Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many staff in her Department had their probationary period extended in the last 12 months.

The department’s probation policy and guidance advises managers on the steps to take to assess a new employee’s suitability for the post and provides support to enable them to succeed. It also advises on the steps to take where performance, attendance or conduct are not satisfactory. This can include exiting the employee or extending their probation to provide further evidence for a final decision on their suitability.

The department does not hold complete information on probation outcomes centrally and it could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.