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1537354

	registered interest
	date	31/10/2022
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Pupils: Travel
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if his Department will provide additional support to students from low-income families to help pay for journeys to and from their (a) school and (b) other place of education in the 2022-23 academic year, in the context of the rise in inflation.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Aaron Bell
	uin	74978
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/11/2022 answer text <p>The Department’s home-to-school transport policy aims to ensure that no child is unable to access education because of a lack of transport. Local authorities must provide free home-to-school transport for children of compulsory school age who attend their nearest school and cannot walk there due to distance, route safety, or as a result of special educational needs, disability or mobility problems. There are additional rights to free transport for low-income families aimed at helping them exercise school choice. These are known as extended rights. Guidance for local authorities on home-to-school transport is available here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/home-to-school-travel-and-transport-guidance" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/home-to-school-travel-and-transport-guidance</a>.</p><p> </p><p>Local authorities must also publish a transport policy statement each year that sets out the travel arrangements they consider it necessary to make to support young people of sixth form age to attend post-16 education or training. It is for local authorities to decide on the exact level of post-16 transport support in their area, based on local circumstances and priorities. Some young people may be eligible for support from the 16-19 Bursary Fund. Further information can be accessed here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/1619-bursary-fund" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/1619-bursary-fund</a>.</p><p> </p><p>Most central government funding for home to school transport is provided through the Local Government Finance Settlement (LGFS) administered by the Department for Levelling up, Housing and Communities. The LGFS made £54.1 billion available to local authorities in the financial year 2022/23, an increase of up to £3.7 billion on 2021/22. This is the largest cash-terms increase in grant funding provided through the settlement in the past 10 years. The Department also provides grant funding to local authorities as a contribution towards the cost of extended rights transport. This amount is £43.3 million in the 2022/23 financial year.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 08/11/2022 14:28:26 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
	tabling member	4837 label Biography information for Aaron Bell

1543540

	registered interest
	date	18/11/2022
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Carers
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has taken recent steps to help support kinship carers.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Aaron Bell
	uin	90897
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/11/2022 answer text <p>The department is supporting the Kinship charity to deliver up to 100 peer-to-peer support groups across England to support kinship carers.</p><p>The recently published Independent Review of Children’s Social Care set out recommendations on how the government can support kinship families. The department is now considering these recommendations. We are working up a comprehensive response to the recommendations in the Review, which will set out how the department intends to support kinship families.</p> answering member constituency East Surrey answering member printed Claire Coutinho question first answered 28/11/2022 12:48:27 answering member 4806 label Biography information for Claire Coutinho
	tabling member	4837 label Biography information for Aaron Bell

1486057

	registered interest
	date	04/07/2022
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Department for Education: Pay
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Living Wage Foundation's real wage calculator, if he will make estimate of how many (a) direct employees, (b) contractors and (c) agency workers who work in his Department and relevant agencies and public bodies receive a wage below that of either (i) the UK Real Living Wage outside of Greater London or (ii) the London Living Wage inside of Greater London.
	tabling member constituency	Erith and Thamesmead
	tabling member printed	Abena Oppong-Asare
	uin	30189
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/07/2022 answer text <p>The table below shows the department’s estimate, including its agencies and arm’s length bodies, of the number of direct employees, contractors and agency workers who receive a wage below either the UK Real Living Wage or the London Living Wage.</p><p> </p><p>Table 1: Estimate of the number of people paid below the UK Real Living Wage or the London Living Wage.</p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p>Based outside of Greater London and receive a wage below the UK Real Living Wage</p></td><td><p>Based inside Greater London and receive a wage below the London Living Wage</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Direct employees</p></td><td><p>Less than 1,500 employees</p></td><td><p>Less than 5 employees</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Contractors</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Agency workers</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td></tr></tbody></table> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 25/07/2022 12:09:34 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4820 label Biography information for Abena Oppong-Asare

1195654

	registered interest
	date	13/05/2020
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Nurseries: Coronavirus
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reasons maintained nursery schools are not eligible to claim (a) free school meal vouchers and (b) funding for exceptional costs associated with the covid-19 outbreak.
	tabling member constituency	Erith and Thamesmead
	tabling member printed	Abena Oppong-Asare
	uin	46819
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/05/2020 answer text <p>The government recognises that maintained nursery schools are an important part of the early years sector and provide valuable services, especially in disadvantaged areas.</p><p>We are committed to funding for maintained nursery schools in the longer term. Last October, we announced that maintained nursery schools would continue to receive supplementary funding for the whole of the financial year 2020-21 and this is unchanged by the COVID-19 outbreak, along with their funding for the usual early education entitlements through the dedicated schools grant. At the moment, our resources are focused on tackling the unprecedented challenges created by COVID-19. But resolving the long-term funding of maintained nursery schools is high on our list of priorities and we will return to it as soon as we are able. Any reform to the way maintained nursery schools are funded in the future will be accompanied by appropriate funding protections.</p><p>Unlike most state-funded schools, maintained nursery schools typically rely on private income for a significant proportion of their total income. Therefore, we have ensured that access to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme is also available to maintained nursery schools, in line with the published guidance.</p><p>Maintained nursery schools can access the free school meal vouchers via Edenred.</p> answering member constituency Chelmsford answering member printed Vicky Ford grouped question UIN 46760 question first answered 18/05/2020 16:50:21 answering member 4674 label Biography information for Vicky Ford
	tabling member	4820 label Biography information for Abena Oppong-Asare

