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1713330

	registered interest
	date	23/04/2024
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Schools: Buildings
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of school building conditions.
	tabling member constituency	Washington and Sunderland West
	tabling member printed	Mrs Sharon Hodgson
	uin	902520
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/04/2024 answer text <p>The government has compiled one of the largest and most comprehensive surveys of school building condition in Europe. The Condition Data Collection (CDC) programme is the first of its kind to help us understand the condition of the school estate, and target funding to where it is most needed. This programme ran from 2017 to 2019 and visited over 22,000 schools. The key findings from the first CDC programme is available at: <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/989912/Condition_of_School_Buildings_Survey_CDC1_-_key_findings_report.pdf" target="_blank">https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/989912/Condition_of_School_Buildings_Survey_CDC1_-_key_findings_report.pdf</a>.</p><p> </p><p>A follow up programme, known as Condition Data Collection 2, is underway and has already visited over half of the government funded school and college estate in England. The programme is due to be completed by 2026.</p><p> </p><p>It is the responsibility of those who run schools – such as academy trusts and local authorities – who work with their schools day to day to manage maintenance and to alert the department if there is a serious concern with a building that cannot be managed independently. The department supports them by providing capital funding, delivering major rebuilding programmes and offering guidance and support.</p><p> </p><p>The department has allocated over £17 billion since 2015 for improving the condition of schools, including £1.8 billion announced for 2024/25. In addition, the School Rebuilding Programme is transforming buildings at over 500 schools across England.</p> answering member constituency East Hampshire answering member printed Damian Hinds question first answered 29/04/2024 16:23:35 answering member 3969 label Biography information for Damian Hinds
	tabling member	1521 label Biography information for Mrs Sharon Hodgson

1695337

	registered interest
	date	12/03/2024
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Free School Meals
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2023 to Question 165185 on Free School Meals, what the complex data, systems, financial and legal implications are of a government-led rollout of automatic enrolment for all eligible children.
	tabling member constituency	Washington and Sunderland West
	tabling member printed	Mrs Sharon Hodgson
	uin	18079
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/03/2024 answer text <p>​​​As previously communicated, the department has looked at auto-enrolment and considers there to be merit in local authorities exploring initiatives to maximise take up and to better understand the barriers that prevent such take up, whilst also ensuring adherence to legal and data protection constraints, which still remain an important consideration. These include constraints around data-sharing, as well as the need for families to make a claim for free school meals to be eligible under the current process.</p><p> </p><p>The department continues to engage with key stakeholders in this area, noting the methods currently being trialled across a number of local authorities to increase and maximise take up.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency East Hampshire answering member printed Damian Hinds question first answered 19/03/2024 16:40:02 answering member 3969 label Biography information for Damian Hinds
	tabling member	1521 label Biography information for Mrs Sharon Hodgson

1693943

	registered interest
	date	05/03/2024
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Free School Meals
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2023 to Question 165185 on Free School Meals, whether any complex data, systems, financial and legal implications are still a barrier to the rollout of auto-enrolment.
	tabling member constituency	Washington and Sunderland West
	tabling member printed	Mrs Sharon Hodgson
	uin	17089
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/03/2024 answer text <p>Maximising the take up of free school meals is important in ensuring that as many eligible children as possible benefit from a healthy and nutritious meal. The department aims to make it as simple as possible for schools and local authorities to determine eligibility.</p><p>To support this, an Eligibility Checking System has been provided to make the checking process as quick and straightforward as possible for schools and local authorities.</p><p>The department has looked at auto-enrolment and considers there to be merit in local authorities exploring initiatives to maximise take up and to better understand the barriers that prevent such take up, whilst ensuring adherence to legal and data protection constraints, which still remains an important consideration.</p> answering member constituency East Hampshire answering member printed Damian Hinds question first answered 11/03/2024 12:12:32 answering member 3969 label Biography information for Damian Hinds
	tabling member	1521 label Biography information for Mrs Sharon Hodgson

