I want to take this opportunity to acknowledge events in the middle east over the weekend following recent developments involving Iran. The safety of British nationals and our armed forces personnel right across the region is our priority, and we pay tribute to our brave servicemen and women. Service families make extraordinary sacrifices for our… country, as the right hon. Gentleman knows well. The Department for Education proudly supports service children, including those in his constituency around Catterick and elsewhere, through targeted funding and clear guidance to schools. Service pupil premium provided £26 million this financial year. These measures address challenges arising from service life so that all service children can achieve and thrive in education.
Hansard · 2 Mar 2026 · parliament.uk
RS
Rishi Sunak
What steps she is taking to support the education of service children.
RS
Rishi Sunak
Can I associate myself with the Secretary of State’s remarks and thank her for her thoughtful answer? I know that we both share a desire to honour the service of those in our armed forces by recognising and addressing the impact on their families. As the MP for Catterick garrison and nearby RAF Leeming, I see in partic…
AS
Alistair Strathern
I am really proud to represent so many service families, but many of those I have been working with are at the sharp end of failures in the SEND system. Regular moves between postings can exacerbate long waits for assessments and leave them particularly exposed to the postcode lottery in SEND provision. As we drive for…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, of course; I will be more than happy to make sure that that meeting takes place. I commend the Garrison Assist project for its excellent work. We have looked at the work it has done, and that has given us a strong foundation for many of the changes that we are bringing forward in the SEND system. For example, educ…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. That is why, as I set out, we are making changes to ensure that there are smoother transitions for service children—for example, by making both education, health and care plans and individual support plans digital—but there is still more that we need to do. All of us across this Hous…
School SEND Provision2 Mar 2026
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Our new SEND system will deliver a fully inclusive mainstream education, supported by £4 billion of investment. This Labour Government are tackling one of the thorniest problems that the previous Government left behind, with compassion, investment and reform. Children with special educational needs will access targeted and specialist support through a clear national framework, with… individual support plans and stronger education, health and care plans for children with complex needs. We will work with education and health staff to prioritise early intervention and cross-service collaboration to ensure better outcomes for children nationwide.
Hansard · 2 Mar 2026 · parliament.uk
JN
Josh Newbury
What steps she is taking to improve SEND provision in schools.
BC
Ben Coleman
What steps she is taking to improve SEND provision in schools.
JP
Jo Platt
What steps she is taking to improve SEND provision in schools.
JN
Josh Newbury
I have spoken with teachers and special educational needs and disabilities co-ordinators across Cannock Chase, so I know that many schools, such as Longford primary in Cannock and St Joseph’s primary in Rugeley, already have SEND hubs, but with no additional funding, they cannot offer the holistic, teacher-led support …
BC
Ben Coleman
This plan is to be welcomed. It rightly recognises that families of children with SEND are absolutely exhausted from having to fight and battle for the support they need. I therefore strongly welcome the commitment to end that and to give over 1 million children, for the first time, legally enforceable rights through t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, I am happy to give my hon. Friend that commitment. We will ensure that every secondary school, and a similar number of primary schools, have that kind of support, and we will work with local authorities to set up specialist bases. As part of our £3.7 billion high-need capital investment, we will create 60,000 new …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend; I know he brings real expertise in this area. I completely understand the point that he makes and that parents have made, given the lack of confidence they have in the system after years of failure, but we are determined to put this right and turn the situation around to make sure that …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend. This is about how we can deliver more support earlier to a much larger number of children than is the case at the moment: EHCP-like support without the fight to get that EHCP. There is already brilliant practice out there, showing the best of what can be achieved when schools work together …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This is significant extra investment of £4 billion, above and beyond what schools have already been told will be coming their way. In so many of the areas that the hon. Lady mentions, such as breakfast clubs and the expansion of free school meals, we are putting significant extra investment into ensuring that all child…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, and I encourage the hon. Lady to share with her constituents not just our SEND consultation but the draft profiles that we have established for specialist provision packages, which will be developed by an independent national panel with health and education expertise. I encourage her constituents to look at that a…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We will set much clearer overall expectations of local authorities, not least given the huge grant funding investment to bring down their deficits. With that money must come better outcomes for children. That is also true of the independent specialist sector. Although it offers much fantastic provision and caters well …
National Year of Reading: Phonics2 Mar 2026
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As my hon. Friend knows well, ensuring that all our children, in every corner of the country, learn to read quickly and to enjoy reading is one of this Labour Government’s key priorities. We are building strong foundations for every child in this National Year of Reading. Our best start in life strategy will expand… support to improve phonics teaching, and through our regional improvement for standards and excellence English hubs, we are doubling the reach of our “reading ambition for all” programme, so that every child achieves and thrives.
Hansard · 2 Mar 2026 · parliament.uk
AM
Anneliese Midgley
What steps she is taking through the National Year of Reading 2026 to improve phonics attainment at key stage 1.
AM
Anneliese Midgley
As the Secretary of State said, 2026 is the National Year of Reading. This week, I am reading “Ghost Town” by Jeff Young. Reading changed my life, and in fact I read a book a week. In Knowsley, one in four children fail their key stage 1 phonics standards, so will the Minister tell me how the National Year of Reading w…
CV
Caroline Voaden
Reading daily to young children is shown to have a direct correlation with better outcomes, qualifications and social mobility later in life. Just one book a day means a child will hear approximately 300,000 more words by the age of five than those who are not regularly read to. However, many parents are not aware of t…
JR
Jack Rankin
When I visit primary and first schools, teachers tell me that when given a book, more and more children starting school are swiping it, rather than knowing how to turn the page. If the Secretary of State is serious about raising phonics standards at key stage 1, will she act now to empower parents and get screens out o…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her enthusiasm, although she has put us all to shame with her revelation about her amazing reading habits. The National Year of Reading is all about encouraging children to discover the magic of a good book, which can ignite a lifelong love of reading. There will be exciting online a…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady is absolutely right about the evidence of reading with children, and how even reading for a short time at the end of the day can really set children up to succeed. Through the National Year of Reading, we will be supporting exactly those kinds of initiatives, and through our Best Start family hubs we will…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We have launched that consultation. I am clear that phones have no place in our schools, and schools should enforce that policy and ensure that it is being followed. The hon. Gentleman asked a serious and reasonable question about some of the challenges that we see when children arrive at primary school. That is why th…
Topical Questions2 Mar 2026
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I thank everyone for their support on the publication of the “Every Child Achieving and Thriving” White Paper and the special educational needs and disabilities reform consultation. From the reception that it has received, it is clear that we are on the right track to reform the system. I look forward to working with Members… across the House, education and health staff, parents and children to build a future in which every child can achieve and thrive. Last week, I was shocked by posts on TikTok encouraging violence by schoolchildren. TikTok must take urgent steps to address that and support firm action being taken by schools, local authorities and police to respond. From September, children will learn about staying safe from violence in the new curriculum.
Hansard · 2 Mar 2026 · parliament.uk
JM
James MacCleary
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
JM
James MacCleary
Plumpton college in my constituency is celebrating 100 years of land-based education. It has gone from 17 students in 1926 to a nationally recognised centre for agriculture, viticulture and environmental studies, with more than 1,200 full and part-time students today. Farming and land-based producers are vital to our f…
MF
Mary Foy
I truly welcome the reform to SEND provision, but, with some schools already making redundancies because of funding, I echo the concerns of teaching unions that the recently announced inclusion grant is too small; it equates to one part-time teaching assistant for the average primary school and two TAs for the average …
GG
Georgia Gould
We are committed to investing in schools. Our plans include an extra £1.6 billion going directly into schools and £1.8 billion going into the wider “experts at hand” service, on top of increasing funding to the schools core budget. In this Parliament, we will continue to grow our investment in both SEND and schools to …
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join the hon. Gentleman in celebrating the amazing success of his local college. We want to ensure that we provide the kinds of support that he talks about, and we are investing more in further education and post-16 education. If he would like to raise further areas, I will ensure that they are picked up by a Ministe…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I genuinely expected better from the right hon. Lady. I encourage her to go away and look at the guidance we have published, which will be statutory in nature and makes the involvement of parents very clear. My view—which is also the view of Dr Hilary Cass—is that we should let children be children.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
No, absolutely not. While I am clear that universities should be places of open discussion and dialogue, where views should be challenged and questioned—that is an important principle that this party has long supported—there can of course be no place for hate speech or intimidation on campus. Anyone involved in that ki…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As the hon. Lady knows, we intend to consult on getting the best outcomes for children through the use of the money we are targeting at disadvantage. Free school meals are a rather blunt way of doing that, and we are keen to explore ways of ensuring that all children from less well-off backgrounds, including pupil prem…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, we intend to do that shortly. To be clear, universities should be places of open discussion, where academics can operate freely and everyone is exposed to views that they may sometimes find challenging and with which they may disagree. We have commenced many of the provisions within the Act that are upholding and …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We were elected on a manifesto to deliver a limit on the number of branded items to cut the cost of school uniform. Unfortunately, some of what the right hon. Gentleman proposes could have unintended consequences that would not tackle the problem we are facing, which is that children should be smart when they go to sch…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We expect to see the strongest possible action where hate speech or illegal activity takes place, whether on a campus or anywhere else, and I would expect any suggestions of that kind of activity to be fully investigated by those responsible for enforcing the law.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I do indeed pay tribute to the amazing people who work in our colleges and in further education, including in Hartlepool college of further education, and I look forward to being in Hartlepool very soon with my hon. Friend to observe that work at first hand.
Parliamentary Debate23 Feb 2026
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will seek to respond to the right hon. Lady’s questions. I welcome the broadly constructive approach she has taken, but it would be remiss of me not to point out that so many of the problems we are dealing with were left behind by the Conservative party, and an ounce of humility, contrition or… understanding as to how we got here would really enlighten our understanding of what we need to do to make change happen. As I said in my statement, I recognise that the intentions behind the 2014 reforms were good intentions, but it became very clear, very quickly that problems were developing within that system. The right hon. Lady asks about council deficits and about the challenge. That became pretty clear, pretty quickly, and in 2019 the Conservatives brought in the statutory override, because it was clear that councils were struggling with the increasing demands they were facing. That, however, did not happen in isolation. It happened because, between 2010 and 2019, family support services were stripped away—Sure Start centres closed, early help went, children were left to struggle—and we stored up problems for the future. The failure to identify and support children sooner is part of the reason we continue to see escalating need in our school system. Today, we are putting that right. We will address the challenges that children and families face at the earliest possible point, not wait until years down the line when things have reached crisis point. That is as true in our schools as it is in children’s social care. It is also why we will take action to clamp down on the massive expansion in private equity-backed, independent specialist provision that is sucking money out of our education system into profit when it should be focused on outcomes for children. The right hon. Lady asks about specialist provision packages. We have published a document setting out the shape and nature of those packages. I intend to appoint an expert panel with clinical and education experti
Hansard · 23 Feb 2026 · parliament.uk
ST
Stephen Timms
I thank all Members who have contributed to the debate. Interventions in the child poverty strategy will lead to the biggest expected reduction in child poverty over a Parliament since comparable records began. I well understand the concerns of those saying we should go further, and it is certainly right to urge the Go…
ST
Stephen Timms
My right hon. Friend is right that raising wages has been a crucial part of the Government’s strategy, but removing the benefit cap would reduce work incentives. My hon. Friend the Member for Salford (Rebecca Long Bailey) said that there is no evidence that that is the case, but actually there is such evidence—from the…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman, who cares deeply about this matter as both a parent and a politician, for the approach he has taken, and I look forward to working with him and his party in the weeks and months to come. We share a commitment to ensuring that the move from one system—one that we can all agree …
Schools White Paper: Every Child Achieving and Thriving23 Feb 2026
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Madam Deputy Speaker, please allow me to begin by saying that the unauthorised leaking of elements of today’s announcement is deeply regrettable. I have already asked officials to launch a full investigation into the source to ensure that such breaches do not happen again. With permission, Madam Deputy Speaker, I will now make a statement… to update the House on this Government’s work to transform education in this country, because childhood is changing. Our children are growing up in a world of ever-increasing connectivity and communication, but uncertainty and mistrust are on the rise, too. Our children have the curiosity, resilience and enterprise to succeed, but a vision for education that stops at the school gates has failed to deliver the opportunities they need. Under the last Government, absence was at historic highs. Despite the heroic efforts of staff, the disadvantage gap is still stubbornly wide, children with special educational needs and disabilities are still sidelined, and bright pupils are still left to drift along. A system of high standards for some, but not for others, is not good enough; high standards and inclusion must go hand in hand. The last Government’s vision for education was too narrow. No school is an island, and for children to do well, we need to look outside the classroom as well as inside it. We need to rebuild the services on which families rely. That is why we have acted fast, beginning to remove the stain of child poverty, rolling out free breakfast clubs, expanding free school meals and removing the two-child limit. I am deeply proud that this Labour Government will have lifted more than half a million children out of poverty by 2030. We have also delivered the expansion of 30 hours of Government-funded childcare; we are rolling out Best Start family hubs, and we will fund a SEND practitioner in every hub. Today, we go further. We are publishing our schools White Paper, a vision for schools that do not stand alone, but are at th
Hansard · 23 Feb 2026 · parliament.uk
NG
Nusrat Ghani
Before we come to the statement from the Secretary of State for Education, I must once again note Mr Speaker’s disappointment about briefing to the media before important announcements are brought to this House, given the Government’s own rules in their ministerial code. As the Public Administration and Constitutional …
NG
Nusrat Ghani
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
I thank the right hon. Lady for advance sight of her statement, and her officials and advisers for briefing me over the weekend. I pay tribute to those who have pulled together a 300-page document, which I will now attempt to scrutinise in the five minutes that I have available to me today. I turn first to SEND. The pr…
NG
Nusrat Ghani
I call the Mother of the House.
DA
Diane Abbott
The Secretary of State will be aware how traumatic it is for a child to grow up with special educational needs and to support such a child. She will also be aware that disproportionate numbers of those children come from marginalised communities, and of those parents’ anxiety that these reforms will mean, in the long r…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will seek to respond to the right hon. Lady’s questions. I welcome the broadly constructive approach she has taken, but it would be remiss of me not to point out that so many of the problems we are dealing with were left behind by the Conservative party, and an ounce of humility, contrition or understanding as to how…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My right hon. Friend is right to identify that far too many groups within our country—marginalised communities—are let down by a system that forces parents to fight. The intention behind what we are setting out today is to make it easier for parents and children to get early and better support without having to go thro…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman, who cares deeply about this matter as both a parent and a politician, for the approach he has taken, and I look forward to working with him and his party in the weeks and months to come. We share a commitment to ensuring that the move from one system—one that we can all agree …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the Chair of the Education Committee and all members of the Committee for their very serious work and report. She will see reflected in what we are setting out today that the Committee’s work has shaped our approach. I am grateful to the Committee and all its members for their support in this. I comple…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
On EHCPs, the transition, in terms of the phased review, will take place in 2029-30 for commencement in the academic year starting in 2030. The children to whom that would apply are currently in year 2. In the time we have available to us now, we will build up the system. It will be transformed from where we are now wi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend has championed this cause locally and is doing a huge amount to ensure his constituents get the best possible education and care for their children. The principal difference is that support will come earlier and more quickly, and families will not have to fight so hard to get what they need. Children wil…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I have heard that in relation to lots of councils in lots of parts of the country. It is clear that a wider problem arose out of what the 2014 reforms asked of councils, but it is also clear that there is huge variation between councils. Some are doing this incredibly well: they have invested and created the places tha…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Through the plans that we are setting out today, we will be expanding legal rights for children. More children will be able to benefit from targeted support than is the case at the moment. Every child should have the right to go to a great local mainstream school. We cannot allow the situation to continue where many ch…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I know the right hon. Gentleman takes a real interest in this area and has long campaigned for further training and support for staff. We have seen some of the greatest expansion in need around autism, and it is right that we better equip our teachers and staff with what they need to support children. A new requirement…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I have heard from parents, campaigners and others the importance of ensuring strong accountability and redress so that when things go wrong, parents can have them put right. That is why we will retain a role for the tribunal in the new system. It is also why we are setting out our intention to ensure that more children…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are massively expanding investment in the early years, and early years staff will be part of that training requirement. We will make sure that they have the resources to do that. I agree that access to speech and language provision is one of the greatest issues that has been identified. The £1.8 billion of extra inv…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I could not agree more. I have heard time and again from educational psychologists, SENCOs and speech and language therapists that they spend all that time training to work with children to deliver better support and to drive up standards across a setting, but they find themselves sat at a desk sending emails and filli…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We will consult on whether to make changes to the national funding formula. But this change is urgent and much needed, and it falls to this Labour Government to deliver.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, that is exactly our intention. I know that parents have fought really hard, and will continue to fight really hard, to get the support that their children need, but there are lots of families in our country who do not have the fight in them, because of poverty or disadvantage, or because they are marginalised. Tho…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are already investing much more in our schools. Today, we are setting out additional, new investment, including £1.6 billion that will allow schools to consider how best they can meet need, and they will of course consider how best to deploy teaching assistant support, one-to-one interventions, small group intervent…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree strongly with my hon. Friend and, like him, I have seen fantastic practice that works incredibly well. It can be variable, and we will make sure that there are clear quality standards for more specialist provision in the mainstream, and Ofsted will inspect against those. Also, the amount of provision available …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are investing more in specialist provision, including specialist provision in mainstream, and we have set out £3.7 billion of capital investment to make that happen, but I would be more than happy to make sure that the hon. Gentleman has a meeting with officials, or with a Minister, to discuss that case further.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As a fellow coalfields MP, I would be more than happy to do that. I recognise what my hon. Friend says about the challenges that families face. My message to parents is that while we want to ensure a phased and careful transition from the system we have to the better system that I believe is possible, we will, alongsid…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We will expand and improve support for more children in our system. There will be greater legal rights for a greater number of children, and we will ensure that if parents need support when children are struggling, we do not wait for arbitrary, lengthy bureaucratic processes; we get on and deliver it.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend, and to every Member on both sides of the House, for their contributions about their families and constituents’ experiences. Their voices have been heard loud and clear in this process. We have taken time to ensure that the reforms that we are setting out are the right ones, and reflect …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We have set out our education estates strategy, which is about ensuring that all schools are inclusive by design; that when we build new schools or significantly refurbish schools, inclusion is right at their heart; and that we are building schools to last. If the hon. Gentleman would like to share further information,…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Our intention is that parents in Harlow and across the country will not have the fight that they have had for far too long, and that when a need is identified, a child is struggling, or extra support is required, our schools will have the resources and expertise to put that support in place straight away, without the n…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are investing more in support for children; there is the extra £4 billion I have announced today, alongside funding that has already gone into the high-needs block and into schools. Yes, the big increase in the number of EHCPs is, of course, partly down to need —we face growing need, and we see the same internationa…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for sharing the views of her constituents, and of professionals across her constituency, as we brought forward this work. Through our Best Start family hubs, which we are rolling out across the country, we will ensure that there is a SEND-trained professional in every setting. We are doi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Through what we have set out on local government funding, we are putting in place support for councils to deal with the long-standing deficits that have accrued, but I want to be absolutely clear that the support is conditional on local authorities working with us to provide places, and to deliver the clear systems of …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, we will ensure that children get support without needing to escalate things. It was a pleasure to join my hon. Friend at a family hub in his constituency and to see at first hand what can be achieved if we support children when they are young, and if we back families and invest in children’s future.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that it will be essential for schools and parents—and Government, too—to work together. The White Paper’s vision is of a system in which Government, schools and parents honour our responsibilities, and work together to deliver better outcomes for children. We set out clear expectations in the White Paper about …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for all the time she has taken to speak with me and colleagues in the Department to share her experiences as a parent and help us understand the wider shift that we need to see. She asked a number of detailed questions. I will respond briefly, but I am happy to discuss them further. We n…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
No; the right hon. and learned Lady is wrong. If she had listened, she would know that she is wrong, but I am sure she would not like to break the habit of a lifetime. Before asking any questions about what this Government are doing, she should consider the actions that she was responsible for as part of the previous G…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right: this is about collaboration not just between the Government and schools, but between schools and parents. Some of the best examples that I have seen, including through our partnerships for inclusion of neurodiversity in schools programme, or PINS, show what can be achieved when parents work wit…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The transition will be careful and phased, but we will be putting more support in place from this year to allow children to access support more quickly than they can right now. We will absolutely hold local authorities accountable for delivery.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, absolutely; I agree with my hon. Friend. I have heard time and again from parents that professionals often make decisions about children they have not seen recently. That is why bringing more support closer to the child within school and much closer to home will make a huge difference to the quality of the provisi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am certainly interested in hearing more about that approach. We have made big strides forward in initial teacher training. The extra investment we are putting in will support existing teachers and staff working in the profession. However, there is more to do. We are committed to continuing to review standards in init…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Not only did my hon. Friend have that role in a former life; she helped to shape what we are setting out today through the work she did in the Department. I am grateful to her for her passion, commitment and dedication to all children, especially those who have been through the children’s social care system, whose outc…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I take my responsibilities to ensure that we do not unduly alarm parents and that we set out the facts and the details incredibly seriously. As things stand, we anticipate that the number of EHCPs will increase between now and 2030. It will then start to plateau and then start to reduce. We are not chasing an arbitrary…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I understand my hon. Friend’s point and I am grateful to her. We will create and put in statute a set of nationally consistent specialist provision packages underpinned by clear national standards and shaped and defined by experts to bring an end to the postcode lottery and ensure consistency wherever someone happens t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
There is complexity around this. We need to continue to understand the needs that are developing and the failure to meet them sooner. That is a big part of the challenge. As a country, we have not been meeting need as quickly as we should. I would add that, for too long, we have treated the SEND system as an entirely s…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
EHCPs will retain an important role within the system, and diagnosis will remain important, but I know from many of the parents I have spoken with—as, I am sure, does my hon. Friend—that diagnosis sometimes only confirms what is already known about a child’s needs and the support required. Through the investment that w…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are putting in place significant extra investment—£3.7 billion of capital—to deliver what is needed in specialist provision and to ensure that local areas can deliver what is required. I would be happy to look into the individual case that the right hon. Gentleman raises and ensure that he gets a response.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for ensuring that his constituents’ views have been right at the heart of our reforms. We will move rapidly to invest in recruiting more speech and language therapists and educational psychologists, but we also need to retain more of the brilliant people who have worked so hard to train …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I strongly agree that we need a rich and broad curriculum—one focused on both academic rigour and a wide range of opportunities, including music, sport, art and drama. In our response to the curriculum assessment review, we set our intention to make that a reality for every child. Our changes to Progress 8 will allow a…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right about the importance of early years, which sit right at the heart of our reforms, in the early identification of need and work with families. Although we have had a big national conversation on SEND, it is only the start of the dialogue that we want to continue with parents to ensure that the ch…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The right hon. Gentleman is right about the transition to adulthood and ensuring that our children are well prepared for what comes next as they move through the school system and into adult life. Many further education colleges and specialist settings already do that incredibly well, but it is variable. We want to del…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It has been a pleasure to work with my hon. Friend as we have brought forward these reforms. The specialist provision packages will be set nationally and led by experts in health and education, independent of Government, but we will ensure that the voices of children, young people, parents and campaigners are heard and…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We have set out our intention to introduce inspections at trust level. Alongside that, we will renew trust standards to ensure that all trusts are doing the best for children in their care. I am sure that the Minister for School Standards would be happy to discuss further the issues that the hon. Lady raises.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for ensuring that the views of parents and others in Filton and Bradley Stoke have been heard and are reflected in our proposals. This is only the start of the engagement and consultation. I encourage parents in her constituency and across the country to look at what we have set out, und…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am slightly taken aback by that question, but I welcome it. We will move fast to ensure that money intended for education is spent on education. That means that we will have to be much firmer and clearer, including with private equity, about the money going out of the system and into profit, rather than going into ed…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend. Through the national conversation that we have had on SEND, our SEND development group has worked closely with Ministers and with my hon. Friend, to ensure that the voices of children, families and experts, including disability rights groups and children’s groups, were heard as we developed…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Gentleman is right: we are expanding Best Start family hubs, ensuring a real focus on early years, and investing more than £9 billion in expanding early years entitlements. We have also set an incredibly ambitious target to have a record number of children reaching a good level of development at the early year…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Beyond the period that my hon. Friend identifies, this will become the responsibility of central Government. That is the commitment we have given, and we have made a big undertaking with colleagues across Government to take action on the long-standing deficits that local authorities have accrued over time. My hon. Frie…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We will be consulting on disadvantage funding, including the pupil premium and the national funding formula, and on how we ensure that we are halving that disadvantage gap and getting the biggest impact from the £8 billion of funding that we are spending. I will look at the issue the hon. Member has identified; if she …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend speaks with real passion and expertise, and I could not agree more with him. As well as everything the Government are doing, we will need local authorities and ICBs to work together with us to deliver the change that is needed. There is huge variation across the country, with unacceptable outcomes, too m…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That underlines the importance of the investment getting to the front line and delivering quickly. We know the pressures faced by children and families, but the huge variation in the approach that some councils have taken cannot be adequately justified by funding settlements alone. We have seen some affluent councils i…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Through what I have set out, we are consulting further on many aspects of funding, including the national funding formula, and we will continue to look closely at how we ensure that all children, wherever they are in the country, get the support they need. My hon. Friend’s constituents will benefit from Best Start fami…
Children in Poverty28 Jan 2026
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Tackling child poverty is a moral mission for this Government, and someone’s background should not determine what they go on to achieve in life. I am proud that we have now published our historic child poverty strategy, which will deliver the largest reduction in child poverty within a single Parliament by scrapping the two-child limit,… expanding free school meals and backing families.
Hansard · 28 Jan 2026 · parliament.uk
PH
Patrick Hurley
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help reduce inequalities experienced by children in poverty.
BS
Baggy Shanker
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help reduce inequalities experienced by children in poverty.
IC
Irene Campbell
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help reduce inequalities experienced by children in poverty.
PH
Patrick Hurley
Earlier this week, I visited the Bishop David Sheppard school in my constituency and saw at first hand the difference that breakfast clubs are making to children from disadvantaged backgrounds. Will the Minister explain how the Government’s commitment to expanding breakfast clubs will tackle child poverty and reduce in…
BS
Baggy Shanker
In Arboretum in my constituency, half the children are growing up in poverty. That means hungry mornings, cold homes and kids who are four times more likely to face mental health problems by the time they are 11. What urgent action are the Government taking, across Government, to tackle child poverty and eliminate heal…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is a real champion for local families, and I would be grateful if he extended my thanks to all the staff team at the Bishop David Sheppard primary school for the work that they are doing. Breakfast clubs make a huge difference to parents and children by expanding learning and giving our children a great …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Alongside the expansion of our new free breakfast clubs, we are massively expanding free school meals and extra childcare for families. That runs alongside our work to roll out Best Start family hubs in every area, building on the proud Labour legacy of Sure Start to support families early when their children are young…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Those are truly shocking statistics. I know that my hon. Friend, Anas Sarwar and all Scottish Labour colleagues are working to kick out the SNP and show how Labour can make the NHS fit for the future, alongside our child poverty strategy, which will lift thousands of children in Scotland out of poverty. That is the dif…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Our child poverty strategy will deliver the biggest reduction in child poverty in any Parliament ever. That is the difference that a Labour Government are making. The hon. Members will surely recognise that the majority of children in poverty are in working families—people doing the right thing and working hard—and we …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Housing issues were a key feature of our work on the child poverty taskforce. Colleagues across Government are taking up such work. I am concerned about the cases that the hon. Lady raises. If she would like to share some details, I will make sure that a Minister looks into them and provides a response.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The right hon. Gentleman raises children’s social care reform, which has been an important focus of the Department for Education. We are supporting more families through kinship arrangements, expanding fostering and ensuring that we support children earlier in order to stop crises escalating. I would be happy to discus…
Topical Questions28 Jan 2026
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Next week is Race Equality Week, with the theme “Change needs all of us”. The Government’s race equality engagement group, chaired by Baroness Lawrence, is ensuring that we hear directly from those most affected by race inequality. Yesterday we marked Holocaust Memorial Day, and across the House we remembered the 6 million Jewish people murdered… by the Nazis. We redouble our efforts to combat prejudice, hatred and antisemitism in all its forms.
Hansard · 28 Jan 2026 · parliament.uk
DM
Douglas McAllister
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
DM
Douglas McAllister
The gender pay gap for full-time employees in Scotland widened from 2% in 2024 to 3.5% in 2025. It is utterly unacceptable that, on the SNP’s watch, women in Scotland are earning less for the same hours. What can the UK Government do to improve matters for women across the country?
CC
Claire Coutinho
Nurses up and down the country, including the Darlington nurses and Jennifer Melle, are being hounded and harassed by the NHS simply for recognising that biological sex is real. I am grateful that the Minister has previously agreed to meet Jennifer and hope that she still will. The Minister takes up the cause of workin…
CC
Claire Coutinho
In the case of Gorton and Denton, we heard this week that the Muslim Vote has decided to endorse the Green party. This is overt sectarism in our midst, and we know that where we have sectarian politics, conflict and strife follow. Even one of Labour’s candidates at the last election was threatened with beheading, but n…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right: we must narrow that gap. We are ensuring that large employers, including in the Scottish private sector, publish plans on how they will address the gender pay gap. Of course, I am proud that, alongside my hon. Friend, this Labour Government are delivering the biggest upgrade in workers’ rights …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I look forward to meeting Jennifer soon to discuss her experiences and what more we can do to ensure that women in the NHS are safe at work. I am determined to ensure that the rights, voices and spaces for women who work in the NHS and women who are patients in the NHS are protected.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am not aware of the particular case that the right hon. Lady describes. What I can say is that violence, intimidation or harassment has no place in our politics. No political candidate or Member of Parliament should be subject to that kind of experience. I am very much looking forward to going to campaign and make th…
SEND Support: Access19 Jan 2026
BP
Bridget Phillipson
In December, I announced at least £3 billion in high needs capital, which will support local authorities to deliver high-quality places for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities. However, while places are necessary, alone they are not enough. We know that high-quality teaching is essential to achieving the best outcomes for… all pupils and students. That is why I am delighted that we are investing £200 million over the course of this Parliament to deliver more SEND training than ever before, to upskill staff in every school, college and nursery and ensure that more children and young people receive the right support at the earliest opportunity.
Hansard · 19 Jan 2026 · parliament.uk
RB
Rachel Blake
What steps she is taking to ensure that families of children with SEND have early access to support.
DP
Darren Paffey
What steps she is taking to ensure that families of children with SEND have early access to support.
RB
Rachel Blake
The families that I am speaking to in the City, in the west end, in St John’s Wood and in Pimlico through my special educational needs group tell me that they are concerned by a lack of accountability for parents and children when those children are not getting the support set out in their education, health and care pl…
DP
Darren Paffey
We all know that early support for children with SEND depends on getting the co-ordination right among parents, schools, local authorities and the NHS, but we also know that is not always happening. Some of the children I have been supporting in Southampton Itchen are spending months out of education and taking years s…
DD
David Davis
Early access costs money. Last year, children with special needs in the East Riding of Yorkshire were funded to less than £1,000 per capita—the lowest level in England. Camden received £3,565 a head. The Government’s grant proposals increase East Yorkshire by £30 a head. They increase Camden by £267 a head, nearly 10 t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for all the work she is doing to make sure that the voices of parents and children are heard during the reform that we intend to bring forward. As she will have heard through those conversations, the system just is not working for children and families. Through that national conversation…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree strongly with my hon. Friend, and I am grateful for all the work he has done in this area. He is right that parents should not have to wait. Even though we need to see a longer term shift in the system overall, we need to see change now. That is why we have taken action. One of the very first things I did as Se…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The right hon. Gentleman makes an understandable appeal on behalf of his constituency and his region. We are looking carefully at questions of funding. They are not easy questions, and he will recognise that many of the ways that funding has previously been allocated have continued because of the necessary timescales a…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I have had many conversations of a similar nature with school leaders and others. The hon. Lady is right about the need for not only early identification but early access; they are not always the same thing. That will apply beyond the school gate, to speech and language support, occupational therapy support and much mo…
Teacher Retention19 Jan 2026
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Labour is boosting teacher recruitment and retention in order to put 6,500 new expert teachers in front of our classrooms. We have boosted teachers’ pay by nearly 10% and have taken action to improve wellbeing, and we continue to offer the targeted retention incentive, which is worth up to £6,000 after tax. Under the Tories,… teachers were leaving schools in droves; under Labour, we have seen one of the lowest leaver rates since 2010.
Hansard · 19 Jan 2026 · parliament.uk
CV
Caroline Voaden
What steps her Department is taking to improve teacher retention.
