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1085847

	registered interest
	date	11/03/2019
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Children: Day Care
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	What recent progress his Department has made on helping families to access childcare.
	tabling member constituency	Sittingbourne and Sheppey
	tabling member printed	Gordon Henderson
	uin	909697
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/03/2019 answer text <p>By 2020 this government will be spending £6 billion on supporting families with childcare. All 3 and 4 year olds, and the most disadvantaged 2 year olds, can access 15 hours a week of early education. From September 2017, this government doubled the childcare entitlement for working parents of 3 and 4 year olds to 30 hours a week.</p><p> </p><p>We recognise that parents’ working patterns vary significantly and want to ensure that the free entitlements deliver childcare to meet their needs, as well as being high quality early education to support the development needs of children. We are also encouraging partnerships between providers to support flexible provision.</p><p> </p><p>In particular, we want 30 hours to continue to build on the flexible provision that we were already seeing across the country with the universal 15 hours. All the free entitlements can be “stretched” by taking fewer hours per week over up to 52 weeks of the year to cover term-time and the school holidays, for example 23 hours for 48 weeks of the year, and free places can be delivered at weekends.</p> answering member constituency Stratford-on-Avon answering member printed Nadhim Zahawi question first answered 11/03/2019 17:01:50 answering member 4113 label Biography information for Nadhim Zahawi
	tabling member	4050 label Biography information for Gordon Henderson

1026695

	registered interest
	date	17/12/2018
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Children: Social Services
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	What recent discussions he has had with directors of children’s services on their ability to fulfil their statutory duties.
	tabling member constituency	Dudley North
	tabling member printed	Ian Austin
	uin	908224
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/12/2018 answer text <p>My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and I regularly meet Directors of Children’s Services (DCS), and we have full and frank conversations on the delivery of children’s services. For example, just last week we met DCSs from Yorkshire and London. I understand the challenges facing the sector and I will continue to work with local government colleagues, particularly in advance of the next Spending Review.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Stratford-on-Avon answering member printed Nadhim Zahawi question first answered 17/12/2018 16:51:10 answering member 4113 label Biography information for Nadhim Zahawi
	tabling member	1511 label Biography information for Lord Austin of Dudley

1020142

	registered interest
	date	04/12/2018
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Children: Social Services
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent discussions he has had with Ofsted on the delivery of local authority-run children’s services.
	tabling member constituency	Enfield, Southgate
	tabling member printed	Bambos Charalambous
	uin	908095
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/12/2018 answer text <p>Ministers and officials at the department meet representatives of Ofsted frequently to discuss the delivery of local authority-run children’s services. I last had such a discussion with Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector in November. I also meet regularly with Ofsted’s National Director for Social Care, most recently in October.</p> answering member constituency Stratford-on-Avon answering member printed Nadhim Zahawi question first answered 10/12/2018 10:05:26 answering member 4113 label Biography information for Nadhim Zahawi
	tabling member	4610 label Biography information for Bambos Charalambous

