Show Search Form

Search Results

registered interest	true false
date	exactly: or between: and
answering body
answering dept id
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name
hansard heading
house id
legislature	pref label
question text
tabling member constituency
tabling member printed
uin
answer	is ministerial correction true false date of answer exactly: or between: and answer text answering member constituency answering member printed grouped question UIN question first answered answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

1719175

registered interest
date	20/05/2024
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	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to increase investment in children’s services and provide updated funding formulae to (1) direct resources according to deprivation-based need, and (2) account for changing levels of deprivation.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of Newcastle
uin	HL4782
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/05/2024 answer text <p>The government is aware the costs of delivering children’s social care are rising, which is why the department has already taken action and announced a series of additional measures:</p><ul><li>In January 2024, the government set out a support package for local government worth £600 million, including £500 million of ringfenced funding for children’s and adults’ social care services distributed through the Social Care Grant. Councils were advised to invest in areas that will help place children’s social care services on a sustainable financial footing. This includes investment in expanding family help and targeted early intervention, expanding kinship care and boosting the number of foster carers.</li></ul><p> </p><ul><li>Over financial year 2024/25, a total of £5 billion will be distributed to local authorities through the Social Care Grant, including a £1.2 billion increase from financial year 2023/24.</li></ul><p> </p><ul><li>Councils in England will see an increase in Core Spending Power of up to £4.5 billion in financial year 2024/25, or 7.5% in cash terms, an above inflation increase, rising from £60.2 billion in 2023/24 to £64.7 billion in 2024/25.</li></ul><p> </p><p>This additional funding illustrates our commitment to support councils in continuing to deliver high-quality services to vulnerable children and families.</p><p> </p><p>But the department knows that rising costs are unsustainable and that whole system reform is needed. It is more important than ever that the department continues with the plans to improve and stabilise the children’s social care system. The department's ambitious strategy, set out in ‘Stable Homes, Built on Love’ will bring about fundamental reform, rebalancing local authority spending from costly acute services to effective earlier intervention, thereby improving outcomes for children and families. More information can be found here: <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/642460653d885d000fdade73/Children_s_social_care_stable_homes_consultation_February_2023.pdf" target="_blank">https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/642460653d885d000fdade73/Children_s_social_care_stable_homes_consultation_February_2023.pdf</a>.</p><p> </p><p>When ‘Stable Homes, Built on Love’ was published, the department announced an additional £200 million funding for implementation. However, this is only part of the wider picture of spending on children’s social care reform. In total, across the department's programmes, almost £700 million has been committed to start delivering the reforms.</p><p> </p><p>In ‘Stable Homes, Built on Love’, the department committed to work with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities to update, publish and consult on a new funding distribution formula. Departmental officials are working in partnership towards implementing an updated approach to distributing available funding for children and young people’s services, based on an up-to-date assessment of relative need in local authorities.</p><p> </p><p>Whilst the government is not able to implement funding reform in this spending period, the department remain committed to updating the funding formula for children’s services to better direct resources to where they are most needed, and work will continue across government to that end.</p> answering member printed Baroness Barran question first answered 24/05/2024 13:10:24 answering member 4703 label Biography information for Baroness Barran
tabling member	4996 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of Newcastle

1719176

registered interest
date	20/05/2024
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	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to (1) update statutory guidance to classify homeless children as needing support from children’s social care services, and (2) disseminate updated information on rights and entitlements.
tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of Newcastle
uin	HL4783
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/05/2024 answer text <p>It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Baroness Barran question first answered 24/05/2024 13:48:12 answering member 4703 label Biography information for Baroness Barran
tabling member	4996 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of Newcastle

1718882

registered interest
date	16/05/2024
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 progress her Department has made on the implementation of the financial allowance pathfinder.
tabling member constituency	Mid Bedfordshire
tabling member printed	Alistair Strathern
uin	26805
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/05/2024 answer text <p>The department will launch a Pathfinder programme in 2024 in up to eight local authorities to provide special guardian kinship carers, who care for previously looked after children, with a financial allowance to be paid at the same rate as foster care. This programme will be backed by an investment of £16 million in 2024/25 and the department will explore expanding eligibility to broader cohorts of kinship carers and all local authorities in the future, subject to the findings of our evaluation. Local authority selection will take place this year. The department will also work with an evaluation partner to make sure that the programme can provide robust evidence for future rollout. The department will share further information on the Pathfinder in the coming months.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed David Johnston question first answered 21/05/2024 16:46:40 answering member 4761 label Biography information for David Johnston
tabling member	5000 label Biography information for Alistair Strathern

