Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 9 May 2019 to Question 250518, what the individual payments were; and what work they were (a) for and (b) who they were authorised by.

A breakdown of payments to Morning Lane Associates (MLA) totalling £1,803,915.14 is attached.

Payments were made to support the roll-out of the Reclaiming Social Work pilot of the Children’s Social Care Innovation Programme. All MLA monies were paid through a section 14 grant which means that the department pays in arrears based on actuals. Ministers agreed to fund MLA on the advice of the Innovation Programme Investment Committee.