1086489

	registered interest
	date	11/03/2019
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Foster Care
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress he has made on (a) increasing the number of and (b) improving support for foster carers since the Fostering better outcomes report published in July 2018.
	tabling member constituency	Mid Dorset and North Poole
	tabling member printed	Michael Tomlinson
	uin	230857
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/03/2019 answer text <p><strong>‘</strong>Fostering Better Outcomes’ set out our commitment to improving the lives of children in foster care, including making sure there are sufficient foster parents to meet the needs of children, and that foster parents have access to the support they need. Whilst achieving this is a long-term strategy and requires everyone in the system to work together to bring about real improvements for foster parents and the children for whom they care, we have already made significant progress towards our commitments, including the following points:</p><p> </p><ul><li>We have undertaken a digital ‘discovery phase’ and have now moved to an ‘alpha’ testing phase, exploring how information and support can be made more accessible to current and prospective foster parents.</li><li>We are developing the ‘fostering trailblazers’ concept focusing on how we can best identify, evaluate and share examples of best practise.</li><li>The annual uplift to the national minimum allowance for foster parents was published in March. A communication has been sent to all Directors of Children’s Services making clear that this is the very minimum that we expect foster parents to be paid.</li><li>We have extended the Department for Education’s contract with Fosterline in order that current and prospective foster parents can continue to access free independent advice, advocacy and support that they tell us they find so valuable.</li><li>We have worked with the Fostering Network to strengthen the Foster Carer Charter, which clearly details the support foster parents can expect. We continue to encourage all fostering services to commit publicly to the charter.</li><li>Following our £3.8 million investment through the Children’s Social Care Innovation Programme, we will share the evaluation of the Mockingbird Family Model project, to enable more fostering providers to understand the benefits and value of peer support to foster parents in order to develop their own systems.</li><li>We have invited bids from new or existing fostering partnerships to develop or expand collaborative approaches to sufficiency planning and commissioning of fostering placements, using needs analysis and innovative delivery models.</li></ul> answering member constituency Stratford-on-Avon answering member printed Nadhim Zahawi question first answered 19/03/2019 12:30:09 answering member 4113 label Biography information for Nadhim Zahawi
	tabling member	4497 label Biography information for Michael Tomlinson

1086676

	registered interest
	date	11/03/2019
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Pupil Premium: Culture
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of pupil premium funding is spent by schools on artistic and cultural activities.
	tabling member constituency	Wythenshawe and Sale East
	tabling member printed	Mike Kane
	uin	230810
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/03/2019 answer text <p>The pupil premium is additional funding that schools are allocated to help improve the progress and attainment of disadvantaged pupils - those who have been in receipt of benefits-based free school meals at any point in the last 6 years, are currently looked-after or who have left care through adoption or other specified routes.</p><p>Schools have flexibility over how they spend the pupil premium, as they are best placed to understand and respond to the needs of their disadvantaged pupils. The department does not routinely collect information from schools about their expenditure of pupil premium funding on particular activities.</p> answering member constituency Stratford-on-Avon answering member printed Nadhim Zahawi question first answered 15/03/2019 13:54:49 answering member 4113 label Biography information for Nadhim Zahawi
	tabling member	4316 label Biography information for Mike Kane

1086622

	registered interest
	date	11/03/2019
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Special Educational Needs: Finance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to Answer of 4 March 2019 to Question 228139 on Special Educational Needs: Finance, whether he plans to launch his Department's call for evidence looking into the financial incentives in the SEND system by 14 June 2019.
	tabling member constituency	South Shields
	tabling member printed	Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck
	uin	230798
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/03/2019 answer text <p>Yes, the call for evidence will be launched shortly.</p> answering member constituency Stratford-on-Avon answering member printed Nadhim Zahawi question first answered 14/03/2019 17:15:21 answering member 4113 label Biography information for Nadhim Zahawi
	tabling member	4277 label Biography information for Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck

1086709

	registered interest
	date	11/03/2019
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Pre-school Education: Children in Care
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what percentage of children in each reception class intake in each of the last 20 years have been in care.
	tabling member constituency	Westmorland and Lonsdale
	tabling member printed	Tim Farron
	uin	230721
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/03/2019 answer text <p>The information is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.</p><p>The number of schools and pupils in England, including the total number of pupils in reception, is published at the annual ‘Schools, pupils and their characteristics’ statistical release, which is available at the following link:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2018" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2018</a>.</p><p>The number of children looked after in England is published in the annual ‘Children looked after in England including adoption’ statistical release, which is available at the following link:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/children-looked-after-in-england-including-adoption-2017-to-2018" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/children-looked-after-in-england-including-adoption-2017-to-2018</a>.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Stratford-on-Avon answering member printed Nadhim Zahawi question first answered 18/03/2019 16:45:25 answering member 4113 label Biography information for Nadhim Zahawi
	tabling member	1591 label Biography information for Tim Farron