1718883

registered interest
date	16/05/2024
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, when she plans to announce the eight local authorities selected for the financial allowance pathfinder.
tabling member constituency	Mid Bedfordshire
tabling member printed	Alistair Strathern
uin	26806
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/05/2024 answer text <p>The department will launch a Pathfinder programme in 2024 in up to eight local authorities to provide special guardian kinship carers, who care for previously looked after children, with a financial allowance to be paid at the same rate as foster care. This programme will be backed by an investment of £16 million in 2024/25 and the department will explore expanding eligibility to broader cohorts of kinship carers and all local authorities in the future, subject to the findings of our evaluation. Local authority selection will take place this year. The department will also work with an evaluation partner to make sure the programme can provide robust evidence for future rollout. The department will share further information on the Pathfinder in the coming months.</p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed David Johnston question first answered 21/05/2024 16:47:24 answering member 4761 label Biography information for David Johnston
tabling member	5000 label Biography information for Alistair Strathern

1702507

registered interest
date	19/04/2024
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, with reference to her Department's consultation outcome entitled Children's social care: stable homes, built on love, published on 21 September 2023, what steps she is taking to monitor the implementation of the recommendations of that consultation by local authorities.
tabling member constituency	York Central
tabling member printed	Rachael Maskell
uin	22762
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/04/2024 answer text <p>The department is committed to laying the foundations for a comprehensive and long-term reform plan to children’s social care over the two years immediately following the publication of its implementation strategy ‘Stable Homes, Built on Love’. The department will be refreshing its strategy at the end of this point. The department is halfway through this first phase of reform, and has made significant progress on many of the commitments made in the strategy.</p><p> </p><p>In December 2023, the department published the first national kinship care strategy ‘Championing Kinship Care’, a ‘Children’s Social Care National Framework’, a revised statutory guidance ‘Working together to safeguard children’ and a data strategy.</p><p> </p><p>Through these publications, the department is monitoring the implementation of its reform programme and has set out how local authorities’ and partners’ roles and responsibilities will change through new national expectations, and further explained their role in delivering ‘Stable Homes, Built on Love’.</p><p> </p><p>The ‘test and learn’ approach the department is taking through its pathfinder pilots will ensure that the department will find the most efficient models of delivery, providing the best possible outcomes for children and families. When the department comes to expand and roll out programmes across more local authorities’ areas, it wants to ensure reform delivery is supported by the evidence that it works.</p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed David Johnston grouped question UIN 22763 question first answered 29/04/2024 10:17:06 answering member 4761 label Biography information for David Johnston
tabling member	4471 label Biography information for Rachael Maskell

1702508

registered interest
date	19/04/2024
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, with reference to her Department's consultation outcome entitled Children's social care: stable homes, built on love, published on 21 September 2023, if she will expand the implementation of that consultation outcome to more local authority areas.
tabling member constituency	York Central
tabling member printed	Rachael Maskell
uin	22763
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/04/2024 answer text <p>The department is committed to laying the foundations for a comprehensive and long-term reform plan to children’s social care over the two years immediately following the publication of its implementation strategy ‘Stable Homes, Built on Love’. The department will be refreshing its strategy at the end of this point. The department is halfway through this first phase of reform, and has made significant progress on many of the commitments made in the strategy.</p><p> </p><p>In December 2023, the department published the first national kinship care strategy ‘Championing Kinship Care’, a ‘Children’s Social Care National Framework’, a revised statutory guidance ‘Working together to safeguard children’ and a data strategy.</p><p> </p><p>Through these publications, the department is monitoring the implementation of its reform programme and has set out how local authorities’ and partners’ roles and responsibilities will change through new national expectations, and further explained their role in delivering ‘Stable Homes, Built on Love’.</p><p> </p><p>The ‘test and learn’ approach the department is taking through its pathfinder pilots will ensure that the department will find the most efficient models of delivery, providing the best possible outcomes for children and families. When the department comes to expand and roll out programmes across more local authorities’ areas, it wants to ensure reform delivery is supported by the evidence that it works.</p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed David Johnston grouped question UIN 22762 question first answered 29/04/2024 10:17:06 answering member 4761 label Biography information for David Johnston
tabling member	4471 label Biography information for Rachael Maskell

