Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2024 to Question 19417 on Mental Health Services: Parents, what steps her Department is taking to provide community mental health services to bereaved (a) fathers and (b) partners following pregnancy or baby loss.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
Through the NHS Long Term Plan, we are committed to expanding and transforming mental health services in England so that more people, including bereaved fathers and partners following pregnancy or baby loss, can get the help and support that they need.
As part of this, we are expanding access to psychological and talking therapies within specialist perinatal mental health services. Specialist community perinatal mental health services have now been rolled out in every part of England, and should work closely with maternal mental health services, which are also being rolled out, with 39 maternal mental health services currently available across England. Fathers and other partners of women accessing specialist community care should be able to access an evidence-based assessment for their mental health and signposting to support as required. Individuals can also access psychological support by referring themselves to NHS Talking Therapies. Details of local services are available at the following link:
Asked by: Mark Logan (Conservative - Bolton North East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will hold discussions with Cabinet colleagues on the potential merits of bringing forward proposals to ensure that parents are held accountable in the event that their child is convicted of a serious offence where it is deemed that the parent’s action or inaction contributed to that offence.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
We believe it is important for those who are responsible for a child’s care and well-being to be involved in their rehabilitation where appropriate.
Youth offending teams (YOTs) assess children engaging in, or at risk of, offending and determine whether parenting programmes or parenting contracts are needed to improve the guidance provided by parents and guardians to their children.
Courts can issue a parenting order where a child has been convicted of an offence and can include failure by the parent and guardian to comply with the requirements of a parenting contract. Parenting orders require the parent to comply for up to 12 months with certain requirements and, where appropriate, attend counselling or guidance programmes designed to improve parenting skills, manage difficult adolescent behaviour or ensure school attendance, for up to three months. Consistent non-compliance without good reason can lead to a police investigation and breach proceedings in court. Where the child is under 16, and has been convicted of an offence, the courts also have the power to order the parent or guardian to pay the fine.
As an alternative to parenting orders, YOTs often prefer where possible to engage and build strong relationships with parents on a voluntary basis. Parents often engage readily and take part in specific parenting support activities.
Asked by: Anthony Browne (Conservative - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to review Ofsted's inspection (a) framework and (b) practices.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Ofsted, as part of the wider school accountability system, has been central to the Department’s success in raising school standards. His Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman, is committed to ensuring a high quality inspection system that works for pupils, teachers, headteachers and parents. As part of this, Ofsted is continuing to evolve and build teachers’ and headteachers’ confidence in inspection. It is right that the system responds where concerns arise, and the Department welcomes Ofsted’s announcement today of plans to make a series of improvements.
Supporting the mental and physical health of school staff is crucial to the Department’s commitment to help create a supportive culture in schools and to encourage teacher retention. The Department is working proactively with the sector to understand the drivers behind workload and wellbeing issues, and to improve policies and interventions. The Education Staff Wellbeing Charter, published by the Department, sets out commitments from Government, Ofsted, and schools and colleges to protect and promote the wellbeing of staff. The Charter is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/education-staff-wellbeing-charter. The Department is also funding the UK charity, Education Support, to provide professional supervision and counselling to headteachers. Over 1,000 headteachers have benefitted from the support. Today, the Department has announced the programme’s expansion by doubling the number of places available this year, so that more headteachers can have access to this valuable support.
Our thoughts are with Ruth Perry’s family, friends and colleagues at this distressing time. The Secretary of State for Education and officials have been meeting with Ruth’s family and colleagues to talk about and understand Ruth’s experience. The Department has committed to continuing its work on improving the way we inspect schools with Ofsted and the family of Ruth Perry, following her tragic death.
As matters concerning Ofsted’s framework and inspection practice are for the Chief Inspector, I have asked her to write to the hon. Member for South Cambridgeshire and a copy of her reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
Asked by: Anthony Browne (Conservative - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of requiring Ofsted to disclose the evidence on which it bases its decisions.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Ofsted, as part of the wider school accountability system, has been central to the Department’s success in raising school standards. His Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman, is committed to ensuring a high quality inspection system that works for pupils, teachers, headteachers and parents. As part of this, Ofsted is continuing to evolve and build teachers’ and headteachers’ confidence in inspection. It is right that the system responds where concerns arise, and the Department welcomes Ofsted’s announcement today of plans to make a series of improvements.
Supporting the mental and physical health of school staff is crucial to the Department’s commitment to help create a supportive culture in schools and to encourage teacher retention. The Department is working proactively with the sector to understand the drivers behind workload and wellbeing issues, and to improve policies and interventions. The Education Staff Wellbeing Charter, published by the Department, sets out commitments from Government, Ofsted, and schools and colleges to protect and promote the wellbeing of staff. The Charter is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/education-staff-wellbeing-charter. The Department is also funding the UK charity, Education Support, to provide professional supervision and counselling to headteachers. Over 1,000 headteachers have benefitted from the support. Today, the Department has announced the programme’s expansion by doubling the number of places available this year, so that more headteachers can have access to this valuable support.
