Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what was the cost of funding English as an Additional Language in primary schools in each of the last three years.

Each year, schools receive core funding from the department to cover their expenditures, which includes teacher salaries, support staff, school resources and other expenses. Through the schools national funding formula, schools attract funding for pupils with English as an additional language (EAL) for the first three years that they are in the statutory school system. Over the last three years, eligible primary pupils have attracted £590 in 2024/25, £595 in 2025/26 and £610 in 2026/27.

The funding schools receive is not ringfenced for any specific form of expenditure and it is for each school to determine how this money will be best used to support their individual children. The department does not hold data on the specific costs incurred by schools for educating primary pupils with EAL.