CV
Caroline Voaden
A speech about teacher retention that I made in Westminster Hall recently has been seen by more than 135,000 people on Instagram, and there have been hundreds of comments from teachers. They speak of pay not rewarding experience and far too much time being spent on administration and tests, but it is also clear that sa…
JN
James Naish
I am particularly concerned about teacher retention at a school in my constituency, St Peter’s in Ruddington, which was condemned just before Christmas following an emergency evacuation due to structural issues. I put on the record my sincere thanks to staff, parents, children and local organisations for their support.…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We will look carefully at any sensible proposals to ensure that we can keep our children safe online. I recognise the broader issues that the hon. Lady has raised, about behaviour being a factor that affects teachers’ experiences and about some of the wider pressures including those relating to safeguarding. I am proud…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to push us on this issue. I know he has been working very closely with my ministerial colleague who is responsible for this area, and I can assure him that we will move as fast as we can. We understand the pressure that this is placing on the school and on the local community, and I will make su…
School Support Staff Negotiating Body19 Jan 2026
BP
Bridget Phillipson
In 2010 the Tories scrapped the School Support Staff Negotiating Body. In Labour’s first 100 days in government, we legislated to bring it back. With the Employment Rights Act 2025 now passed, we expect the SSSNB to start operating later this year. We on the Government Benches value the vital role that support staff play.… They deserve a voice at the table and, under Labour, they will get one.
Hansard · 19 Jan 2026 · parliament.uk
LT
Laurence Turner
What recent progress her Department has made on establishing the School Support Staff Negotiating Body.
LT
Laurence Turner
I draw attention to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests and my chairship of the GMB parliamentary group. The School Support Staff Negotiating Body, established under Labour’s landmark Employment Rights Act, will make a real difference for more than 1,600 people in my constituency who have been unde…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I thank my hon. Friend for all his work to make the SSSNB a reality, both before he was elected to Parliament and in his time here—he is a real champion of working people. We will publish our consultation response in the spring, confirming which staff are in scope and what it means for them. We are also developing wide…
SEND: High-quality School Places19 Jan 2026
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Department has announced at least £3 billion in high needs capital between 2026-27 and 2029-30 to support local authorities to deliver sufficient high-quality school places for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities. This will create provision within mainstream schools that can deliver more flexible support, adapted to pupils’ needs.
Hansard · 19 Jan 2026 · parliament.uk
DF
Daniel Francis
What steps she is taking to ensure high-quality school places for children with SEND.
JC
Jacob Collier
What steps she is taking to ensure high-quality school places for children with SEND.
DF
Daniel Francis
I draw attention to the fact that my wife is employed by our local authority as a special educational needs co-ordinator. At the start of this school year, my local authority, the London borough of Bexley, rolled out a number of new resource provisions, adding an additional 122 SEN places in mainstream schools. They ar…
JC
Jacob Collier
Parents in Burton and Uttoxeter tell me that, under Reform-run Staffordshire county council, their pleas for help are too often ignored, leaving children in unsuitable settings or out of education altogether. Communication is extremely poor, and too often meaningful action comes only at the point of crisis. What action…
GS
Greg Smith
Does the Secretary of State accept that cancelling an £18-million, purpose-built, 152-place SEND school in Buckinghamshire, due to open in 2028, and replacing it with just £8 million over three years will inevitably increase reliance on high-cost independent placements, worsen outcomes for children with the most acute …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend rightly identifies that there are pockets of brilliant provision right across our country, and our schools White Paper will ensure that we spread that best practice and make it a reality for all children. Through the £3 billion of investment, we will deliver 50,000 more specialist places for children wit…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are backing councils with extra capital investment, including in Staffordshire, but we need councils to work with us to create the provision that children desperately need. We are also strengthening accountability. We have heard from parents time and again that their voices are not heard and that change does not hap…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are giving councils significant extra capital investment to create places and provision much more quickly than many of them would otherwise have been able to. We are offering most local authorities a choice between continuing with their free school or accepting some alternative funding to deliver the same number of …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am sure my hon. Friend the Minister for School Standards will be happy to meet the hon. Lady to discuss those particular cases. We are investing more in support for local authorities, including through capital budgets. The hon. Lady will know that local authorities have until 27 February to tell us whether they wish …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That is simply not right. We are investing billions into creating much-needed places for children with SEND. We did take the decision not to proceed with a number of mainstream free school projects where we had determined that the places were no longer needed. These were projects that, in some cases, provided questiona…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are giving councils a greater role in this process because we recognise that many will be able to create places much more quickly through a different way of allocating funding. We want children and young people to receive the support they need in a local school, not a long distance away. In some cases, that can invo…
Topical Questions19 Jan 2026
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As we have heard today, we know that the system to support children with SEND and their families is not working. Our schools White Paper will deliver change that lasts, informed by our national conversation with parents, staff and experts, but critically, we are putting in place the foundations for change right now through £3… billion of investment to create tens of thousands of specialist SEND places and £200 million to deliver the most ambitious SEND training package in our history from early years through to college. Great local schools where every child can achieve and thrive, needs met, parents involved, children thriving, and support without a fight—that is Labour’s vision for a renewed SEND system.
Hansard · 19 Jan 2026 · parliament.uk
BS
Blake Stephenson
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
BS
Blake Stephenson
Following the curriculum review, will the Secretary of State outline how the Government will support teachers to deliver financial education in the constituency of Mid Bedfordshire and, of course, right across the country? Will financial education form part of initial teacher training?
LE
Lauren Edwards
There is concern in the hospitality industry that the Government are reviewing funding for some important level 3 and level 4 apprenticeships, such as those used to train chefs. Hospitality is a key means by which we can tackle the challenge for those not in education, employment or training, but to deliver positive lo…
JM
Josh MacAlister
The hospitality industry is hugely important. Nothing has been decided on defunding apprenticeships yet. I recognise all my hon. Friend’s points, and we share her ambition that the apprenticeship system in the future is entirely designed around progression, as well as one-off learning.
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are continuing to review initial teacher training, but we want to make sure that, through our curriculum review and its outcomes, children receive stronger education around financial literacy, budgeting and saving. There are some fantastic examples of schools that are already doing this well, but we want that to be …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Let me update the House: I am crystal clear that schools must be a place of safety and that no MP should ever be stopped from doing their job, but sadly, this is not the first concern about antisemitism in schools and this alone is not the only challenge we face. We will leave no stone unturned, as the right hon. Lady …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Teachers are under clear duties around political impartiality, and that is extremely important and serious. In parallel, I have also been concerned as to some of what we have seen recently around the Teaching Regulation Agency’s approach. That is why I have asked the permanent secretary to review what has happened ther…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I would of course be happy to meet, or to arrange for a Minister to meet, the hon. Gentleman and colleagues. He will appreciate that changes of the manner he describes will often take time, to make sure we get them right. It has been necessary, because of the timelines available to us, to provide funding on the basis o…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Government and I are absolutely committed to freedom of speech and academic freedom. It was a Labour Government who first enshrined freedom of expression into law through the Human Rights Act. I cannot comment on what might or might not be considered for future legislation, but I will act to protect freedom of spee…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I expect that to happen very rapidly.
“Break Down Barriers to Opportunity” Mission10 Dec 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Background should never be a barrier to getting on. That is why we are expanding Best Start family hubs, rolling out free breakfast clubs, expanding childcare and delivering on our moral mission to tackle child poverty by scrapping the two-child limit, creating a fairer Britain where every child has the opportunity to succeed.
Hansard · 10 Dec 2025 · parliament.uk
RH
Rachel Hopkins
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to promote equality as part of the Government mission entitled “Break Down Barriers to Opportunity”.
RH
Rachel Hopkins
Last week, I met the 93% Club to hear more about its vital work to address the impact of social class on young people’s career and life chances. I welcome our Labour Government’s steps to widen opportunities for those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, such as the match funding for criminal barrister pupillages. Wha…
VS
Vikki Slade
Earlier this year, I attended an amazing event at the Dorset Museum called “In My Shoes” for care-experienced young people, who explained the importance of making care experience a protected characteristic, as we have done in many councils, including mine in Mid Dorset and North Poole. Will the Minister take the same s…
MD
Mims Davies
The founders of the Cambridge University Society of Women—Maeve, Serena and Thea—are in the Gallery today. They are backing free speech in safe women-only spaces and discussing women’s concerns such as pornography, female genital mutilation and misogyny. Would the Minister agree that, if the Labour Government are to ac…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend, who has long campaigned on these issues. The central driving mission of this Labour Government is to ensure that background is no barrier to success. That is why we are expanding free school meals, lifting the two-child benefit limit, introducing a new youth guarantee and bringing in ma…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady raises an important issue, and we are doing lots of work across Government to make sure we have better outcomes for care-experienced young people, who are sadly more likely than other young people to experience mental health difficulties or even end up in prison. I lead that work together with the Deputy …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I have long campaigned for and supported women’s rights when it comes to the ability of women to meet together to discuss the issues that matter to them, and also to have safe spaces for women, including around domestic violence. I used to run a women’s refuge, and I know how important it is that women have safety and …
Transgender People: Safe Spaces10 Dec 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is important that everyone, including trans people, can access services that meet their needs, and I take that seriously. We are absolutely committed to upholding the protections in the Equality Act 2010 that allow trans people to live free from discrimination and harassment. We are carefully considering the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s draft… updated code of practice and ensuring that the proper processes are followed.
Hansard · 10 Dec 2025 · parliament.uk
JK
Jayne Kirkham
What steps she is taking to ensure the provision of safe spaces for transgender people in the context of the draft code of practice issued by the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
JK
Jayne Kirkham
I thank the Minister for that answer. I have very vulnerable constituents who have raised concerns about the draft EHRC guidance on transgender people. Many are scared and fear rising transphobia and discrimination. What steps is she taking to ensure that we protect the rights and dignity of everyone in society, and su…
CJ
Christine Jardine
I appreciate the Minister’s clarification, but with organisations such as Girlguiding UK and the Women’s Institute saying that they have been forced to exclude the trans community against their will, how soon can we expect the guidance that the Secretary of State says is being considered?
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am deeply sorry to hear about my hon. Friend’s constituents. On the wider issue she raises, it is of course vital that everyone, including trans people, can live free from harassment and discrimination, and can access appropriate services. That is why we are carefully considering the EHRC’s draft updated code and mak…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I have said many times in this House, I welcome the clarity of the Supreme Court ruling, and providers should follow it. The EHRC has given me a draft code of practice. We are working through it—it is a lengthy document—and we will take this further as soon as we can.
Topical Questions10 Dec 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This Government are reinforcing our commitment to championing the rights of disabled people. This month we celebrate Disability History Month, and we marked the International Day of Persons with Disabilities last week. This year also marks the 30th anniversary of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. We will continue our work to boost opportunities for disabled… people, including by developing our plan for disability, which will outline our priorities for removing barriers faced by disabled people.
Hansard · 10 Dec 2025 · parliament.uk
MP
Manuela Perteghella
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
MP
Manuela Perteghella
Women in rural areas often have to travel long distances to reach a refuge, police station or basic support services. What assessment has the Secretary of State made of the impact that travelling those long distances has on the safety of victims of domestic abuse, and what action is being taken to close the rural suppo…
TC
Torcuil Crichton
Western Isles Women’s Aid in my constituency helped 180 women last year. The refuge is working at capacity, yet its funding is uncertain. That is why my fundraiser on Friday will seek to raise funds for the organisations. More than 1,800 women reported domestic abuse in the highlands 10 years ago; last year the figure …
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
CC
Claire Coutinho
Jennifer Melle, a black nurse with a faultless record, was racially abused by a convicted paedophile for correctly referring to his biological sex in a medical context. She was called the N-word multiple times in her workplace, yet she was the one who was punished by her NHS trust and the Nursing and Midwifery Council.…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I do recognise that challenge. That is why in developing our violence against women and girls strategy we heard from victims in rural areas to understand what more is needed to ensure that they can access the services and support that they need.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I do agree. It takes enormous courage to come forward, as women in rural communities often experience additional barriers. I commend my hon. Friend for his fundraising efforts. We are investing more in support services for victims, and my hon. Friend will see when we publish our violence against women and girls strateg…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
No one should face racist abuse or violence in any workplace, and that includes the NHS. As we have also seen with the Sandie Peggie case, coming to decisions on these cases in a timely manner is incredibly important. I hope that the matter the right hon. Lady refers to can be resolved as swiftly as possible. I would, …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are implementing all the recommendations of the Cass review. Those included establishing a clinical trial, through the PATHWAYS—Puberty Suppression and Transitional Healthcare with Adaptive Youth Services—trial research protocol, which has undergone a thorough, independent review and received all regulatory and ethi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am happy to discuss that further with my hon. Friend. We are committed to reviewing childcare support and making sure that it is accessible and simple for families. PhD students are not eligible for some elements of support, but depending on income they may be eligible for certain hours. Student parents are eligible …
Child Poverty Strategy8 Dec 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
With permission, I will make a statement on the Government’s child poverty strategy. Tackling child poverty is a proud Labour tradition. It goes to the heart of the values we have and the beliefs we share—above all, that background must be no barrier to success, that opportunity is for every child and that the freedoms… that for too long few of our children enjoyed must today be extended to them all. This Government see child poverty not simply as the absence of material goods from the lives of our young people, but as the absence of their agency—their freedom—in the decisions that shape their world. As Labour Members know well, it is not merely wealth and opportunity, but power that must be in the hands of the many, not the few. That clear political principle lay behind not merely the determination, but the success of the last Labour Government in lifting 600,000 children out of poverty between 1997 and 2010. However, after Gordon Brown left office, that progress was reversed by a combination of deliberate cuts to public services, economic stagnation and a deep cost of living crisis. There are now 4.5 million children in poverty—900,000 more than in 2010. This means that, in a typical classroom of 30 children, about 10 are experiencing poverty. Two million children are in deep material poverty, lacking even the basic essentials, such as a warm home and healthy food, which no child should grow up without. We know that growing up in poverty has enormous consequences for children’s health, their education and, more broadly, their life chances. It is equally damaging for our country—not merely for our public services, social cohesion and the chances of economic growth, but for the sort of society we wish to build and the sort of future we can promise our people. That is why we made a manifesto commitment to develop an ambitious child poverty strategy. Shortly after the election, the Prime Minister announced a child poverty taskforce to deliver this, which I have been pr
Hansard · 8 Dec 2025 · parliament.uk
CN
Caroline Nokes
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
HW
Helen Whately
I will start with something we can all agree on: none of us wants to see children grow up in poverty. We all know something of what that looks like: some hon. Members have lived it themselves; for others, it is part of the bread and butter of constituency work. Even in the wealthiest constituencies there are pockets of…
CN
Caroline Nokes
Order. The shadow Secretary of State has taken even longer than the Secretary of State and is well over her time limit. I call the Secretary of State.
CN
Caroline Nokes
I call the Chair of the Education Committee.
HH
Helen Hayes
I warmly welcome the publication of the child poverty strategy, which builds on the steps that the Government have already taken, including expanding access to free school meals and introducing free breakfast clubs. I particularly welcome the removal of the two-child benefit cap. All the evidence is clear that that has…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The shadow Secretary of State started by saying that none of us wants children to grow up in poverty. We, as the party in Government, will lift children out of poverty. The Conservatives pushed nearly a million children into poverty. That is the difference between our parties. The Conservatives knew when they introduce…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right that temporary accommodation is linked to worse outcomes for children and that there are deep consequences for those who are forced to endure living in B&Bs and other unsuitable accommodation. We are working with the 20 local authorities with the highest usage of B&Bs to bring those n…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This is an ambitious strategy, which will see the largest ever reduction in the number of children growing up in poverty in a single Parliament since records began. No one can accuse us of lacking ambition when it comes to driving down those numbers. While I note the hon. Lady’s reference to the introduction of the two…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I pay tribute to my hon. Friend for all the work that she did in the Department for Education and for all that she continues to do to champion the life chances of children in her community and across our country. She contributed a lot to the work that has gone into the strategy; I am grateful to her for that. I agree w…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I have long campaigned on child poverty, and I have led this taskforce together with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and with the former Secretary of State, my right hon. Friend the Member for Leicester West (Liz Kendall) , who is now the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology. We were a…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I have heard from so many school leaders, teachers and staff across our country about the impact that child poverty has on their ability to do their jobs. They do amazing things to support the children and families in their care, whether by helping with temporary accommodation, washing clothes or even sometimes putting…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Member is right to say that the majority of children in poverty are living in working families. It is an artificial political dividing line to suggest anything other than that; the evidence is clear for anyone who wants to look at it. There are a number of reasons for this situation. Low pay is one of them, an…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to say that child poverty blights the life chances of children right across our country, including in communities that might otherwise appear affluent. There will always be children who are enduring the hardship and injustice of poverty, and I am grateful for his support and everything that he d…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
There we are: the true face of the Tory party, describing people who are in work in that kind of way. We will always back working people. I would just point out to the hon. Gentleman that there are 329,000 more people in work than was the case a year ago. We are tackling poverty and supporting parents back into work, a…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This is a UK wide-strategy, and we will continue to work with the Scottish Government, the Welsh Government and the Northern Ireland Executive to bring down poverty in all of our four nations. My hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the staggering and appalling record of the SNP Government in Scotland, particularl…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
When the hon. Lady stood up, I thought she was about to congratulate the UK Government on lifting the two-child limit—something I have heard her talk about a lot in this House, and rightly, so where was the welcome for the change we are bringing today? Of course, the SNP Government could effectively abolish the two-chi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the Chair of the Work and Pensions Committee, who has long campaigned on the important relationship between poverty and health inequalities. Through the development of the strategy and through the taskforce, we took evidence from experts in this area. I give her the commitment that we will continue to …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the hon. Lady for the work she does in this important area. As she knows, parents will save up to £500 a year as a result of the plans we have set out for action on baby formula so that parents can make the right choices for themselves. Of course, we know that it is also important to put in place suppo…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend, and I know from previous conversations that he worked in a Sure Start centre and was involved in the delivery of those services. Best Start family hubs will draw on what we know works from Sure Start. The evaluation evidence is incredibly clear about the impact they had on children’s life c…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is a Labour Government who are lifting the two-child limit and who will ensure that children in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland get the support they deserve. The hon. Member references the benefit cap, which limits the total amount of benefits a working-age household can receive. Of course, that applie…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I would be happy to meet my hon. Friend to discuss that further. A key commitment that we made, through the development of this strategy, was to make the system of childcare support and early years education much simpler and more straightforward for families to access. We know that it is a complex system that has built…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am sure that the hon. Gentleman has made his views known to Ministers at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, but I will ensure that they are passed along. Lifting the two-child limit, expanding access to childcare, expanding free school meals, increasing the national minimum wage and expanding …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right that poverty scars the life chances of children. It has always been the moral mission of the Labour party, and it always will be the moral mission of the Labour Government, to end child poverty and reduce the hardship and injustice that it brings—not just the long-term outcomes that c…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise that even in more seemingly affluent communities there can be pockets of deprivation, and many children can still be living in poverty. It is right that we tackle child poverty wherever it occurs. The measures that we are setting out, both in the child poverty strategy and in the Budget, will make a big dif…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are investing £500 million more to ensure that we expand Best Start family hubs to local authorities that do not have that provision. By the end of the Parliament, 1,000 hubs will have been rolled out. That will make a huge difference to children and families across our country. As my hon. Friend says, that runs alo…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
In launching the first phase—the early adopter phase—of our plan for 750 free breakfast clubs, we wanted to ensure that we covered schools in a range of different communities and contexts with different cohorts of students. We have been able to learn from that in setting out how we will deliver funding for the next pha…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is doing tremendous work in that area through the APPG. I would be more than happy to ensure that the Department—through officials or Ministers—continues to work with the APPG as we roll out Best Start family hubs and learn from the best evidence on how we can continue to support parents and families. Ou…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Gentleman will know, as I have previously told him, that I also visited Northern Ireland through the work of the child poverty taskforce to meet campaigners, charities and parents to understand the challenges they face. Some of those challenges are shared, such as those of the social security system, and lifti…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I would be happy to meet my hon. Friend. I know he has done an incredible amount to champion the life chances of children in his community, which covers many towns and villages and a big rural population. That presents some unique challenges, and perhaps we could discuss that further and how we can ensure that more of …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes. Like my hon. Friend, I am always ambitious to do more to lift more children out of poverty and to create better conditions to tackle the root causes of poverty. This ambitious strategy is an incredibly strong start that will see the biggest reduction in child poverty numbers in any Parliament since records began. …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend, who has a long-standing commitment to tackling child poverty. It was clear through the strategy that lifting the two-child limit is the single most effective way to lift the greatest number of children out of poverty, alongside the wider measures we are taking to tackle the root causes …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, of course I would be happy to discuss this further with my hon. Friend. She is absolutely right that child poverty does not just have a deep and lasting impact on the individual children and families concerned. There is a clear link to worklessness, poorer health outcomes and lower attainment at school, and that f…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes. Through the strategy, we are taking action on the unacceptably high number of people living in temporary accommodation that we inherited from the party opposite. We have made progress in the last year, with numbers falling by over 40% since June, but there is more to do. That is why we are investing more in the lo…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It was wonderful to visit a breakfast club in my hon. Friend’s constituency recently to see the difference it will make to children’s outcomes. The evidence is clear about the impact on educational outcomes, and on how it supports more parents to work the hours that suit them, and often to take on more hours, too. Chil…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful for everything my hon. Friend has done over many years to campaign on both child poverty and housing. We have announced an ambition to cut the number of school days lost by children in temporary accommodation, because she is right that it often means children arrive at school late or not at all, which has…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We know that children who are hungry or living in temporary accommodation are not in a position to learn effectively, and that has a long-term impact, including on teachers and support staff. I am interested in some of the approaches that have been taken around poverty-proofing, including in my own region, the north-ea…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend has always stood up for children in his community. It is through his election to this place, and the election of a Labour Government, that by the end of this Parliament, we will see the biggest reduction in child poverty numbers since records began.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree absolutely. That is why we are taking action to bring those numbers down, to build more social and affordable homes, and to give parents and young people the skills that they need to get good, well paid jobs.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Important safeguards currently exist within the system to ensure that vulnerable migrant children are protected. I will ensure that my hon. Friend gets the meeting with the relevant Minister that she requests to discuss her concerns further.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I know that my hon. Friend cares passionately about ensuring that we have good routes into careers through technical and vocational education, and more apprenticeships for young people in Peterborough. I have been working with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, my right hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampt…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is an investment in our children, their futures and our society and economy. The strategy addresses some of the big challenges that we see, and sets out the important ways that we will tackle the structural and root causes of why so many children in our country are growing up in poverty, whether that is skills, acce…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
By rolling out breakfast clubs, expanding free school meals, expanding childcare and much more besides, this Labour Government back families and back children to succeed. We will ensure that far fewer children are growing up in poverty at the end of this Parliament than there were at the start—the biggest reduction sin…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right that too often children have been used as pawns in a political game, using political dividing lines, where the evidence simply does not back up what the Conservative party says. Children in poverty and their families do not lack ambition or aspiration. Those families want the best for their chil…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes. The taskforce heard evidence from faith communities, churches and others about what they are seeking to do to support families. I commend the amazing volunteers and those who work in our communities to support children and families. I also heard loud and clear from many of them that if children and families were n…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Conservative party, as they have done over many years, since they introduced many of the punishing changes around social security, are using our children as pawns to make a political argument that is not borne out by the evidence. Children in my hon. Friend’s community will benefit from the difference that a Labour…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This is an enormous challenge, as my hon. Friend identifies. We announced a clear pledge to prevent deaths caused by gaps in healthcare. We know some of the terrible outcomes for children caused by poor-quality accommodation. We are investing more and we are determined to bring that down. It will require a lot of us, r…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We have worked with Governments rights across the UK in the development of the strategy, but my hon. Friend is right to highlight the shocking and appalling legacy of years of SNP failure. That is why it is time for a new direction for Scotland with Anas Sarwar and Scottish Labour.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for all that he has done over many years to champion children’s life chances and to tackle child poverty. No child should suffer the consequences or the punishment of the two-child limit for decisions beyond their control, and I am pleased that those families in his constituency and at S…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, I give my hon. Friend that commitment. In paying tribute to the amazing people who volunteer in our food banks, community groups, churches and community organisations right across the country, let me say that I look forward to the day when, as a Labour MP, I visit a food bank not to open it, but to close it down.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes. We know that a stay in temporary accommodation is linked to worse outcomes for children’s health, education and futures. We will introduce a temporary accommodation notification system requiring local housing authorities to notify educational institutions, health visitors and GPs when a child is placed in temporar…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, we will address the short-term challenges we face, but we will also address the long-term structural challenges that have led us into the situation where so many children see their life chances blighted by avoidable poverty. We are investing in the future of our children. Some people and the Conservatives say that…
Camden Nursery Sexual Abuse Case4 Dec 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
With permission, Madam Deputy Speaker, I will now make a statement regarding the sickening case of child sexual abuse at a nursery in Camden. Before I go further, I want to remind the House that a live police investigation is still under way and that the perpetrator is awaiting sentencing. All Members and people across… our country will wish to join me in expressing our horror at hearing of these appalling crimes. A 45-year-old British man, Vincent Chan, has pleaded guilty to 26 offences, which include multiple counts of sexual assault on a child by penetration, assault of a child by touching, and taking and making indecent photographs of a child, including category A images depicting the most serious abuse. He was employed by a nursery setting in Camden between June 2017 and May 2024. On 8 September 2025 , he was arrested after evidence was uncovered on devices seized in a previous police investigation and was charged with the 26 offences in question on 9 September . Yesterday, Vincent Chan entered a plea of guilty, and sentencing will take place on 23 January . In the meantime, the Metropolitan police have met families of all the children they have identified as victims of contact offences. In addition, the Met has written to the other families whose children attended the setting in question while the individual worked there to reassure them that where there is evidence of offences, the affected families have been contacted. Local children’s social care services are providing emotional and practical support to families and signposting them to specialist support services. The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children has been commissioned to set up a bespoke helpline as the first point of contact for anyone affected by these horrific acts. Details of the helpline can be found in communications from Camden council and the Metropolitan police. Specialist support is available for victims from the NSPCC helpline. People affected can be supported directl
Hansard · 4 Dec 2025 · parliament.uk
CN
Caroline Nokes
Before we come to the statement, I should inform the House that the case concerned is still technically sub judice until sentencing. However, the Government have made the judgment that the House should have an opportunity to consider this matter, as it raises issues of national importance, and the accused has pleaded g…
CN
Caroline Nokes
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
This is an utterly horrific case. I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of her statement, and I thank her officials and advisers, who took the time to brief me on it. Any parent who has ever sent their child to nursery has had a physical reaction to this news. It is just so unspeakably awful, and the betraya…
CN
Caroline Nokes
I call the Chair of the Education Select Committee.
HH
Helen Hayes
I thank the Secretary of State for her statement. Vincent Chan’s crimes are utterly horrific—the most egregious breach of trust imaginable, and every parent’s worst nightmare. My thoughts and, I know, the thoughts of the whole House have been with the children who are his victims, and with their families, ever since ne…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the right hon. Lady for her response. I know she shares my commitment and determination to make sure that our early years settings are safe for our children, as parents and children rightly expect them to be. She has raised important areas related to policy. I will answer her points as best I can; she …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Chair of the Select Committee raises questions relating to Ofsted, as the shadow Secretary of State did, and I will respond in some detail to those. It is important that we understand what has happened here, so that, as far as we can, we prevent this from ever happening again. It is critical that local safeguarding…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the hon. Lady for her engagement with officials on these matters. We will be most effective if we work across the House to address the serious concerns that have been raised in this case, as well as in the other cases to which she makes reference. I will ask the expert advisory group, when it looks at …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join my hon. Friend in paying tribute to the families for their bravery and courage. I cannot begin to imagine the trauma and pain that they are experiencing as a result of these heinous crimes. I am pleased that she is such a powerful champion and voice for children and families, both in her community and across our…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The local review will get under way immediately. It will be led by an independent reviewer, who is independent of the local safeguarding partnership. From the point at which they take up the post, there will be six months for that report to come forward. The chair of the national panel will keep in close contact with t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I understand the concerns that my hon. Friend raises and the importance of ensuring that we have the strongest possible protections for all children to keep them safe from harm. That is why we provided a progress update arising from the IICSA recommendations, which included the establishment of a child protection autho…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As a Department, we are working with Ofsted to review the regulation of nursery chains to ensure that parents can see strengths and areas of concern across the chain and that, where appropriate, action can be taken. I recognise the additional question that the hon. Member asks about the nature of regulation and the imp…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend raises a number of important concerns about how groups operate in early years settings and schools, and the importance of ensuring that we have the right framework in place to take action where necessary. We are taking an active approach in early years and in schools, and are working with Ofsted on these…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The right hon. Gentleman raises a number of important points, and he is right to thank the police for their thorough work in what has been an extremely complex and harrowing investigation. I pay tribute to all those who have been involved to this point in supporting the victims and families, and to those who will be in…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree very strongly with my hon. Friend. Alongside bringing forward the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, we are taking a number of important steps to improve safeguarding. The Bill brings forward bold new measures to keep children safe, including a legal obligation for safeguarding partners to work hand in hand…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman. The local review, which will come forward shortly, will put us in a position to consider what lessons there are from this case, but the wider questions require a policy response, either from Government or from others, about how we can do more to keep children safe. It is right that …
Child Poverty Strategy1 Dec 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Tackling child poverty is a moral mission for the Labour party, because we believe that someone’s background should not determine what they go on to achieve in life. Scrapping the two-child limit will mean that we can deliver the largest reduction in child poverty in a single Parliament, and we will publish the child poverty… strategy in the coming weeks.
Hansard · 1 Dec 2025 · parliament.uk
JD
Jim Dickson
What recent progress the child poverty taskforce has made on publishing a child poverty strategy.
KO
Kate Osamor
What recent progress the child poverty taskforce has made on publishing a child poverty strategy.
JD
Jim Dickson
The Government’s very welcome decision to end the two-child cap on benefits will, alongside free school meals and breakfast clubs, transform the lives of 2,500 children living in my Dartford constituency, and contribute to our manifesto goal of tackling child poverty. Will the Secretary of State tell the House when mor…
KO
Kate Osamor
I welcome the announcement that the two-child benefit cap will be scrapped, lifting hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty. However, according to the Institute for Public Policy Research and Praxis, there are an estimated 382,000 children in poverty whose families are subject to no recourse to public funds an…
SD
Sarah Dyke
Rural areas have deep pockets of deprivation, and nearly 18% of children in Glastonbury and Somerton live in poverty. How will the Minister ensure that the child poverty strategy sufficiently focuses on child poverty in rural areas?
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Labour’s free breakfast clubs have already served 5 million meals, including in Knockhall primary school and Sedley’s primary school in Dartford. Applications are now open to join the next wave from April, with 2,000 more schools set to join in the next financial year, making the clubs available to half a million more …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising her concern. We are working with the Home Office and with colleagues across Government in developing the child poverty strategy. We will focus on ensuring that vulnerable children are protected and their welfare is safeguarded, and that vulnerable migrant children receive the…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the particular challenges faced by many rural communities, and I am grateful to the hon. Lady for raising them. We have been considering such matters through the development of the strategy. The taskforce has been working across Government, including with colleagues in the Department for Environment, Food a…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, we are looking at that question and at the issue of temporary accommodation that the hon. Member raises. This is a cross-Government strategy and not for the Department for Education to solve alone, although the lifting of the two-child limit is an investment not just in our children and their life chances but in o…
Universities: Chinese Influence1 Dec 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The UK wants a consistent and mutually beneficial relationship with China. We should be frank about where we disagree, but also find targeted opportunities to collaborate. We are clear that any attempt by a foreign state to intimidate and coerce universities in the UK will not be tolerated. My Department is working with vice-chancellors to… further our resilience.
Hansard · 1 Dec 2025 · parliament.uk
GW
Gavin Williamson
What steps her Department is taking to help prevent Chinese influence in universities.
GW
Gavin Williamson
I thank the Secretary of State for her answer; I know that she takes the issue of Chinese influence incredibly seriously. The free speech legislation brought forward by the previous Government required the monitoring of bodies that are supported by the Chinese or funded and supported by the Government of China. That wa…
NT
Nick Timothy
We know that academics at British universities have been harassed by Chinese agents and pressured by their own administrators to censor their work. Sheffield Hallam, for example, blocked research by Professor Laura Murphy into the treatment of Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang. Ministers make noises, but we have not yet had a…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the right hon. Gentleman’s long-standing interest in this area. Our national security is of the utmost importance, and the Office for Students already has extensive powers to require information from providers to investigate any breaches. If we are to introduce new reporting requirements, we must ensure tha…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Gentleman references a particular institution, and the House will appreciate that I am not in a position to comment, given the ongoing investigations in that area. I can be clear to this House that any attempt to intimidate and coerce universities will not be tolerated. I should also be clear that as a country…
Curriculum and Assessment Review: Progress 81 Dec 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Last month, the independent curriculum and assessment review published its final report, and I would like to reiterate my thanks to Professor Becky Francis and the panel for all their work. We will reform progress 8 to balance a strong academic core with breadth and student choice, so that every child can both achieve academically… and thrive personally, and we will consult on this shortly.