1668926

	registered interest
	date	09/11/2023
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Family Hubs
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many new family hubs were created in each region in (a) 2022 and (b) 2023.
	tabling member constituency	Washington and Sunderland West
	tabling member printed	Mrs Sharon Hodgson
	uin	1069
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/11/2023 answer text <p>The department is collecting data on the number of family hub sites within local authorities funded by the government through the Family Hubs Transformation Fund 1 and the Family Hubs &amp; Start for Life Programme and will publish a full list of family hub sites that are open in local authorities on the two programmes in due course.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed David Johnston question first answered 15/11/2023 11:22:56 answering member 4761 label Biography information for David Johnston
	tabling member	1521 label Biography information for Mrs Sharon Hodgson

1663147

	registered interest
	date	13/10/2023
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Free School Meals
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 14 June 2023 to Question 187978 on Free School Meals, how her Department reviews the eligibility conditions for Free School Meals to ensure that they support those that most need them.
	tabling member constituency	Washington and Sunderland West
	tabling member printed	Mrs Sharon Hodgson
	uin	201001
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/10/2023 answer text <p>The provision of free school meals to children from households who are on low income or out of work is important to the Government.</p><p>Over two million pupils are currently eligible for benefits based Free School Meals (FSM). Close to 1.3 million additional infants receive free and nutritious meals under the Universal Infant Free School Meals policy.</p><p>The Department does not have plans to change the current eligibility conditions for FSM, but will continue to keep eligibility under review to ensure that these meals are supporting those who most need them. The Department continues to work with other Government Departments to monitor the consequences of the rising cost of living and the impact on disadvantaged families.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 23/10/2023 16:21:56 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
	tabling member	1521 label Biography information for Mrs Sharon Hodgson

1663402

	registered interest
	date	13/10/2023
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Food Technology: Finance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to page 204 of the White Paper on Levelling up the United Kingdom, CP604, published on 2 February 2022, how much funding she plans to provide for food technology lessons in each of the next three years; what steps she is taking to support the Government's aim of all children leaving secondary school knowing at least six recipes to support healthy living; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Washington and Sunderland West
	tabling member printed	Mrs Sharon Hodgson
	uin	201256
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/10/2023 answer text <p>Government funding has been allocated to the Oak National Academy to create food and nutrition lesson content. Work is underway for this to be produced as part of their wider scheme of work in design, technology and food.</p><p> </p><p>As part of this, Oak is developing support to ensure that all children are excited about cooking and experimenting with different foods and new ingredients in the classroom so that they leave school being able to cook six meals that will support healthy lifestyles. A design and technology subject expert has been appointed and Oak will begin to start their work on producing curriculum materials in the coming months.</p><p> </p><p>By using an existing, established route for developing curriculum content, this will ensure coherence with the rest of the curriculum materials that Oak is developing, presenting support for schools and value for money for taxpayers.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, as part of the Department’s wider support for food in schools, the Department is offering bursaries of £25,000 for design and technology teachers, including those teaching food.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 23/10/2023 12:13:21 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
	tabling member	1521 label Biography information for Mrs Sharon Hodgson

1663491

	registered interest
	date	13/10/2023
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Department for Education: Mental Health Services
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of contracting (a) rehabilitation, (b) therapy and (c) other similar services for key workers.
	tabling member constituency	Washington and Sunderland West
	tabling member printed	Mrs Sharon Hodgson
	uin	201345
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/10/2023 answer text <p>It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 26/10/2023 11:20:01 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
	tabling member	1521 label Biography information for Mrs Sharon Hodgson

