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1699156

registered interest
date	26/03/2024
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Pupils: Autism
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that children with autism are adequately supported at school.
tabling member constituency	Hampstead and Kilburn
tabling member printed	Tulip Siddiq
uin	20720
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/04/2024 answer text <p>In the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and alternative provision Improvement Plan, the department set out a vision to improve mainstream education by setting standards for the early and accurate identification of need and the timely provision of access to support. The standards will clarify the types of support that should be ordinarily available in mainstream settings and who is responsible for securing the support. This will give parents confidence and clarity on how their child’s needs will be met.</p><p>As part of this, the department has committed to developing practitioner standards, which were known as practice guides in the Improvement Plan, to provide advice to education professionals. At least three practitioner standards will be published by the end of 2025, one of which will be focused on autism. The department will build on existing best practice and will include guidance on how an education environment may be adapted to better support the needs of autistic pupils.</p><p>The department's Universal Services contract brings together SEND-specific continuous professional development and support for the school and further education workforce to improve outcomes for children and young people, including those who are autistic.</p><p>The contract offers autism awareness training and resources delivered by the Autism Education Trust (AET). Over 135,000 education professionals have undertaken autism awareness training as part of AET's ‘train the trainer’ model since the Universal Services programme commenced in May 2022.</p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed David Johnston question first answered 19/04/2024 12:35:41 answering member 4761 label Biography information for David Johnston
tabling member	4518 label Biography information for Tulip Siddiq

1693545

registered interest
date	04/03/2024
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Assessments: Appeals
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the impact on educational attainment of denial of mitigated circumstances for children whose parent or guardian passed away outside of the current six month cut off prior to examinations.
tabling member constituency	Hampstead and Kilburn
tabling member printed	Tulip Siddiq
uin	16935
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/03/2024 answer text <p>This is a matter for Ofqual, the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation. I have asked its Interim Chief Regulator Sir Ian Bauckham, to write to the hon. Member and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.</p> answering member constituency East Hampshire answering member printed Damian Hinds question first answered 11/03/2024 14:00:02 answering member 3969 label Biography information for Damian Hinds
tabling member	4518 label Biography information for Tulip Siddiq

1693550

registered interest
date	04/03/2024
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Schools: Food
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to page 206 of the policy paper entitled National food strategy for England, updated in July 2021, whether her Department has made a recent assessment of the implications for its policies of the recommendation to remove the requirement for schools to serve meat three times a week from the School Food Standards.
tabling member constituency	Hampstead and Kilburn
tabling member printed	Tulip Siddiq
uin	16940
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/03/2024 answer text <p>The government’s school food standards regulates the food and drink provided at both lunchtime and at other times of the school day. Beyond this, the department believes that headteachers, school governors and caterers are best placed to make decisions about their school food policies, taking into account local circumstances and the needs of their pupils. The school food standards guidance is available at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-food-standards-resources-for-schools" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-food-standards-resources-for-schools</a>.</p><p> </p><p>The government recognises the importance of plant-based foods from a cultural and environmental point of view. The standards for school food allow schools the freedom to provide plant-based meals as needed. Meat must be served on three or more days each week and, beyond this, schools may provide a meal with a vegan source of protein every day if they choose to.</p><p> </p><p>The department believes that the current standards provide a robust yet flexible framework to ensure that pupils in England continue to receive high-quality and nutritious food that encourages healthy eating habits for life. The department is keeping the standards under review.</p> answering member constituency East Hampshire answering member printed Damian Hinds question first answered 11/03/2024 16:05:48 answering member 3969 label Biography information for Damian Hinds
tabling member	4518 label Biography information for Tulip Siddiq

1663511

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	Students: Cost of Living
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help support PhD students with the increased cost of living.
tabling member constituency	Hampstead and Kilburn
tabling member printed	Tulip Siddiq
uin	201365
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/10/2023 answer text <p>The Government introduced doctoral loans in the 2018/19 academic year. These loans, which offer up to £28,673 for courses starting in 2023/24, are a contribution to the costs of study, and are the first direct government funding for doctoral study available to students on an open to all basis. For example, available to all eligible students who have gained a place on an eligible programme of study.</p><p>The government is considering options for doctoral loans for the 2024/25 academic year and will be making an announcement in due course.</p><p>The government recognises the cost-of-living pressures that have impacted students. That is why the department asked the Office for Students to maintain Student Premium and Mental Health funding for the 2023/24 financial year at the same levels as the previous year.</p><p>The department has made available £276 million of Student Premium and Mental Health funding for the 2023/24 academic year to support students who need additional help. This funding will complement the help universities are providing through their own bursary, scholarship and hardship support schemes.</p> answering member constituency Harlow answering member printed Robert Halfon question first answered 23/10/2023 10:54:34 answering member 3985 label Biography information for Robert Halfon
tabling member	4518 label Biography information for Tulip Siddiq