1678183

registered interest
date	14/12/2023
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, whether his Department has plans to provide enhanced (a) financial and (b) other support to local authorities in the South East where children's services require improvement.
tabling member constituency	Slough
tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
uin	7105
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/12/2023 answer text <p>In the South East, there are currently no local authorities judged inadequate by Ofsted, however, the department offers a universal support package for all local authorities, including access to a dedicated departmental Regional Improvement and Support Lead, funding for Regional Improvement and Innovation Alliances, and department-funded Local Government Association leadership support.</p><p>The department provides targeted support for those local authorities that need it most, including expert improvement advisers, the sector-led improvement programme of local authority to local authority peer support, and improvement grant funding for invest-to-save initiatives.</p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed David Johnston question first answered 27/12/2023 15:25:46 answering member 4761 label Biography information for David Johnston
tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1667750

registered interest
date	07/11/2023
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, with reference to the report by Become entitled Gone Too Far, published in April 2023, if she will make an assessment of the implications for her Department's policies of the proportion of local authorities that do not have a published sufficiency plan for children's social care.
tabling member constituency	Knowsley
tabling member printed	Sir George Howarth
uin	68
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/11/2023 answer text <p>Local authorities have a statutory duty set out in Section 22(3) of the Children’s Act 1989 to make sure that there is sufficient provision in their area to meet the needs of children in their care. Ofsted currently inspect local authorities’ children’s services and how they are meeting their range of statutory duties.</p><p> </p><p>The department recognises that there are not enough of the right homes in the right places for children in care. The department wants to reduce out of area placements, but in some circumstances, it is the right decision for a child to be placed outside their home authority.</p><p> </p><p>This Government is working to drive forward improvements at a national, regional, and local level to increase sufficiency and improve standards of care and regulations.</p><p> </p><p>By 2027, there will be an increase in the availability of high-quality, stable, and loving homes for every child in care, close to where they are from. To achieve this, the department is supporting local authorities to increase care placements and ensure they meet children’s needs. The department has allocated £259 million of capital funding for secure and open children’s homes and over £27 million to deliver a fostering recruitment and retention programme.</p><p> </p><p>In the longer-term, Regional Care Co-operatives (RCCs) will plan, commission and deliver children’s social care placements. Through operating on a larger scale and developing specialist capabilities, the RCCs will be able to develop a wide range of places to better meet children’s needs. This, in turn, should lead to improved placement stability and fewer out of area placements. The department is investing in two pathfinders to test the RCC model in collaboration with local authorities.</p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed David Johnston question first answered 14/11/2023 16:22:20 answering member 4761 label Biography information for David Johnston
tabling member	481 label Biography information for Sir George Howarth

1665740

registered interest
date	18/10/2023
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 progress her Department has made on introducing early intervention services for children without an education, health and care plan.
tabling member constituency	North East Hampshire
tabling member printed	Mr Ranil Jayawardena
uin	203359
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/10/2023 answer text <p>The Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan, published March 2023, set out the department’s plans to deliver an inclusive system with improved, high-quality mainstream provision where children and young people have their needs identified early and can access prompt, evidence-based, targeted support. This will mean that more children and young people can have their needs met, without the need to rely on an Education, Health and Care plan to get the support they need. Our plan includes testing approaches to early intervention services through, for example, a Speech, Language and Communication Needs pilot, the Early Language Support for Every Child, co-funded with NHS England.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed David Johnston grouped question UIN 203079 question first answered 25/10/2023 14:54:21 answering member 4761 label Biography information for David Johnston
tabling member	4498 label Biography information for Mr Ranil Jayawardena

1665498

registered interest
date	17/10/2023
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 she has made of the potential impact of providing early intervention services on the number of children that require EHCPs.
tabling member constituency	North East Hampshire
tabling member printed	Mr Ranil Jayawardena
uin	203079
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/10/2023 answer text <p>The Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan, published March 2023, set out the department’s plans to deliver an inclusive system with improved, high-quality mainstream provision where children and young people have their needs identified early and can access prompt, evidence-based, targeted support. This will mean that more children and young people can have their needs met, without the need to rely on an Education, Health and Care plan to get the support they need. Our plan includes testing approaches to early intervention services through, for example, a Speech, Language and Communication Needs pilot, the Early Language Support for Every Child, co-funded with NHS England.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Wantage answering member printed David Johnston grouped question UIN 203359 question first answered 25/10/2023 14:54:21 answering member 4761 label Biography information for David Johnston
tabling member	4498 label Biography information for Mr Ranil Jayawardena