1662093

	registered interest
	date	19/09/2023
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Childcare: Washington and Sunderland West
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 14 September 2023 to Question 198639 on Childcare, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure the adequacy of (a) trained staff, (b) safe premises and (c) registered places in Washington and Sunderland West constituency by the start of September 2025 to offer eligible children aged nine months and above to access 30 hours a week of free childcare for 38 weeks each year until the end of the term before they start at primary school.
	tabling member constituency	Washington and Sunderland West
	tabling member printed	Mrs Sharon Hodgson
	uin	200233
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/10/2023 answer text <p>Having enough staff in place to deliver high-quality education and care will be key to ensuring the successful delivery of our record expansion of early years entitlements. Driving up interest in early years careers and ensuring there are enough opportunities for career development is a priority for this government.</p><p>In the government’s Spring Budget 2023, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced transformative reforms to childcare for parents, children and the economy. By 2027/28, this Government will expect to be spending in excess of £8 billion every year on free hours and early education, helping working families with their childcare costs. This represents the single biggest investment in childcare in England ever.</p><p>The department is developing a range of new workforce initiatives including the launch of a new national campaign, planned for the beginning of 2024, to boost interest in the sector and support the recruitment and retention of talented staff. To increase interest in early years, we are working to remove unnecessary barriers to entering the sector as well as considering how to make early years qualifications more accessible, coordinated and relevant.</p><p>Over the summer the department launched a competition for Early Years Skills Bootcamps with a pathway to an accelerated level 3 Early Years Educator apprenticeship, and we will consider degree apprenticeship routes so everyone from junior staff to senior leaders can easily move into or indeed enhance their career in the sector. We are also working across government to boost early years career awareness by collaborating with the Department for Work and Pensions and Careers &amp; Enterprise Company to promote the importance and value of a career in early years.</p><p>Regarding safe premises, with a growing number of staff joining the sector, the safety of our youngest children remains as important as ever. All new and existing early years providers must keep children safe and promote their welfare. The Early Years Foundation Stage statutory framework sets the standards that all early years providers in England must meet to ensure that children are kept healthy and safe. More information can be found here: <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1170108/EYFS_framework_from_September_2023.pdf" target="_blank">https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1170108/EYFS_framework_from_September_2023.pdf</a>.</p><p>Under these requirements, all owners and managers of childcare settings have a responsibility to ensure that their premises, including overall floor space and outdoor spaces, are fit for purpose and suitable for the age of children cared for and the activities provided on the premises. All providers must also comply with the requirements of health and safety legislation, including fire safety and hygiene requirements. At all times when children are present, at least one person who has a current paediatric first aid certificate must be on the premises.</p><p>Under Section 6 of the Childcare Act 2006, local authorities are responsible for ensuring that the provision of childcare is sufficient to meet the requirements of parents in their area. Part B of the Early education and childcare statutory guidance for local authorities highlights that local authorities should report annually to elected council members on how they are meeting their duty to secure sufficient childcare, and to make this report available and accessible to parents. More information can be found here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-education-and-childcare--2" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-education-and-childcare--2</a>.</p><p>The Department has regular contact with each local authority in England about their sufficiency of childcare and any issues they are facing. Where local authorities report sufficiency challenges, we discuss what action the local authority is taking to address those issues and where needed support the local authority with any specific requirements through our childcare sufficiency support contract.</p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed David Johnston grouped question UIN 200560 200562 question first answered 17/10/2023 12:32:01 answering member 4761 label Biography information for David Johnston
	tabling member	1521 label Biography information for Mrs Sharon Hodgson