1661074

registered interest
date	15/09/2023
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Sustainable Development: GCSE
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing sustainability content to GCSEs.
tabling member constituency	Hampstead and Kilburn
tabling member printed	Tulip Siddiq
uin	199789
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/09/2023 answer text <p>Topics related to climate change and the environment are already included within the respective Citizenship, Science and Geography national curricula. Existing GCSEs such as Design and Technology, Food Preparation and Nutrition, and Economics contain opportunities for students to be taught about the environmental and sustainability context of the processes and principles underlying these subjects. The Environmental Science A level is also already available.</p><p>As committed to in the Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy for the Education and Children’s Services Systems, the Department is introducing a Natural History GCSE. The Natural History GCSE will allow students to engage with and study specific organisms, such as plants and animals, and the contexts in which they live, including their complex interactions and dependencies. It will develop students’ skills of observation, description, recording, and analysis, through sustained and structured field study. It will enable pupils to build on their knowledge in other subjects, in particular Science and Geography.</p><p>Our strategy also commits to a National Education Nature Park and Climate Action Award, which will provide many educational opportunities for young people to take part in community science, in biodiversity monitoring and data analysis, and to translate knowledge into positive action and learn important skills for the future. Participants will have access to a comprehensive, curriculum based set of climate education resources, lesson plans, activities and schemes of work from Early Years Foundation Stage and Key Stages 1 to 4, curated and devised by a wide range of very knowledgeable stakeholders.</p><p>The Climate Action Award will recognise the environmental work already being done by schools and colleges. At its highest level, young people will be researching and undertaking projects that will prepare them for apprenticeships and further study in the new green economy.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 25/09/2023 10:59:15 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	4518 label Biography information for Tulip Siddiq

1661076

registered interest
date	15/09/2023
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Schools: Uniforms
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to monitor compliance with the statutory guidance entitled Cost of school uniforms, published on 19 November 2021; and if her Department will make an assessment of the potential impact of the cost of school uniforms on the level of children who do not attend school.
tabling member constituency	Hampstead and Kilburn
tabling member printed	Tulip Siddiq
uin	199790
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/09/2023 answer text <p>While it is the responsibility of school governing boards to determine their uniform policy, the Department expects schools to comply with the guidance on the cost of school uniforms. The Department continues to engage with the sector to ensure that schools are aware of their obligation to have regard to the guidance and in July 2023 published the results of a survey of school leaders looking at changes made as a result of the guidance. The survey results can be found at here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-and-college-panel-omnibus-surveys-for-2022-to-2023" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-and-college-panel-omnibus-surveys-for-2022-to-2023</a>.</p><p>The Department also continues to assess compliance with the guidance through engagement with key stakeholders, including school leaders and uniform suppliers, and via correspondence from parents.</p><p>The Department has no plans to make an assessment of the potential impact of the cost of school uniform on attendance. The guidance on the cost of school uniform is clear that, where it is suspected that financial hardship has resulted in a pupil not complying with a school’s published uniform policy, schools should take a mindful and considerate approach to resolve the situation.</p><p>Last year, the Government introduced strong new expectations on schools and Local Authorities to work together to tackle absence. The Department will continue to monitor attendance data to understand and assess the impact of the attendance reforms.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 25/09/2023 11:04:18 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	4518 label Biography information for Tulip Siddiq

1661080

registered interest
date	15/09/2023
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Prisoners: Children
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help support children who have a parent serving a prison sentence.
tabling member constituency	Hampstead and Kilburn
tabling member printed	Tulip Siddiq
uin	199793
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/09/2023 answer text <p>Working Together to Safeguard Children 2018 sets out local areas’ responsibilities to provide support and services. It highlights dependent children of imprisoned parents as a cohort which practitioners should be particularly aware of and should provide the appropriate needs-based advice and support to where needed.</p><p>The department’s ambition is for every family to receive the right support, at the right time. In Stable Homes, Built on Love, the department outlined its strategy for whole system reform, including family help which will provide effective and intensive support to any family facing significant challenges.</p><p>Prison Mother and Baby Units Admission Boards must be in receipt of a Children’s Services assessment in order to facilitate a Board. Every assessment by a social worker should reflect children’s needs within their family and community context, which would include taking account of a parent being in prison. These children’s circumstances vary considerably and therefore local agencies are best placed to determine what support is needed, whether early help, statutory social care services, or support for other needs such as mental health.</p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed David Johnston question first answered 25/09/2023 17:00:11 answering member 4761 label Biography information for David Johnston
tabling member	4518 label Biography information for Tulip Siddiq