1198847

	registered interest
	date	01/06/2020
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Children: Coronavirus
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to (a) ensure that vulnerable children have access and contact with social workers during the covid-19 restrictions and (b) support teachers working in school who are the only point of contact outside the home for vulnerable children to maintain that contact.
	tabling member constituency	Erith and Thamesmead
	tabling member printed	Abena Oppong-Asare
	uin	52594
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/06/2020 answer text <p>Our latest guidance on supporting vulnerable children is available here:<br><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-on-vulnerable-children-and-young-people" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-on-vulnerable-children-and-young-people</a><em>.</em></p><p>We are committed to ensuring the safety and protection of vulnerable children and young people, particularly during the current period. This is why education settings remained open for these children and local authorities are maintaining contact with them.</p><p>Children’s social care guidance states that we expect local authorities and social workers to make judgements about visiting vulnerable children. Within the statutory framework, they should prioritise children’s welfare as paramount, balancing the risks to children, the risks to families and risks to the workforce. There are many ways to keep in touch with a child, young person or family without physical face-to-face contact and it is expected that these will be utilised appropriately and proportionately in response to the risk assessment undertaken for the child on a case by case basis. The guidance is available here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-childrens-social-care-services/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-local-authorities-on-childrens-social-care" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-childrens-social-care-services/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-local-authorities-on-childrens-social-care</a>.</p><p>To ensure children and young people can maintain contact with a social worker, we are providing laptops and tablets to children with a social worker who do not have access to a device otherwise, either privately or through school. We are also providing 4G wireless routers to children with a social worker at secondary school in order to support them to maintain contact with their social worker and/or access remote education at home.</p><p>The department’s safeguarding guidance sets out that a school’s child protection policy should be updated to reflect the arrangements in place to keep children not physically attending safe, especially online, and how concerns about these children should be progressed. In addition, the advice sets out that the Designated Safeguarding Lead (or deputy) should provide support to teachers and pastoral staff to ensure that contact is maintained with children (and their families) who are not yet returning to school. The guidance is available here:<br><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-safeguarding-in-schools-colleges-and-other-providers/coronavirus-covid-19-safeguarding-in-schools-colleges-and-other-providers" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-safeguarding-in-schools-colleges-and-other-providers/coronavirus-covid-19-safeguarding-in-schools-colleges-and-other-providers</a>.</p> answering member constituency Chelmsford answering member printed Vicky Ford question first answered 09/06/2020 14:34:47 answering member 4674 label Biography information for Vicky Ford
	tabling member	4820 label Biography information for Abena Oppong-Asare

1199763

	registered interest
	date	02/06/2020
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Free School Meals: Erith and Thamesmead
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans he has to support the families of pupils on free school meals during the school summer holidays in 2020 in Erith and Thamesmead constituency.
	tabling member constituency	Erith and Thamesmead
	tabling member printed	Abena Oppong-Asare
	uin	53658
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/06/2020 answer text <p>I refer the hon. Members to the answer I gave on 23 June 2020 to Question <a href="https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-06-03/54195/" target="_blank">54195</a>.</p> answering member constituency Chelmsford answering member printed Vicky Ford grouped question UIN 51893 53329 53409 53427 53439 53570 53579 53997 54032 54100 54228 55666 55678 55885 57324 57943 57944 58071 question first answered 25/06/2020 09:47:55 answering member 4674 label Biography information for Vicky Ford
	tabling member	4820 label Biography information for Abena Oppong-Asare

1238230

	registered interest
	date	28/09/2020
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Children's Centres: Coronavirus
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he has taken to ensure that no children’s centres are closed as a result of the covid-19 outbreak.
	tabling member constituency	Erith and Thamesmead
	tabling member printed	Abena Oppong-Asare
	uin	96212
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/10/2020 answer text <p>The decision on whether to keep Sure Start children’s centres open in response to the COVID-19 outbreak is a decision for local authorities to take.</p><p>Local authorities have a duty under the Childcare Act (2006) to ensure that there are sufficient children’s centres to meet the needs of local families, and a duty to consult where permanent changes are planned to local children’s centre provision. If a council decides to close a Sure Start children’s centre on a permanent basis, statutory guidance requires them to demonstrate that local children and families will not be adversely affected.</p> answering member constituency Chelmsford answering member printed Vicky Ford question first answered 06/10/2020 15:38:45 answering member 4674 label Biography information for Vicky Ford
	tabling member	4820 label Biography information for Abena Oppong-Asare