1659499

	registered interest
	date	11/09/2023
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Art and Design: Secondary Education
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of increasing levels of art and design training in Primary Initial Teacher Education on levels of (a) uptake of and (b) attainment in art and design-related subjects at (i) GCSE and (ii) A level.
	tabling member constituency	Washington and Sunderland West
	tabling member printed	Mrs Sharon Hodgson
	uin	198653
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/09/2023 answer text <p>The Government believes in providing a high quality education for all pupils, and integral to this is cultural education, including teaching music and the wider arts. All state funded schools are required to teach a broad and balanced curriculum, and this includes promoting pupils' cultural development.</p><p>The Department will continue to invest around £115 million per annum in cultural education over three years, through the music, arts, and heritage programmes. With the real terms per pupil increases to core school funding and the nearly £5 billion that has been announced for education recovery, schools will continue to have the flexibility to deliver a broad and ambitious curriculum and enrichment activities, including in arts and creative subjects.</p><p>The Department published the Model Music Curriculum in 2021 and a refreshed National Plan for Music Education (NPME) in 2022 to support teachers in delivering high quality music education. The NPME was jointly published with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) in June 2022, and sets out a vision for music education to 2030 – to enable all pupils to learn to sing, play an instrument and create music together, and have the opportunity to progress their musical interests and talents, including professionally.</p><p>The Department will also publish a Cultural Education Plan in 2023, working with DCMS and Arts Council England. This will include how best to support pupils who wish to pursue careers in creative and cultural industries.</p><p>High quality teaching is the most important in school factor in improving outcomes for pupils. The Department therefore published the Initial Teacher Training (ITT) Core Content Framework (CCF) in November 2019. The CCF, alongside the Early Career Framework, establishes an entitlement to a three or more year structured package of support for future generations of teachers.</p><p>The CCF has been designed to cover the content required by trainee teachers irrespective of subject or phase, though there is a strong emphasis on the need for training to be subject and phase specific.</p><p>Qualified Teacher Status continues to be awarded at the end of ITT against the Teachers’ Standards, which are reflected in the design of the CCF. Standard 3 requires teachers to ‘have a secure knowledge of the relevant subject(s) and curriculum areas, foster and maintain pupils’ interest in the subject, and address misunderstandings’.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb grouped question UIN 198654 question first answered 19/09/2023 16:10:22 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
	tabling member	1521 label Biography information for Mrs Sharon Hodgson

1659500

	registered interest
	date	11/09/2023
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Teachers: Art and Design
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the report by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Art, Craft and Design in Education entitled Art Now, published on 27 June 2023, whether her Department is taking steps to improve the quality of primary Initial Teacher Education for art and design related subjects.
	tabling member constituency	Washington and Sunderland West
	tabling member printed	Mrs Sharon Hodgson
	uin	198654
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/09/2023 answer text <p>The Government believes in providing a high quality education for all pupils, and integral to this is cultural education, including teaching music and the wider arts. All state funded schools are required to teach a broad and balanced curriculum, and this includes promoting pupils' cultural development.</p><p>The Department will continue to invest around £115 million per annum in cultural education over three years, through the music, arts, and heritage programmes. With the real terms per pupil increases to core school funding and the nearly £5 billion that has been announced for education recovery, schools will continue to have the flexibility to deliver a broad and ambitious curriculum and enrichment activities, including in arts and creative subjects.</p><p>The Department published the Model Music Curriculum in 2021 and a refreshed National Plan for Music Education (NPME) in 2022 to support teachers in delivering high quality music education. The NPME was jointly published with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) in June 2022, and sets out a vision for music education to 2030 – to enable all pupils to learn to sing, play an instrument and create music together, and have the opportunity to progress their musical interests and talents, including professionally.</p><p>The Department will also publish a Cultural Education Plan in 2023, working with DCMS and Arts Council England. This will include how best to support pupils who wish to pursue careers in creative and cultural industries.</p><p>High quality teaching is the most important in school factor in improving outcomes for pupils. The Department therefore published the Initial Teacher Training (ITT) Core Content Framework (CCF) in November 2019. The CCF, alongside the Early Career Framework, establishes an entitlement to a three or more year structured package of support for future generations of teachers.</p><p>The CCF has been designed to cover the content required by trainee teachers irrespective of subject or phase, though there is a strong emphasis on the need for training to be subject and phase specific.</p><p>Qualified Teacher Status continues to be awarded at the end of ITT against the Teachers’ Standards, which are reflected in the design of the CCF. Standard 3 requires teachers to ‘have a secure knowledge of the relevant subject(s) and curriculum areas, foster and maintain pupils’ interest in the subject, and address misunderstandings’.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb grouped question UIN 198653 question first answered 19/09/2023 16:10:22 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
	tabling member	1521 label Biography information for Mrs Sharon Hodgson