Hansard · 1 Dec 2025 · parliament.uk
DH
Damian Hinds
What discussions she has had with the chair of the curriculum and assessment review on her proposals to change the progress 8 measure.
DH
Damian Hinds
Professor Francis was clear that the EBacc grouping should be kept in the progress 8 measure under the heading “Academic Breadth”. The Government have overruled the review, which is quite a big thing to do. The Secretary of State herself used to be a student of modern languages. Have they learned nothing from their ter…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I do love modern languages, and I was a very keen student of them myself, but I am afraid that, as the right hon. Gentleman will know, the EBacc did not drive improved access to modern foreign languages. He knows that—he will have looked at the data. I do not think that the system as it stands provides the right balanc…
Topical Questions1 Dec 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Labour believes that background should not determine what people go on to achieve in life. We see child poverty as a moral scar on our country. When last in government, we lifted 600,000 children out of poverty. During their time in government, the Tories plunged 900,000 children into poverty. The seismic decision taken at last… week’s Budget to remove the appalling two-child limit will lift 450,000 children out of poverty, and that will rise to 550,000 children along with other measures such as the expansion of free school meals. This will drive the largest expected reduction in child poverty in a Parliament, transforming life chances, investing in our children and delivering for schools.
Hansard · 1 Dec 2025 · parliament.uk
JR
Joe Robertson
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
JR
Joe Robertson
The Government have taken responsibility for SEND funding away from local authorities such as the Isle of Wight council, but they cannot explain where the money is coming from. Surely the Secretary of State understands how concerned parents are up and down the country. She can reassure them right now and explain where …
DC
Dan Carden
Archbishop Beck Catholic college in my constituency has lost £700 per pupil since 2011, while the number of disadvantaged pupils has risen from 38% to 52%. It is an excellent school with strong leadership, creating great outcomes for pupils. Will the Minister look specifically at the funding calculation for Archbishop …
GG
Georgia Gould
I am really grateful for the work of that school. I set out today the further investment we are putting into schools, including into special educational needs. We are focusing our funding on all schools, but particularly on supporting schools in the most deprived areas.
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the very real worry that parents across the country have about the system of support for children with SEND, which the hon. Gentleman and the Conservative party left on its knees. He would do well to reassure parents, not to scaremonger. I suggest that he goes away from here, reads the Budget document and w…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Let me be absolutely clear: these are council deficits. They will not be coming from school budgets. Over the course of this Parliament, we are investing more in SEND. We are picking up the pieces of a system on its knees left behind by the party opposite. Either the right hon. Lady has not read what the OBR has to say…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I do not know whether the right hon. Lady listened to what I just said. It is not coming out of school budgets. [Interruption.] We are investing—
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The OBR published projections about SEND costs alongside the Budget. They were hypothetical illustrations, which the right hon. Lady would know if she went away and read the OBR document. The Treasury has been clear that the cost will be covered across overall budgets, but we are investing more in SEND and more in capi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are investing the international student levy into support around skills and access to high-quality further and higher education colleges targeted at students who most need that support in subjects most closely aligned to our industrial strategy and Government priorities. That will make a huge difference to young peo…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Conservatives might not be serious about tackling child poverty, but the Labour party is and always has been. This Government will lift 450,000 children out of poverty, alongside other measures such as Best Start family hubs, expanding childcare and new free breakfast clubs—[Interruption.]
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That is why we have put an extra £1 billion into high needs budgets this year. The capital the right hon. Gentleman so casually dismisses is in order to deliver more specialist places for children closer to home, including in mainstream schools. He must surely recognise that the system we have at the moment just is not…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I absolutely join the right hon. Lady in wishing those pupils the very best. It is a wonderful opportunity for all the young people taking part.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the right hon. Gentleman’s expertise and interest in this area, and I would be very happy to look at that report.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I was recently in York with our hon. Friend the Member for York Outer (Mr Charters) , but I would be delighted to return and to talk about the brilliant progress that the council has been making in those important areas.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I would love to do that, but sadly what we have heard from the Conservatives this afternoon demonstrates the challenge we face as a Government in engaging seriously on these big and deep questions. We will always engage with Members of Parliament from across the House as we bring forward reforms, but I suggest that the…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is not coming from the core schools budget—I could not be more clear. It will come from across Government budgets, and it is a matter for the next spending review. [Interruption.] It is! Alongside that, we will set out reforms in the new year to improve outcomes for children with SEND—something that the right hon. M…
Topical Questions5 Nov 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
In October, we celebrated Black History Month. It has been an opportunity to renew our commitment to maintaining all the progress that we have made and ensuring that racial hatred has no place in our society. This year also marks the 60th anniversary of the Race Relations Act 1965, enacted by a Labour Government. We… will continue to build on its legacy with our plans to introduce the equality (race and disability) Bill in this Parliament, and we have also established the Race Equality Engagement Group, chaired by the noble Baroness Lawrence.
Hansard · 5 Nov 2025 · parliament.uk
GF
Gill Furniss
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
GF
Gill Furniss
Endometriosis care is in urgent need of reform. I have lost track of the number of young women who have contacted me to share their horror stories, some of whom have waited more than a decade to receive a diagnosis. The system is failing them. I welcome the Government’s commitment to update the women’s health strategy,…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
CC
Claire Coutinho
In January, the Supreme Court ruled that sex means biological sex. This was a huge victory for women’s rights, but now we hear that the Minister is kicking the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s much-needed guidance into the long grass. The law is not changing—the law is as it has always been—so will she release th…
LT
Laurence Turner
Dyspraxia is a common condition, but public awareness levels are still too low. Does the Minister agree that more needs to be done across Government and society to raise awareness of dyspraxia?
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for all her campaigning on this issue. She is right that too many women suffer trauma and pain, their symptoms and concerns not taken seriously. We are committed to prioritising women’s health. We have commissioned a number of studies focused on endometriosis diagnosis, treatment and pat…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
If I may, Mr Speaker, I would just like to say how moved I was by the interview that the right hon. Lady gave to The Times about her experience and that of her son. I am really pleased that both of them are doing so well and that she is back with us in this House today. We are committed to protecting single-sex spaces.…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the concern the hon. Gentleman raises and that many Members from across the House have raised. That is why we will be setting out our plans to make improvements to the system through the schools White Paper. I would welcome the contribution of the hon. Gentleman and his colleagues as part of that process, b…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady raises an important point. I would be more than happy to make sure that she has a meeting with the relevant Minister to discuss her concerns, and that action is being taken across Government to address them.
Curriculum and Assessment Review5 Nov 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I note your comments, and I will make sure that they are taken forward. With permission, I would like to make a statement to update the House on this Government’s plans to renew the national curriculum, to secure for every child an education steeped in our rich history, ready to… shape our country into the 2030s and beyond. As I outline the future of our national curriculum, I do so in full knowledge of its past, because I was part of the first wave to benefit from a process begun by Jim Callaghan’s great education debate—his ambition for a curriculum of universal high standards. When Lord Baker introduced a national curriculum for the very first time in 1988, my generation secured a common entitlement to share in the core wisdom that we as a nation value most. Since then, our national curriculum has evolved under successive Governments, and now it must evolve again, because the world is changing as never before as a result of artificial intelligence, machine learning and hyperconnectivity. Where once our young people had to compete locally, the playing field is now global. They are stepping into a world of huge opportunity, but it is also one of immense change and challenge—a muddy landscape of misinformation and social media. Our current curriculum no longer arms them for this brave new world. It lacks the breadth of knowledge and skills that our children need, not only for the jobs they will go on to do, but for the lives they will go on to lead. We need more, and they need more. Our curriculum sits at the centre of an education system that has forgotten too many children—white working-class children; children with special educational needs and disabilities; the children who are bright but bored, not engaged as they should be and not achieving as they should. That is why I asked Professor Becky Francis and an external panel of experts to review our curriculum, assessment and qualifications—to equip every child and every young perso
Hansard · 5 Nov 2025 · parliament.uk
NG
Nusrat Ghani
Before we come to the statement from the Education Secretary, I should inform the House that Mr Speaker is disappointed that this announcement was widely trailed in the media this morning, before this House had an opportunity to hear directly from the Government. I remind the Government Front Benchers that the expectat…
NG
Nusrat Ghani
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of her statement. I also thank Professor Francis for her work—any criticism of today’s announcement is directed not at her, but at the Government’s response to her review. I welcome some of the measures announced today. I am pleased that the Government have not moved awa…
NG
Nusrat Ghani
Order. Ms Trott, you have run over your time. I hope you are going to conclude very quickly.
LT
Laura Trott
That formula works, with English schools storming back up the global rankings. We on the Conservative Benches will always stand up for rigour, evidence and the life-changing power of high standards. We will fight Labour’s education vandalism every step of the way.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The right hon. Lady said at the start that any criticism was levelled my way, but she then went on to criticise many of the recommendations in the review. Has she even bothered to read it at all? She comes here time and again, every single time full of sound and fury, signifying nothing—and yes, Shakespeare is here to …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
On languages, I share my hon. Friend’s determination to ensure that more young people have the chance to study modern languages. There is a particular challenge that we face around transition from primary to secondary—the review makes that clear—and that is one area for further action. On the EBacc, I am afraid that it…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady asks many constructive questions. It is important that all young people have the chance to study triple science, and we will work with the sector on the implementation of that. We are seeing big increases in the numbers of teachers in initial teacher training, including in physics, but there is more to do…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend has a real passion for this area and brings her expertise to this House, and I am really grateful for that. We will refresh the programmes of study and publish them in 2027, so there will be an opportunity for consultation and contribution towards that. Some of this is a question about how we better sequ…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
No, Madam Deputy Speaker. As I set out earlier, it is important that young people have the opportunity to study triple science. I recognise that the implementation and delivery of that will be important, and we will work with the sector to do that. The number of those entering initial teacher training in subjects such …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend always champions children and young people in his constituency and has a lot to offer with his background in education. I would be happy to discuss his ideas further with him.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I would be keen to hear the hon. Gentleman’s ideas and those of the all-party parliamentary group, and I thank him for the work he is doing in this important area. I am glad that he welcomes many of the changes we are setting out around financial education. I note what he has to say about post-16, and I will make sure …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the need to ensure that children with special educational needs and disabilities secure better outcomes and have better support through their education and their school life. Every child in our country deserves the best possible school experience, and that is especially true…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady is right to raise that point. This is an area that the review drew attention to. We will develop a new 16 to 19 level 1 stepping-stone qualification as a preparation for GCSE for lower attainers. The review was clear about the importance of GCSE English and maths, and I share that view. We need to make su…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree. We want to make sure that teachers are ready for the new curriculum. We will introduce a digital version of the national curriculum to support teachers to more easily sequence their school curricula. We will also provide high-quality free digital resources through Oak National Academy, as well as more curricul…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are investing more in our SEND system and in teacher training and development, including new SEND content for those entering the profession, but there is much, much more that we need to do, as we have discussed in this House on many occasions. I know that my hon. Friend cares very deeply about improving outcomes for…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are investing more in our schools and providing more support to teachers. Enrichment is important. That is why we will develop the framework with experts across education, youth services, sports and art sectors to make it a reality. I encourage the hon. Lady to look at the proposal we are setting out on Progress 8 r…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Absolutely. We are investing through our music hubs and the new national centre to make that a reality. By the end of next year, we will have delivered 130,000 new instruments, pieces of equipment and other music technologies to schools to support our young people to pick up instruments and create music.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The right hon. Gentleman has done a lot of work in this area. What he suggests is very sensible, and I will certainly take that forward. I am sure my hon. Friend the Minister for School Standards would also be happy to discuss it with him.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend. It is why we are rolling out more mental health support across our schools to make sure that at the earliest possible point when problems arise, young people have access to high-quality mental health support. Alongside that is the enrichment framework and the opportunities there will be in …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the hon. Lady for raising this issue; I know she always bangs the drum for her constituency, and we have discussed this many times. If she requires an update on wider issues, I will be more than happy to make sure that she gets one from the new Minister.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend has done amazing work in this area to make sure that children in his community have access to a wide range of opportunities. I agree that the best schools provide academic stretch as well as a broad and rich curriculum. It can be done, and we will make sure that it happens in every school.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with the right hon. Member in so far as he is saying that we should make sure that a range of subjects are available to young people, including languages, and that young people should have a good range of options, including the chance to go on and study at university. I think it is important alongside that, as …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My right hon. Friend is right to highlight that, and I agree. Some amazing opportunities come from the use of technology and computing and from giving our young people the skills they will need to succeed. However, we also see the dangers that exist, with the big challenges from misinformation online that teachers tell…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Either I or the Minister for School Standards will be happy to meet the all-party group. The hon. Member makes a powerful case, which I am sure we can take forward as we consider the enrichment framework. I have many happy memories of residentials in his part of the world when I was at school: they are life-changing an…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That sounds like a wonderful project in my hon. Friend’s constituency. When our children study history, it can often be brought to life by local examples that demonstrate a wider connection to our nation’s past but also allow us to shape our future. It is in precisely those kind of examples where I want teachers to hav…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The right hon. Member is right to draw attention to the importance of political impartiality. The review found that the current non-statutory status of citizenship is leading to uneven and inconsistent progress in the subject. There is the chance to do this better to ensure that it is taught well and that young people …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It was wonderful to visit my hon. Friend’s constituency and meet so many of the wonderful school leaders who are changing children’s lives. We will work with our teachers and school leaders to implement the new national curriculum to ensure that they have the support and that we have the right time allocated to impleme…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I see that there is a balance to strike. Some colleagues are rightly urging us to ensure we get the implementation right, but I understand the hon. Member’s impatience to make it happen. It is right that we update our curriculum to improve climate and sustainability education in geography, science, citizenship, and des…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Government are committed to ensuring that a person’s background does not determine what they can go on to achieve. To take one example from the review, it is clear that on leaving primary school, too many young people do not have the reading and writing skills that they need to succeed later in life, and the attain…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We have to target our bursaries and financial support at the areas and subjects where they are most needed, and that is what we have sought to do through the bursaries and financial support that we have put in place. However, I welcome the hon. Member’s support for arts and creative education. The review and the Govern…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right. At the moment, access to triple science is uneven, with big gaps in access for disadvantaged students and big geographic inequalities. It will take time to ensure that we have the subject specialists in place to deliver that, but all children in our schools should be entitled to do triple scien…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I know that this can be done only through the amazing work of our teachers, our support staff and our school leaders. We will work with them as we roll out the new national curriculum. We are investing more this year and every year in our schools. We have also delivered two pay awards for our teachers. This year, we ha…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I always listen to my hon. Friend’s contributions on these important subjects. Given what we have heard from business, parents and young people, we want to make sure that young people have a better grounding in key concepts in financial education, be that mortgages, savings or the difference between a debit and a credi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As we move towards votes at 16, it will be important that our young people understand our democracy, our laws, our history, and their responsibilities as active citizens. That is why we want to make sure that there is better statutory teaching of citizenship in primary schools, and improvements at secondary as well. Th…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes. In the schools White Paper, we will set out our vision for the school system into the 2030s and beyond. A central part of that will be how we better support children with SEND. So many young people face an adversarial system, in which it takes too long to get the right support, and in which parents have to battle …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
High-quality history education should allow students to understand both our role in the world and local history. There are many powerful examples of how learning about local history can really bring a topic to life. To give one example, earlier this year, I helped unveil a statue to women shipyard workers in Sunderland…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that PE and sport are vital elements of the rounded and enriching education that every child deserves. They can also motivate young people, give them a sense of purpose, help with wellbeing challenges and much more besides. That is why we have committed to strengthening the national curriculum for PE, and we wa…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree about the need to provide better training and support for teachers and support staff. That is why this year, for the first time, there is expanded content on SEND in initial teacher training. However, there is more to do around teaching, training and support for the existing workforce. We are considering all th…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend always champions the importance of music education, and the right of every child to access to music. Our new national centre for arts and music education will provide support for schools and teachers in delivering the reformed curriculum, and I am delighted that 43 music hubs are rolling out music instru…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the challenges, and I have heard directly from many children and families about the struggles that they face. The review looked closely at this area. I understand what the hon. Lady is saying, and I recognise its importance, but alongside that, we need to continue to have high expectations of what children …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We want to build on the review’s work in this important area, and we will set out more detail next year, through the schools White Paper. We know that outcomes for children with SEND are not where they need to be. Parents and families have to battle, and it can all be an uphill struggle. That is why early identificatio…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The review set out recommended changes in a number of related areas to those that the hon. Lady has raised. Through revised programmes of study, we will look carefully at how we deliver that. There will be opportunities for consultation throughout the process, before a full national roll-out.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The review took an evidence-driven approach, informed by the data, with input from across the sector and experts, to make sure that we get this right. However, it did not seek to fix things that are not broken. I recognise that young people in England sit more hours of exams than their peers in many other countries. We…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
In 2026, it will be the National Year of Reading, and in our work on that, we are thinking about not just physical books that can be delivered to children, but what a strong digital offer could look like. I encourage the hon. Gentleman to get involved in that process.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We want to ensure that as we reduce GCSE content by 10%, we do so, together with the regulator, in a way that maintains the validity and integrity of the system. There are a range of different approaches that teachers can benefit from, and the Department provides much in the way of training and development. We always k…
Free School Meals: Eligibility Criteria20 Oct 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As Secretary of State, I have secured free school meals for half a million more children and we are set to lift 100,000 children out of poverty and put £500 back into families’ pockets. Alongside our roll-out of free breakfast clubs, 30 hours of Government-funded childcare and Best Start family hubs, I am acting to… deliver Labour’s moral mission on tackling child poverty.
Hansard · 20 Oct 2025 · parliament.uk
TD
Tan Dhesi
What assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to eligibility criteria for free school meals on levels of children in poverty.
TD
Tan Dhesi
Labour’s expansion of free school meals will reach 8,750 children in Slough, saving parents in Slough up to £500, as well as maintaining attendance and attainment and improving behaviour. I know that this will be welcomed by families across my Slough constituency and ensure the very best for their children’s future. Ca…
RF
Richard Foord
Under the existing criteria for free school meals, university maths schools have an excellent record for widening participation. We know that 7% of A-level maths students across the country are eligible for free school meals, compared with 13% of students at university maths schools. Will the Government consider expand…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.
MW
Munira Wilson
We Liberal Democrats warmly welcomed the Government’s decision earlier this year to finally adopt our long-standing policy of extending free school meals to all children in households in receipt of universal credit. At the time, Ministers repeatedly refused to confirm how they were funding this extension; research from…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for everything he does to champion children and families across his constituency. It is fantastic to hear how many children in Slough will benefit from the expansion of free school meals. It is a policy that is pro-learning, anti-poverty and properly Labour. Of course, we want as many fa…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Gentleman was very imaginative with his question there, and I credit him for that. Of course, we have to take decisions about school placement and school places overall, across the whole system, but if he would like to provide me with more information, I will happily provide him with an update.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the Liberal Democrat spokesperson for drawing attention to the fantastic Labour policies that this Government are rolling out. We are expanding free school meals to half a million more children, backed up with an extra £1 billion of funding through the spending review. That is the difference that a Lab…
Higher-level Learning Target20 Oct 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Later today I will make a statement on our post-16 education and skills White Paper, which sets out measures to support this learning ambition. For too long, skills have not been taken seriously, and that stops with Labour. Our long-term plan for national renewal will unlock opportunity for our young people, and drive growth for… our country with clearer pathways, stronger alignment, and a renewed partnership between Government and business.
Hansard · 20 Oct 2025 · parliament.uk
AM
Anneliese Midgley
What steps her Department is taking to ensure that it meets its target of two thirds of young people participating in higher-level learning.
TP
Toby Perkins
What steps her Department is taking to ensure that it meets its target of two thirds of young people participating in higher-level learning.
LF
Linsey Farnsworth
What steps her Department is taking to ensure that it meets its target of two thirds of young people participating in higher-level learning.
AM
Anneliese Midgley
I thank the Secretary of State for her response. In Knowsley, while we are making progress with work from the council and organisations such as the Brilliant Club, we still fall below average for young people going into higher learning. Barriers remain to continuing education, and to developing skills for good jobs and…
TP
Toby Perkins
The construction skills hub in Staveley in my constituency is a great example of the value of apprenticeships, and this year 68 young people came straight out of school and started a new construction apprenticeship. Does my right hon. Friend agree that the only way we will be able to achieve the Government’s ambitious …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I know how passionate my hon. Friend is about securing better life chances and more opportunities for children across her constituency, and I would be more than happy to meet her to discuss that, whether it is through the expanded work that we are delivering in our schools to raise standards, opportunities for young pe…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right, and I know he has championed this cause for many years to ensure there are strong vocational and technical routes, including into areas such as construction. Around 5,000 more construction apprenticeship places will be made available each year, thanks to our £140 million investment, but that in…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That is fantastic to hear, not least given the challenges that we still see with quite high levels across our country of young people who are not in employment, education or training. I and the Work and Pensions Secretary are determined to take action on that, and I would be more than happy to do my best to honour my h…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, that is one area. We are refocusing our target to ensure that there are strong technical and vocational routes for our young people, as well as the opportunity to go to university. Going to university remains a strong option for many young people who want that chance—I know Conservative Members have always been ke…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Through the spending review, from next year we are investing £800 million in 16-to-19 funding. That funding will run alongside the many commitments in the White Paper that I will set out, around more foundation apprenticeships, new V-levels and better routes into technical and vocational opportunities for our young peo…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
In my statement later today on the White Paper I will be setting out the action that we will be taking to ensure that the regulator, the Office for Students, has the power to ensure high-quality courses and good outcomes for young people going to university. The policy that the hon. Gentleman has just outlined was in t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Let me be absolutely clear: there is no place on our university campuses, in our schools or anywhere in our society for antisemitism, and I send that message loud and clear. That is the message that I have extended to university vice-chancellors, who should be in no doubt that we expect to see action on campus on this …
Topical Questions20 Oct 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The launch of Labour’s best start in life campaign last week marked a watershed moment. The Conservatives slashed family services, leaving children and families across our country without support, but Labour is building back that support, reviving Sure Start for a new generation. It is more than just the Best Start adverts that people have… seen on the telly and heard on the radio; it is bricks and mortar, too. From Derbyshire to Darlington, and from Staffordshire to Swindon, Labour is giving local authorities the funding they need to open Best Start family hubs, so that community services are truly nationwide once again. Labour demands the best start in life for children growing up in our country. That is how we will get a record share of children school-ready. That is the difference that a Labour Government make.
Hansard · 20 Oct 2025 · parliament.uk
MP
Manuela Perteghella
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
MP
Manuela Perteghella
I declare that I used to work as a university lecturer before being elected. One of my constituents has already paid nearly £500 for their French visa, just to be able to undertake their year abroad as part of their degree. These costs will exclude students from disadvantaged backgrounds from vital international opport…
JD
Jim Dickson
We recently had brilliant news in Dartford for young people in the constituency and across the region, with North Kent college designated as a technical excellence college, with a focus on transforming construction training. That is perfect for the lower Thames crossing just coming on stream. The college, however, is f…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
The Education Secretary talks about wanting to improve outcomes for white working-class boys, yet disadvantaged children in Wales are being failed by the very model that she wants to introduce here in England. Is it not the case that the best thing she can do for white working-class pupils is to stop her school reforms…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
If the hon. Lady would be so kind as to provide me with some information and more details, I will happily ensure that she gets a proper response.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join my hon. Friend in congratulating the fantastic team at North Kent college on all their hard work, and congratulate him on his championing of great vocational and technical routes for our young people. The Government have committed £80 million of capital funding to construction technical excellence colleges. We w…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I do not know how the right hon. Lady has the brass neck. For 14 years, we saw groups in our—[Interruption.]
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Conservatives had 14 years. We take this issue seriously, because we know that far too many children in our country from white working-class communities do not get the outcomes they deserve. A little humility on the Conservatives’ part would go a long way.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is absolutely nothing of the sort. What we inherited was a systematic failure of white working-class kids and children with special educational needs and disabilities in our country. I read the right hon. Lady’s conference speech with great care, and I looked out in that speech for any mention of children with SEND,…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I too have met Esther Ghey, and heard from her about the incredible work that she has been leading in the face of profound personal tragedy following the loss of her daughter. I pay tribute to her for her campaigning efforts. Phones should not be out in schools—it is as simple as that. Schools have the powers, and head…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am very grateful for that question. Here in England, we are investing more in brilliant further education colleges. It is such a shame that in Scotland the SNP Government are cutting that support. I have heard directly from my Scottish Labour counterpart, Pam Duncan-Glancy, about the devastating impact that is having…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will happily answer the hon. Gentleman’s question directly, but he is a little confused about the question he is asking. The code of practice from the EHRC is about adults; it is not about schools. On the particular question of the code of practice from the EHRC, we received it at the start of September. It is a 300-…
Post-16 Education and Skills Strategy20 Oct 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
With permission, Mr Speaker, I will make a statement to update the House on the Government’s work to transform further and higher education in this country. The House should be in no doubt: transformation is what we need, because the world is changing, with artificial intelligence, machine learning, green energy and new and exciting technologies.… Global forces are reshaping the world of work more and more quickly. They bring fresh and exciting chances for growth and opportunity. However, unless education and training in this country also change, we risk missing those chances and our young people risk being left behind. We have seen that before. Under the previous Government, who thought that colleges and technical education were for other people’s children, apprenticeship starts for our young people plummeted. They talked down our universities and were more interested in headlines for culture wars than in head-starts for students. We will never take that path. I know that Members on both sides of the House will agree that we in this country have a duty—to our people, to our businesses and to our great history—not just to keep up but to lead the way. Today we publish our post-16 education and skills White Paper to seize the opportunities of this changing world, to deliver growth for our economy and opportunity for our communities, and to lead the way. My vision for post-16 education in this country is a skills system that drives growth and is more balanced, more responsive and more reflective of the evolving world of work. It will add dynamism, invention and expertise to our economy, and it will go further by inviting working people to be part of that economic strength and to add to and share in that success. The young person who has just left school and is not sure of what is next deserves a range of quality options to choose the route that is right for him—a great apprenticeship, a top course at his local further education college, or to go off to university. A wor
Hansard · 20 Oct 2025 · parliament.uk
NG
Nusrat Ghani
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of her statement. I will start with V-levels. If they are a continuation of the reforms that we began to simplify the post-16 qualification landscape, I welcome it, but without the White Paper it is hard to understand whether that is the case. There are fundamental quest…
NG
Nusrat Ghani
I call the Chair of the Education Committee.
HH
Helen Hayes
I thank the Secretary of State for her statement. I welcome the Government’s focus on further education and skills, which have been overlooked for far too long and are critical to the delivery of the Government’s missions. My Committee has recently undertaken an inquiry into FE and skills, and I am pleased to see a num…
NG
Nusrat Ghani
I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is a real shame that the right hon. Lady cannot bring herself to welcome anything that we have announced today. It is par for the course; that is how she likes to do things. In government, the Conservatives talked about how they valued post-16 education. Their record was very different, of course. The difference bet…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the Chair of the Education Committee. We continue to keep all such matters under review, and I can be clear with her that we believe that further education colleges are engines of growth and opportunity in our communities. This White Paper is about ensuring a prestigious, world-class system in which we…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his questions. V-levels will replace around 900 qualifications for 16 to 19-year-olds at level 3. The current system is fragmented, with a vast array of qualifications that are too difficult for employers and young people to navigate, so we will introduce new V-levels. That is a …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, that is right. V-levels will offer a genuine choice for young people to pursue several interests before specialising. They will sit alongside T-levels and A-levels, and will be linked to the skills and knowledge that employers tell us they need and the careers that young people wish to pursue. This is an important…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes on both points. I recognise the challenges that people in rural communities sometimes face in accessing work placements, and we continue to work with businesses and colleges to make sure they are available for T-level courses. On support for children with SEND, many of our FE colleges already lead the way on what g…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Technical excellence colleges, including those in my hon. Friend’s community, will act as hubs of excellence that will raise standards across the FE sector. Each TEC hub will offer advanced facilities, expert staff, and high-quality curricula developed with the industry. This will also allow other providers and busines…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the hon. Lady for her suggestions. For further education, we will invest nearly £800 million extra in 16 to 19 funding next year, alongside capital investment of over £2 billion to support the expansion of capacity, modernisation of college estates, and delivery of training in the areas of greatest nee…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We do think there is an important role for our mayoral strategic authorities, especially when it comes to supporting colleges and making sure we have good link-up between colleges and businesses. I would be happy to look in more detail at the situation my hon. Friend outlined.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As I said, next year, we will invest £800 million extra in 16-to-19 funding. We have sought to refocus the large programme uplift that sits alongside that investment on maths and STEM for those studying four or more A-levels, because we think that is important for our industrial strategy priorities, but there will be t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are investing more in further education, with £800 million extra next year. We are also committed to establishing 19 more technical excellence colleges on top of the 10 construction TECs launched in August—including Bedford, as my hon. Friend mentions. Those technical excellence colleges will act as hubs of excellen…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The new system will involve A-levels, T-levels and V-levels. T-levels represent three A-levels; A-levels are already well understood by many people in this country, while T-levels are a relatively new addition, but a very high-quality technical route. Alongside A-levels, there will be V-levels. These will not replace t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the passion and expertise that my hon. Friend brings to this subject, and I would be happy to discuss that issue with her in more detail.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the additional barriers that exist around transport, which are a particular challenge in rural communities, sadly, although not uniquely in rural communities. That is part of the reason why this Government are bringing forward wide-ranging reforms, including to our bus network, to make sure that it serves t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend always champions young people in Peterborough and the need to take action in this area. We will ensure that young people have good careers guidance and work experience. The White Paper also sets out an automatic backstop for all 16-year-olds that guarantees them a further education place in reserve. That…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is right that we refocus our skills system on young people, and that is what we have done through the changes that the hon. Member mentions. We have also made sure that under-22s continue to be eligible for the level 7 funding that he talks about, but I make no apology for refocusing the system on young people and t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is good to hear about the provision that exists in her community in Bournemouth. We know that we need a range of options for young people, whether through further education or independent training providers. I also recognise the critical role that many who sit outside of formal systems can play in supporting young p…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Wales and Scotland both secured the biggest post-devolution settlements that we have ever seen, yet they still continue to be against them.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend always champions the fantastic institutions in her community, and I know the important role that they play in Sheffield and the wider region, providing jobs, training and opportunities not just for our young people, but for adults returning to education. That is why we have today taken the decision to in…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the challenge there. It developed over many years, and we as a Government inherited that. We are investing more this year in further education, and there will be £800 million more next year into 16-to-19 education, which will make a big difference. But I recognise the ongoing need to support our brilliant s…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the challenge that we have seen, in part because of the big numbers of 16 to 19-year-olds we have coming through the system. That is why we are prioritising investing in 16-to-19 funding for our colleges and ensuring we have more capital available to create the places that are necessary, working with local …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We want to ensure that more young people secure a good, strong GCSE in English or maths, but we recognise that if someone secures a grade 1 in August and is then expected to resit a full GCSE a matter of months later, that is not likely to lead to the best outcomes that we want to see. We have focused on improving the …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We do want to ensure that more young people obtain that strong GCSE pass at grade 4 or above, but about a third of 16-year-olds do not achieve that at present, and sadly the number is even higher among white working-class pupils, who are more than twice as likely as their more affluent peers to need to resit their exam…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise what the hon. Gentleman has said, and I have heard of similar experiences from my constituents and families across the country who have spoken about the need to reform the SEND system across the board, throughout education. We want to build on what is already working well in post-16 provision, to ensure tha…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend sets out what sounds like an interesting and useful approach to allow employers to work together more effectively, but we also want to see more collaboration between colleges, and between colleges and universities. The White Paper sets out a vision for a more coherent system that will be easy for both st…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are talking about a relatively small number of students. Colleges and schools will retain the freedom to decide what study programmes they wish to offer their students, but we as a Government have decided to reprioritise the large programme uplift on industrial strategy priorities, involving, for example, those stud…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the challenge that my hon. Friend has mentioned. It is, of course, a challenge for rural communities in particular, but it often affects areas that are not rural, because of our fragmented transport network and the lack of join-up between transport systems and the increasing lack of bus services. We, as a G…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
There will be a consultation to which businesses, representatives of the education sector and others will be able to contribute. We want to ensure that we get this right, but we believe that it is necessary to simplify the vast array of qualifications at level 3 through vocational routes, and to align those routes bett…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I would be happy to meet my hon. Friend, and I am delighted that North Kent College will be one of our first 10 new technical excellence colleges. That will give young people in her community and beyond the chance to obtain a well-paid, secure job in one of the Government’s key areas as we seek to build more homes. I w…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are investing more in further education and also in our schools system, but we recognise that one in seven young people aged between 16 and 24 are not in education, employment, or training. We urgently need to bring that figure down, because every single day we see the consequences of that failure, both for the indi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Students wishing to study for a large qualification should study for T-levels where they are on offer, but to ease the transition to V-levels, the DFE will retain funding for qualifications with 719 guided learning hours or below in T-level areas until the new V-levels are introduced for that area, so we will be keepin…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree very strongly with my hon. Friend. As he says, colleges in Scotland have had a 20% real-terms funding cut in this parliamentary Session, according to a new report from Audit Scotland, and the SNP Government have been accused of guillotining the sector. That goes hand in hand with fewer opportunities for apprent…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
One of the measures outlined in today’s White Paper is an automatic backstop for all 16-year-olds that guarantees them a further education place in reserve, so that young people at risk of dropping out get wraparound support to ensure that they remain in education or training. We know that if we do not get that support…
Support for Trans People3 Sep 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Trans people deserve dignity and respect. The Government are upholding the legal protections that Labour’s Equality Act 2010 put in place, ensuring that trans people can live free from discrimination and harassment. Work is already under way to fulfil our manifesto commitments, including the delivery of a full trans-inclusive ban on conversion practices, the equalisation… of all strands of hate crime, and a review of health services to ensure that trans people receive appropriate and high-quality care.