Our thoughts are with Ruth Perry’s family, friends and colleagues at this distressing time. The Secretary of State for Education and officials have been meeting with Ruth’s family and colleagues to talk about and understand Ruth’s experience. The Department has committed to continuing its work on improving the way we inspect schools with Ofsted and the family of Ruth Perry, following her tragic death.
As matters concerning Ofsted’s framework and inspection practice are for the Chief Inspector, I have asked her to write to the hon. Member for South Cambridgeshire and a copy of her reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
Asked by: Anthony Browne (Conservative - South Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to monitor the impact of Ofsted inspections on teachers' (a) mental wellbeing and (b) physical health.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Ofsted, as part of the wider school accountability system, has been central to the Department’s success in raising school standards. His Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman, is committed to ensuring a high quality inspection system that works for pupils, teachers, headteachers and parents. As part of this, Ofsted is continuing to evolve and build teachers’ and headteachers’ confidence in inspection. It is right that the system responds where concerns arise, and the Department welcomes Ofsted’s announcement today of plans to make a series of improvements.
Supporting the mental and physical health of school staff is crucial to the Department’s commitment to help create a supportive culture in schools and to encourage teacher retention. The Department is working proactively with the sector to understand the drivers behind workload and wellbeing issues, and to improve policies and interventions. The Education Staff Wellbeing Charter, published by the Department, sets out commitments from Government, Ofsted, and schools and colleges to protect and promote the wellbeing of staff. The Charter is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/education-staff-wellbeing-charter. The Department is also funding the UK charity, Education Support, to provide professional supervision and counselling to headteachers. Over 1,000 headteachers have benefitted from the support. Today, the Department has announced the programme’s expansion by doubling the number of places available this year, so that more headteachers can have access to this valuable support.
Our thoughts are with Ruth Perry’s family, friends and colleagues at this distressing time. The Secretary of State for Education and officials have been meeting with Ruth’s family and colleagues to talk about and understand Ruth’s experience. The Department has committed to continuing its work on improving the way we inspect schools with Ofsted and the family of Ruth Perry, following her tragic death.
As matters concerning Ofsted’s framework and inspection practice are for the Chief Inspector, I have asked her to write to the hon. Member for South Cambridgeshire and a copy of her reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
Asked by: Hilary Benn (Labour - Leeds Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether counselling support is being provided to children from Afghanistan who are separated from parents who remain in Afghanistan.
Answered by Robert Courts - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
resettled under ACRS and ARAP have been dealt with on a case-by-case basis. Where this has happened, we have worked in close collaboration with social services and the relevant Local Authority.
The Government provides a warm welcome to Afghans arriving in the UK and all guests are registered with a GP or are being helped to do so. A full range of vaccinations are offered, alongside mental health support and other services.
We know just how much of an adjustment Afghan children and young people will be facing. Schools and colleges have access to a range of government support programmes to help children and young people with their mental health and we are rolling out Mental Health Support Teams that work with groups of schools and colleges to identify specialist needs of pupils in their areas.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the report entitled Early evaluation of the children and young people’s mental health trailblazer programme, published by the National Institute for Health and Care Research on 20 February 2023.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
The department welcomes the findings of the report. Trailblazer sites have been instrumental in the successful roll out of Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs) to 26% of pupils in schools and learners in further education. This has been achieved a year ahead of schedule.
The findings reveal substantial progress in implementing MHSTs, as well as some positive early impacts, despite challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic. These include improved school and college staff knowledge and confidence in dealing with mental health issues. Many education settings, MHSTs and wider delivery partners agreed that the programme will lead to a number of positive outcomes, including improving children and young people’s understanding of mental health and wellbeing.
The MHST programme has evolved since the Trailblazers were launched, but the findings of this report will continue to help inform future rollout and mobilisation of MHSTs to support the mental health and emotional wellbeing of children and young people. Over 500 MHSTs are expected to be operating by 2024.
Work is already underway with partners to ensure that we use the learning to inform current and future practice. Since the MHST Trailblazers became operational in 2018/19, the Education Mental Health Practitioner curriculum has been strengthened in response to feedback on needs such as learning disabilities and autism, challenging behaviour and support for parents. The department is also working with the education sector and mental health experts to protect and promote staff wellbeing. Initiatives include the Education Staff Wellbeing Charter and a new one-to-one counselling and peer support scheme for 2,000 school leaders, delivered by the charity, Education Support.
