Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to ensure (a) Yeovil College and (b) other Somerset providers do not face reductions in their Skills Bootcamp budgets for the 2026-2027 financial year.

We are giving local areas greater control of the delivery of Skills Bootcamps in line with our commitment to devolution; supporting areas to use Skills Bootcamps to more closely meet the needs of their local employers and economies.

As part of this, we will introduce a new funding model for local areas from 2026-27 to ensure the distribution of funding remains fit for purpose and is sustainable as the programme matures.

Under devolution, local areas are the commissioners of Skills Bootcamps and can plan provision according to local skills priorities. They are responsible for decisions relating to the allocation of funding to individual providers, including Yeovil College and other providers in Somerset, in line with their preferred commissioning method.