Hansard · 3 Sep 2025 · parliament.uk
IS
Ian Sollom
What steps she is taking to support trans people in the context of the Supreme Court judgment in the case of For Women Scotland . Scottish Ministers of 16 April 2025.
IS
Ian Sollom
The Minister will be aware that many trans people with gender recognition certificates followed all the legal processes in good faith, often over many years, and made legally binding commitments to live in their acquired gender for life. Yet now that they find themselves legally bound to live in one gender, they are at…
CF
Catherine Fookes
I am really pleased that the Government are committed to delivering a full trans-inclusive ban on conversion therapy. When will that legislation be introduced to bring that abusive practice to an end?
RP
Rebecca Paul
The Equality and Human Rights Commission has confirmed that at least 19 public bodies, including organisations across the policing, education and health sectors, are misrepresenting the law on single-sex spaces. That is a breach of the Equality Act 2010, as confirmed by the recent Supreme Court ruling. Has the Minister…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the importance of gender recognition certificates. Let me be absolutely clear to this House, as I have been on many occasions: no one, including trans people, should suffer indignity or a lack of respect. They must of course have access to safe provisions and appropriate services. However, the Supreme Court…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are committed to bringing forward a draft Bill to ensure that we deliver on our manifesto commitment to a full trans-inclusive ban on conversion practices, which are abhorrent and have no place in our society.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The results of the previous Government’s call for input showed that, although the law was being followed in the majority of cases, a small number of examples were identified that seemed to have misinterpreted how the single-sex exemptions of the Equality Act operate. As the hon. Lady will appreciate, it is for the inde…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that trans people and women deserve appropriate access to safe spaces and the right level of accommodation and that we must ensure that provision is there, so that no one feels that their safety is at risk. To be clear to the House, the Government did not receive advance sight or notice of the interim update fr…
Topical Questions3 Sep 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This Government are focused on breaking down barriers to opportunity for everyone. We are backing working families, saving them £7,500 through rolling out 30 hours of Government-funded childcare and rolling out free breakfast clubs in our schools. Building on the proud legacy of Sure Start, we will deliver 100 Best Start family hubs to give… every child the best start in life. We are opening 10 new construction technical excellence colleges, backing our young people to learn a trade and to get on. Our plan for change will deliver for everyone.[Official Report, 13 October 2025 ; Vol. 773, c. 2WC.] (Correction)
Hansard · 3 Sep 2025 · parliament.uk
SN
Samantha Niblett
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
SN
Samantha Niblett
I am sure that the Minister will have seen research last week, which parents in my constituency will be really disappointed in, saying that mums earn £302 less per week than dads. For too long, the Tories were happy for those costs to fall on women. What steps is she taking to ensure that this Labour Government tackle …
MD
Mims Davies
Writer and comedian Graham Linehan was apparently arrested by five police officers at Heathrow, then questioned about three tweets that he says were based on his gender-critical views, a belief protected by the Equality Act 2010. Despite this Government’s claim to protect free speech, Mr Linehan has been banned from us…
YY
Yuan Yang
Will the Minister join me in congratulating Reading’s University Medical Group, a GP practice in my constituency that was recently awarded the gold Pride in Practice award by the LGBT Foundation? When I visited that practice last week, the doctors raised the issue of transgender care. Many constituents have also writte…
IS
Ian Sollom
A constituent with muscular dystrophy reports facing a wait of eight to 12 months for AJM Healthcare to deliver a new wheelchair, which is far beyond the 18-week target. What steps will the Minister take with her health colleagues to address the really poor performance by AJM Healthcare nationwide, particularly its equ…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend that that is totally unacceptable. This Labour Government will deliver for women, unlike the Conservative party—whose leader said that maternity pay was “excessive”—or the Reform leader, the hon. Member for Clacton (Nigel Farage) , who claimed it was a “fact of life” that women coming back f…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady will know well that I cannot comment on live police investigations, as the police operate independently of Government, but the Home Secretary has been clear that her priority and the priority of this Government is that the police focus on tackling antisocial behaviour and making sure that people can walk …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising that work in her community. The Government have commissioned NHS England to undertake a LGBT health evidence review, which is being led by Dr Michael Brady, the national adviser on LGBT health. It will diagnose the problems we need to solve, making sure we have evidence-led r…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
If the hon. Gentleman will provide me with some more details of his constituent’s case, I would be happy to make sure it is looked into by Ministers and that he receives a full response.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We recognise the value of parents continuing in education, which is why there are often available mechanisms such as the childcare grant and the parents’ learning allowance. As I do not know the full circumstances of her constituent’s case, I would be grateful if my hon. Friend would write to me, so I can make sure tha…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend raises an important area. We know that preparing for and adopting a child is an important time in the life of families, which is why we have committed to reviewing the parental leave system to ensure it best supports working families, including those who adopt. I would be happy to discuss that further wi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Home Secretary has set out our approach and the action we will be taking in this area, and I will make sure that the hon. Lady receives a response from the Home Office on the matter that she raises.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are determined to ensure that we have high-quality housing available, including social housing for rent, and that people have the opportunity to buy their own home. There is no place for racism in our housing system. If my hon. Friend will share with me the details of the report that she mentions, I will look into t…
Teacher Recruitment21 Jul 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
With the summer holidays just around the corner, I want to say a huge thank you to everyone working across education for all their hard work this year. Improving the quality of teaching is the best way to drive up school standards, supporting every child to achieve and thrive. Through our plan for change, we… will recruit an additional 6,500 expert teachers in our schools and colleges. With an almost 10% pay award, we are making good progress, with over 2,000 more teachers in our secondary and special schools.
Hansard · 21 Jul 2025 · parliament.uk
BC
Bambos Charalambous
What steps she is taking to recruit teachers.
JC
Juliet Campbell
What steps she is taking to recruit new teachers.
TO
Tristan Osborne
What steps she is taking to recruit new teachers.
BC
Bambos Charalambous
I congratulate the Secretary of State on the Department for Education being more than a third of the way through recruiting those 6,500 teachers. A recent Public Accounts Committee report showed that schools with a high proportion of disadvantaged pupils experienced the worst teacher shortages. Will the Secretary of St…
JC
Juliet Campbell
I thank the Secretary of State for her response and for the Government’s commitment to recruiting 6,500 new teachers. However, as we know, dyslexic children tend to leave school or education with disproportionately lower attainment levels. They are also over-represented in the criminal justice system and often have low…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I give my hon. Friend that assurance and thank him for all the work he does for schools right across his constituency. Recruiting and retaining more teachers—particularly in the most disadvantaged areas—is critical to our opportunity mission, but I am also delighted that initial teacher training acceptances are up 12% …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I thank my hon. Friend for her question and for all her work to support neurodiverse students in Broxtowe and beyond. From September, thanks to this Labour Government’s reforms, all new teachers will receive three years of evidence-based training, including significantly enhanced content on supporting children with add…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend; I know he cares deeply about outcomes for children in Chatham and Aylesford, and that he brings real experience to this House. He is right to demonstrate the important role of the specialist sector. He mentions Bradfields academy, which has already secured a place on the schools rebuild…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are investing record sums in our state schools. The Conservative party, however, wants to take money out of our state schools to give tax breaks back to private schools. That tells us everything we need to know about their priorities.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We continue to keep all these areas under review; if the hon. Gentleman would like to write to me with more information, I would be happy to respond with more detail. However, I am clear that this Government are investing more in education. We are turning around the year-on-year declines in teacher numbers with better …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I would be very happy to do so. As the right hon. Gentleman just heard, we are seeing big increases in initial teacher training acceptances in many of those key subjects such as maths and science. On the commitment we have made, we had 60,000 fewer children in primary over the course of the last year and, as a former h…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That was very shouty from the shadow Minister, and as per usual very negative about what we are seeing across education. We are turning around the problems that the Conservatives left behind on teacher recruitment and retention. We are increasing attendance in our schools and improving behaviour—a challenge that I comp…
SEND Provision: Funding21 Jul 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend that important question. Labour is providing £1 billion more for high-needs budgets, and also providing councils with £740 million of capital funding to improve support for children with SEND in specialist and mainstream schools. This investment will lay the foundation for the better system that children with SEND… need. Working with experts, we will set out our plans in the schools White Paper in the autumn.
Hansard · 21 Jul 2025 · parliament.uk
CW
Chris Webb
What steps her Department is taking to ensure adequate funding for SEND provision.
CW
Chris Webb
The last Government left behind a SEND system that was failing children and families. Parents were made to fight for support, with education, health and care plans denied or delayed and vital services taken away. Tory cuts to early years support, rising poverty and extreme deprivation in Blackpool, as well as the pande…
AM
Andrew Murrison
The Secretary of State knows that out-of-county placements are very expensive and highly unsatisfactory both for pupils and for families. Will she therefore confirm that the excellent news that we had last year about a new SEND school being built at Bitham Park in Westbury will go ahead to the advantage of children and…
AB
Alex Baker
Will the Secretary of State join me in congratulating the staff, pupils and governors at Henry Tyndale community school on the official opening today of their new park campus in Aldershot, a vital new facility for students aged four to 19 with complex learning difficulties? This outstanding school is named after Henry …
EC
Ellie Chowns
I have heard from and met with numerous constituents who are parents of children with special educational needs, all frustrated with the way that the system currently works. I welcome the Secretary of State saying she wants outcomes for children to be at the centre of reforms, but a parent of a child with an EHCP, whic…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is a powerful champion for his constituents and for Blackpool, and he is right that far too many children are not currently getting the support they need in order to thrive. Early intervention is key—more support at the earliest possible point to identify where children might be struggling, and to make s…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will happily write to the right hon. Gentleman in relation to his constituency case. We are looking carefully at all the proposals we inherited when we came in as a new Government, but the assurance I can give him is that through the spending review we secured additional investment not just for revenue funding but al…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the amazing work in the specialist sector and the tremendous expertise, knowledge and passion that so many people bring to supporting children with some of the most complex needs. That is why how we can deliver better outcomes for children with SEND is at the forefront of al…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I can be clear that children with SEND have a legal right to additional support, and Labour will always protect that. I would say, however, that we all have a responsibility in how we approach the issue—a responsibility not to cause undue alarm among parents who are experiencing a system that is not working and that is…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As I said in response to the hon. Member for North Herefordshire (Ellie Chowns) , children with SEND have a legal right to additional support. We will not just protect it, but improve it. We will deliver better outcomes and support for children with SEND. I do not know how the shadow Minister has the brass neck to stan…
Topical Questions21 Jul 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
With your permission, Mr Speaker, I would like first to address last week’s tragic incident in Minehead. I am sure that all Members will join me in offering support and prayers to everyone affected by the Minehead middle school bus crash last Thursday. Our deepest sympathies and condolences go to all those affected at the… school and in the wider community, and particularly to the family and friends of the 10-year-old boy who tragically lost his life. Most of the injured have now been released from hospital. Support has already been put in place for those affected, and it will continue into the summer break and beyond. I extend my thanks to everyone involved in co-ordinating and delivering this vital help, and I also pay tribute to the emergency services for their incredible response in the most challenging of circumstances. This Labour Government believe that children growing up in our country deserve the very best start in life, which is why we are investing nearly £1.5 billion over the next three years to transform early years and family services. That will include £500 million to roll out Best Start family hubs in every local authority, honouring the proud legacy of Sure Start and ensuring that every family can thrive regardless of postcode or income. Labour is building back the crucial family services that were decimated by the Tories, providing high-quality support for parents, babies and children from pregnancy onwards—and we are only just getting started.
Hansard · 21 Jul 2025 · parliament.uk
LA
Lee Anderson
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
LA
Lee Anderson
Last week I visited the Outwood academy school in Kirkby-in-Ashfield, which has gone from double special measures to “good” in just three years under the leadership of the Outwood Grange Academies Trust. Will the Secretary of State please say a big thank you to the trust, and the staff, for helping to turn the school a…
AL
Andrew Lewin
It remains a reality that it is possible to take a GCSE in Russian but not in Ukrainian, and I have resolved to do my part to help because I believe that a Ukrainian GCSE should be available to all. As this is a topical question, I bring some encouraging news: I have written to all the exam boards—
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
Order. Topical questions should be quick.
AL
Andrew Lewin
It will be, Mr Speaker, absolutely—topical and quick. AQA has reported back to me that it is very open to the idea, but it needs to see evidence that we have enough Ukraine-speaking teachers who are willing to teach the subject and to mark the papers. The good news is that, with support from parliamentary colleagues, I…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Like the hon. Gentleman, I welcome the hard work of our teachers, leaders and support staff, and I am always pleased to hear about improvements in standards. This Government are ambitious for every child, and our new regional improvement in standards and excellence teams are working across schools to bring together lea…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This Labour Government are delivering the teachers that are desperately needed right across our schools. We were left behind a terrible crisis when it came to recruitment and retention, but this Labour Government know that improving standards in our schools requires having the best possible teachers available to teach …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
There are 60,000 fewer children in primary schools this year. I know the right hon. Lady was at the Treasury, so I would expect a bit more when it comes to her maths. It would be nonsensical to recruit even more primary school teachers when we have falling rolls. We are focusing our efforts where they are needed, and I…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join my hon. Friend in condemning those remarks. I am aware that the Reform UK leader said, in similar comments, “I’m not being heartless, I’m being frank”. Well, I will be frank: Reform UK would plunge the SEND system into further disarray. Only Labour will back the children with SEND who need support.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
If the hon. Gentleman would write to me, I will look into that further.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am not quite clear what the right hon. Gentleman is driving at with that question. What I have said in response to the very sharp decline in the birth rate is that as a Government we want to make sure that people are able to make choices that are right for them, including around family size. My concern is that too ma…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Until that final point, I thought the hon. Gentleman raised some serious concerns, which we have heard this afternoon from many colleagues across the House who need us to bring forward reform to deliver better outcomes for children with SEND. If the Conservative party wants to work with us to do this in a way that deli…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Gentleman will appreciate that universities are independent institutions that are able to make their own decisions around financial management. As a Government, we have sought to stabilise the higher education sector. That is why we took the difficult but necessary decision to increase tuition fees. Later this…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We have heard this afternoon from my hon. Friend and so many Members across the House about the urgent need to make improvements for children with SEND. We are laying the foundations with more investment in the system, through both the high needs budget and capital, so we have the places that are needed. There is, of c…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for the work he has done in this area over many years and for the way he champions this cause here on behalf of his constituents. I can confirm that children with SEND have a legal right to additional support and that Labour will protect that. He will appreciate that discussions are unde…
Giving Every Child the Best Start in Life7 Jul 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
With permission, Madam Deputy Speaker, I will make a statement on this Government’s vital work to change our country for good by giving every child the best start in life. The focus today is firmly on our youngest children, but the impact will be much more broader. This Government are building a stronger, fairer society,… and we will lay the foundations for it in the earliest years of our children’s lives. Because we are determined to tackle the root causes of problems, not just the symptoms, we begin at the start. The inequalities that stain our country and the ways in which opportunity is heaped on some but hidden from others are disparities that do not suddenly spring up in adulthood. Our babies are born into an unequal world, and the inequality grows with them, right from the very first days when we carry them home from hospital. Early differences in the support that families can get, in the early education and childcare that parents can access, and in the opportunities that children have to start exploring are all differences—these and many more—that take hold early on. The winds of fortune are already there on the first day of school—a gale at the backs of some; a blizzard in the faces of others. These differences mean that some children arrive in the classroom not yet ready to learn. They mean that while two thirds of children reach a good level of development by age five, a third do not. Half of our children on free school meals miss that important milestone, and this injustice is fuelled by those differences. A Labour Government will not tolerate our children being failed like this. Within months of taking office, we set out in our plan for change our ambition to get a record share of children to reach a good level of development by the age of five, because it matters so much for those young lives. Our plan goes further—it sets the tone. Forty per cent of the disadvantage gap at the age of 16 is already there at the age of five. Next month, we know that youn
Hansard · 7 Jul 2025 · parliament.uk
JC
Judith Cummins
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
When the right hon. Lady was in opposition, she criticised every announcement simply because it came from the Conservatives. Take childcare: she called the hours model that she talked about today “broken”. She said that she would have a new childcare system, and that its creation would be “like the creation of the NHS.…
JC
Judith Cummins
Order. I certainly want to listen to what the Secretary of State for Education has to say.
JC
Judith Cummins
I call the Chair of the Select Committee.
HH
Helen Hayes
I warmly welcome the statement from my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State on restoring a comprehensive and strategic approach to early years support, childcare and early education—an approach that has sadly been lacking during the 14 years of the last Government. In that time, we saw Sure Start dismantled, the co…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Every time I come here to announce the positive changes that a Labour Government are bringing, whether it is free breakfast clubs, school-based nurseries or our “best start in life” strategy, what is the right hon. Lady’s response? The same confected outrage, the same negativity, and the same petty point scoring. She h…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The right hon. Lady asks about the needs of children with special educational needs and disabilities. I would say to all parents of children with SEND that there is no responsibility I take more seriously than our responsibility to some of the most vulnerable children in our country. We will ensure as a Government that…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend the Chair of the Select Committee for her detailed questions, and for the welcome she has given the strategy. I would be more than happy to discuss all the areas with her in more detail, because I appreciate that time is often short here, Madam Deputy Speaker. We want to ensure high-qual…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady asks a number of questions and I am grateful for her broad welcome for the intent of this Government to make sure that all of our children get the best start in life. On early years, she will know that as of next year we are investing £9 billion into the system along with a near-doubling of the early year…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is hard to top my hon. Friend’s question and I will not begin to try to make further ’90s references. What I can say to her is that we are drawing on the best of Sure Start, learning from the evidence about what was incredibly effective. One other element I would add to her list is that Sure Start was at its best wh…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for raising important constituency matters. I will be happy to look into the details. If he could share some more information with me after this session, I will ensure he gets a full response.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I can confirm to my hon. Friend that his local authority will benefit from the extra funding. The area is one of those not currently funded, but it will be receiving funding shortly—this year—to start the process of moving towards a Best Start family hub in the next year. We will be clear with local authorities that we…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady’s local authority area is not currently funded through the programme and it will receive funding, including a share of a £12 million development grant, which we will confirm in the next few weeks, to start the process, ahead of opening a Best Start family hub next year. As I said earlier, we will ensure t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As a Government, we want to ensure that more brilliant people want come and work in early years, and that they can gain qualifications and training, and build fulfilling careers. We will work with the sector to do that. We will recruit more early years teachers, particularly in the areas where they are needed most, mor…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I know the hon. Gentleman always champions his community and the needs of rural communities across our country. With the additional £500 million for local authorities to deliver Best Start family hubs, we will set out guidance on how they can ensure that they are serving the most disadvantaged communities, but local au…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend has always been a really powerful voice around campaigning for childcare, high-quality early years education and better support for parents. I join her in paying tribute to our late friend Tessa Jowell, who made such an enormous contribution and without whom Sure Start would not have happened. We are all…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
While I recognise the hon. Gentleman’s concern about ensuring that his constituents get the support that they deserve, including children with SEND, I gently say to him that it does no one any favours to scare parents. The guiding principle of any reform to the SEND system that we will set out will be about better, str…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I know how hard my hon. Friend has campaigned on this issue, both on Sure Start and on the right of all children to play. Like him, I know that access to stay-and-play, rhyme time and those kinds of opportunities for children and families are incredibly important, especially for families who simply do not have the mone…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As the hon. Lady will understand, I cannot comment on individual cases, but if she writes to me with the details, I can make sure that Ofsted looks carefully at the matters she has set out and provides her with a full response.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is only through my hon. Friend’s election and through a Labour Government that this investment will be coming to her community. The first investment will start to flow this year, allowing her local authority to get the systems and structures in place that will enable them to open up next year. I am delighted that in…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The right hon. Gentleman has set out with great clarity why the system we have at the moment just is not working. His experience is that of many Members across this House; I, too, have met many constituents who have struggled for far too long to get the support that their children deserve. That is why, while we are inv…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend speaks with real power, real expertise and personal experience on these matters, and I am grateful to have had the opportunity to discuss much of this with her, including her experiences as a parent and as a constituency MP and what needs to change. I can give her the absolute and categorical assurance n…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The right hon. Gentleman will understand that I do not have at hand the precise details of the constituency school that he raises. I would be happy to arrange a meeting for him with the relevant Minister to discuss it further. We have secured additional investment in capital at the spending review. I recognise the wide…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am delighted to hear about the experience in my hon. Friend’s constituency. I will do my very best to come and visit, but if not, I am sure one of my ministerial colleagues would be able to join him and see the services directly.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The extra investment that is going into Best Start family hubs runs alongside the additional £500 million that we are committing to early support and preventive services along with our colleagues at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. A number of other Members have asked about the adoption and sp…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend asked first about the statutory SEND override, and I know that, as Chair of the Select Committee, she takes a serious interest in this area. We recognise that local authorities will need support during the transition to a reformed SEND system, which is why we extended the statutory override in the spendi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Is it not fascinating that so many Conservative Members are suddenly taking a keen interest in support for children with SEND? The hon. Gentleman blithely says, “Whatever the challenges of the SEND system—”, but they are challenges that the Conservatives left behind, and they are challenges that this Labour Government …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend saw at first hand the difference that Sure Start made. Through his election to this place, a new generation of children in his constituency will once again benefit from the kind of support that was so essential, and we will support his local authority with additional funding for that. He is right to say …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Through today’s announcement, the Department for Education will fund support in the hon. Lady’s constituency, and I am sure that will make a big difference to the people she represents. I am grateful for her work on infant feeding, and I can give her an assurance that the support put in place will be rooted in the best…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for identifying the work that is already going on in her constituency. Although it is led by the Department for Education, the strategy that we are setting out today is the work that we will drive right across Government. We are working with colleagues in the Department for Work and Pens…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Children will continue to receive the high-quality support that they need—I can give the hon. Gentleman that absolute and categorical assurance. Once again, I observe that Conservative Members did not show the same level of interest when they were in government. That is why we have ended up in this sorry state, with fa…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, it is this Labour Government who will ensure that families get better access to health support and family services, and that they can do so much more rapidly. My hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the record of the last Government in this area. She will know that it is not just in this part of our work that…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, I can confirm that. The hon. Member is right to draw attention to the critical work of our health visitors and our speech and language therapists, who do some amazing work to support children and families, but I appreciate that they often feel overstretched and overworked at the moment. That is why we want to ensu…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right about access to both family support services and health services. I have discussed this with the Health Secretary, and I know he takes a keen interest in it. When families are able to access appointments only during the school day, that can mean children’s attendance at school takes a hit. That …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Member is right to seek to ensure that families facing extra challenges or struggles and the most disadvantaged families have access to Best Start family hubs. Again, the evidence, particularly from the first phase of Sure Start, demonstrated that engagement with parents and communities—good outreach work—is c…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend, and we want to ensure that no parent faces parenthood alone. Being a parent is a wonderful joy, but it sometimes comes with many challenges. That is particularly true when a parent is worried that their child is struggling and not quite making the progress they would expect, so being able t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
At the Budget and at the spending review, we allocated additional investment to support councils. However, I recognise what the hon. Member says about the importance of timely support in identifying need much more quickly and putting in place the support required, which is why we are investing an extra £1 billion in SE…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend. I know the Under-Secretary of State for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Lewisham East (Janet Daby) has visited and seen at first hand the difference that is making and the impact it is having. We are very keen, through this programme and wider developments in the strategy, to d…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady is absolutely right about the importance of mental health in our schools, which is why we are rolling out mental health support teams right across the country. What I can confirm to the House today is that, as well as making sure we have funding in place for the areas that do not currently receive funding…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We will ensure that voluntary and community groups have an important role to play in our family hubs. I am grateful for everything my hon. Friend does to champion Harlow and his community. Harlow will now benefit from the extra investment that I am announcing today through the “best start in life” strategy. It is throu…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As the hon. Gentleman knows, I was in Northern Ireland at the end of last year, during which time I was able, as part of my work co-chairing the child poverty taskforce, to meet many charities, campaigners and parents about what they wanted to see through that work. That was important to hear, because the responsibilit…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend. Through the announcement today, his local authority will benefit from extra investment in Best Start family hubs. Again, that is the difference that comes from electing him to this place. He is right to identify the growing challenge that many of our young people experience with their w…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Through today’s announcement, we are ensuring that areas that do not currently receive funding will receive it, but alongside that we will ensure that all local authorities are able to deliver into the next phase. My hon. Friend is right that the services in her community, including those serving the most disadvantaged…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend. I have heard much about the work going on in Stoke, including the Thrive At Five programme, and I know my hon. Friend met the Minister to talk about that. I would be happy to visit, or perhaps one of my colleagues might be able to, but I would love to see or hear more about what is goin…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for all the campaigning she has done over many years to get us to this point. It is only a Labour Government who would bring forward this kind of strategy to ensure that all our children are set up to succeed, breaking the link between background and success, and ensuring that at the ear…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for identifying the brilliant work that is already going on in his constituency. Through today’s announcement and the “best start in life” strategy, his community and his constituents will see extra investment and more support for precisely the kinds of services he identified. This will …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That was very good. I slightly resisted being drawn into the Oasis references earlier, and now we have moved on to Blur. I will stay out of that one, even though I have my preference. My hon. Friend is right to talk about the importance of play for all children. It is striking—I am sure she will have heard the same thi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hubs will be key to our vision for how we better join up education and health services in the community, but they will also work with voluntary and community groups, childminders, libraries and others to bring services close to local people. My hon. Friend talked about the important links between early years settin…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for everything she does to champion our armed forces communities, not least given their importance to her constituency. I will make sure that we reflect further on how we can ensure that our forces families are able to access services. My hon. Friend’s local authority is one area that cu…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, we will consider the factors that my hon. Friend mentioned. Later in the autumn, we will confirm the allocations across all local authorities for the next phase. That runs alongside the development grant that will go to local authorities that do not currently receive funding. It will be a massive boost to my hon. …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the important work of voluntary and community groups, which will have a central role to play, not least because they are often better able to access and support families who might otherwise find it difficult to go through the doors of a centre, and who might feel a certain k…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes. As a result of today’s announcement, my hon. Friend’s local authority will now receive funding to roll out those services. I join in his sheer incredulity at the fact that such effective, brilliant services were closed. How short-sighted, and what an impact we have seen on children and their life chances! I know f…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Absolutely. The impact on children and their life chances is clear, but the work of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, which we have looked at carefully, is also clear about the wider economic benefits. I am delighted that my hon. Friend’s constituents will now benefit from a Best Start family hub. The reason why they, …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend’s community will benefit from the extra investment in today’s announcement, alongside the wider announcements in the “best start in life” strategy, which focuses on a number of important areas, including early-years education, reception, the support we put in place for parents, and the funding to deliver…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I had a fantastic visit to my hon. Friend’s constituency. It demonstrated that even in the face of the very difficult funding settlement that many local councils have endured, brilliant councils have sought to prioritise investment. As the then lead member on that council, my hon. Friend did incredible work ensuring th…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, we will make sure that my hon. Friend’s local authority gets the support that it was previously denied. It will be able to share in a £12 million development grant, which we will confirm in the next few weeks, so that it can hit the ground running and put in place the services needed from April next year. We will …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right to draw attention to the shocking failure to support so many children growing up in poverty or going through the social care system. The outcomes are often tragic. That failure is inexplicable, given the trauma that many of those young people have experienced. We are bringing forward …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right: as well as the real benefits to children and families, there are clear economic benefits. He describes what I have heard from so many school and college leaders and university vice principals across our country. They tell me, “If you can do one thing, invest in the early years—that’s…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising that issue. Change and reform are needed to the system. That is why we are investing an extra £1 billion in support for children with SEND, and why we are investing in capital programmes to create the specialist places needed in mainstream schools, alongside delivering better…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Following today’s announcement, my hon. Friend’s community will benefit for the first time from funding that will allow for a Best Start family hub and wider services delivered through that. She is right to identify that although the falling birthrate, including in her community, presents a challenge, it allows us to t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As my hon. Friend says, we know from research by the Institute for Fiscal Studies that Sure Start generated widespread long-term benefits in education and health, even reducing school absence and identifying support for children with SEND much more quickly. We will build on the lessons of Sure Start as we roll out Best…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend, and I am pleased to hear about his experiences. It is important that services delivered through Best Start family hubs respond to the needs of mums, dads and carers alike. The example he gives demonstrates the importance of listening to parents about what they want to see. Through the measu…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the important link between education and health, particularly given his expertise. That link is why I was proud that we announced a big expansion to free school meals to make sure that more of our children get a nutritious meal during the day. It is why the Health Secretary …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Through the measures announced today, my hon. Friend’s local authority will now benefit from funding to make that a reality. She is right to say that even when services are available, it can be confusing for parents to know where to go to access high-quality, trusted advice. The digital offer we are developing with NHS…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right that her local authority will benefit from the funding announced today. It will share in a £12 million development grant, and further funding will follow alongside that. We will support the local authority to get up and running and then ensure that it has the services it needs. This scheme will …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Our announcement today is about making sure that more parents and children are able to access high-quality parenting, healthcare and education services. The half a billion we are investing over the spending review period will allow us to reach half a million more children, including in my hon. Friend’s community and co…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The measures I have announced mean that local authorities that do not currently receive funding, including my hon. Friend’s local authority, will receive funding through a share of a development grant to make sure that they can get up and running from next April. In the autumn we will confirm allocations across all loc…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, and I am delighted that my hon. Friend’s local authority and community will benefit from today’s announcement. She is right that access to mental healthcare for new mums in particular is really important. It can be a very lonely and isolating experience, and being able to chat to other parents and access support i…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend’s local authority will now benefit from this extra funding, and it will make a tremendous difference to children and families across his community. Like my hon. Friend, I have heard that story from so many school leaders, teachers and support staff who go above and beyond to support families who are ofte…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend. It is this Labour Government who will once again ensure that all our children are set up to succeed. We will build on the proud legacy of Sure Start, take the best evidence of what works, and expand and enhance that for the generations of children to come, in his community and across the co…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That is critical, which is why we need to bring together healthcare, education, libraries, childminders and voluntary and community groups in that endeavour to ensure that all our children get the best start in life. Like my hon. Friend, I am determined to ensure that background does not equal success. The driving miss…
Educational Outcomes for Boys18 Jun 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Attainment for boys is, on average, lower than for girls. This Government are determined to understand and address the drivers behind that. We are focused on driving educational excellence everywhere, for every child in every school, and my schools White Paper in the autumn will set out our vision for a system that delivers on… excellence for everyone.
Hansard · 18 Jun 2025 · parliament.uk
LJ
Lincoln Jopp
Whether she plans to take steps with Cabinet colleagues to develop a strategy to improve educational outcomes for boys.
LE
Luke Evans
Whether she plans to take steps with Cabinet colleagues to develop a strategy to improve educational outcomes for boys.
LJ
Lincoln Jopp
Recent research by the Centre for Social Justice showed that at key stage 1, key stage 2, GCSEs, A-levels and T-levels, boys are underperforming girls. We simply cannot allow half a generation not to be allowed to reach their full potential. As part of her approach, will the Secretary of State consider looking at wheth…
LE
Luke Evans
The logic behind having a Women’s Minister was the idea that women present and have different problems in society. By that logic, men and boys do, too; we know about suicide, and we have just heard about educational attainment. We hear about help-seeking opportunities, and I welcome the men’s health strategy, but is it…
JS
Josh Simons
As a boy, Billy Boston dreamed of playing rugby union for Wales and for Cardiff, but he was never selected because he was black. Wigan and rugby league welcomed him with open arms. Rugby league has always been a sport that champions equality; it was created by working-class men who wanted to be paid a fair wage, and no…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful for the hon. Gentleman’s interest in this area and the constructive way in which he is approaching an important topic. I, too, have looked at the research from the Centre for Social Justice, which provides some important pointers. Through the schools White Paper, we will consider all the ways we can bette…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Gentleman raises some important areas of concern, including health outcomes, suicide, educational outcomes and the need to better support boys, young men and men throughout their lives. He will appreciate that ministerial appointments are for the Prime Minister, so I will not get ahead of myself and make any a…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join my hon. Friend in congratulating Billy and his family. Right across sport, we want to make sure that no one is held back by outdated stereotypes, whether they relate to their sex, their race or their background. This Government are committed to ensuring that all young people have access to high-quality sport and…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend brings real expertise, and I listened carefully to what he had to say. We will consider those issues through the schools White Paper later this autumn. The curriculum and assessment review is also under way, and it is considering all aspects of how we can make sure that young people have access to a broa…
Topical Questions18 Jun 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am proud to be driving our opportunity mission, as part of this Government’s plan for change, to break the link between background and success. In our spending review, we announced that we are extending free school meals to all children with a parent on universal credit, lifting 100,000 children out of poverty by the… end of the Parliament. That is the difference a Labour Government make.