The findings of this report, as well as the 2021 interim evaluation and a planned phase 2 longer-term outcome evaluation, will continue to inform MHST roll out and drive improvements in evidence-based mental health and emotional wellbeing support for children and young people.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the report by Adoption UK Cost of living crisis: Impact on adoptive families and adopted people. Summary of survey data December 2022, published on 26 January, what steps they will take to support adult adoptees in response to the findings in that report that (1) 41 per cent of adopted people said the increased cost of living was having "a significant negative impact on their mental health", and (2) 89 per cent reported that increased costs for transport and accommodation making it harder to maintain relationships with birth relatives.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government understands that many people, including adopters and adopted adults, are worried about the impact of rising prices. For this reason, the government is providing £37 billion of support this year, targeted at those who are most in need. The package will see millions of the most vulnerable households receive at least £1,200 of support in total this year to help with the cost of living, with all domestic electricity customers receiving at least £400 to help with their bills.
The department aims to ensure that children waiting to be found new adoptive families are placed with as little wait as possible. Tackling long waits for children who require new adoptive families is a key priority in the 2021 Adoption Strategy ‘Achieving excellence everywhere’. The department is funding Regional Adoption Agency (RRA) leaders to improve the recruitment of adopters, matching children with approved adopters and adoption support over the next three years. In the past year, RAAs have focused on those children who wait the longest and have seen a fall in the number of children with a court placement order waiting for 18 months, from 390 at March 2020 to 240 at September 2022.
Where necessary, the statutory framework covering adoption allows RRAs and local authorities to provide financial support to adoptive parents to support the placement of a child or the continuation of adoption arrangements.
Adult adoptees should be able to access the support that they need, particularly around their mental health needs. The department is publicly consulting on amendments to regulations to simplify arrangements for providers who support adopted adults that will increase the accessibility of support services. One of the proposed changes in the consultation is to remove the requirement that therapists be registered with Ofsted when providing counselling services to adopted adults. This change is recommended in Adoption UK’s ‘Cost of living crisis: impact on adoptive families and adopted people’ report.
The government is also improving NHS mental health support availability. The NHS Long Term Plan and mental health expansion plans will increase funding for mental health services, to target groups with severe mental illness and young people.
Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by Adoption UK Cost of living crisis: impact on adoptive families and adopted people. Summary of survey data December 2022, published on 26 January, which found that 41 per cent of prospective adopters surveyed were considering adopting fewer children than previously as a result of the increased cost of living; and what assessment they have made on the potential impact this would have on the length of time children with a plan for adoption wait to be placed.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government understands that many people, including adopters and adopted adults, are worried about the impact of rising prices. For this reason, the government is providing £37 billion of support this year, targeted at those who are most in need. The package will see millions of the most vulnerable households receive at least £1,200 of support in total this year to help with the cost of living, with all domestic electricity customers receiving at least £400 to help with their bills.
The department aims to ensure that children waiting to be found new adoptive families are placed with as little wait as possible. Tackling long waits for children who require new adoptive families is a key priority in the 2021 Adoption Strategy ‘Achieving excellence everywhere’. The department is funding Regional Adoption Agency (RRA) leaders to improve the recruitment of adopters, matching children with approved adopters and adoption support over the next three years. In the past year, RAAs have focused on those children who wait the longest and have seen a fall in the number of children with a court placement order waiting for 18 months, from 390 at March 2020 to 240 at September 2022.
Where necessary, the statutory framework covering adoption allows RRAs and local authorities to provide financial support to adoptive parents to support the placement of a child or the continuation of adoption arrangements.
Adult adoptees should be able to access the support that they need, particularly around their mental health needs. The department is publicly consulting on amendments to regulations to simplify arrangements for providers who support adopted adults that will increase the accessibility of support services. One of the proposed changes in the consultation is to remove the requirement that therapists be registered with Ofsted when providing counselling services to adopted adults. This change is recommended in Adoption UK’s ‘Cost of living crisis: impact on adoptive families and adopted people’ report.
The government is also improving NHS mental health support availability. The NHS Long Term Plan and mental health expansion plans will increase funding for mental health services, to target groups with severe mental illness and young people.
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 make an assessment of the impact of permanently removing a child from the care of their birth parents on the mental health and wellbeing of the parents.
Answered by Claire Coutinho - Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
The impact on birth parents of having their child removed permanently will be different depending on their individual circumstances. Birth parents of adopted children may grieve over the loss of their child and may need support to process what has happened. Some may have substance addictions, mental health problems, or have experienced abuse.
Local authorities are required to make a range of services available to birth relatives, including counselling, advice and information and assistance in relation to ongoing contact with the child who was adopted. Many provide support to birth families through arrangements with charities such as Coram, PAC UK and Barnardo’s.
The department recognises the importance of adoption agencies supporting birth parents throughout the adoption process. Support for birth parents that is respectful and empathic is beneficial to birth parents, children and adoptive families.