Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of making care experience a protected characteristic.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is committed to tackling stigma and discrimination faced by care-experienced children and young people. The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill will introduce corporate parenting responsibilities for government departments and other relevant public bodies. This will ensure corporate parents are aware of issues that could negatively impact on children in care and care leavers.
The leaving care grant for care leavers was increased from £2,000 to £3,000 from April 2023.
To support them to engage in education, employment, and training, care leavers are entitled to a £3,000 bursary for apprenticeships and a £2,000 bursary for university. They are also prioritised for the 16-19 bursary in further education.
Over 600 businesses, including John Lewis, Sky, and Amazon, have signed the department’s care leaver covenant, offering employment and training opportunities. The government's civil service care leaver internship scheme has provided over 1,000 paid jobs across government. Care leavers who access Staying Close will receive support to engage in education, employment and training.
The government currently has no plans to extend support to care leavers to age 30.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will ensure that young people with care experience have support available from local authorities until the age of 30.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is committed to tackling stigma and discrimination faced by care-experienced children and young people. The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill will introduce corporate parenting responsibilities for government departments and other relevant public bodies. This will ensure corporate parents are aware of issues that could negatively impact on children in care and care leavers.
The leaving care grant for care leavers was increased from £2,000 to £3,000 from April 2023.
To support them to engage in education, employment, and training, care leavers are entitled to a £3,000 bursary for apprenticeships and a £2,000 bursary for university. They are also prioritised for the 16-19 bursary in further education.
Over 600 businesses, including John Lewis, Sky, and Amazon, have signed the department’s care leaver covenant, offering employment and training opportunities. The government's civil service care leaver internship scheme has provided over 1,000 paid jobs across government. Care leavers who access Staying Close will receive support to engage in education, employment and training.
The government currently has no plans to extend support to care leavers to age 30.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help care leavers to secure employment following education.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is committed to tackling stigma and discrimination faced by care-experienced children and young people. The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill will introduce corporate parenting responsibilities for government departments and other relevant public bodies. This will ensure corporate parents are aware of issues that could negatively impact on children in care and care leavers.
The leaving care grant for care leavers was increased from £2,000 to £3,000 from April 2023.
To support them to engage in education, employment, and training, care leavers are entitled to a £3,000 bursary for apprenticeships and a £2,000 bursary for university. They are also prioritised for the 16-19 bursary in further education.
Over 600 businesses, including John Lewis, Sky, and Amazon, have signed the department’s care leaver covenant, offering employment and training opportunities. The government's civil service care leaver internship scheme has provided over 1,000 paid jobs across government. Care leavers who access Staying Close will receive support to engage in education, employment and training.
The government currently has no plans to extend support to care leavers to age 30.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will set the minimum grant for young people leaving care to set up home at £3000.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department is committed to tackling stigma and discrimination faced by care-experienced children and young people. The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill will introduce corporate parenting responsibilities for government departments and other relevant public bodies. This will ensure corporate parents are aware of issues that could negatively impact on children in care and care leavers.
The leaving care grant for care leavers was increased from £2,000 to £3,000 from April 2023.
To support them to engage in education, employment, and training, care leavers are entitled to a £3,000 bursary for apprenticeships and a £2,000 bursary for university. They are also prioritised for the 16-19 bursary in further education.
Over 600 businesses, including John Lewis, Sky, and Amazon, have signed the department’s care leaver covenant, offering employment and training opportunities. The government's civil service care leaver internship scheme has provided over 1,000 paid jobs across government. Care leavers who access Staying Close will receive support to engage in education, employment and training.
The government currently has no plans to extend support to care leavers to age 30.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of reductions in Overseas Development Assistance on the number of children able to access education.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Detailed decisions on how the Official Development Assistance (ODA) budget will be used are being worked through following the recent Spending Review and through resource allocation processes. We intend to publish final 2025/26 ODA programme allocations in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) Annual Report and Accounts this summer. The FCDO is focused on ensuring that every pound is spent in the most impactful way.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to recruit foster carers.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Currently, there are 10 regional fostering programmes active across England, collaborating with over 60% of all local authorities to recruit and retain foster carers. This government is committed to working in partnership with local authorities to recruit more foster carers.
As part of my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s Transformation Fund announced in the Spring Statement, we will provide an additional £25 million over two years (beginning in 2026/27 and 2027/28) for foster care, as part of children’s social care reform. This is on top of the £15 million of fostering investment that was announced in the Autumn Budget 2024, to cover investment taking place in 2025/26. This funding is to start work to ensure every local authority has the offer of access to a hub and to embed the existing regional fostering recruitment and retention hubs.
The hubs will transform the way people who are interested in fostering are supported and rollout the Mockingbird programme, which offers peer-support to foster carers and the children in their care. The department is also funding ‘Fosterlink’, a support service for local authority fostering services.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that people with care experience have direct access to mental health services.
Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The Department for Education and the Department of Health and Social Care are updating guidance on promoting the health and wellbeing of looked-after children to ensure children in care and care leavers receive necessary health services and mental health support. This guidance sets expectations for local authorities, health service commissioners, the NHS, and others to promote physical, emotional, and mental health, including early intervention.
The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools bill aims to improve access to health services by enhancing information sharing between agencies and considering the needs of looked-after children. Measures include improving data sharing with a Single Unique Identifier and introducing new corporate parenting responsibilities for government departments and public bodies, to create a culture of support and break down barriers to good outcomes. Finally, the government will expand Mental Health Support Teams in schools to provide early support for young people.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he has taken to achieve multilateral disarmament of nuclear weapons.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK remains committed to the goal of a world without nuclear weapons, and to our Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty obligation to pursue nuclear disarmament negotiations in good faith. Nuclear disarmament is a process as well as an end-state, which is best achieved through a negotiated approach within existing international frameworks and reflecting the security environment. Whilst the current security environment poses significant challenges to this goal, the UK continues to work with partners to make progress on mechanisms that will ensure disarmament can be verified, transparent and irreversible if and when the security environment allows. We also continue to take steps to address future challenges on the verification of disarmament. An effective verification regime is essential for states to be confident others have eliminated their nuclear weapons and, are meeting treaty obligations. The UK has been at the forefront of national and international verification research, both domestically and within a range of global initiatives - for example, through the Quad Nuclear Verification Partnership.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure that the UK Government complies with its Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons obligations.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is compliant with and remains committed to its obligations across all three pillars of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). In line with its commitment under Article VI, the UK continues to pursue negotiations in good faith on effective measures relating to nuclear disarmament, and to the long-term goal of achieving a world without nuclear weapons. Whilst the current security environment poses significant challenges to this goal, the UK continues to work with partners to make progress on mechanisms that will ensure disarmament can be verified, transparent and irreversible when the security environment allows. The UK is also proud to play its part in strengthening non-proliferation through active participation in export controls, and championing the highest standards of nuclear safety, security and safeguards as key enablers of nuclear trade. The UK has also provided financial support to both the Sustained Dialogue on Peaceful Uses and the International Atomic Energy Agency's Technical Cooperation Programme to improve developing states' access to the benefits of peaceful nuclear technologies. The UK will publish a National Report on its NPT progress at the NPT 2026 Review Conference which will provide further details on this work.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has considered providing a sea route for humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO) leads on coordinating the HMG’s humanitarian response to deliver lifesaving assistance to the civilian population in Gaza.
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has provided military support when needed to facilitate the delivery of lifesaving assistance, including through providing support to the Cypriot Maritime Aid Corridor and the US’ temporary pier initiative in 2024.
We continue to monitor the situation and consider what further assistance Defence could contribute to the HMG and international efforts.