Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many cases of suspected misuse of Flexible Support Fund equipment have been identified in the last three years for which figures are available.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Work coaches must ensure all awards made under the Flexible Support Fund (FSF) are reasonable and represent good value for money in terms of improving employment prospects and reducing the time spent on benefits.
Where a work coach identifies concerns that FSF funded equipment may have been misused, this information is recorded on the customer’s Universal Credit account and considered as part of ongoing engagement, including when determining the appropriateness of any future FSF support.
Misuse of FSF support does not always indicate fraud. Where there is evidence that misuse may involve deliberate dishonesty or a criminal offence, work coaches are required to make a formal referral to the Department’s fraud team, who determine whether further investigation or enforcement action is appropriate.
The Department does not hold central records on the number of cases of suspected misuse of FSF funded equipment. Information is captured at individual customer level and is not collated nationally for reporting purposes.
A new digital FSF application system, being rolled out nationally, will strengthen oversight of FSF spend by providing improved data and enabling more detailed scrutiny of awards.
Asked by: Oliver Ryan (Labour (Co-op) - Burnley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether funding provided through the Crisis and Resilience Fund from 1 April 2026 may be used by local authorities to provide holiday food vouchers for children eligible for free school meals; and what guidance his Department has issued to local authorities on the provision of such vouchers further to the closure of the Household Support Fund.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Yes, local authorities have discretion to design their own schemes within the published Crisis and Resilience Fund guidance and this can include supporting families eligible for free school meals during school holidays through Crisis Payments. This may or may not be through the blanket provision of vouchers to those on free school meals, as the Department for Work and Pensions recognise that some families eligible for free school meals may not routinely need crisis support during every school holiday.
By focusing on those most in need, local authorities can provide more targeted, holistic support that builds longer-term financial resilience, not just crisis intervention.
The guidance for local authorities is published on GOV.UK: Crisis and Resilience Fund: Guidance for local authorities in England (1 April 2026 to 31 March 2029).
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to prevent a reduction in apprenticeship starts among employers who pay into the levy but whose levy funds do not cover full training costs.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer of 9 February 2026 to Question UIN 109925.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the impact of the August 2025 apprenticeship funding changes on employer participation in engineering and other high-cost apprenticeship standards.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer of 9 February 2026 to Question UIN 109925.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to increase the number of apprenticeships in the West Midlands.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
This government is transforming the apprenticeships levy into a new growth and skills levy, which will deliver greater flexibility to employers and more opportunities for young people and support the industrial strategy across the country, including in the West Midlands.
In August 2025, we introduced new foundation apprenticeships to give young people a route into careers in critical sectors, enabling them to earn a wage while developing vital skills. They are underpinned by additional funding for employers of up to £2,000 to contribute to the extra costs of supporting someone at the beginning of their career.
We are investing an additional £725 million to deliver the next phase of the growth and skills levy and meet our ambition to support 50,000 more young people into apprenticeships. We will expand foundation apprenticeships into sectors that traditionally recruit young people, launch a pilot with Mayoral Strategic Authorities to better connect young people to local apprenticeship opportunities, and fully fund SME apprenticeships for eligible 16–24-year-olds from the next academic year.
From April 2026, employers will also be able to access short, flexible training courses to help respond quickly to evolving skills needs. The first wave of these courses will be called apprenticeship units and they will be available in critical skills areas such as artificial intelligence, digital and engineering.
The government also facilitates and funds the Apprenticeship Ambassador Network (AAN) which comprises 2,500 employers and apprentices who volunteer to promote the benefits of apprenticeships. It operates across all parts of England, including the West Midlands, through nine regional networks which provide buddying and mentoring support to small businesses to help them recruit and retain apprentices.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment he has made of the implications of his policies of recommendation 3a of the Public Administration Committee's fifty-seventh Report of Session 2022-23 on reviewing ombudsman arrangements to ensure that all aspects of people's interactions with their pensions have an adequate route of appeal.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Department’s view remains that the Pensions Ombudsman has acted within his statutory remit in considering complaints related to the AEA Technology (AEAT) pension scheme.
These matters have been subject to extensive scrutiny over the past decade, including debates in Parliament. Considering that scrutiny, the Government will not be proceeding with a review of the Pensions Ombudsman at this time.
Asked by: Jess Brown-Fuller (Liberal Democrat - Chichester)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Government’s decision not to provide compensation following the report by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman on changes to women’s State Pension age, whether his Department holds data that would allow it to estimate the potential cost of compensation for women affected by those changes in individual parliamentary constituencies.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government has made its decision on this case based on due process and careful consideration of the body of evidence. The detailed reasons for this decision have been placed in the House library.
Asked by: Olly Glover (Liberal Democrat - Didcot and Wantage)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman report on changes to women's State Pension age, published on 21 March 2024, if he will make an estimate of the potential (a) cost; and (b) mechanisms available to provide compensation to impacted women in Didcot and Wantage.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government has made its decision on this case based on due process and careful consideration of the body of evidence. The detailed reasons for this decision have been placed in the House library.
Asked by: Ian Sollom (Liberal Democrat - St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire)
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 that the public have adequate routes of appeal to raise complaints about their pensions.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Members of the public have access to independent routes of appeal regarding pension maladministration through the Pensions Ombudsman (TPO). TPO operates independently to deliver its statutory responsibilities. The Department works closely with TPO to support the effective delivery of its functions and to ensure individuals can access appropriate routes of redress.
Determinations made by the Pensions Ombudsman are legally binding. Parties may appeal to the High Court on a point of law. Complaints about the Ombudsman’s service, as distinct from case determinations, can be made through its internal complaints process and, if unresolved, referred to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman through a Member of Parliament.
Consumers wishing to raise complaints regarding financial services firms, including pension providers, that are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority can do so via the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Asked by: Mark Garnier (Conservative - Wyre Forest)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many PIP assessment officers left their role in each month since January 2025.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The information requested is not held in the format specified.
However, while data on the monthly totals for average health professional (HP) full‑time equivalents (FTEs) working on the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) contracts, and overall HP FTE leavers, is not currently published by the department, we will be sharing this information in a future statistical release.