1238231

	registered interest
	date	28/09/2020
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Children: Coronavirus
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking with local authorities to ensure that children’s services are not adversely affected due to the covid-19 outbreak.
	tabling member constituency	Erith and Thamesmead
	tabling member printed	Abena Oppong-Asare
	uin	96213
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/10/2020 answer text <p>Ensuring that vulnerable children remain protected is a top priority for the government.</p><p>The department has been working closely with local authorities to assess the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak, setting up dedicated regional teams that are in frequent contact. Bringing together expertise from across the department, these teams monitor the challenges local authorities are facing. This includes any increases in demand and can provide support and guidance where appropriate.</p><p>We are also monitoring referrals to children’s services via our regional teams and via the Vulnerable Children and Young People survey, which collects data fortnightly from local authorities in England. As well as this, as part of a phased return to routine inspection, Ofsted are making assurance visits to children’s social care providers.</p><p>The government has provided an unprecedented package of support for vulnerable children, including:</p><ul><li>£3.7 billion of additional funding to support local authorities in meeting COVID-19 related pressures, including in children’s services. This funding is un-ringfenced, recognising local authorities are best placed to decide how to meet the major COVID-19 service pressures in their local area.</li><li>£1.6 million of funding for the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children to help promote and expand their national UK helpline which provides advice and guidance and support to adults reporting safeguarding concerns.</li><li>The Adoption Support Fund has £8 million to help families under pressure as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak.</li><li>The Innovation Programme with more than £12 million for 14 projects tackling increased risk, including from domestic violence and supporting teenagers at risk of exploitation.</li><li>See, Hear, Respond is a £7 million partnership of national children’s charities and local organisations to provide targeted support to vulnerable children, young people and their families who are affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.</li><li>Laptops and tablets for children with social workers and care leavers to help them keep in touch with the services they need, as well as 4G internet devices for connecting to the internet.</li><li>Continuing the Social Work Together programme to match social workers to employers bringing back 8,000 former social workers onto the professional register.</li></ul><p>We have also made temporary legislative changes to help reduce pressure on the system and enable children's services to continue to support vulnerable children during these unprecedented times.</p><p>Our latest guidance on supporting vulnerable children and young people during the COVID-19 outbreak is available at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-childrens-social-care-services" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-childrens-social-care-services</a>.</p> answering member constituency Chelmsford answering member printed Vicky Ford question first answered 01/10/2020 16:04:54 answering member 4674 label Biography information for Vicky Ford
	tabling member	4820 label Biography information for Abena Oppong-Asare

1238906

	registered interest
	date	29/09/2020
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Nurseries: Coronavirus
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that safety measures introduced to nurseries re-opening as covid-19 lockdown restrictions were eased are (a) monitored and (b) maintained.
	tabling member constituency	Erith and Thamesmead
	tabling member printed	Abena Oppong-Asare
	uin	97052
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/10/2020 answer text <p>The department has published the ‘Actions for early years and childcare providers during the COVID-19 outbreak' guidance, which is available here:<br><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures</a>.</p><p>This guidance is for local authorities and all early years providers in England. For reception, schools should, in the most part, refer to the guidance for schools during the COVID-19 outbreak, although some of the information in the early years guidance is relevant as well. The guidance for schools is available here:<br><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/guidance-for-schools-coronavirus-covid-19" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/guidance-for-schools-coronavirus-covid-19</a>.</p><p>Settings must comply with health and safety law, which requires them to assess risks and put in place proportionate control measures. Settings should thoroughly review their health and safety risk assessment and draw up plans as part of their wider opening. Settings should have active arrangements in place to monitor that the controls are effective, working as planned, and updated appropriately, for example when any issues are identified, or when there are changes in public health advice.</p> answering member constituency Chelmsford answering member printed Vicky Ford question first answered 05/10/2020 16:11:46 answering member 4674 label Biography information for Vicky Ford
	tabling member	4820 label Biography information for Abena Oppong-Asare

1238907

	registered interest
	date	29/09/2020
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Nurseries: Coronavirus
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of covid-19 risk posed to nursery workers who have returned to work since 1 June 2020.
	tabling member constituency	Erith and Thamesmead
	tabling member printed	Abena Oppong-Asare
	uin	97053
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/10/2020 answer text <p>Keeping children and staff safe is the government’s utmost priority.</p><p>Settings must comply with health and safety law, which requires them to assess risks and put in place proportionate control measures. Public Health England is clear that the risk of transmission and infection is substantially reduced if nurseries and childminders implement the protective measures as set out in the ‘Actions for early years and childcare providers during the COVID-19 outbreak’ guidance. This guidance is available here:<br><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures</a>.</p><p>Adults should minimise contact with each other while at work. However, in situations where social distancing between adults in settings is not possible (for example when moving around in corridors and communal areas), settings have the discretion to recommend the use of face coverings for adults on site, both staff and visitors.</p><p>We continue to keep this guidance under review as we learn more about COVID-19.</p> answering member constituency Chelmsford answering member printed Vicky Ford question first answered 05/10/2020 16:20:51 answering member 4674 label Biography information for Vicky Ford
	tabling member	4820 label Biography information for Abena Oppong-Asare