Hansard · 18 Jun 2025 · parliament.uk
IS
Ian Sollom
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
IS
Ian Sollom
My constituent Theo, who is blind and a Braillist, has not received a single useable Braille past paper, despite being nearly a year into his A-levels, and reports that his GCSE papers last year contained so many errors that they were nearly impossible to use. Will the Minister take immediate action to ensure that exam…
IC
Irene Campbell
I was shocked to read recently that Ofsted found that 80% of teenage girls are being put under pressure to provide sexual images of themselves; they can be asked for these pictures multiple times a night. What consideration will there be of social media in the wider strategy to tackle violence against women and girls?
MD
Mims Davies
I point to page 86 of Baroness Casey’s report, which shows a worrying number of live investigations of cases in which there is an overlap between child sexual exploitation and criminal exploitation. The report notes that a “significant proportion” of cases appear to involve suspects who are claiming asylum. Which Minis…
MD
Mims Davies
For decades, too many people blocked their ears and turned their backs on towns and individuals asking for help, as well as on the national calls for help. Will the Minister confirm that those in their ivory towers in Whitehall can now be compelled to give evidence under oath on their actions and assumptions—including,…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am concerned to hear of the experience of the hon. Gentleman’s constituent. If he provides me with some information, I can make sure that this is properly investigated.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her question. I share her concern about the issue and its impact on young women and girls. That is why the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology is bringing forward further action to ensure that girls are protected from harm, and why later this year, we will publi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady will know that the Home Secretary recently made an extensive statement to Parliament, setting out the actions that this Government will take to address the many failures left behind by the Conservatives. Baroness Casey outlined that there had been a decade of lost time and a failure to deliver justice for…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As the Home Secretary set out on Monday, anyone found to have been responsible for covering up or hiding vile crimes of child sexual abuse must and will be prosecuted. However, the Conservatives had a decade to act—the lost decade that Baroness Casey talked about—and the recommendations from Alexis Jay sat on a shelf w…
Antisemitism on University Campuses16 Jun 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I thank the hon. Gentleman for highlighting the report by StandWithUs UK. Antisemitism has no place in our lecture halls, campuses and universities, and no place in our society. Universities must be places where all students feel safe and respected, and are able to thrive. A week ago today, I brought together university vice-chancellors and… community leaders to hear testimonials from Jewish students, and to discuss next steps to ensure safer and more inclusive campuses for all our students.
Hansard · 16 Jun 2025 · parliament.uk
JR
Jack Rankin
What assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of StandWithUs UK’s “Voice of Students 2024/25” report on antisemitism on university campuses.
JR
Jack Rankin
What StandWithUs UK sets out in its report into antisemitism and support for terrorism at British universities is a source of national shame. It is high time that we heeded the stipulation in the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition that so-called anti-Zionism is nothing less that anti-Jewish racis…
SY
Steve Yemm
Given my experience of working with the Holocaust Educational Trust in schools in Mansfield, I ask the Secretary of State to confirm that the history of the Holocaust will be taught in schools following the passage of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, which the Conservatives opposed.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for raising that incredibly important issue that we, as a Government, take extremely seriously, because no student should be subject to antisemitism on universities campuses or in any place in our education system. That is why we have committed £7 million of funding to address antise…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I can give that confirmation to my hon. Friend. I join him in paying tribute to the Holocaust Educational Trust for its work to shine a light on antisemitism at the moment in our country, but also to ensure that we learn the lessons of history. I say to my hon. Friend that yes, we have given that undertaking, ahead of …
School-based Nurseries16 Jun 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
School-based nurseries are a key part of delivering on our plan for change by making high-quality early years education more accessible and affordable, so that every child gets the best start in life. At the spending review, we announced almost £370 million for school-based nurseries, on top of the £37 million already awarded to schools.… The Tories left a childcare pledge without a plan, but this Labour Government are delivering on promises made to families, saving working parents up to £7,500 a year.
Hansard · 16 Jun 2025 · parliament.uk
SW
Steve Witherden
What steps she is taking to expand school-based nurseries.
AL
Andrew Lewin
What steps she is taking to expand school-based nurseries.
RT
Rachel Taylor
What steps she is taking to expand school-based nurseries.
CB
Christopher Bloore
What steps she is taking to increase the number of school-based nursery places.
SW
Steve Witherden
The Government have announced £37 million for the first round of schools to expand nursery provision, supporting the roll-out of the extended 30 hours childcare offer in England, but the Public Childcare Now campaign points out that nearly two thirds of the funded schools are part of multi-academy trusts. While we are …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am delighted that so many academies are taking part in our school nursery programme. Academies drive innovation across our system and are an important part of the system we have. Of course, it was the last Labour Government who first brought about the academies programme to drive up performance in our schools and to …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join my hon. Friend in paying tribute to the workforce at Swallow Dell for everything they are doing to make sure our children get a brilliant start in life. I am sorry that they were not successful in the first phase. There was lots of demand, and that is why I am delighted that the spending review gave £370 million…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will certainly do my best to visit Keresley Newland, and I am delighted that it is taking part in our school-based nurseries programme. We are determined to make sure that every child gets the best start in life. We know that the early years are crucial, and that is why we have set an ambitious target of making sure …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is because we know the benefits that primary-based nurseries can bring, often working with the private, voluntary and independent sector, that we are determined to move as fast as we can to deliver the next phase. I look forward to discussing that further with my hon. Friend. I am delighted that families in Redditch…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, we continue to keep that under review, especially ahead of the further expansion of childcare in September. The figures will be published in the usual way, and we will make sure that we have the workforce there to deliver on the commitments that have been made. I say to the hon. Lady that in addition to almost dou…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Gentleman has raised a number of important questions. I will certainly look into the issues relating to Surrey that we have discussed previously, and will then come back to him. As for support for children with special educational needs and disabilities, he has made the case for reform very precisely. The curr…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I too recently met the chief executive of the Early Years Alliance, and I will always be open to discussing the challenges faced by the sector; but let me convey to the right hon. Gentleman the points that I made to the chief executive. We are investing £8 billion in early years education, as well as almost doubling th…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I know that the Under-Secretary of State for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Portsmouth South (Stephen Morgan) , has been in touch with the hon. Lady recently to discuss this matter further, and I personally will happily look further into the case that she has raised. We are investing record sums in early year…
SEND Support: Children without an EHCP16 Jun 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Parents right across the country know that the Tories left behind a SEND system that was, in the words of the last Tory Education Secretary, “lose, lose, lose”. Labour will restore parents’ confidence with a support-first approach, prioritising early intervention and inclusive support in mainstream schools to address needs before they escalate. We will not… be removing effective support, but we will also expand schools’ capacity to deliver consistent, high-quality provision to help children thrive, with timely and effective support.
Hansard · 16 Jun 2025 · parliament.uk
LJ
Lincoln Jopp
What steps she is taking to support children with special educational needs and disabilities who do not have an education, health and care plan.
LJ
Lincoln Jopp
In the last 11 months I have visited nearly all the schools in my constituency, and wherever I have gone I have asked whether people understand why the number of children with special educational needs has been going through the roof. I have received various explanations, such as lockdown, diet, social media, drugs in …
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the Chair of the Education Committee.
HH
Helen Hayes
One of the biggest challenges affecting the delivery of support for children with special educational needs and disabilities is the extent of local authority funding deficits. They are currently dealt with through the statutory override, which allows local authorities to set a balanced budget without accounting for the…
JS
Julian Smith
One of the best ways to support autistic children in schools is for teachers to go through mandatory training and to understand better the challenges that faced by neurodiverse people. How is the neurodivergent taskforce progressing, and will the Government bring in mandatory training for new teachers?
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My Department, and the Department of Health and Social Care, are keen to understand some of the drivers identified by the hon. Gentleman. I know that he comes to this discussion in good faith, but some people, including Reform Members of Parliament, sometimes do not approach it in a responsible way. I think we need to …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that in addition to longer-term reform, which the White Paper will deliver, it is imperative that we take action now in order to make sure that the school system better caters for children with a wide range of needs. That is why we have invested £740 million to support councils to create more specialist provisi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are introducing more training on SEND for new entrants to the profession. That will take effect from September, but there is more that we need to do, including supporting teachers and staff already working in our schools. That is part of the work that the group has under way, and we will set out more through the Whi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that in areas where we are seeing space opening up in the schools estate, it is allowing us to do things like open more school-based nurseries. It also provides us with the opportunity to deliver more specialist provision in mainstream schools. I have seen some brilliant examples, right across the country, of w…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We do need to think differently about the system that we have inherited from the Conservative party—one that Members from across the House recognise just is not working. This is not about taking away support for families or children; it is about making sure that there is much earlier identification of need and that sup…
Topical Questions16 Jun 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Last week’s spending review was about investing in Britain’s renewal and investing in excellence for every child, so that background will not determine what they can go on to achieve. Through our settlement, we will continue to make high-quality early years education more accessible and affordable. We will rebuild our crumbling schools estate, and we… will improve outcomes for children with special educational needs and disabilities with our support-first approach. We will also continue our overhaul of children’s social care, opening up training opportunities for young people to get great jobs in growing industries. Crucially, we will lift 100,000 children out of poverty through an historic expansion of free school meals to cover all families in receipt of universal credit. It will save parents nearly £500 per child per year. That is the difference that a Labour Government makes.
Hansard · 16 Jun 2025 · parliament.uk
HU
Harpreet Uppal
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
HU
Harpreet Uppal
I recently met young people from the West Yorkshire Youth Collective. They told me that funding for work experience opportunities for those aged between 16 and 19 has reduced in recent years, particularly in science, technology, engineering and mathematics and the arts. What steps is the Secretary of State taking to en…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
It is a pleasure to welcome my old primary school teacher Mrs Case to the Chamber today—I hope we all remain on our best behaviour. My question is very simple: does the Education Secretary believe that primary school teachers are indeed teachers?
LT
Laura Trott
I am grateful for the confirmation that the Education Secretary does accept that primary school teachers are indeed teachers, but why is she then saying that they no longer count towards her manifesto pledge to recruit 6,500 more teachers? Is it because, contrary to the Department’s social media posts, teacher numbers …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to highlight this important area. As she will know, our manifesto committed us to expanding work experience and careers guidance so that we can support young people into fulfilling jobs, create opportunities and drive growth. Our wider skills reform will also create 120,000 training opportunitie…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join the right hon. Lady in paying tribute to her teacher who joins us today. We all know that a brilliant teacher and the contribution that they make can always stay with us. I am slightly perplexed by the right hon. Lady’s question. She is obviously right, but after 14 years of Tory failure many of our teachers are…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I do not know where the right hon. Lady has been, but she certainly has not been paying attention. We have been clear that we will make sure that we have 6,500 more teachers in secondary and specialist education and in further education colleges. This year alone we have 60,000 fewer children in primary schools, and tha…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It was this Labour Government’s priority to ensure that our world-leading universities were put on a much more sustainable footing. That is why we took the difficult but necessary decision to increase student fees, and it is why we are reforming the Office for Students to have a much sharper focus on financial regulati…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I assure the hon. Gentleman that we will ensure that we have the right numbers of specialist placements in the parts of the country where they are needed. Our capital budget in the spending review will allow us to do that. But alongside that, we need to ensure that we have more specialist provision in mainstream, inclu…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
In wider reform later this year through the schools White Paper—including to the SEND system—we will look at every way in which we can improve outcomes for children, including those with SEND. That will include looking at the funding mechanisms we inherited from the Conservative party.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is only through delivering a Labour Government in Scotland next year that we will get the change that the hon. Gentleman is seeking. I agree that Scottish education used to be the envy of the world—I spent many a long day speaking to my grandfather about his experience of the Scottish system—but it is only with a La…
Government Mission on Opportunity: Equality7 May 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This Government are clear that equality and opportunity are at the heart of our programme of national renewal and economic growth. The opportunity mission is all about creating a fairer Britain, giving every child the best start in life through our plan for change, building skills for the future and ultimately driving up household incomes.… Just last month, we rolled out the first 750 new free breakfast clubs, to give children the best start to their school days and families more choice at work.
Hansard · 7 May 2025 · parliament.uk
JC
Juliet Campbell
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to promote equality as part of the Government mission entitled “break down barriers to opportunity.”
JC
Juliet Campbell
Under the previous Government, there was an increase in inequality and in the attainment gap, and lower performance in core subjects such as maths and science. Dyslexic students and students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in my constituency of Broxtowe have been further disadvantaged by delays and misdia…
WH
Wera Hobhouse
My constituents repeatedly raise with me the lack of affordable childcare as a key factor driving the gender pay gap. To give families real choice in those crucial early months, will the Government consider increasing paternity pay to 90% of earnings, with a cap for higher earners?
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the Chair of the Women and Equalities Committee.
SO
Sarah Owen
We all want to break down barriers to opportunity. However, it seems that one sizable part of our workforce is being ignored, and that is women. Women missing work due to endometriosis, ovarian cysts and other complications cost the economy £11 billion a year. Fixing this would save more than double the amount that is …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising that important issue, which I know will be of concern to Members across the House. The Government know that all too often, children with special educational needs and disabilities do not have the good educational outcomes that we would all want for them. It is really importan…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady will recognise that this Government have expanded workers’ rights, and are making sure that new mums and dads can spend more precious time with their young family. As she says, it is important that high-quality early years education and childcare is available for parents, so that they have good work choic…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend the Chair of the Select Committee, and I pay tribute to her for all her campaigning work in the important area of women’s health. The Government recognise the terrible impact that these conditions can have on women’s ability to work and live their lives as they should. That is why we are com…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That sounds like a sensible and constructive suggestion. I will ensure that the views of the hon. Gentleman’s constituents are shared with colleagues in the Department of Health and Social Care, so that they can provide further advice on how that might best be taken forward.
Topical Questions7 May 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Government are taking decisive action to deliver our plan to make work pay, putting more money back into people’s pockets. The Office for Equality and Opportunity recently launched a public consultation on mandatory ethnicity and disability pay gap reporting, and a call for evidence on other measures to improve security at work for everyone… and tackle unequal pay. We will work in partnership with business to deliver this Government’s plan for change.
Hansard · 7 May 2025 · parliament.uk
OG
Olly Glover
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
OG
Olly Glover
Many constituents have written to me to express their concern on the recent UK Supreme Court ruling relating to the legal definition of a woman. It has left the already vulnerable members of the trans community feeling uncertain about how they will be able to go about their day-to-day lives. What steps is the Minister …
FM
Frank McNally
My right hon. Friend will know of the growing concerns around social media algorithms increasingly promoting misogynistic and harmful content to children, particularly using the hook of dangerous online influencers. What steps is she taking working with Cabinet colleagues to protect young people from such destructive i…
SB
Saqib Bhatti
I am a great believer in Britain being one of the greatest meritocracies in the world, where—at least in our party—people can rise to the very top, irrespective of race, religion or gender. The Government’s consultation on reforming equality law is a litany of activist demands and bureaucratic burdens, with no proof th…
TD
Tan Dhesi
The Tories shamefully left the gender pay gap persistently high. Does the Secretary of State agree that Labour’s childcare expansion, free breakfast clubs and new nurseries will drive up women’s incomes and work choices, who are disproportionately more affected by caring responsibilities?
BP
Bridget Phillipson
You will know, Mr Speaker, that I made a statement to the House setting out the Government’s position where we welcomed the clarity of the Supreme Court ruling. I should also stress that, of course, everyone within our country deserves to be treated with dignity, respect and compassion, and trans people continue to enj…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend raises a concern shared by many across the House, and it is crucial that we root out misogyny, whether it is online or offline. I am working with colleagues across Government to tackle those dangerous attitudes. For example, through the Department for Education, we are looking at bringing forward updated…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This Labour Government are determined to break the link between background and success, so that where someone is from does not determine what they can go on to achieve and so everyone has the chance to get as far as their hard work and talent will take them. It is important that we tackle the unacceptable gaps we see a…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend. This Labour Government are determined to ensure that all women have choices when it comes to balancing work and family life. That is why we are expanding access to childcare through new free breakfast clubs and new primary-based nurseries, and I am delighted that my hon. Friend’s constituen…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady raises some incredibly important points and shines a light on the experiences of victims in her constituency. This Government are determined to halve violence against women and girls. That is why, as my hon. Friend the Minister for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls set out earlier, we are …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, I am happy to give my hon. Friend that commitment. I know how seriously the Health Secretary takes this issue, because he knows, as I do, that too many women have been failed by poor maternal care and during traumatic experiences, and that all women deserve safe, compassionate care in those often quite difficult t…
SEND Funding28 Apr 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This Labour Government inherited a lose, lose, lose SEND system, in the words of the Tories’ last Education Secretary, but we have invested an additional £1 billion in high needs budgets and £740 million to pave the way for pupils with SEND to achieve and thrive in mainstream schools. Just last week in Derbyshire, I… met families with experience of the SEND system who had been badly failed by the Tory county council. This Labour Government know that the SEND system needs far-reaching reform to deliver better life chances for all our children.
Hansard · 28 Apr 2025 · parliament.uk
CD
Charlie Dewhirst
What recent assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of local authority funding for SEND.
JF
Josh Fenton-Glynn
What steps she is taking to ensure sustainable funding for SEND provision in schools.
CD
Charlie Dewhirst
The Secretary of State is well aware that the East Riding of Yorkshire receives the lowest level of funding for children with SEND, and I hope that the current review gives the Government an opportunity to rectify that. On a wider point, parents like me often look ahead to the school holidays with a sense of dread, bec…
JF
Josh Fenton-Glynn
The last Government left SEND education throughout the country in crisis. The National Audit Office found that there was no consistent improvement in outcomes from 2019 onwards. I saw that at first hand when I met Calder Valley parents of SEND children at Highbury School in Rastrick, where I saw committed parents and t…
GS
Graham Stuart
I thank the Secretary of State for her answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Bridlington and The Wolds (Charlie Dewhirst) , but each child with special educational needs in the East Riding receives £968, whereas in Camden the figure is £3,564. I am sure she agrees that a child in Camden does not have four times the n…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I know that the hon. Gentleman cares deeply about this issue, and brings real passion and determination to trying to ensure that all children, including those with SEND, are given the support that they require. For the purpose of wider reform, I will look carefully at the funding issues that he has identified and also …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his passion and interest in this subject. Let me also congratulate him on his efforts in yesterday’s London marathon: he is not only a brilliant advocate for children, but a fantastic runner. He is right to say that this Labour Government have inherited a terrible mess when it comes …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The right hon. Gentleman brings real expertise to this issue, and I know that he also cares deeply about ensuring that we get the system right for children with SEND. Our allocations were made on the basis of the funding formulas that were already in place. We intend to look carefully at all these matters as part of ou…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I could not agree more, and I pay tribute to my hon. Friend and the other members of her Committee for the important work that they are doing through their inquiry on this matter. We look forward to hearing more from them in due course. My hon. Friend is entirely right: just days before the local elections, the comment…
Construction Skills Training28 Apr 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Construction skills are essential to rebuild Britain as part of our plan for change and to deliver 1.5 million homes. This Labour Government are cutting red tape and reforming English and maths requirements to deliver 10,000 more apprenticeships a year and prioritising investment, with £625 million in additional spending to boost construction skills and train… 60,000 additional skilled construction workers this Parliament—that is more foundation apprenticeships, more industry placements and support for further education, as well as 10 new technical excellence colleges specialising in construction skills across England.
Hansard · 28 Apr 2025 · parliament.uk
MF
Mark Ferguson
What steps she is taking to increase the number of construction skills training opportunities.
MF
Mark Ferguson
Our plans for the renewal of central Gateshead are by far the most exciting investment opportunity in north-east England, with £1.2 billion of inward investment, thousands of new homes and public transport infrastructure, meaning 15,000 construction jobs over the next few decades. Gateshead college, right at the heart …
JB
Jessica Brown-Fuller
Further education colleges such as Chichester college in my constituency are vital to the delivery of construction apprenticeships and skills training. Many colleges, however, have raised a concern with me that a loophole in the last Government’s Skills and Post-16 Education Act 2022, which brought colleges back into t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I have visited Gateshead college to see the fantastic work it does on digital skills, but I know that it has also developed innovative, flexible apprenticeships for careers in building design and construction, which I hope can be replicated elsewhere. I would be happy to meet my hon. Friend and perhaps to visit Gateshe…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady raises an important point about that reclassification. Through the construction announcement we made ahead of the spring statement, we created a capital pot for employer-led and match-funded projects to ensure that we are really working to deliver some of the programmes that are needed. We are also invest…
Freedom of Speech: Universities28 Apr 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It was Labour that enshrined freedom of expression into law. That is why in January I announced plans to fix the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023, making it robust and workable. Today I signed the commencement regulations to impose stronger free speech duties on higher education providers and the Office for Students from… 1 August . We are taking common-sense decisions to fix the foundations of higher education and to deliver change for students.
Hansard · 28 Apr 2025 · parliament.uk
CW
Chris Ward
What steps she is taking to protect freedom of speech at universities.
CW
Chris Ward
The Minister will know that the University of Sussex, one of my local universities, has recently been fined over £500,000—a record amount—following a three-and-half-year investigation by the Office for Students into freedom of speech. I know that the OfS is independent, but does the Minister share my concern that it re…
JL
Julian Lewis
Can the Secretary of State confirm that the new freedom of speech provisions will ensure that, if any member of a university’s staff gives the same definition of a woman as the Prime Minister did in his most recent iteration of it, they will not be no-platformed or driven out of their job?
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Minister, Neil O’Brien.
NO
Neil O'Brien
At the start of January, the Secretary of State said that she needed more time to consider the overseas funding transparency measures in our freedom of speech legislation. It is now nearly May. In the meantime, there have been several concerning the reports in the press about UK universities working with Chinese instit…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend will understand the limitations on what I can say in answer to his question because this was a decision by the Office for Students, which carries out independent regulatory functions. I would be happy to arrange for him to meet the relevant Minister, but only once legal matters have concluded.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
In setting out the Government’s position in the statement on Tuesday I was very clear that we accepted the Supreme Court judgment, and that is the right basis on which things ought to be taken forward. Through the commencement regulations, we have given tougher powers to the regulator. We have also reformed the regulat…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This is an important area, and this Government will always make sure that issues of national security come first. Measures are already in place to address foreign interference in the higher education sector, from vetting international students in sensitive areas of research to specific requirements around freedom of sp…
Topical Questions28 Apr 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Today in places such as Leicester, Birmingham, County Durham, Gloucestershire, Worcestershire and Northumberland, some of the last of our 750 early-adopter schools will launch their free breakfast clubs. We are now providing 180,000 pupils with the best start to their school day, boosting parents’ work choices and children’s life chances. Evidence shows why that matters… so much: when schools introduce breakfast clubs, behaviour improves, attendance increases and attainment grows. It also gives parents 30 minutes of free childcare every day to juggle work and family life. That is why we will cement those freedoms and that opportunity through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, delivering on our plan for change.
Hansard · 28 Apr 2025 · parliament.uk
IH
Imran Hussain
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
IH
Imran Hussain
To follow on from the two previous questions, 5,000 university jobs have been cut nationally, and the University and College Union projects that 10,000 more will be cut by the end of the year. In Bradford, up to 300 further jobs are at risk. Bradford University’s nursery service faces the chop, and some courses are lon…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
Despite the Education Secretary’s best attempts to rewrite history, we Conservatives did not need a court to tell us that biological sex was real. She has on her desk the draft guidance for schools on gender questioning, and the final Cass report was published a year ago. If she is serious about protecting women and gi…
LT
Laura Trott
That draft guidance was produced a year and a half ago. The Education Secretary wants to talk about her record. Well, let me remind her that one of her first acts on coming into post was to pause implementation of the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023, which would have protected gender-critical voices. She …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I understand my hon. Friend’s concern. We are focused on putting universities on a firm footing. As the Under-Secretary of State for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Lewisham East (Janet Daby) , said, we will set out further reforms in the summer so that higher education delivers for students and the taxpayer. …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am serious about protecting the rights of women and girls. That is why I ran a women’s refuge for children and women fleeing domestic abuse, fleeing male violence, fleeing some of the most unimaginable abuse that anyone could ever see. I need no lessons on the importance of such provision. The shadow Secretary of Sta…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
From that question, I do not think you would know who had been in government for the past 14 years, Mr Speaker. The Conservatives had ample opportunity to clarify the position. The ruling of the Supreme Court was that Labour’s Equality Act 2010 was the basis for its judgment confirming that biological sex should be the…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join my hon. Friend in sending my best wishes to children in Scotland and across the UK as their exams get under way and thanking the brilliant staff working hard to support them. He is of course right about the many failures under the hopeless SNP Administration. Scotland deserves a new direction and a better educat…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady will know that we have confirmed £50 million for ’25-26. Further considerations will be for the spending review. We have made changes in order to maximise the number of children who can access the fund. In addition to the funding that is provided there, we are also trialling kinship allowances, investing …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We will set out our approach to the recommendations in the usual way, but I say to the hon. Gentleman that one of the very first acts of this incoming Labour Government was to accept the previous recommendation to fund the 5.5% pay award for teachers that had been sat on the desk of the Conservative Government.
“For Women Scotland” Supreme Court Ruling22 Apr 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
With permission, I will now make a statement to update the House on the Supreme Court judgment in the case of For Women Scotland Ltd v. The Scottish Ministers. This ruling brings welcome clarity and confidence for women and service providers. Single-sex spaces must be protected, and this is personal to me; before I was… elected to this place, I ran a women’s refuge in the north-east for women and children fleeing domestic violence. I know how important to survivors it is, and always was, to have single-sex spaces based on biology —places of safety after trauma, time in a sanctuary that allowed them therapeutic support, healing from unimaginable male violence and fear. I remember how hard countless campaigners had to fight over many decades to get any single-sex provision at all, in order to create women’s refuges and rape crisis centres. Later, I remember how hard it was to convince commissioners that young homeless women trying to heal from terrifying acts of cruelty should not be left in mixed-sex accommodation. I will continue to fight for that provision to ensure that women’s safety, women’s privacy and women’s dignity are always protected. This Government will continue as before, working to protect single-sex spaces based on biological sex— now with the added clarity of this ruling—and we will continue our wider work with commitment and compassion to protect all those who need it, right across society. This is a Government who will support the rights of women and trans people, now and always. This is a Government who will support the rights of all people with protected characteristics, now and always. This is a Government who will support the rights of our most vulnerable, now and always. On that, there is no change to announce: dignity and respect for all, now and always. But this is a judgment long in the making. It began in 2018 when Scottish Ministers issued guidance on the definition of a woman in the eyes of the Gender Representation on Public Boards (Scot
Hansard · 22 Apr 2025 · parliament.uk
CN
Caroline Nokes
I call the Leader of the Opposition.
KB
Kemi Badenoch
I thank the Minister for Women and Equalities for advance sight of her statement, even if it was mostly a shameless work of fiction. I could not believe my eyes, or my ears, this afternoon. In 2021 the Prime Minister said it was “not right” to say that only women have a cervix. In 2022 he said it was the law that “tran…
CN
Caroline Nokes
I call the Chair of the Women and Equalities Committee.
SO
Sarah Owen
Far from this ruling providing clarity, trans, intersex and non-binary people are instead anxious and unsure about where this ruling leaves them, legally and practically, as they go about their lives. Does the Minister recognise that this ruling was made without a single contribution from trans people? Will she ensure …
CN
Caroline Nokes
I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am delighted to see the right hon. Lady in her place today. Many would run from a record like hers on these matters, but not the right hon. Lady. She and the Conservative party had 14 years to provide clarity on the issues that they now claim to take an interest in. The Supreme Court has confirmed that Labour’s Equal…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I believe that this ruling provides much-needed clarity. I do recognise the Chair of the Select Committee’s concern about ensuring that all people are treated with dignity and respect, including trans people. My expectation is that the EHRC, in the development of the code of practice and the guidance, will engage with …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the hon. Lady. As she says, she has written to me on this topic, and I or a member of the ministerial team would be happy to meet her to discuss this further. Where we can agree is that dignity and respect should be for all in our country—for women and for trans people—and trans people should not face …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I note my hon. Friend’s concern, and I can assure her that I will continue to meet a range of stakeholders in this important area, because I agree with her that no one should face prejudice or discrimination because of who they are. That is why we are working with the Home Office to deliver our commitment to equalising…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As I set out in my response to the Leader of the Opposition, we will publish revised guidance for RSHE. It is an important principle that parents should understand what is being taught to their children at school, and we will ensure that that is maintained.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that male violence remains a very serious challenge that we face as a country, and it is a challenge this Labour Government are determined to confront. The ruling of the Supreme Court was clear about the importance of biological sex, but I would not want any trans person in my right hon. Friend’s constituency, …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My colleagues and officials in the Department of Health and Social Care are in contact with NHS England to ensure that guidance is set out rapidly to provide the clarity required after the Supreme Court judgment. If the hon. Lady shares with me the detail of what she has just read out, I will happily make sure that tha…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As I said, we will work with the EHRC to provide further guidance to service providers, including through the update to the statutory code of practice. We expect the EHRC to do that as rapidly as possible, recognising that this is a thorough and detailed piece of work. But it is important that service providers, arisin…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My understanding is that the Scottish Government do not intend to progress their gender recognition reforms. My officials will work with the EHRC, which in turn will work with the Scottish Government. I believe that Scottish Ministers have indicated that they wish to engage with the EHRC on the guidance, which is an im…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Supreme Court ruling made it clear that the provision of single-sex spaces is on the basis of biological sex, but what I would say to my hon. Friend and her constituent is that the development of the code of practice, which the EHRC will set out, will make sure that businesses and others will ensure dignity and res…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We will work with the EHRC on that guidance. It will present a revised code of practice, which I will review and present in due course. It is important that it does that as quickly as possible but, as I have said, this is a complex area and it must be undertaken thoroughly, with engagement with a range of stakeholders,…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I understand the concern my hon. Friend expresses and why she raises those questions, but I have to say to her that the position of the Government is that the Supreme Court has provided clarity and confidence in this area, particularly where it comes to single-sex spaces being on the basis of biological sex. The basis …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The basis for NHS provision, and the basis for single-sex services of all kinds, will be on the basis of biological sex.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I can give my hon. Friend the assurance that we will work as quickly as possible with the EHRC in this important area. I also think she is right to highlight the importance of good temper when it comes to different views on this topic, recognising that people have had strongly held views over a number of years and resp…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I would of course be happy to engage with colleagues from the Scottish Government. I will respond to that letter as quickly as I can.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. They retain protection from discrimination and harassment. I can say very clearly to this House that trans people should not be victims of discrimination or harassment. They deserve dignity and respect. That is why it is important that we also ensure that trans people have access to …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Where I can agree with the hon. Lady is that no one should face threats, intimidation or harassment for expressing their views—that is an important principle of freedom of speech in our country, but it should not cross a line. On the approach we take in Scotland, the leader of the Scottish Labour party has indicated th…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Supreme Court judgment set out that single-sex spaces are provided on the basis of biological sex. I do recognise the concern that my hon. Friend raises—lesbians should not be treated in a discriminatory way, and we must ensure that there are toilets and facilities available for everyone in our country. Additional …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I do recognise the hon. Gentleman’s good intentions in asking that question, but I would say to him that, like many women in this House, I have experienced that too. We know what it is like as women to face that kind of abuse. We must recognise that there can be no place for such abuse in public life and that we have a…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise my hon. Friend’s long-standing interest and campaigning in this area. She is right that the Supreme Court judgment provides clarity on biological sex. When it comes to support for gender-questioning children, when we are talking about children and young people, this has to be about their wellbeing. We are o…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I would say to the hon. Lady’s constituents and to trans people across the country that the ruling was clear that while single-sex spaces are on the basis of biological sex, trans people retain protection from discrimination and harassment in law, and that the Government will always ensure that trans people have the di…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Supreme Court’s judgment was clear on biological sex, but I do understand and recognise the need to ensure that there is provision in place for everyone in our society, including toilet facilities. That is why many businesses and service providers provide unisex facilities, while many service providers will also pu…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I think the hon. Gentleman is referring to employment law cases, on which I would have to defer to legal colleagues. The judgment set out that the Equality Act 2010 is the basis for single-sex spaces being determined on the basis of biology. The Court determined that that was always the case and had always been the cas…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that the Supreme Court judgment provides much-needed clarity and certainty, including for service providers. I also agree that we need to ensure that this matter is handled with sensitivity; in particular, we have had a number of exchanges in this House where we have talked about children who might be gender-qu…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am afraid that I disagree with the right hon. Lady that the ruling was complex. It was straightforward and very clear, and has provided clarity that has been sadly lacking for many years. Of course it is important that vulnerable prisoners receive the support they need, but single-sex spaces are determined, as the Su…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Spaces that operate on a single-sex basis must do so on the basis of biological sex, but of course providers can offer inclusive services, should they choose to do so, so long as they are clear about who they are offering their services to. I agree with my hon. Friend that the last Government had a shameful record on t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I do not know where the hon. Lady has been since July, but her party suffered a devastating general election defeat. That is why she is sat over there on the Opposition Benches rather than here on the Government Benches.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I understand my hon. Friend’s concern. What I would say to his constituents and to trans people across our country is that we are working with the Home Office to deliver our commitment to equalise all existing strands of hate crime to make them aggravated offences. We will also bring forward a draft conversion practice…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am sorry, but I disagree with the questions that the hon. Lady poses. The ruling from the Supreme Court was clear, setting out that while single-sex spaces are to be delivered on the basis of biological sex, trans people must be free to live their lives free of discrimination and harassment and must retain clear prot…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The rights of trans people are respected and retained following the Supreme Court judgment. The ruling was very clear about that, and it is important that we emphasise that point here today. Alongside that, we will ensure that hate crime is properly recorded and punished, because trans people and all people in our coun…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that it is important that patients have the right to single-sex provision, including around clinical treatment, but the hon. Gentleman might want to have a word with the Leader of the Opposition about the massive increase in the use of mixed-sex wards under his party in government.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady asked a number of questions. What I can say to her is that trans people, of course, deserve to be treated with dignity and respect, and they retain rights to live their lives free of discrimination and harassment, as set out in the Supreme Court judgment. She asked about puberty blockers. I am afraid that…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Equality and Human Rights Commission will set out a statutory code of practice that will provide further clarity. But I would just say to the hon. Gentleman that I will take no lectures from his party about the importance of defending women’s rights, given that one of his own number who sits on those Benches was co…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that these matters are sensitive, and when we discuss them it generates strong feelings. It is, of course, right that we in this House are able to engage in robust discussion, including on issues that may at times be difficult. I accept my hon. Friend’s point: we do need to treat one another with respect and un…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
So much for dignity and respect, eh?
