local funding formula in their area.
All of the figures provided include premises funding but exclude growth funding. The figures do not include the additional grant funding that schools in the York Outer constituency have received to support pay and pensions increases in 2024/25, or the recently announced Core Schools Budget Grant funding.
The figure for 2024/25 is based on the new constituency boundaries as of July 2024.
Asked by: Luke Charters (Labour - York Outer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will meet (a) the hon. Member for York Outer and (b) the Cabinet Member for Children, Young People and Education in City of York Council to discuss SEND provision in schools in York Outer constituency.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell
My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, is very keen to meet with stakeholders in the coming months. If you contact her office directly to request a meeting, they will gladly consider and respond to your request.