1086600

	registered interest
	date	11/03/2019
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Pupils: Sanitary Products
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent estimate his Department has made of the annual cost of providing free sanitary products to all girls in secondary schools in England.
	tabling member constituency	Coventry South
	tabling member printed	Mr Jim Cunningham
	uin	230619
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/03/2019 answer text <p>No one should be held back from reaching their potential because of their gender or background. That is why my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in his Spring Statement on 13 March 2019 that the Department for Education will lead a scheme to provide free sanitary products in all secondary schools and colleges in England. The annual cost of this provision will depend on the specific nature of the delivery approach and we will refine costs as part of our policy development.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Stratford-on-Avon answering member printed Nadhim Zahawi question first answered 14/03/2019 17:18:10 answering member 4113 label Biography information for Nadhim Zahawi
	tabling member	308 label Biography information for Mr Jim Cunningham

1084384

	registered interest
	date	08/03/2019
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Children: Social Services
	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 the correlation between funding for children’s services between 2010-11 and 2017-18 and the number of (a) referrals to children’s services, (b) referrals to children's services within 12 months, (c) children in need, (d) child protection enquiries, (e) child protection plans and (f) looked after children over that period.
	tabling member constituency	Erith and Thamesmead
	tabling member printed	Teresa Pearce
	uin	230051
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/03/2019 answer text <p>Funding for children’s services is made available through the Local Government Finance Settlement (LGFS) which gives local authorities flexibility to target spending according to local needs and to fulfil their statutory responsibilities, including services for children and families. Since 2010, the responsibilities of local authorities and the makeup of their funding streams have changed significantly, including the move for local authorities to retain locally raised business rates. Therefore, wider spending power measures are not directly comparable over this period.</p><p> </p><p>Over the 5 year period from 2015-16 to 2019-20, councils have access, through the LGFS, to over £200 billion to deliver local services, including children’s services. Core spending power increased from £45.1 billion in 2018-19 to £46.4 billion in 2019-20. In addition to this the Autumn Budget announced a further £410 million in 2019-20 for local authorities to invest in adult and children’s social care services. It also announced £84 million of extra funding, over the next 5 years, to support local authorities to invest in initiatives that improve social work practice and decision making.</p><p> </p><p>Due to discontinuity in methods used for some of the data collected, we only look at trends in these numbers from 2013. The department’s data shows that since 2013, the number of referrals, children in need, child protection enquiries, children on child protection plans and looked after children at 31 March have risen by 10.5%, 7.1%, 50.9%, 24.5% and 10.7% respectively.</p><p> </p><p>The most common factors recorded in children’s social care assessments are domestic abuse and mental health. These have been consistently the top 2 factors for the years during which we have collected this data and have risen in line with trends in demand.</p> answering member constituency Stratford-on-Avon answering member printed Nadhim Zahawi question first answered 18/03/2019 15:23:34 answering member 4113 label Biography information for Nadhim Zahawi
	tabling member	4003 label Biography information for Teresa Pearce

1083650

	registered interest
	date	07/03/2019
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Children: Social Services
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how the National Stability Forum for Children’s Social Care is working to engage stakeholders across the sector; how that Forum has promoted effective practice and delivery; and whether that Forum has presented any recommendations for taking a national policy approach to improving looked-after children’s outcomes.
	tabling member constituency	Mid Dorset and North Poole
	tabling member printed	Michael Tomlinson
	uin	229793
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/03/2019 answer text <p>The membership of the National Stability Forum (NSF) has been established with the aim of improving stability for all children in the orbit of the care system. Its members are drawn from sector bodies, which engage with and reach out to stakeholders. Other individuals and organisations may be invited to attend meetings from time to time. Part of the NSF’s core role is to promote a clear message about the importance of stability for children in the care system.</p><p>To date, the NSF has reviewed a range of publicly available data on children in care to better understand how the care system is promoting stability and permanence and has focused initial discussions on the care placement market. The NSF has also shaped and endorsed the fostering seed-funding, which was a commitment government made following the Foster Care Review, to take steps to address the challenges in sufficient placements in all areas and for all levels of need.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Stratford-on-Avon answering member printed Nadhim Zahawi question first answered 15/03/2019 08:40:42 answering member 4113 label Biography information for Nadhim Zahawi
	tabling member	4497 label Biography information for Michael Tomlinson