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I suggest to the hon. Lady that she review Hansard after this statement.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend will understand that I am not in a position to comment on ongoing cases, but I can say to her that I agree that the Supreme Court ruling demonstrated that the Equality Act introduced by the last Labour Government is the basis on which single-sex provision based on biological sex should be delivered.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Supreme Court ruling was clear, but the hon. Member is right that there can be no place for hate or for people to be targeted on that basis. It is important that action is taken against those who perpetrate hate crime.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that everyone in our society should be treated with dignity, compassion and respect. The Supreme Court ruling, while setting out its position on biological sex, was also clear that trans people retain important protections in law, including where it applies to discrimination and harassment. I do believe it is i…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Supreme Court’s ruling was that the Equality Act, which was passed by this House, is the basis for the protections that exist in law on the basis of biological sex.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
No one should be targeted through vile placards containing abuse or hate. I agree with my hon. Friend; he is absolutely right that not only is it wrong, but it is completely counterproductive and does nothing to advance the discussion that those presenting the placards would wish to be advanced. While I understand that…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We will set out guidance this year for gender-questioning children. It is important, because—[Interruption.] I will answer the question. I will answer it directly if the Opposition Front Bench would just allow me a moment. We will publish the guidance later this year. I recognise the importance of providing clarity to …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
On the two areas that my hon. Friend asks about, trans people absolutely retain important protections in law, and the ruling of the Supreme Court puts that beyond doubt. To the question about ensuring that trans voices are heard, it will be important that the EHRC engages with a range of voices as part of its consultat…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will review the hon. and learned Gentleman’s question and write to him with a full response.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
If my hon. Friend can provide me with additional details about his request, I will review that. I agree with him about the importance of reassurance that trans people should be free to live their lives with compassion, dignity and respect. The ruling of the Supreme Court made it clear that they retain legal protections…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Over many decades, fantastic women have campaigned for the protection and creation of single-sex spaces, have fought against violence against women and girls, and have led some brilliant campaigns. I pay tribute to all those women—many of them are unsung heroes whose names we will never hear anywhere and will never be …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Supreme Court ruling makes that clear and provides the clarity that many, including lesbians and gay men, have been asking for. The EHRC statutory code of practice will provide further clarity. But I agree with my hon. Friend that no one should have faced abuse, intimidation or harassment for expressing their legit…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Supreme Court judgment was clear, and it is welcome and necessary, but it also set out that the basis for protection for single-sex spaces is rooted in the Equality Act. Those provisions were always there, but now we have the clarity that many have been calling for. While I note the right hon. Member’s understandab…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Equality Act was one of the last Labour Government’s proudest achievements in ensuring that people are able to live their life free from discrimination, prejudice and harassment. I agree with my hon. Friend on recognising that important landmark piece of legislation. When we discuss what can be difficult and sensit…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As I have said on a number of occasions in the House, we will issue that guidance this year.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Equality Act does stand, and it provides clear protections in law for women and trans people. It is important that women have access to single-sex spaces such as women’s refuges and rape crisis centres, but it is also important, of course, that trans people have access to high-quality healthcare and appropriate sup…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I tell you what: blokes should not beat up women. Maybe the hon. Member should have a word with his colleague.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the advances made over many decades in ensuring that LGBT people are treated with dignity and have the support and ability to participate in public life; frankly, many years ago, for many people, that was simply not the case. We have made enormous progress in tackling prejud…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that the ruling of the Supreme Court was clear. That is important. It provides welcome clarity in a range of areas. On the issues that the hon. Gentleman identifies, such as access to healthcare treatment, it is for good reason that we make sure that there are sex-based services available for women, such as tho…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Over many decades, feminist campaigners, from the ’70s onwards, worked incredibly hard to ensure that women were able to divorce, that when that happened they were able to see their children, that they got protection at work, that they did not face discrimination, that they could access women’s refuges and rape crisis …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right. This is about dignity and compassion for all, and that is an important message that I think we should all take out from this House.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right in his assessment, and I pay tribute to him for his work over many years to support homeless people, including young people, across the north-east. I agree that it has always been possible to ensure that single-sex spaces were delivered on the basis of biological sex under the Equality Act, but …
Parliamentary Debate2 Apr 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the hon. Lady. Like her, I pay tribute to the big range of providers that play a crucial role in supporting our children’s early education. That extends to private voluntary providers and childminders, who are a crucial part of the sector. The announcement we are making today on school-based nurseries is… designed to deal with many of the challenges that she identifies arising from the childcare deserts left behind by the Conservatives. We also know that school-based providers have a greater share of the market in more deprived areas, and 34% of those announced today will serve disadvantaged communities. Alongside that, I note that the hon. Lady welcomes the biggest ever uplift that we have secured in the early years pupil premium, which will make a big difference to the life chances of children from more disadvantaged backgrounds. When it comes to the rates, we will always continue to keep those under review. The hon. Lady asks about the charging guidance that has been issued. I believe it is important that parents have greater transparency when it comes to charging and fees, and where they are able to exercise greater choice in what is being offered to them. I believe that is the right approach, not least as we move towards a system in which the vast bulk of childcare is backed by Government.
Hansard · 2 Apr 2025 · parliament.uk
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend can be assured that the early adopters breakfast clubs programme, for instance, was just the start of a national roll-out. I, too, am delighted that Ringway is part of the first phase of our school-based nurseries programme, and we are determined to ensure that there is more provision throughout the coun…
School-based Nursery Capital Grants2 Apr 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
With permission, I will make a statement to update the House on the roll-out of nurseries in our primary schools. This Labour Government are bringing the change that families deserve. We made promises to the parents and children of this country and, not nine months in, we are acting to deliver on them. Free breakfast… clubs are already being rolled out, the curriculum and assessment review is in full swing, and children’s social care is seeing the biggest overhaul in a generation. We have funding for 10,000 new places for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities, backing for up to 10,000 more apprentices to qualify, new improvement teams for our schools and a new allowance for our kinship carers—promises made, promises kept. Here, today, we go further. This £37 million in funding for 300 primary schools to open and expand nurseries is a big step towards delivering 3,000 nurseries for schools, a big step towards delivering childcare for parents and a big step towards delivering the best start in life for all our children. I want that best start in life for every child, because I want opportunity for every child. I want every child in every village, town and city across our country to grow up knowing that success belongs to them. That is the kind of country I want to live in—the country that this Labour Government want to build, with opportunity not just for some, but for all our children. To achieve that, we need to start early, before university or college, and even before school—in the earliest years of our children’s lives. Those years are fundamental to opportunity. That is where gaps in learning and development first appear, and the longer we wait, the wider they grow and the harder they are to close. That is why, when I am in schools, colleges and universities—even in those places—they agree that the biggest chance to make an impact on our children’s lives sits in those crucial early years. That is why this is my No. 1 priority. If we get this righ
Hansard · 2 Apr 2025 · parliament.uk
CN
Caroline Nokes
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
We welcome the Education Secretary’s announcement, but let us be absolutely clear: the policies that she is talking about represent investment of £37 million, but the Government are taking away half a billion pounds from nurseries by failing to compensate them for the national insurance increase. That will have a catas…
AM
Amanda Martin
Early years is another strand of education that was decimated by the last Government. Although those on the Conservative Benches have not valued this sector, as a former teacher, a mum and now an MP, I know its value for children and families in our communities. Although in Portsmouth we do not have one of the 300 nurs…
CN
Caroline Nokes
I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.
MW
Munira Wilson
Access to flexible, high-quality early years provision gives children the start they deserve and parents the choice they need to live their lives, and it is one of the best possible investments we can make in the future of our country. For those families living in childcare deserts left by the previous Conservative Gov…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It must be profoundly draining for the right hon. Lady to come to the Chamber when faced with such good news and to bring such studied, forced negativity every single time. Six weeks ago, I was in the House delivering the news that we are supporting hundreds of schools across our country to open free breakfast clubs, a…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend, who brings real expertise to this place, through her background and wealth of experience in education. Through the expansion that we are rolling out this year, parents will see considerable savings, but crucially it will ensure that all our children get the best possible start in life. …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the hon. Lady. Like her, I pay tribute to the big range of providers that play a crucial role in supporting our children’s early education. That extends to private voluntary providers and childminders, who are a crucial part of the sector. The announcement we are making today on school-based nurseries …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend. Like him, I pay tribute to the amazing staff working right across education in our schools and nurseries for the vital work they do.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am glad that the right hon. Gentleman likes a bit of hope and optimism; I think we could all do with a bit of hope and optimism in the current world. The leadership contest I am really looking forward to is the one that we are going to see very soon in his own party. It will be a treat for all of us in this House, al…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
In answer to the question, this is the first phase, and we will roll out the 3,000 over the course of this Parliament.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend, and I look forward to the extra places that will be available in her constituency to serve local families. What we are setting out today will create 6,000 new childcare places, most of which we expect to be available from September 2025. We are moving rapidly to support schools to put i…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with the hon. Lady that it is the brilliant people working in early years education who make the biggest difference to our children’s life chances. Of course, we need to put the capital in place to create the physical provision, but it is the people who deliver it who matter the most—I know that the hon. Lady b…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join my hon. Friend in sending my best wishes to the staff at Yohden primary school, and I recognise the important work that they do to support families and children from more disadvantaged backgrounds. This announcement is an important first step in the Government’s ambitious plan for change, breaking the link betwe…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I, too, speak to early years providers, schools, nurseries and childminders right across our country on a regular basis, unlike Conservative Front Benchers, who seem to spend most of their time complaining about announcements that this Labour Government are making. I also pay tribute to the early years workforce and th…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am delighted that my hon. Friend has been able to see at first hand in her Croydon constituency the impact that this funding will have on families. It will support us in ensuring that a record proportion of children arrive at school ready to learn, and will make a significant difference in supporting families and chi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree about the importance of family support services, especially for our youngest children. The hon. Lady mentioned Sure Start; that was a proud achievement of the last Labour Government, and when her party was in coalition with the Conservatives, we saw Sure Start centres close right across the country. However, sh…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Parents in my hon. Friend’s constituency will be able to benefit now from the expansion of school-based nurseries, but this is just the start. Alongside the expansion in primary schools that I have set out, we are working very closely with private and voluntary providers and with childminders to deliver the places that…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I can assure the hon. Lady that the list of schools announced today covers constituencies the length and breadth of our country, serving constituencies both urban and rural. I recognise her point about ensuring that there is good, adequate provision in our rural communities as well, and if she wants to share Emma’s let…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend—that is where we will make the biggest difference to children’s life chances. All the evidence is clear that where gaps open up early, they endure into the long run, which has a lasting impact on children’s ability to do well at school and get good GCSEs and on their earnings potential into …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am sure that if the hon. Lady writes with further information, the Under-Secretary of State for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Portsmouth South (Stephen Morgan) , will be happy to respond to her questions, but I hope I can give her some reassurance by saying that 27 of the schools that will receive funding …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am delighted to hear about the impact that this will have on my hon. Friend’s constituency and throughout Suffolk. We believe that in rural communities there is an important role for school-based provision and expanding early years opportunities. Where schools are already at the heart or our communities, what I have …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
They are central to our plans, and they have a critical role to play in support for children and families and delivery of the roll-out, but school-based nurseries also have an important role in supporting children from more disadvantaged communities where they already have a higher proportion of the market share. We th…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We know from all the evidence that children from the most disadvantaged backgrounds have the most to gain from high-quality early years education. Today’s announcement will allow us to provide more places for them, alongside the expansion and the big uplift in the early years pupil premium. When it comes to childcare, …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary will be happy to meet the hon. Gentleman to discuss that further. In respect of charging and guidance, I think it an important principle that parents should have transparency on what they are being charged and what they are being charged for, especially when it comes to …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The investment in my hon. Friend’s constituency will allow parents to take up the offer of expanded childcare and entitlements, and we will ensure that the places are available to them. Eligible parents will have access to the entitlements that we are expanding and rolling out with the £8 billion of investment that was…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend, and I pay tribute to Paula Shaw and the team for all their work to support children and families. We were delighted that so many schools came forward to apply to take part in this first phase. Demand far outstripped supply, so we will be returning to this. However, I am also delighted that …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is a brilliant champion for the people of South Ribble, and it is a testament to his hard work that he continues to make the case for investment. As well as putting more money back into parents’ pockets through our breakfast clubs and by rolling out primary-based nurseries, we are enabling all our childr…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend can be assured that the early adopters breakfast clubs programme, for instance, was just the start of a national roll-out. I, too, am delighted that Ringway is part of the first phase of our school-based nurseries programme, and we are determined to ensure that there is more provision throughout the coun…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join my hon. Friend in paying tribute to the team at Jerounds for their amazing work in giving our children the best start in life. I am delighted that they were able to take part in the scheme. My announcement and those made by others across Government mean putting more money back into parents’ pockets, but also ens…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As my hon. Friend sets out, parents right across County Durham will be able to benefit from higher-quality, more affordable childcare that is more available. We are putting money back into parents’ pockets, but we are also providing the places that are required across our country, including in communities that have the…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend, and I join her in sending my best wishes to Allenby, which is taking part in our first phase. She is right to say that this is the difference that a Labour Government are making. We are supporting working families and putting more money back into their pockets, and we delivered a record pay…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend raises an important point: where we see housing development and changes taking place, we must ensure that we have high-quality childcare and early years provision running alongside that. Through the bidding that schools were able to take part in, we considered questions about local need, and I am delight…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That takes me back to June last year, when my hon. Friend, who was at that point Labour’s parliamentary candidate, and I launched Labour’s plan to deliver more school-based nurseries. Today, coming out of that plan, we have announced the action that parents in this country voted for.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes. It is this Labour Government who are getting on and delivering the childcare places that parents across our country want to see, including in my hon. Friend’s constituency of Banbury. I know how hard he works for his constituents to make sure that their voices are heard in this place. He is a real champion for loc…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join my hon. Friend in welcoming the important contribution that Horsted, in his constituency, will make as part of this scheme. I agree that we have to do a lot more as a country to make sure that all our children get a brilliant range of experiences, including in their early years, with the highest-quality provisio…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As my hon. Friend says, the expanded provision at Portway in his constituency will make a big difference by supporting parents to take on work opportunities, to have more money in their pockets, and to take on the hours that suit them. Critically, it will allow us to provide more support for children, including those f…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend raises an important point about the impact that this policy will have. On average, 40% of the overall gap between disadvantaged 16-year-olds and their peers has already emerged by the age of five. That is why it is critical that we invest in the early years to give more children the best possible start i…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes. Today’s announcement will support parents to save up to £7,500 a year, putting more money back into their pockets. Taken together with our commitment to roll out 750 free breakfast clubs from later on this month, it is clear that this Labour Government are on the side of working parents.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend. I have seen for myself the impact that this policy has, particularly for parents who already have older children at school. It eases the transition from nursery to reception and sets up children to succeed. Importantly, it allows staff to build relationships with parents and families, and t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will do my very best to visit Lichfield to see the fantastic provision and, critically, to see the brilliant work my hon. Friend is doing to champion local schools and nurseries in his constituency.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend knows better than most the importance of high-quality provision, including in rural communities, allowing parents to avoid having to travel considerable distances. This announcement will make a big difference in his constituency and in constituencies across the country. From the applications to the schem…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for the work that he is doing to support local families and also dads. Becoming a parent for the first time can be a daunting experience for mothers, but it can also be daunting for fathers, and they need support as well, so I pay tribute to him. This is the first phase of our announceme…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I congratulate the amazing early years workforce and our education workforce in Weston-super-Mare and across our country. They are the people who make the biggest difference for children in such settings. Important as capital is to creating the places, it is the people who deliver for our children and support them in t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right about the difference that early years provision makes, not just in those crucial early years but right throughout children’s lives. The evidence could not be clearer. I am delighted that, in Smallthorne and in many communities across our country, more children will have the opportunit…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We know that children from more disadvantaged backgrounds will have the most benefit from high-quality early years education, and they benefit the most when that starts earlier. So much of the overall gap will have opened up by that age; 40% of the overall gap between disadvantaged 16-year-olds and their peers has alre…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I was delighted to join my hon. Friend in visiting Fulbridge and to meet the brilliant staff team, who are doing so much to support all children in that community, so that they can achieve all they are capable of. There should be no ceiling on children’s ambition and aspiration, including in working-class communities. …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This Labour Government want to make sure that families can access childcare support. That is important for families’ work choices and, critically, for children’s development. That is why we have set ourselves an ambitious target of ensuring that a record number of children are school-ready when they start school, and h…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. For many years, when our party was in opposition, I campaigned alongside him to make sure that working parents get the support that they need to get on at work, have good working standards and conditions and, critically, can access high-quality early years provision and childcare. Th…
Topical Questions19 Mar 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This Government celebrated International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month by accelerating action to change women’s lives. That means greater opportunities in the workplace and ensuring that our streets are safe for women and that we have better public services for our women and their families. Harnessing the talents and skills of all women will… boost our economy. A 5% increase in employment among women could boost the UK economy by up to £125 billion. Women’s equality is at the heart of our plan for change and will drive economic growth for everyone.
Hansard · 19 Mar 2025 · parliament.uk
CN
Charlotte Nichols
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
CN
Charlotte Nichols
According to research, 52% of integrated care boards in England, including Cheshire and Merseyside ICB, still require same-sex couples to self-fund at least six to 12 cycles of costly intrauterine insemination before they are eligible to access in vitro fertilisation treatment on the NHS. Can the Secretary of State ple…
SB
Saqib Bhatti
Parents up and down the country are anxious about the use of puberty blockers on under-18s, so I was disappointed to read that the Health Secretary has failed to intervene in an NHS puberty blocker trial, despite grave concerns about children’s safety. The landmark Cass review said that more evidence was needed, but wi…
PL
Peter Lamb
What consideration has been given to the introduction of safe leave for employees experiencing domestic abuse?
JP
Jess Phillips
We strongly encourage employers to support their employees who experience domestic abuse. Many already do that through their membership of the employers’ initiative on domestic abuse, which empowers employers to take action. I will be working with the Department for Business and Trade, including through the violence ag…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to draw the House’s attention to the postcode lottery and the patchy access to IVF across our country. We want to make sure that everyone has fair access to high-quality care. The Department of Health and Social Care has started to make progress towards its ambition to improve access to IVF serv…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Government’s position on this issue has been clear. We have accepted all the recommendations brought forward by Dr Hilary Cass. I have met Dr Hilary Cass to discuss this issue. Given the question the shadow Minister has asked, he perhaps misunderstands the recommendations that Dr Cass brought forward.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We have no plans to change the Equality Act. As my hon. Friend the Member for Feltham and Heston (Seema Malhotra) set out earlier, through the new race engagement group being led by Baroness Lawrence we will consider any such questions, including the ones that the hon. Gentleman identifies.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am very sorry to hear of the case in my hon. Friend’s constituency. It brings into sharp focus the need to tackle violence against women and girls, and to ensure that our mission to halve its incidence is delivered. Our inheritance from the Conservatives was shocking, with far too many women denied justice, cases nev…
Schedule 1 - Children not in school: consequential amendments18 Mar 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I beg to move, That the Bill be now read the Third time. This is legislation that belongs to children. The clue is in the name—the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. It is for them. It is because this Government are for them. We are on a mission to break down the barriers to opportunity… for each and every child, to sever the link between background and success, and this Bill sits at the centre of that mission. Let me start by thanking Members from across the House for their contributions, especially members of the Bill Committee for their scrutiny. I say a particular thank you to the ministerial team—my hon. Friend the Minister for School Standards and the Under-Secretary of State for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Portsmouth South (Stephen Morgan) —for guiding the Bill through its Commons stages. This debate is valuable. Education is back at the forefront of national life and children are back at the centre of our national conversation. Every child in this country deserves a safe childhood and an excellent education. The action in the Bill cements in legislation the biggest reform of children’s social care in a generation, keeping children with their families wherever it is safe to do so, supporting them to stay together and strengthening kinship care so that vulnerable children can live with the people they know and trust if they cannot continue to live with their parents. It fixes the broken care market so that when children cannot stay with their family, and kinship or foster care sadly is not an option, children have somewhere to live that is safe, secure and supportive. After 14 years of inaction and our most vulnerable children being pushed to the sidelines, their voices not heard, the Bill puts their life chances front and centre. We have started that reform already, piloting new financial support for kinship carers and investing over £500 million into family help and child protection in the next financial year alone. This a Bill that protects
Hansard · 18 Mar 2025 · parliament.uk
NG
Nusrat Ghani
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
I had hoped that, during the Commons stages of the Bill, the Government would listen to the vast number of respected voices from the education sector who have warned repeatedly that this ill thought through Bill is nothing short of a disaster for education standards in this country. Unfortunately, the Secretary of Stat…
Breakfast Clubs Early Adopter Scheme10 Mar 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Last month, Labour announced the first wave of primary schools set to offer the new free breakfast clubs. We were delighted that more than 3,000 schools applied to be early adopters, with 750 starting to deliver from the summer term, meaning that children will start the day ready to learn and parents will save up… to £450. While Conservative Members cannot bring themselves to welcome the clubs, Labour is boosting parents’ work choices and children’s life chances.
Hansard · 10 Mar 2025 · parliament.uk
SB
Sarah Bool
How many schools left the breakfast club early adopters scheme prior to 24 February 2025.
SB
Sarah Bool
Primary schools have been forced to pull out of the pilot or take a financial hit to participate in it. Does the Secretary of State really believe that the basic funding rate for breakfast is 60p?
MF
Mark Ferguson
I refer Members to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. I welcome Opposition Members’ interest in breakfast clubs. Can the Secretary of State confirm that all primary schools and all primary school students will have breakfast clubs by the end of this Parliament?
BP
Bridget Phillipson
No, I do not, because that is not actually the case. I am afraid that is not the only area where the hon. Lady is mistaken. The Conservatives should swallow their pride and welcome these breakfast clubs, which will transform the life chances of children across our country, are incredibly popular with parents, and will …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the incredible work that the early adopters will be taking forward, but it is the case that all primary schools will offer a universal free breakfast club under this Labour Government. Opposition Members can raise the previous schemes that they left behind all they like, but those schemes were far less gene…
Regional Improvement for Standards and Excellence Teams10 Mar 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Labour’s RISE teams have hit the ground running. The first wave of advisers—professionals with a proven track record of driving up standards—are now drawing up improvement plans with schools. The Tories left more than 600 stuck schools teaching over 300,000 children with no plan for improvement. Labour will drive high and rising standards, turning those… schools around and creating a system where every child can achieve and thrive.
Hansard · 10 Mar 2025 · parliament.uk
AC
Andrew Cooper
What progress her Department has made on establishing regional improvement for standards and excellence teams.
AC
Andrew Cooper
In my area, the Government have identified six stuck schools in Cheshire East and two in Cheshire West. Can the Secretary of State explain the support that will be made available to them to drive up standards? What levers do RISE teams have if schools choose not to follow their advice?
WH
Wera Hobhouse
The attainment gaps in the south-west are the largest in England, across the primary and secondary sectors. In the past, local authorities have played a big role in improving education. What plans do the Government have for local authorities to be involved in closing that attainment gap?
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Universal support will be available to all schools to drive up standards, but we expect all schools to engage in mandatory, targeted RISE intervention. We will not hesitate to act where there are concerns. Unlike the last Conservative Government, we will not stand by as children pass through schools that are not delive…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady is right to identify the disadvantage gaps that exist in many parts of the country, and the challenge in her part of the country. We believe that local authorities have an important role to play, working with trust leaders and others to drive up standards. That is why, through the Children’s Wellbeing and…
“Break Down Barriers to Opportunity” Mission10 Mar 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This Labour Government are determined to break the link between background and success, so that where someone is from does not determine where they end up in life. That work starts with the early years, which is when we can make the biggest difference to children’s life chances. Through our plan for change, we will… get tens of thousands more children—a record share—starting school ready to learn, because children growing up in our country deserve the best start in life, and nothing less.
Hansard · 10 Mar 2025 · parliament.uk
WJ
Warinder Juss
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to implement the plan for change mission entitled “Break Down Barriers to Opportunity”.
JD
Josh Dean
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to implement the plan for change mission entitled “Break Down Barriers to Opportunity”.
WJ
Warinder Juss
What specific steps are being taken to ensure that the plan for change will help those in my constituency of Wolverhampton West who have historically faced systemic barriers to opportunity, such as those with special educational needs, those from ethnic minority backgrounds, and those from a background of lower socioec…
JD
Josh Dean
Last week, I visited Hertfordshire and Essex high school in Bishop’s Stortford, Sele school in Hertford, and Hertford regional college in Ware. At each one, I met young people with exciting ambitions for the future. I welcome the action that the Government are taking to build our young people’s confidence and open up o…
AS
Andrew Snowden
This slogan word salad of a question talks about breaking down barriers to opportunity. Many of my constituents want to know how on earth implementing an education tax on the independent school sector breaks down barriers to opportunity. It puts up those barriers for parents who have scrimped and saved to put their chi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
In Wolverhampton West and across our country, this Labour Government are determined to ensure that background is no barrier to getting on in modern Britain. That is why we will reform the special educational needs and disabilities system to ensure that all our children get the support that they need to thrive. Alongsid…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend has evidently had a busy week in his constituency, and I know he champions young people and the need to drive up standards in education. Under our plan for change, we are starting learning earlier through accessible and affordable early years education. We are ensuring that all young people will have the…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This Labour Government are aspirational and ambitious for all our children, including the vast majority of children who go to school in the state system. I was going to say that the Conservatives have not got much to say on education, and that is true, but the one policy that they actually have is to reverse the tax ch…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Apprenticeships have an important role to play in our system, including in our NHS. I am working closely with the Health Secretary to ensure that we address the long-standing workforce challenges left behind by the Conservatives, as part of the workforce plan for the NHS. We want to ensure that all employers can take o…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are investing more in the early years system through the Budget; there are record levels of investment to support families with the expansion that they were promised by the Conservatives, but for which there had been no funding for delivery. We have also delivered the single-biggest uplift in the early years pupil p…
Topical Questions10 Mar 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Last month, Labour announced the first 750 schools set to offer free breakfast clubs. Next month, through the clubs, we will boost the life chances of up to 180,000 children and begin to save parents up to £450. That comes as we improve the quality of early years education, alongside our Department’s RISE advisers, support… stuck schools, drive high and rising standards and bring schools together to improve attendance. In National Apprenticeship Week, we celebrated by cutting red tape to unlock 10,000 more apprenticeships every year. At the Department for Education, we are the Department for opportunity, and we are proving that we are the Department for delivery too.
Hansard · 10 Mar 2025 · parliament.uk
AM
Andy MacNae
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
AM
Andy MacNae
On Friday, I met with the headteachers of all the secondary schools in Rossendale. They face many challenges, but they were unanimous that the single biggest issue they face is a lack of capacity in special schools and alternative provision in our area. Rossendale has no places, children’s complex needs are not being m…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
How on earth can the Secretary of State justify spending £90 million on a one-year contract for advertising and media while cutting a £4 million Latin excellence programme mid-year that is helping to improve school standards in some of the most deprived areas of the country? Does that not show that the Secretary of Sta…
LT
Laura Trott
The Secretary of State is spending £90 million on advertising. She is cutting not just Latin programmes, but computing hubs, language hubs and advanced maths. Are those also less important than her advertising budget?
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I understand my hon. Friend’s concern and the concern of headteachers in his constituency. Sadly, I hear that story in every part of our country. We inherited as a Government a system that the previous Secretary of State described as “lose, lose, lose”. We are investing more into the system and we want to ensure that t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The right hon. Lady was a Minister in the Treasury, and she was responsible for leaving behind the black hole that this Labour Government are having to sort out. We face unprecedented challenges. When it comes to Latin, we are working with classics associations to ensure that children can continue to study Latin. It is…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yet again, we hear a lot of sound and fury from the right hon. Lady, but no recognition of the mess that the Conservatives left behind, which it falls to this Labour Government to resolve. We are investing more in early years, more into our schools and more into 16-19 education. Yes, some of the investment we need to m…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the pressures that many institutions across our country face. The last Conservative Government regarded universities as a political battleground, not a public good. We face a big challenge in stabilising the finances of our universities, which is why we have refocused the Office for Students to ensure that …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That is the kind of hyperbole that we often get from the right hon. Gentleman. From that question, and from the shameless sense of pride—the misplaced sense of pride—that Conservative Members often have, you would not know that one in three children are not school ready, one in five children are regularly out of school…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Labour’s plans to end the tax breaks that private schools enjoy will invest significant money into state education. I am really surprised that the hon. Gentleman does not welcome the extra investment that will be going into schools in his constituency. When it comes to children with SEND, where the place is derived thr…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will happily take away the right hon. Gentleman’s concern and make sure that he gets a response as quickly as possible on the matter he raises.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for raising the important contribution that voluntary and third sector organisations can make. Here in England, through the consultation about relationships, sex and health education, we are looking at what more we can do to ensure that all young people get the support that they need…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I absolutely agree that skills are critical to driving growth. That is why we are now spending over £400 million more on 16-to-19 education—£100 million more than was announced at the Budget—including £87 million in in-year growth funding, to ensure that places are available where needed. Through the reforms that we ar…
Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (Transfer of Functions etc) Bill [Lords]25 Feb 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I beg to move, That the Bill be now read a Second time. We are a country of incredible talent and enterprise; a country of industry and invention. Our universities lead the world. Our colleges deliver excellence to hundreds of thousands up and down the country. British companies founded on great ideas export their products… across the globe. Our strengths range from research to manufacturing and from professional services to creative industries, yet there remains a wide and growing gap between where we are now and what I know our great country is capable of, because, despite our many strengths, there are skills missing from our workforce. There are skills missed by people who want to get on in life, get better training to land that great job and earn a decent living; skills missed by our employers, with businesses, hospitals, labs and factories held back; skills missed by so many of our communities, with towns and cities left behind as industry has moved on; and skills missed by our country. Those skills are vital to the security and growth that this Labour Government are so determined to deliver. Our latest data shows us that half a million vacancies sit empty simply because employers struggle to find the right staff with the right skills: the most since we started collecting the data in 2011. That is half a million jobs not filled, half a million careers not boosted and half a million opportunities not taken—a tragic waste that this country simply cannot afford. But I am sorry to say that this is not surprising. We have fallen behind our neighbours on higher technical qualifications—the ones that sit just below degree level, but which can lead to well-paid, fulfilling careers for software developers, civil engineering technicians or construction site supervisors. Over 90% of employers value basic digital skills in their job candidates, but more than 7 million adults lack them. Our skills gaps deal our people and our country a double blow. They hold back the economi
Hansard · 25 Feb 2025 · parliament.uk
NG
Nusrat Ghani
The reasoned amendment in the name of Ian Sollom has been selected.