1657464

registered interest
date	01/09/2023
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Teachers: Training
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that teaching staff receive appropriate training to support students with (a) autism and (b) sensory issues.
tabling member constituency	Hampstead and Kilburn
tabling member printed	Tulip Siddiq
uin	197029
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/09/2023 answer text <p>All teachers need to be equipped to teach pupils with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). High quality teaching is the single most important in-school factor in improving outcomes for all pupils, including those with autism.</p><p>Training and development to support pupils with autism starts at the beginning of a teacher’s training through their Initial Teacher Training (ITT) course, which is then embedded through the Early Career Framework (ECF). Careful consideration has been given to the needs of trainee teachers in relation to supporting pupils with SEND, and the ECF builds on that training for early career teachers.</p><p>Once teachers qualify and are employed in schools, head teachers also use their professional judgement to identify any further training, including specific specialisms, for individual staff that is relevant to them, the school, and its pupils, for example, through the Universal Services Programme.</p><p>The programme offers online training, professional development groups, bespoke school and college improvement projects, sector led research, autism awareness training and a focus on preparation for adulthood, including employer led webinars. The programme commenced in May 2022 and will run until Spring 2025.</p><p>So far, 6,500 school and college staff have accessed free online training modules, and 81 schools and over 135 colleges have identified and led their own SEND focused school improvement project. These projects focused on SEND Governance, teaching assistant deployment, early identification of SEND and curriculum.</p> answering member constituency Bognor Regis and Littlehampton answering member printed Nick Gibb question first answered 20/09/2023 17:23:59 answering member 111 label Biography information for Nick Gibb
tabling member	4518 label Biography information for Tulip Siddiq

1652968

registered interest
date	13/07/2023
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Students: Loans
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to support individuals on student loan plans (a) 2 and (b) 4.
tabling member constituency	Hampstead and Kilburn
tabling member printed	Tulip Siddiq
uin	194062
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/07/2023 answer text <p>Decisions on student finance have to be taken alongside other spending priorities to ensure the system remains financially sustainable and the costs of higher education (HE) are shared fairly between students and taxpayers, not all of whom have benefited from going to university.</p><p>The government has continued to increase maximum loans and grants for living and other costs for plan 2 student loans each year. Maximum support has been increased by 2.3% for the 2022/23 academic year, with a further 2.8% increase announced for 2023/24. In addition, the department is freezing maximum tuition fees for the 2023/24 and 2024/25 academic years to deliver better value for students and to keep the costs of HE under control. By 2024/25, maximum fees will have been frozen for seven years.</p><p>The government recognises the additional cost of living pressures that have arisen this year and that are impacting students. The department has made £276 million of student premium and mental health funding available for the 2023/24 academic year to support successful outcomes for students, including disadvantaged students.</p><p>Student loans are available to all eligible students, irrespective of background or financial history, and include significant protections. Monthly student loan repayments are calculated by income rather than by interest rates or the amount borrowed. If a borrower’s earnings are below the relevant repayment threshold, they will not be required to make any repayments. At the end of the loan term, or in case of death or disability, any outstanding loan debt, including interest accrued, will be written off at no detriment to the borrower. No commercial loans offer this level of protection. To further protect borrowers, where the government considers that the student loan interest rate is too high in comparison to the prevailing market rate, it will reduce the maximum plan 2, plan 3 and plan 5 interest rate.</p><p>Plan 4 student loans are issued by the Scottish Government, which has responsibility for HE in Scotland and determines the student finance arrangements for Scottish students.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Harlow answering member printed Robert Halfon question first answered 20/07/2023 16:59:48 answering member 3985 label Biography information for Robert Halfon
tabling member	4518 label Biography information for Tulip Siddiq

1652978

registered interest
date	13/07/2023
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Disability: Children
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help support families caring for disabled children.
tabling member constituency	Hampstead and Kilburn
tabling member printed	Tulip Siddiq
uin	194069
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/07/2023 answer text <p>It is the responsibility of local authorities, schools, and further education settings to commission appropriately qualified staff to support the education of children and young people in their area.</p><p>The department’s reforms, as set out in the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan and the Children’s Social Care Implementation strategy, detail the department’s commitments for providing stronger support for disabled children, including:</p><ul><li>a Law Commission review of children’s social care legislation for disabled children</li><li>non-stigmatising and easier to access family help</li><li>a stronger focus on disabled children in Working Together</li><li>new metrics that track the experiences of disabled children through the system</li><li>strengthened language to encourage areas to adopt Designated Social Care Officers</li><li>a £30 million investment in innovative approaches to short breaks for disabled children.</li></ul><p> </p> answering member constituency East Surrey answering member printed Claire Coutinho question first answered 20/07/2023 11:21:48 answering member 4806 label Biography information for Claire Coutinho
tabling member	4518 label Biography information for Tulip Siddiq