AF
Ashley Fox
Would the Secretary of State agree that one of the difficulties is that employers cannot spend the money from the apprenticeship levy easily, and that too much of that money is retained by the Treasury? Will she undertake to speak to the Chancellor to see whether she could make it easier for employers to spend that mon…
JH
John Hayes
I welcome the commitment to skills that the Secretary of State is articulating, but will she recognise that too often the advice given to young people, particularly from schools, is to pursue an academic career—I use the word “academic” in the loosest possible sense—rather than to engage in practical learning? That mea…
CV
Christopher Vince
I had the opportunity to visit Harlow College during National Apprenticeship Week, and I really agree with the points that my right hon. Friend is making. Does she agree that if we are to achieve the new homes targets that we really want to achieve and get people off the streets and into those homes, we need to train t…
TP
Toby Perkins
On the subject of construction, does my right hon. Friend agree that a huge amount of the construction industry is made up of small employers and that one of the biggest failings of the apprenticeship levy approach has been that small and medium-sized enterprises have been shut out? We have had a 50% reduction in the n…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I can assure the hon. Gentleman that the Chancellor is as committed as I am to ensuring that we have the right skills within the economy, because without them we will not be able to deliver the economic growth that is the No. 1 mission of this Labour Government. But we are committed to reforming the failing apprentices…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I was almost on the point of saying that I agreed with much of what the right hon. Gentleman had to say, but unfortunately he went and ruined it at the end with that comment about the value of university education and of having the chance to gain a degree. Where I do share common cause with him is that I want to make s…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend, and I know how much he champions, in his constituency and in the House, opportunities for young people to have the chance to take on new skills, including through apprenticeship routes. Where it comes to construction, he is right to say that there are fantastic opportunities out there. It w…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend has a long-standing interest in this area and has consistently raised not only the challenges faced by small businesses but the opportunities to create more apprenticeship starts and more training routes for people across our country. One of the changes that we set out during National Apprenticeship Week…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend names a fantastic business in his constituency and the contribution that it makes. There is a lot more that we need to do to support smaller employers to be in a stronger position to benefit from apprenticeships. This Bill will bring together the many disparate parts of a very fragmented system, which em…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am delighted to hear my hon. Friend’s experience from Bournemouth. Our colleges are a crucial part of how we ensure that we have the skills we need in our economy, but also how we will drive forward our agenda on clean energy. He is also right to identify the enormous opportunities for jobs, growth and training, as w…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Gentleman is right about the challenges across the further education sector. Sadly, we know those challenges all too well after 14 years of failure under the Conservatives. We recognise the enormous opportunity that comes from investing in our fantastic colleges. That is why at the Budget we announced an extra…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will set out the reason primarily and then say a little about the way in which Skills England will operate. First, the need to do it in this way is one of time and speed. As I hope I have set out to the House, the need to act is urgent; we must get on with this and ensure that we tackle the chronic skills shortages r…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend always champions the ceramics industry in his constituency. We have had many conversations on that topic, and he is absolutely right to put it into context. Skills England will benefit the ceramics industry and his constituents because we will be able to move much more rapidly to make changes to qualific…
Breakfast Clubs: Early Adopters24 Feb 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
With permission, I will make a statement updating the House on the Government’s work to deliver free breakfast clubs and give every child the best start in life. This is a Government who act on their principles, deliver on their promises and drive the change that the country needs—change that is felt in our villages,… towns and cities; change that will help families with the cost of living; and change that lifts the life chances of our children across the country. Change begins and the biggest difference can be made during those early years of life, and on into primary school, when the possibilities still stretch out. Our action is urgent. Far too many children growing up in this country are held back by their background and denied the opportunity to go on to live happy and healthy lives, with the bad luck of a tough start weighing down their life chances. I will not stand by while those children are let down, because I believe that background should not mean destiny. Every single child deserves the very best start in life. To achieve and thrive at school is the right of all children. Our manifesto outlined the action a Labour Government would take, and now, not yet eight months on from the election, we are delivering change in early years, change in primary schools and change in our country. I am delighted to update the House today that I have confirmed more than 750 schools as early adopters of our free breakfast club scheme. That is a promise made, and a promise kept. I will always act to protect working families’ livelihoods for children and their parents. It is for them that we are working tirelessly to deliver change, and it is for them that we will introduce free breakfast clubs in every primary school in this country. That is what we said we would do in our manifesto, and it is exactly what we are doing now. Evidence shows why this matters so much. When schools introduce breakfast clubs, behaviour improves, attendance increases and attainment grows. That is n
Hansard · 24 Feb 2025 · parliament.uk
NO
Neil O'Brien
I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of the statement. The previous Government substantially expanded access to breakfast clubs in primary and secondary schools, and crated the holiday activities and food programme. The national school breakfast programme has been running since 2018, and 85% of schools now …
CN
Caroline Nokes
I call the Chair of the Education Committee.
HH
Helen Hayes
I thank the Secretary of State for her statement today. I welcome the news that St Luke’s Church of England primary school in my constituency will be one of the early adopters of a universal breakfast club under the programme. All too often, children with special educational needs and disabilities are excluded from ext…
CN
Caroline Nokes
I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.
MW
Munira Wilson
With three in 10 children growing up in poverty, any measure to tackle child hunger is to be welcomed to enable them to learn and flourish, so I congratulate the 750 schools selected as breakfast club early adopters. The learnings from those pilots will be absolutely critical as the Government seek to scale up the prog…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The shadow Minister asks a number of questions, but at no point did he welcome the massive investment and the benefits that this provision will bring to children across our country, including in his own constituency—not a word of support. I hope when the breakfast club in his constituency opens, he might take time to v…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Some 754 schools have been selected to take part in the early adopters scheme, of which 704 are mainstream schools and 50 are special schools and alternative provision settings. That is important, because we want to make sure that all children in time are able to benefit from the roll-out of breakfast clubs. We will wo…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the hon. Lady for her questions. Turning first to the question of funding, there has sadly been some misunderstanding about the funding rates, so I will set those out for the benefit of the House. In the summer term, funding will be paid in two parts: an up-front, one-off payment of £500 to cover initi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising this important area. She is right that breakfast clubs must be fully inclusive and take account of the needs of all children, including children with SEND. That is why, as part of this process, we have announced 50 special and AP schools that will be taking part in the early …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with the hon. Gentleman about the importance of supporting local providers where that is possible and the fantastic contribution of British food and wider produce. I just observe that it is my understanding that his constituency is set to benefit from the early adopters scheme. I hope that he will be able to se…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am delighted to hear about the good news for St John’s. I am sure that the Minister for Early Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Portsmouth South (Stephen Morgan) , and I will receive lots of invitations to visit fantastic breakfast clubs across our country. We will do our best to service those invitations, but…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am confident that the funding being made available to schools will be sufficient to deliver on this programme. The hon. Gentleman quotes the daily per pupil funding rate, but alongside that, as I set out earlier, there will be start-up costs, as well as lump-sum payments to cover the costs of running breakfast clubs,…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am delighted that my hon. Friend’s constituency is part of the early adopters programme. Our breakfast clubs scheme is all about making sure that children get a great start to their school day—a welcoming space that provides them with valuable opportunities to play, learn and socialise. However, as she identifies, th…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with the hon. Gentleman that there is always more that we can do, and I note that many companies already involve themselves in important charitable works in this area. He names one company. It would be remiss of me, as a north-east MP, not to give a special plug to Greggs, which does fantastic work in this spac…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We intend to deliver the roll-out as soon as possible, because we know it is urgent, and we know the difference it will make to children’s lives. Free universal breakfast clubs will also mean that every primary school child, no matter their circumstances, is well prepared to learn. That is why we believe in that import…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I strongly agree with my hon. Friend about the need to ensure that every child has the best start in life. I am grateful for her generous invitation, and I am sure that my hon. Friend the Early Education Minister and I will consider it along with, no doubt, a great many other invitations. We intend to test and learn as…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is a privilege to co-chair the child poverty taskforce with my right hon. Friend the Work and Pensions Secretary. We have heard evidence across the country as a result of visits to Northern Ireland and Scotland—and will visit Wales shortly—to understand the challenges faced by so many families throughout the United …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am delighted to hear about the schools in my hon. Friend’s constituency that are taking part in the scheme. They will play a crucial role in how we find the most effective way of delivering this on a national basis. I believe it is essential for all children to arrive at school ready to learn, with full bellies and h…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the significant challenges relating to attendance. Breakfast clubs are an important part of support for children in respect of behaviour, attendance and attainment, and the evidence is very clear in that regard. I pay tribute to the school leaders and staff who will be invol…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We will update the House to ensure that Members are aware of the continuation of the roll-out and its progress, but also so that we can learn how it is progressing as quickly and effectively as possible. I am delighted to hear about the schools in my hon. Friend’s constituency.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As my hon. Friend says, breakfast clubs are an important part of ensuring that all children are set up to succeed and every child has the best start in life, but we need to go much further, and, indeed, we are doing so as a Labour Government. We are seeking to break the link between background and success, so that more…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I do agree with my hon. Friend. The need for action is urgent. We know that far too many children are not achieving all that they can, and are held back by virtue of their backgrounds. We are determined to turn that around, and the announcement I have made today shows the determination of this Labour Government to ensu…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I send my best wishes to Miss Dawley and to the whole school community. They are clearly doing fantastic work to support children in my hon. Friend’s area. Of course breakfast clubs in primary schools bring benefits to parents at the start of the school day, giving them choices and flexibility at work, but, critically,…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I think we all recognise, both as constituency Members and from the work that we see taking place across the country, the serious impact of the pandemic on young people and their mental health and the long waiting lists for specialist support from child and adolescent mental health services. I am working closely with t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My message to parents in Aldershot and across our country is that this Labour Government are on their side and delivering better work choices for them, and more support for their children at the start of the school day, when it comes to breakfast clubs and the early adopters scheme. We are also taking action to cut the…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The schools in my hon. Friend’s constituency will play an important role in determining how we can roll out this commitment right across our country. Of course, the early adopters in his community will make a really meaningful difference to parents and children, but they will also give us the opportunity to test and le…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I pay tribute to the schools in the hon. Lady’s constituency, and to the workforce there, for the fantastic efforts that they have made in order to take part in this scheme. I look forward to seeing the impact it has in schools in her community and in constituencies across the country, so that we can make sure that whe…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his work in his community to support families. He is right to suggest that all parents experience challenges at different points. Being a parent is a wonderful job, but it can also be a very challenging job at times, and the Government are determined to make sure that support is alwa…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Attendance has been a bit slim on the Opposition Benches this afternoon. In my response to the shadow Minister, I said that one would think that Members from across the House would welcome the difference that breakfast clubs will make to communities the length and breadth of our country, because they have been selected…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to identify the variation that exists across our country, including when it comes to early years places and provision. We have almost doubled the early years pupil premium to make sure that providers are supported to create places in communities that are in greatest need, but where places do not…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to highlight the fact that the early adopters scheme covers schools serving a wide range of settings and communities. We have sought to ensure that there is a representative sample—large and small—of those serving communities with higher levels of deprivation and those with lower levels. The ear…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We will provide the opportunities that my hon. Friend outlines to ensure that schools work with one another to develop best practice, to learn from what works in similar settings, and to make sure that breakfast clubs in those schools are as effective and accessible as they can be. We know that breakfast clubs make a r…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Opposition Members never like to have it pointed out to them that on their watch we saw rising levels of child poverty in our country, which have scarred the life chances of a generation and have left families struggling. As a Labour Government, we are determined to make a difference and to ensure that background is no…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree, and we will do so as quickly as we can. My hon. Friend is right to highlight the important benefits that breakfast clubs deliver by enabling children to socialise and play at the start of the school day. I have seen so many fantastic examples of breakfast clubs already in operation that make such a profound di…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join my hon. Friend in paying tribute to the school leaders in his community, who will be a part—a very important part—of our early adopters scheme. I thank them for their contribution. He is right to highlight the important need for all breakfast clubs to be inclusive, including for children with SEND, which is why,…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The children and families at my hon. Friend’s schools in Worcester will benefit directly from the early adopters programme, but they will also be an important part of how we roll out this scheme nationwide, allowing us to develop best practice. I pay tribute to the schools and their leaders in his community for taking …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Through the early adopters programme, schools will be able to take part in a peer-to-peer support network, so that they can work together to share expertise and approaches at a regional level, which will be crucial to the work we take forward on the national roll-out. The school in my hon. Friend’s constituency will no…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I can say to my hon. Friend’s constituents and those across St Helens that we will ensure that schools have the resources they need to deliver the roll-out of breakfast clubs, both for early adopters and beyond. As we get this initial phase under way, it is essential that we learn what works ahead of the national roll-…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am delighted that four schools in my hon. Friend’s constituency are taking part, and I look forward to all primary schools across Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland benefiting from the roll-out of breakfast clubs across our country. This Labour Government are on the side of working parents, putting more money bac…
Domestic Violence Prevention Services5 Feb 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Because this is the first opportunity I have had to do so, may I offer my heartfelt congratulations to the right hon. Member for East Surrey (Claire Coutinho) on welcoming her new son into the world? I wish her and her family every happiness in this wonderful phase of their journey together. The Government are… steadfast in their mission to halve violence against women and girls. Having run a women’s refuge before coming to this place, I know how important it is for survivors to receive effective, timely support, and we are investing more in those services.
Hansard · 5 Feb 2025 · parliament.uk
JF
Josh Fenton-Glynn
What assessment she has made with Cabinet colleagues of the accessibility of domestic violence prevention services for women.
JF
Josh Fenton-Glynn
In her 2022 report, the Domestic Abuse Commissioner warned of “A Patchwork of Provision” in local services. Just six in 10 victims reported being able to access a helpline, and only four in 10 reported being able to obtain refuge accommodation. Local organisations such as WomenCentre Calderdale and Kirklees do fantasti…
WH
Wera Hobhouse
Organisations such as Voices and the Southside project in Bath provide a wonderful and important service for victims of abuse, but they need the long-term certainty of funding. Does the Minister agree that we need to give them that certainty?
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.
CJ
Christine Jardine
We welcome the Government’s mission to halve violence against women and girls, but a recent report from the National Audit Office makes grim reading, stating that one in 12 women are victims of violence every year and that there were more than 2 million victims in the year up to June 2024. It also suggests while there …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Let me start by paying tribute to Halifax WomenCentre for its vital work in Calder Valley. I assure my hon. Friend that we will engage across Government, drawing on expertise in the sector through the development of our new violence against women and girls strategy, which will be published later this year. We have prov…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the hon. Lady for mentioning the excellent organisations in her constituency and the work that they do to support survivors. We are investing more in provision, but I understand her point about the need for security of long-term funding, and we will consider that as part of our VAWG strategy.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady is right to draw attention to the legacy picture painted by the National Audit Office. We are investing in a new national policing centre for VAWG public protection, and ensuring that we have a real focus on tackling high-risk offenders by intervening much earlier and taking further measures involving dom…
SEND Provision5 Feb 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This Government’s ambition is that all children with special educational needs receive the right support to succeed, where possible, in mainstream schools. To further support that vision, in December I announced £740 million of high-needs capital for 2025-26. The Department is working closely with experts on reforms and has recently appointed a strategic adviser for… SEND, who will play a key role in engaging with practitioners, children and families as we consider the next steps in SEND reform.
Hansard · 5 Feb 2025 · parliament.uk
LC
Lewis Cocking
What recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Education on SEND provision.
LC
Lewis Cocking
I draw Members’ attention to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. Hertfordshire currently receives the third lowest SEND funding in the country, despite the number of children in the county with education, health and care plans growing by 223% in the last decade. What steps is the Minister taking w…
NI
Natasha Irons
I welcome this Government’s commitment to halving violence against women and girls, and their investment in the domestic abuse protection order scheme in Croydon. However, Croydon’s youth engagement team, who focus on helping to prevent young women from being brought into gangs through grooming, abuse and vulnerability…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the hon. Gentleman’s interest in this area, and the interest of Members from right across the House in the urgent need to reform the SEND system. However, I gently observe that we inherited the funding mechanism from the previous Government, and that the last Conservative Education Secretary said that the S…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend mentions a vital area. There is an important role for youth services as part of this, but we also need to do much more around safeguarding. The provisions in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill on multi-agency child protection measures and much more besides, and the additional investment that we ar…
Topical Questions5 Feb 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This month we celebrate LGBT History Month. LGBT individuals have shaped Britain’s history and continue to contribute greatly to our society. We are also celebrating Race Equality Week. We are committed to raising everyone’s living standards by putting more money into people’s pockets through measures such as ethnicity pay gap reporting. These initiatives demonstrate our… commitment to fostering a more equal and inclusive society in which everyone’s dignity and rights are respected.
Hansard · 5 Feb 2025 · parliament.uk
JM
Joe Morris
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
JM
Joe Morris
The whole House will be aware of the importance of the Tyne Valley railway line to my constituency, and it is essential that our stations are accessible to all. Local campaigners such as Active Travel Tynedale and Rosanna Lovett have expressed their frustration at the inaccessibility of stations across our constituency…
MD
Mims Davies
The call for evidence started last year by the Leader of the Opposition, when she was Minister for Women and Equalities, asked the public to share examples of bad guidance on single-sex spaces and services. This Labour Government initially shared just 42 responses—just 1% of the responses—with the Equality and Human Ri…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
Order. These are topical questions—they need to be short and punchy, which this answer will be. Come on.
CO
Chi Onwurah
My living wage intern starts next week, just as a Sutton Trust report shows that internships are critical entry points to careers, but that working-class graduates are 20% less likely to complete an internship than their wealthier peers and most internships are never advertised. What is my right hon. Friend doing to en…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join my hon. Friend in commending that work. I know the Tyne Valley line very well; it is in a beautiful part of the country. It is important that the rail network is accessible for all passengers, and that is at the heart of our approach. I will ensure Ministers at the Department for Transport look into the case tha…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The previous Government’s scope was narrow. We are taking action to give all providers the assurances that they need that single-sex spaces can be provided. I have met representatives from the EHRC to discuss that point and I have written to the EHRC about it. I will take no lectures from the Conservatives on single-se…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend that no young person should be held back by their background or expected to work for free. We remain committed to banning unpaid internships, so that young people are paid fairly. We will set out further details in due course.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend that it is disgraceful that the attainment gap rose under the last Government, and I will not rest until we deliver for kids from communities like ours. I agree that it is not good enough that only one in five disadvantaged white British boys achieve grade 5 or above in maths and English at …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady raises an important issue. We need to ensure there is diversity in representation at all levels in sport. I am happy to look further into the issues she has raised.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend about the importance of the issue she identifies. I will ensure that the relevant Minister picks up on the point and ensures that electoral administrators are aware of their responsibilities.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We remain steadfast in our support for all LGBT people. It is essential that they are safe, included and protected from discrimination.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We continue to keep these matters under review. We are looking carefully at the Law Commission’s report into marriage published in 2022 and we will respond in due course.
Reading in Schools27 Jan 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Getting more children reading for pleasure is a key part of our plan for change, and of our work to drive high and rising standards across education by giving all our children the best start in life. Earlier this month, I was pleased to join the Prime Minister as he unveiled a landmark partnership between… schools here in the UK and in Ukraine, based on the power of reading and backed by legendary children’s authors including Michael Morpurgo.
Hansard · 27 Jan 2025 · parliament.uk
PD
Paul Davies
What steps her Department is taking to encourage reading in schools.
PD
Paul Davies
According to the Libraries for Primaries campaign, one in seven state primary schools in the UK lacks a dedicated library or reading space, and that figure rises to one in four in the most disadvantaged communities. As we know, reading for pleasure is essential to a child’s academic success and mental wellbeing. Thousa…
JL
Julian Lewis
Does the Secretary of State accept that the use of phonics as the basis of teaching reading has been thoroughly vindicated?
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
We know that smartphones in the classroom have a negative impact on reading and on the educational attainment of children in general. When in government, we issued guidance to try to ban smartphones from the classroom, but the latest evidence is clear that they are still far too prevalent in schools. To fix the problem…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right about the power of reading. We all know that reading broadens horizons and nurtures creativity, and I want more children to experience that joy, although sadly, we also know that more and more children in our country are not enjoying reading for pleasure. Under the Tories, one in four…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I do accept the absolutely essential role of phonics—it was a Labour Government who first started the roll-out of phonics in 2006. We need all our children to reach a brilliant standard in reading, but as I have just said, one in four currently do not meet the required standard. There is so much more that we need to do…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that phones have no place in the classroom. It is entirely right that schools take firm action to stop their use, and I know that is what the vast majority of schools already do. As the right hon. Lady said, last July the Conservatives said that they did not need to legislate in this area. Nothing has changed i…
Artificial Intelligence: Research and Development27 Jan 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Labour Government are at the forefront of change and, as I said to the Bett conference last week, we are determined to ensure that “AI will be a positive, radical, modernising force for good in the lives of working people.” The Department for Education is a member of the AI working group collaborating across… Government to share thinking and expertise as we develop future policy.
Hansard · 27 Jan 2025 · parliament.uk
CJ
Christine Jardine
What discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on support for artificial intelligence research and development in the higher education sector.
CJ
Christine Jardine
Many of my constituents and local academics have expressed concern about the cancellation last year, by this Government, of what would have been the UK’s only exascale computer, at Edinburgh University. That was not mentioned at all in the AI opportunities action plan. It would have been a major beneficial development …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I appreciate the hon. Lady’s interest in this area. She will know that the proposed exascale supercomputer is one programme that the Government are considering. We are currently assessing the best way to take this forward. The previous programme was announced under the last Government, for which full funding was not al…
Child Safeguarding27 Jan 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill is the single biggest piece of child protection legislation in a generation. It will stop more children falling through the cracks through landmarks reforms—no more empty words but real action to keep children safe. It is a shame that the Conservative Opposition have played silly games on this subject.
Hansard · 27 Jan 2025 · parliament.uk
LA
Luke Akehurst
What steps she is taking to strengthen safeguarding for children.
LA
Luke Akehurst
Last week, the Leader of the Opposition dismissed safeguarding measures in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill as a distraction. [Interruption.]
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
Order. Mr Timothy, you have been a bit loud recently, and I am sure you do not want an early cup of tea today.
LA
Luke Akehurst
After the tragic cases of Star Hobson, Arthur Labinjo-Hughes and Sara Sharif, will the Secretary of State remind Opposition Members why those measures are vital if we are to protect children?
GS
Gregory Stafford
The Secretary of State should consider what she just said. The Bill has specific clauses about home schooling. I know that the Labour Government do not like any form of education that is not in state-run, local authority schools, but those who home school have significant concerns that the Bill will put unfair burdens …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Opposition Members might not like it, but that is what the Leader of the Opposition said. The Conservatives had 14 years to stop vulnerable children falling through the cracks. Now is the time for action—no more empty words or lessons learned. Labour has brought forward the single biggest piece of child protection legi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Parents who choose to home educate their children are within their rights to do so. Those who provide a safe, loving environment and a good standard of education have nothing to be concerned about in the legislation. We are concerned about the growing number of children of whom we simply have no visibility. The Bill wi…
Free Speech27 Jan 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It was a Labour Government who first enshrined freedom of expression in law, and Labour is to this day committed to freedom of speech and academic freedom. That is why we are pressing ahead with a robust, rigorous and workable Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023, and taking common-sense decisions in the national interest.
Hansard · 27 Jan 2025 · parliament.uk
LA
Lee Anderson
What steps she is taking to support free speech in educational settings.
LA
Lee Anderson
Unfortunately, a minority of teachers subscribe to the sort of dog-whistle, divisive politics sometimes heard from those on the Government Benches —and from those down here on the Liberal Democrat Benches, by the way. This has put some children in Ashfield off expressing their own opinions during sensible debate in sch…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I have had the privilege of visiting hundreds of schools across our country, and I can tell Members that children in the schools I visit are usually never backward in coming forward with their opinions; I would hope that is the case in the hon. Gentleman’s constituency, too. Of course, schools have a duty to promote fu…
Early Learning Goals27 Jan 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Children growing up in our country deserve the best start in life—nothing less. Through our plan for change, Labour will get a record share of children school-ready. We will make that a reality through opening new school-based nurseries, rolling out childcare, earlier intervention, speech and language support, help for parents of children with special educational… needs and disabilities, and wider SEND reform. That is rightly ambitious, and we are determined to deliver it.
Hansard · 27 Jan 2025 · parliament.uk
JS
Josh Simons
What steps she is taking to increase the number of children achieving the early learning goals.
JS
Josh Simons
As a Jewish person, Mr Speaker, may I take this opportunity to thank you for everything you have done to help the House to remember my ancestors and those of other Jewish people whom we remember today? Welcome funding was announced for Abram Bryn Gates school in Bamfurlong, in my constituency, in the last free school f…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to raise that issue on behalf of his constituents. I would be more than happy to meet him to discuss it further. We are working rapidly through the whole free schools pipeline to ensure that we are creating places where they are required—that includes specialist provision—and that there is a str…
Topical Questions27 Jan 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Today marks the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau. As the years slip away, our duty to remember only strengthens. I have had the privilege in recent months of listening to the powerful and deeply moving testimony of Holocaust survivors in person, including Renee Salt and Mala Tribich. It is vital that the world… hears their voices—hears what happened to them and their families, and what happened to 6 million Jewish men, women and children during the Holocaust. That is especially important giving the shocking rise in antisemitic abuse that we have seen since 7 October . The Government could not feel more strongly about this, which is why we have confirmed that the Holocaust will be a compulsory topic in all schools following the completion of our curriculum and assessment review.
Hansard · 27 Jan 2025 · parliament.uk
MT
Mike Tapp
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
MT
Mike Tapp
I recently launched an exciting new reading initiative across Dover and Deal called Tapp into Reading. We tour the schools and the children read theatrically from a VE Day text. This will end in May, at a theatre. Will the Education Secretary join the judging panel then?
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
I associate myself with the right hon. Lady’s words on Holocaust Memorial Day. Just today, another voice came out against the disastrous academy proposals in the Government’s Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. The Children’s Commissioner said in a scathing letter that ending the academy order to turn around failing…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
Order. [Interruption.] These are topical questions. If the hon. Member wants to ask long questions, she should do so under a substantive question. It has got to be speedy—punchy questions and sharp answers. Members have to help me.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That brilliant initiative shows what a champion my hon. Friend is for his constituents, and I will consider his request seriously. I would certainly be happy to visit his constituency soon and to work with him—perhaps also on how his local schools might be able to join the UK-Ukraine school partnerships programme, whic…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It was a Labour Government who created the academies movement, and a Labour Government will ensure that they continue to flourish. The Conservative Government left a thousand failing schools that continue to let down more than 400,000 children year after year. We will intervene more rapidly and more effectively to turn…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
There was an awful lot in that but very little about how we deliver higher standards for our children, and that is what the Bill is all about. The only people in hock to vested interests are the Conservatives—more interested in defending school uniform racketeers and the private schools lobby than investing in our stat…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I strongly agree with my hon. Friend’s concerns, and I am determined to tackle the scourge of misogyny. She brings experience to this place—
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend brings real expertise to this matter from her experience in education. We are reviewing the relationship, sex and health education guidance to ensure that schools are able to teach what children need to know in the modern world. Our school staff have a crucial role to play in tackling this issue as well.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady is absolutely right. Far too often our staff have had to focus on maintenance and buildings rather than driving up standards in our schools. The Conservatives talk about their record, but their record was children cowering under steel props because of the RAAC crisis that they left behind.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the challenging context that many schools experience after 14 years under the Conservatives. At the Budget, notwithstanding the severe challenges that we face, the Chancellor prioritised key education areas, including making sure that we could deliver on that 5.5% pay award for teachers that the last Govern…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yet again we hear about the urgent need to reform our SEND system. We are determined to turn it around. We will work with everyone across the House and anyone with an interest in this area, including parents, teachers and staff, because we need to get this right.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
There is no reason that schools should need to make any kind of change. Of course, headteachers make practical decisions about how they feel they should run their schools. We are cutting the cost to parents and putting more money back in their pockets, unlike the Conservative party, which seems to oppose practical, str…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This Labour Government are determined to deliver high and rising standards for all our children. The Conservatives left 1,000 failing schools, continuing to let down more than 400,000 children. They left one in three children leaving primary school without a firm foundation in English and maths, and one in five childre…
Higher Education Regulatory Approach15 Jan 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
With permission, I shall make a statement on the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023. In July 2024 I paused further commencement of the Act in response to concerns raised by a cross-section of voices. I took that decision because it is vital that we get this right. Our universities are one of this… country’s greatest strengths, and I know Members across the House share my pride in a truly world-leading sector. At the centre of that excellence sit academic freedom and freedom of speech. The ability of our academics to explore and express new ideas through teaching and research is precious and we must protect it. These fundamental freedoms are more important—much more important—than the wishes of some students not to be offended. University is a place for ideas to be exposed and debated, to be tried and tested. For young people, it is a space for horizons to be broadened, perspectives to be challenged and ideas to be examined. It is not a place for students to shut down any view with which they disagree. Here is our starting point: academic freedom matters and freedom of speech matters, and we will preserve those two pillars of national strength, but we will proceed in a way that actually works. That is why we have carried out extensive engagement covering all corners of the debate: academics, universities, students; those for the Act and those against. All voices were heard. I was especially keen to consider the views of minority groups, to learn how the Act might affect them, particularly given the shocking rise in antisemitism on campus. Standing here in this great Chamber of debate, I remain resolute about the importance of free speech, but our engagement on the Act has raised concerns that any responsible Government must take seriously. What was being proposed simply did not rise to the challenge: unworkable duties on student unions, a tort clogging up the court system, and the Office for Students obliged to consider a vast number of complex complaints.
Hansard · 15 Jan 2025 · parliament.uk
JC
Judith Cummins
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of her statement. The Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023 was passed by Parliament prior to the election. By the end of the Act’s passage through both Houses, the Labour party had agreed in principle with the need for it; indeed, there are positive signals comi…
NG
Nusrat Ghani
I call the Chair of the Select Committee.
HH
Helen Hayes
I thank the Secretary of State for confirming the Government’s approach to the implementation of the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023, and I welcome the clarity that she has provided today. The implementation of the Act will present some challenges for universities and for students. The Secretary of State …
NG
Nusrat Ghani
I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
What we inherited from the previous Government was not a genuine attempt to solve a genuine problem; it was a mess designed to put party ahead of country. We saw a misplaced fascination with headlines for themselves, rather than a serious attempt to safeguard freedom of speech and academic freedom. It is precisely beca…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her questions and her approach, and I look forward to discussing these issues with the Select Committee in due course should its members so wish. My hon. Friend’s point about disagreement is important. Free speech should be robust and we should be able to express our views, but all o…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for raising those questions. I will start where we agree, and then move on to where I might disagree with him. I agree that freedom of speech and academic freedom are essential, but, sadly, we have seen too many examples of their not being upheld in the way that they should be by uni…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend that, across the board, there are big challenges in the university sector. That is why I took the difficult but necessary decision last year to increase the fees that they are able to charge. This year, we will engage in reform right across the sector to provide the long-term financial susta…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
On the timescale, this is a complex area, but in a little over six months we have consulted a wide range of stakeholders and considered all views, which is why I am able to return to the House today to update Members. The hon. Lady is right to say that we have decided not to commence provisions that will impose new dut…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am confident that the OfS, as the regulator, and its director for freedom of speech will seek to engage with a range of views, including those of Jewish students and community organisations, as they take forward this important work. That is certainly something that I have done to understand the concerns and the poten…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I know that the right hon. Gentleman is probably used to his party engaging in these discussions on quite difficult and sensitive issues in a rather reckless and irresponsible way, but we on these Benches take our time to do this seriously and properly to make sure that we get it right, because this is such an importan…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend, through his background in higher education, knows all too well how essential it is that young people and students from a range of different backgrounds are exposed to views that they might not previously have heard or that they might find difficult or challenging. That is what a university education is …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the former Secretary of State for his question. He will appreciate that this will be an independent regulator, and that there is a limit to what I can set out on their behalf. On the key issue of the tort, there will be consequences, even following the removal of the tort, for those providers who do no…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is important that any legislation in this area is fair, proportionate and workable, and that is what we have sought to achieve through the wider engagement and consultation that has taken place since July, when I paused commencement. It is vital that we get it right. It is incredibly important, and today we have giv…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am afraid I did not quite catch the very last part of the right hon. Gentleman’s questions, but I will happily look in Hansard and return to him on that point.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am afraid I am not going to do that without having reviewed exactly what the right hon. Gentleman said, Madam Deputy Speaker. I know him quite well. The Department for Education and the Home Office are looking jointly at some of these areas, and I want to be clear that national security is our No. 1 priority as a Gov…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I think we can all learn from Frank Field, who brought wisdom to a range of areas. We can all reflect on the need to keep our views under constant review to ensure that we challenge ourselves. The chance to be educated, whether at school, college or university, is a crucial part of challenging ourselves and understandi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes. One of the many brilliant aspects of our country’s higher education sector is its diversity—smaller institutions, larger ones and those that bring a wealth of difference, having evolved and changed in different ways. We will continue to listen to and work with providers and institutions of all shapes and sizes acr…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right that freedom of speech cuts both ways, and Conservative Members would sometimes do well to reflect on that, too. Sometimes, students can be exposed to views they find challenging or difficult, especially younger students who are newly away from home, and it is right that we put in pla…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will ensure that my hon. Friend’s point is taken up. Many have raised very serious concerns about antisemitism on campus and its impact on Jewish students, and I can see no good reason why any university would invite a Holocaust denier on to campus to deny the overwhelming evidence. Holocaust denial is an appalling f…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I give my hon. Friend that assurance. That is also why, as one of the measures that I intend to return to, we must look again at the board and executive appointments to the Office for Students. It is right that concerns have been raised that there could be the suspicion of political interference given that, rather unus…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, that is crucial. We know that the chance to study at university is life changing for so many students. That is of course the case for younger students—those who have what might be considered the more traditional experience of going to university at 18—but it is also about having the chance throughout life to retur…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for sharing those comments. I pay tribute to the Union of Jewish Students for the amazing work it does every day to support Jewish students on campus and to ensure that their voices are heard, including at the highest levels of Government. I give my commitment to UJS that I will continue…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That is absolutely essential. The same is true for Jewish students and others from minority groups as they go about their business at school and college. Sadly, I have heard too many examples of abuse and intimidation of the sort that my hon. Friend describes. Universities must be robust places of intellectual challeng…
Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill8 Jan 2025
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I beg to move, That the Bill be now read a Second time. In the week in which we return to this House and our children return to school, I am proud to be the Secretary of State for Education in a truly child-centred Government. The actions I take and the decisions I make are… always in pursuit of what is best for the children of this country, and that starts with keeping them safe. After little more than six months in power, we are delivering the change that is many years overdue. No more lessons learned, no more paper pushing and no more foot dragging: it is time for Government to act, and this Government will act with the urgency that our children deserve and our country demands. This Bill puts forward bold new measures to keep children safe. These include a new legal obligation for safeguarding partners to work hand in hand with education, because it is often teachers who first see the signs of abuse and neglect; a new duty to establish multi-agency child protection teams, because keeping children safe is everyone’s business; a new power to put in place a unique identifier for children, sharing information so that no child falls through the cracks; a new compulsory register of children not in school in every area of England, because if children are not in school, we need to know where they are; and a new requirement for local authority consent for parents to home-educate their children if they are on a child protection plan or subject to child protection inquiries. I respect parents’ rights to make choices about their child’s education, but children’s safety must always come first, and under this Government, their safety will always come first. Let us be crystal clear: a vote against this Bill today is a vote against the safety of our children, against their childhoods and against their futures. Today, Conservative MPs have a choice: they can choose to back measures to protect children, or they can choose to chase headlines. They can choose to transform the lives o
Hansard · 8 Jan 2025 · parliament.uk
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
The reasoned amendment in the name of the Leader of the Opposition has been selected.
GS
Graham Stuart
The Secretary of State has mentioned previous generations of politicians, and all of us in this House must recognise that we follow in the footsteps of giants. Tony Blair, Lord Adonis and others created the academy system that was built on under the last Conservative Government and brought about a transformation of Eng…
CV
Christopher Vince
The right hon. Member for Beverley and Holderness (Graham Stuart) mentioned uniformity, but the only uniform measures I can see in the Bill are about saving parents money on uniform bills, which I think we can all welcome. Does the Secretary of State agree that the fragmentation of the school system created by the last…
MH
Meg Hillier
I know that my right hon. Friend has a good head for numbers. Will she be doing some evaluation of the cost and benefits of investing in kinship care, so that we can reduce not just the cost to the child, but the cost to the taxpayer of expensive child social care?
SW
Steve Witherden
Before my election, I spent nearly 20 years as a secondary school teacher, seeing at first hand the devastating effects of food poverty on children’s health, concentration and academic performance. I welcome the introduction of free breakfast clubs in primary schools, which will improve child health and learning outcom…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That is simply a mischaracterisation, and the right hon. Gentleman knows it. I will come on to the wider schools measures in this Bill later in my speech, but I note that he had nothing to say in his intervention about the safety of children and the measures we are discussing today. The wrecking amendment that the Lead…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will come on to the wider point of collaboration later in my speech. Collaboration across the school system is crucial, but my hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the really important measures in the Bill that will put more money back in parents’ pockets by cutting the cost of school uniforms and bringing in br…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. In my time with her on the Public Accounts Committee, I learned all too well the importance of those principles. The previous Government had work under way on understanding not just the benefits for children of staying close to those who can care for them best, but the spiralling cos…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We will of course always keep further action under review. Through the child poverty taskforce, which I co-chair the Work and Pensions Secretary, we are considering what further action is required to make sure that families have more money in their pockets and can increase their income, and will take action. The growin…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Absolutely. The Bill will put hundreds of pounds back into family finances and back into parents’ pockets by cutting the cost of school uniform, and by introducing breakfast clubs in every state-funded primary school. However, we recognise that there is so much more we need to do, because child poverty scars the life c…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
A number of provisions in the Bill deal precisely with that challenge. We recognise that in London—but shortly this will be the case right across our country—there are challenges that come with falling rolls and making sure that we manage that properly. That will require schools to work with local councils, and to coll…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I welcome the hon. Lady’s interest in this area, because I share her concern about the growing number of children in our country who are deeply unhappy, and the growing challenge of mental ill health and ensuring wellbeing. Far too many children do not receive access to timely support, and we are looking carefully at t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend. We have been led by the evidence on this, which is clear: this measure provides real support to parents at the start of the school day, but also delivers benefits for children’s learning, development, academic outcomes and behaviour. I am delighted that in April we will start rolling out th…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That is just not the case. I invite him to read the Bill, and I will come on to further measures that we are proposing. If we believe that every child deserves the best, that every classroom deserves a top teacher, and that every state school must be a great school, we cannot have excellence for some children and “just…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
No; I invite the right hon. Lady to look carefully at the measures in the Bill. We will not hesitate to intervene in failing schools—indeed, we will intervene a lot sooner than the Conservatives did in schools that are coasting. Those schools that fall short of the statutory level of intervention will see regional impr…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I share the hon. Lady’s concern about the mental health challenges that many of our young people are experiencing, and we are committed to rolling out mental health support right across our schools. On the wider challenge of support for children with special educational needs and disabilities, I wish to make clear to t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend brings a wealth of experience as a teacher to the House. I know that teachers will want to hear what this will mean for their pay, so I reiterate that the measures in the Bill and the changes that we will bring forward to the schoolteachers’ pay and condition documents in the following remit will not cut…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are looking carefully at all the schools in the pipeline, but we need to ensure that in every case there is a strong case for the need for the school and good value for the taxpayer. We have inherited an enormous challenge when it comes to the public finances, and we have had to make difficult decisions because of t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend that we need to ensure that local authorities are working with schools, health services and other partners in their areas. Through the last Budget, we were able to deliver additional investment for our local councils. We want to see a much greater focus and priority on early help and early s…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will give way a final time and then conclude.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That is a total misunderstanding of the Bill. The hon. Gentleman should not seek to speak for others in this regard. We are restoring academies to their core intended purpose of driving up standards for the most disadvantaged children in our country, with innovation spread wherever we can do that.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend. I recognise the challenge that she faces in her constituency and that we see right across our country. We have seen a big increase in the number of children being home-educated. While I respect the right of parents to make that choice—there is a complex range of reasons why many parents are…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am afraid that I am concluding now. We are bringing together the system’s many parts into a collaborative, coherent whole with children at its heart. Our ambition to support children does not stop here. We expect to bring forward further legislation when parliamentary time allows. Our work to erase the stain of child…
Future Earnings: Impact of Socioeconomic Disadvantage18 Dec 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This Government are determined to break the link between background and success. Through the opportunity mission and the child poverty taskforce, we will break down the barriers to opportunity for all, by setting up every child for the best start in life, helping them to achieve and thrive, and building skills for opportunity and growth,… so that background is no barrier to success.
Hansard · 18 Dec 2024 · parliament.uk
SS
Sarah Smith
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help tackle the potential impact of socioeconomic disadvantage on future earnings.
ES
Euan Stainbank
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help tackle the potential impact of socioeconomic disadvantage on future earnings.
NI
Natasha Irons
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help tackle the potential impact of socioeconomic disadvantage on future earnings.
DW
David Williams
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help tackle the potential impact of socioeconomic disadvantage on future earnings.
SS
Sarah Smith
Research from the Bloody Good Period campaign shows that one in five women and girls is now experiencing period poverty, so not only is there a socioeconomic disadvantage, but a further gender penalty. This gender-based injustice costs the UK billions—some £3.3 billion—in lost work annually. Will the Minister tell the …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are tackling the root causes of poverty through measures to make work pay by boosting the living wage and investing in our public services, so that no one, including women, have to go without the essentials. There are also lots of great programmes that support women and girls with period products, such as the scheme…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I strongly agree with my hon. Friend that, while the Conservatives have said that they think parental leave is excessive, we want to give families more choices. Through the Employment Rights Bill, we will make paternity leave available from day one in a new job and enable it to be taken after shared parental leave. We …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I share my hon. Friend’s concern in this area, which is why we are committed to enacting the socioeconomic duty of the Equality Act 2010, and we shall give more information on this in due course. I also encourage businesses and organisations to collect data where they can, so that we can take action to tackle some of t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend that it is absolutely crucial that we take action on regional inequalities. He champions that cause very strongly on his constituents’ behalf. He will know that we have set out an ambitious plan for the future of the minimum wage, and we are taking action to make sure that all workers receiv…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am more than happy to do that. I congratulate the right hon. Gentleman on his work in this area and the attention that he has drawn to it, because it is a cause that we can all get behind. There is more that employers can be asked to do, as he describes, and more that we can do as a Government. That is why it is impo…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I understand the hon. Lady’s important point. She will know that in the Budget we increased the threshold for the carer’s allowance and delivered a big boost to the payments that people can receive, but I understand the wider challenge that she sets out around social care. That is why the Health Secretary is taking act…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I do not know which Bill the hon. Lady has been reading, but it is not the Bill that we presented to the House yesterday. I am determined to drive high and rising standards right across our schools system. She might be satisfied that one in four disadvantaged children leave primary school without reaching a good standa…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady raises an important point about some of the differences in pensions. I am more than happy to pick that up with the relevant Minister to ensure that she receives a full response.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that the hospitality sector is crucial to our economy, and at this time of the year, when many people will be working across Christmas, I pay tribute to them for their work and thank them for their contribution to our economy. On her wider question, the hon. Lady knows as well as I do that the Government inheri…
Topical Questions18 Dec 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Earlier this month the Government set out our “Plan for Change”—a plan to raise living standards for everyone. Everyone should have access to warm homes, a revitalised NHS and opportunities to thrive at work, and they should feel safe on our streets. I am proud to be driving our mission to ensure that background is… no barrier to success and that every child has the best start in life. This week marks the end of Disability History Month, during which my right hon. Friend the Minister for Social Security and Disability has met disabled people and disabled people’s organisations and set up a network of lead Ministers for disability across every Government Department.
Hansard · 18 Dec 2024 · parliament.uk
RW
Rosie Wrighting
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
RW
Rosie Wrighting
Last week I visited Northamptonshire Domestic Abuse Service, where we discussed estimates that reported incidents of domestic abuse in the UK spike up to 20% during the Christmas period. What are the Government doing to ensure that those affected by domestic violence can get support at this time of year?
CC
Claire Coutinho
Turning a blind eye to the risks faced by vulnerable people in the name of inclusivity is anything but compassionate. We know that cousin marriage significantly increases the risk of birth defects and locks women into coercive relationships. My right hon. Friend the Member for Basildon and Billericay (Mr Holden) has ta…
LP
Lee Pitcher
Merry Christmas. I recently attended a Royal National Institute of Blind People event highlighting the challenges faced by blind and visually impaired people navigating past parked cars, forcing them to walk into the road. My inspirational wife is one of those people, who takes her life into her own hands every time sh…
ST
Stephen Timms
My hon. Friend raises a good example of the kind of topic we need to work on across Government, and I was pleased to chair the first meeting of the cross-Government disability lead Ministers yesterday. The Department for Transport has consulted on this problem, which can be very serious for people with a sight impairme…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I thank my hon. Friend for that important question, and I pay tribute to the work of Northamptonshire Domestic Abuse Service and everyone working across domestic violence and sexual abuse services this Christmas. I know from my own experience of working in such services over the Christmas period how busy it can be, but…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Government will of course always keep such issues under review, and I will ensure that the Minister in the relevant Department speaks with the right hon. Lady on this topic.
Primary School Breakfast Clubs: Impact9 Dec 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Breakfast clubs break down barriers to opportunity so that children are ready to learn. They are proven to boost attendance, attainment, wellbeing and behaviour, and they also provide essential childcare options for parents. In only a few days, hundreds of schools have applied to become early adopters because they know that these clubs can improve… children’s life chances and, crucially, academic standards.
Hansard · 9 Dec 2024 · parliament.uk
TJ
Terry Jermy
What assessment she has made of the potential impact of introducing free primary school breakfast clubs on children.
TJ
Terry Jermy
As a former youth worker and a former school governor, I know that this initiative will make a huge difference, and I have written to all the schools in my constituency encouraging them to apply. Will the Secretary of State please outline the next steps?
DH
Damian Hinds
Thousands of schools are already participating in the national school breakfast club programme, including many special schools and secondary schools, but the clubs actually have a bigger effect on attendance. The Secretary of State has talked a great deal about breakfast clubs in primary schools, but what is the future…
HU
Harpreet Uppal
I welcome the decision to introduce breakfast clubs, which will have an amazing impact on pupils in my constituency and everywhere else. Will the Secretary of State tell us a little about the logistics of rolling out the programme throughout the country, and how quickly that can be done?
CV
Caroline Voaden
While the children’s wellbeing Bill proposes statutory breakfast programmes, research from the Food Foundation shows that such clubs are more likely to benefit wealthier families because of the convenience that they offer working parents. By contrast, offering children free school lunches is known to help iron out ineq…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for the work that he is undertaking in making his local schools aware of the opportunities that breakfast clubs present. The early adopters scheme will enable up to 750 participating schools to start providing them from April 2025 onwards. We have tripled investment in breakfast clubs fo…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for the interest that I know—from his former roles—he takes in this issue. We are building on the existing programmes, expanding investment and opportunities, but I agree with him that we need to ensure that breakfast clubs are available to all children, including those with sp…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As I said, schools have until 20 December to apply to take part in the early adopters scheme. That is because we want to ensure that we establish the scheme, and understand the benefits and challenges, before we roll it out across the country. We are determined to get this right, and we will build on the early adopters…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady is right to identify the importance of ensuring that all our children have healthy, balanced and nutritious diets, including at school. However, she will know that the situation that this Government inherited from the previous Government means that we have had to take some very tough decisions. We will se…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I take the concerns of early years providers very seriously indeed, and we will set out in due course the funding rates and the approach that we are taking. The hon. Gentleman and the Conservative party are very keen to complain about and criticise the measures that we set out in the Budget, yet the Leader of the Oppos…
Teacher Recruitment and Retention9 Dec 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As the first step towards our opportunity mission, we have begun the critical work of recruiting 6,500 new expert teachers. We have fully funded a 5.5% pay award, begun Ofsted reform, and taken steps to make teachers’ work more flexible and ensure that workloads are more manageable. I am determined to reset the relationship between… Government and the workforce to drive high and rising standards for all our children.
Hansard · 9 Dec 2024 · parliament.uk
AM
Amanda Martin
What steps she is taking to improve teacher recruitment and retention in Portsmouth North constituency.
BC
Bambos Charalambous
What steps she is taking to improve teacher recruitment and retention.
AM
Amanda Martin
At a recent local public meeting in Paulsgrove, Portsmouth, parents raised concerns about school provision and the learning environment. As a local authority, we sit in the bottom three in the league tables. What steps is the Secretary of State taking not only to improve recruitment and retention in specialist subjects…
BC
Bambos Charalambous
I begin by thanking all the teachers, support staff and senior leaders in my constituency of Southgate and Wood Green, and across the country, for their hard work ensuring that our children receive the high quality education they deserve. Teachers’ pay, their workload and the environment in which they work have been hi…
WH
Wera Hobhouse
Some 9,000 women in their 30s left teaching in 2022-23. This is the single biggest age group leaving teaching in Bath and across the country. Will the Government improve maternity pay for teachers and teaching assistants?
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the challenges that we face in particular parts of the country, and there are no greater champions of Portsmouth than her and the Under-Secretary of State for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Portsmouth South (Stephen Morgan) . We are taking steps to ensure that teac…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join my hon. Friend in praising the amazing teachers and support staff in his constituency and across our country for the vital work that they do. I want to ensure not only that we keep teachers in the profession but that they thrive in it, which is why I was pleased to agree to the recommendation of a 5.5% pay award…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady is right to identify that challenge, and I have used that statistic many times myself. I am really concerned about the big numbers of experienced women, particularly those in their 30s, who leave teaching because they find it too difficult to combine work with family life. That is why, as part of what we …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I congratulate the hon. Lady on the important work that she does as a school governor. They are the unsung heroes across our communities in terms of the support they provide to our schools. I recognise the increasing challenge that she sets out around how we can ensure that people come forward to take on those importan…
Skills Training9 Dec 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The previous Government left behind a skills system that was fragmented and failing: falling numbers of apprenticeships for young people; adults unable to find the training courses they need; businesses confused; and no plans to equip people with the skills for the economy and opportunities of tomorrow. We are turning the page by establishing Skills… England to unify that fragmented landscape, and bringing forward a plan for post-16 education and skills, which will deliver the education and training pathways that our economy, employers and learners need.
Hansard · 9 Dec 2024 · parliament.uk
AD
Anna Dixon
What steps she is taking to reform skills training.
JM
Joe Morris
What steps she is taking to reform skills training.
DR
Dave Robertson
What steps she is taking to reform skills training.
JC
Jennifer Craft
What steps she is taking to reform skills training.
AD
Anna Dixon
Some 3.8 million people aged 19 and over benefit from skills education in England every year. I pay tribute to all the hard-working professionals employed in further education, including at Shipley college in my constituency. However, businesses in Saltaire tell me that they struggle to recruit people with the digital …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join my hon. Friend in paying tribute to the staff at Shipley college. She is right that it is time that we, as a country, took skills much more seriously. We were left with skills shortages in many key areas, including those she identified. We will be giving businesses the flexibility they have been asking for, to u…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Following on from small business Saturday, we all recognise that small employers are the backbone of our economy. My hon. Friend is right that it should not be the case that young people in places such as Hexham should have to get out in order to get on. We are creating Skills England to fill the skills gaps we see acr…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Absolutely. That is why we set out in the Budget an additional £300 million of capital investment for our colleges. I am sure that the opportunities that my hon. Friend sets out are just the kind that we need to see across our country. The creative industries have a crucial role to play in driving growth in communities…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right that our further education colleges have a crucial role to play in providing opportunities for our young people and for adult returners to education. Colleges have a strong impact on regional economic growth. We think that they have a bigger role to play still, which is why they will …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that there is a very big pay gap for further education; I gently say to the right hon. Gentleman that it took place over the last 14 years, during which his party was in power. I absolutely accept the challenge that more is required, because our further education colleges have a crucial role to play, but that i…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that there are lots of job opportunities in the years to come in clean technology, green jobs and much more besides. That is why we have started work very quickly to begin the process of legislating to establish Skills England, which already exists in shadow form. It has already undertaken an audit of what more…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am more than happy to look personally at the issue that the hon. Gentleman sets out, to ensure that we do more in this area. He will be aware that we have a review under way of level 3 qualifications, but we know that as a country we need to do much more on level 4 and 5 qualifications as well. If he will share furth…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are making good progress on our post-16 qualifications reform review, which will report by the end of the year, so the hon. Lady does not have long to wait to hear the outcomes of that review.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We remain committed to reforming the failing apprenticeship levy and turning it into a growth and skills levy with up to 50% flexibility for employers, driving new opportunities in growth areas across our country, alongside ensuring that we deliver many more apprenticeship starts for our young people. We inherited a si…
Child Poverty9 Dec 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Tackling child poverty is at the heart of our opportunity mission. After a decade of Conservative Government, far too many children are growing up in poverty. It is a scar on our society, a blight on young lives, and the centrepiece of the Conservatives’ shameful legacy. The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and… I are getting on with the job of chairing the child poverty taskforce, which has started the urgent work needed ahead of the publication of our child poverty strategy in spring 2025.
Hansard · 9 Dec 2024 · parliament.uk
CM
Chris McDonald
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to reduce levels of child poverty.
MW
Michelle Welsh
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to reduce levels of child poverty.
CM
Chris McDonald
During the summer, I visited the holiday activities and food programme run by Stockton borough council, which provides a healthy meal for low-income families in my constituency. Can my right hon. Friend provide some assurance that funding for that programme will continue into next year?
MW
Michelle Welsh
We know that children growing up in poverty on average do less well in education, with many children also having to miss out on other enriching school activities such as days out because they simply cannot afford them. Does the Secretary of State agree that every child, including the almost 7,000 children living in pov…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join my hon. Friend by extending my thanks to the staff at Stockton borough council for their hard work on the holiday activities and food programme over the past year. We are working through our budget settlement to agree measures to support families during the holidays, and in due course we will set out what furthe…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree; it is absolutely right that children in my hon. Friend’s constituency deserve every chance to achieve and thrive, and that is the ultimate goal of our child poverty taskforce. As the Prime Minister set out just last week through our plan for change, we want to give every child the best start in life, and that …
Topical Questions9 Dec 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Children growing up in our country deserve the best start in life, and nothing less. That is why, last week, the Prime Minister published his plan for change, including an ambitious target to ensure that, by the end of the Parliament, a record proportion of children are ready for school. We will do this by… transforming the early years, creating and expanding nurseries, rolling out childcare, strengthening family services and focusing on early intervention. Mr Speaker, as we approach the end of the term, I wish you and all the staff of the House a very merry Christmas, and send my thanks to all the staff working across education.
Hansard · 9 Dec 2024 · parliament.uk
EM
Esther McVey
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
EM
Esther McVey
I have met private schools in and around Tatton that are attended by my constituents’ children, and they have all me told that, despite having applied for a VAT number, not one of them has received it. Will the Secretary of State explain to me what discussions she is having with the Chancellor to put this right, partic…
NW
Nadia Whittome
I have been contacted by many parents who are desperate to secure a place in a special school for their child, but in Nottingham there is a severe lack of availability. While I wholeheartedly support efforts to improve SEND support in mainstream schools and to deliver an education system that is truly inclusive, it see…
SM
Stephen Morgan
I appreciate my hon. Friend’s concern. As she will know, this Government inherited a broken system from the previous Government. We want to make sure that all children with SEND receive the support they need to achieve and thrive. We have announced £740 million of high needs capital funding for next year for additional…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I would be happy to make sure that the point the right hon. Lady raises is looked into, but on the wider policy priority, I say to her that this party and this Government are determined to expand opportunity right across our country for the vast majority of children, who go to state schools. The Opposition may be happy…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This Government are absolutely committed to freedom of speech and academic freedom. We want to make sure that our universities are places of intellectual challenge and rigour, where people will be exposed to views with which they may disagree. We paused commencement of the previous Government’s legislation because of t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I do accept that academics should be free to express a wide range of views, and there will be views that people sometimes find challenging, but it also matters that we have legislation that is workable. I am afraid that the legislation the right hon. Lady’s party set out just did not achieve that, and we have had to co…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I do recognise the challenge the hon. Lady sets out and the very real challenge the Government have inherited in the provision of places. Our approach of rolling out nursery space within primary schools is crucial to creating the places that are required. There is more that we need to do. The system and sector overall …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree strongly, and that is why, alongside additional investment, there must be reform. We will make sure that the areas that my hon. Friend identifies are addressed. I look forward to discussing them in front of the Select Committee before too long.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We have launched our curriculum and assessment review to make sure that issues such as the one that the hon. Gentleman identifies are taken into account. It is a shame that we seem to hear nothing from the Opposition but negativity about the curriculum and assessment review. We are determined to make sure that all our …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I pay tribute to the providers in my hon. Friend’s constituency for their work. We want to see great careers right across the early years sector from apprenticeships all the way up to graduate level. I will happily meet him to discuss that further.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We want all schools to do well for our children and to drive high and rising standards regardless of the name above the door.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The right hon. Gentleman will know that this is a complex area. It would not have been possible to make any changes to the funding formula this year, but we will look in the future at what changes might be required. I am sure that as part of that process he will make representations on behalf of his constituents.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Member is right that there are skills gaps in cyber, digital and tech overall. That is why Skills England will drive forward our work in addressing those skills gaps as well as in ensuring that our young people have great careers in the years to come. That is one area in particular where I know there is lots o…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend identifies a number of the challenges that we have inherited as a new Government. We are working as quickly as we can to address them. We want to ensure that teachers right across the sector, whether in our schools, the FE sector or colleges, get the support, the pay and the recognition that they deserve…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
At the Budget, we set out an additional £300 million for further education. The hon. Lady will know that the Government are not responsible for and play no role in setting or making recommendations about teacher pay in FE colleges. We are looking closely at sixth-form colleges too as part of this, which again is part o…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will always celebrate the fantastic work of our school leaders and teachers, because they are how we will drive high and rising standards across our school system. The hon. Gentleman and I probably have more in common than he realises. He might recognise these words: “The greatest injustice in Britain today is that y…
Children’s Social Care18 Nov 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
With permission, Mr Speaker, I would like to make a statement about the Government’s plans for children’s social care. I know all Members here today will agree that caring for vulnerable children is among the most vital responsibilities of any Government. This Government treat no issue with more importance than the urgent challenge of improving… children’s social care. This is a new era of child-centred government, of putting children first. That is how we achieve our opportunity mission, how we break the unfair link between background and success, and how we support families to achieve and thrive. Our mission applies to all children, especially the most vulnerable, those for whom childhood is a storm of instability, neglect and even violence—denied the foundation of love that is the first right of any child. Children’s social care alone cannot right all those wrongs. We need a joined-up approach, across Government and beyond. That is why mission-led government is so important. But done well, children’s social care empowers families to support their children, putting them back on the path to happy, healthy lives. It is with great concern that I come here today to tell Members what they must already know: the system that the Government have inherited from Opposition Members is broken and failing far too many children. It is kept alive by the efforts of our amazing workforce. I want to thank all those working so hard to keep children safe, but children’s social care is struggling under an impossible weight. We have more children in care in this country than ever before. With more and more money following children into the most expensive part of the system, resources are sucked out of preventive services, pushing yet more young people into care. And so the vicious cycle continues: higher costs but poorer outcomes. My hon. Friend the Member for Whitehaven and Workington (Josh MacAlister) rightly identified that cycle in his review over two years ago: a broken market for
Hansard · 18 Nov 2024 · parliament.uk
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of her statement. I welcome the Government’s focus today on children’s social care, and on the profiteering issues that we identified and set up the market intervention advisory group to look at when we were in government. However, at the heart of the problem is a lack o…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the Chair of the Education Committee.
HH
Helen Hayes
I welcome the action that the Government have announced today to improve children’s social care. The Secretary of State will know that families from the poorest neighbourhoods are 14 times more likely to be referred to children’s social care than those from the richest areas, and that there is a growing body of evidenc…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I can say to the right hon. Lady that we will absolutely do more. We are doing more in four months than the Conservatives did in 14 years. They had 14 years, yet she has the temerity to stand there and carp about the changes that we are bringing in for some of the most vulnerable children in our country. Markets were l…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend has long championed this cause and brings considerable expertise to the role that she now undertakes as Chair of the Select Committee. I look forward to discussing these issues with her and her Committee in due course. She is right to identify that child poverty is a significant issue in this area. That …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady has rightly championed the cause of kinship carers for many years in this House, and I pay tribute to her for drawing attention to this crucial area. The measures we set out in the Budget represent the single biggest investment in kinship care ever made by a Government. This is an important first step, bu…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I pay tribute to my hon. Friend, who has consistently shared his personal experience, and who has demonstrated to so many young people what can be achieved, even when there are barriers to overcome. He knows as well as I do that far too many care-experienced young people in our country lack the support and backing that…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am not quite sure how to begin to respond to the frankly extraordinary first part of the right hon. Gentleman’s question. To take the more serious points he raised, we are determined to ensure that we have the resources and support in place for the most vulnerable children in our country. The reason I get so cross wh…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend brings real expertise to this House from her work in education. Education is also a crucial area where we need to work together on safeguarding; school staff, teachers and others have a role to play in keeping children safe and ensuring that all children can thrive. The steps that we are setting out toda…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that there is still much more that we need to do to support kinship carers and foster families; that is why the measures we set out in the Budget are so important. From speaking to kinship carers in my constituency on Friday, I know that there are still too many barriers in place, including differences between …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to highlight the fact that, sadly, a move to a different kind of placement, outside family care, is a necessary step for some children, for their safety and wellbeing, and in the interests of their long-term future. We are rolling out the Staying Close programme nationally to ensure that all car…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that costs are spiralling out of control. More action is necessary to support councils in investing in services and ensuring provision for children much closer to home. Too many children are being sent far away from family support networks. That presents local councils with additional cost pressures, and pushes…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree, and the Deputy Prime Minister is determined to drive forward change in this area, not just with more homes being built across our country, including social homes, but by taking action in the area that my hon. Friend describes, when children are leaving the care system. I assure her that the Government will act…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am sure that my hon. Friend the Member for Whitehaven and Workington will speak for himself on his report. The Government recognise the need to rebalance the system away from crisis intervention, and to break the cycle of spending ever more pots of money on what amounts to a failure within our system. We will refocus…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I thank my hon. Friend for speaking about his experiences. He will know that until quite recently this area was perhaps little understood. It is so important that people like him are able to speak openly; it demonstrates bravery and will encourage others to do the same. I will happily look at the report and the work th…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Like the hon. Gentleman, I have seen good examples of councils across the country that have started to take such action, but they have done so by going against the grain of Government policy. This time, councils will have the backing of the Government in making those changes. We will also ensure that they can take acti…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right that there are many long-standing challenges in this area. On corporate parenting, today’s Command Paper sets out the steps that we intend to take to bring forward further plans in this area. I look forward to working with her on the shape and scale of those plans, because it is essential that w…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the hon. Lady, and I am sure that the Under-Secretary of State for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Lewisham East (Janet Daby) would be happy to meet her to discuss the issue further. She is right to identify the need for ongoing support for families when a child or children has been removed. B…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As we take forward further proposals both for legislation and for wider change and reform across the sector, we look forward to working not only with family rights organisations, charities and others to make sure that they are involved in the design of services, but with our brilliant and often unsung workforce—as my h…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree, and I will be working very closely with the Chancellor and the Deputy Prime Minister in this area. The hon. Gentleman is right to highlight the increase in unsafe unregistered placements. That is why we are giving Ofsted further powers to act and why I set out in the Command Paper that we will make sure that c…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I know that my hon. Friend, from her professional expertise before coming to this House, understands better than most how important social work, early intervention and support for families are in this area. She is right to identify that we see an increasing number of children in unsafe and unregistered placements. They…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am working closely with the Deputy Prime Minister in this crucial area, and there will be more to say before too long about the local government finance settlement. As the hon. Member identifies, it is important that we rebalance the children’s social care system away from crisis intervention and towards more timely …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to identify that, sadly, for too many care-experienced young people coming out of the system, their outcomes are just not good enough and the facts in terms of their life chances are stark. We are determined to change that. I am working closely with the Deputy Prime Minister as part of the care …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We will look at all factors including the one identified by the hon. Gentleman, as well as at areas of good practice where many local councils, despite the many difficulties they face, are taking forward innovative new ways of working, and doing all they can to support children and families. There is much we can learn …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend, who is right to identify that there is support for such measures across political parties. Children are being let down by our failure, and we must do more to improve capacity. We will support councils working together to do that. I have seen great examples of where that has happened, but mu…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I can tell the hon. Gentleman that I am visiting Northern Ireland soon, when I look forward to discussing both that area and wider issues relating to education with counterparts in Northern Ireland.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for drawing the House’s attention to this area. I would be more than happy to meet him. He is right that the situation we have inherited is one where too many children are being let down and where the quality of provision for very vulnerable children is just not good enough. I look forwa…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Private providers are making, in some cases, between 20% and 30% profit. That is way beyond what we would expect in any other area. Crucially, when we think about where they are making that profit, it is off the back of the trauma, abuse and sometimes very difficult early childhood experiences of some of the most vulne…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is vital that we drive up standards and quality in children’s social care placements, and we want to make sure that we are providing support for councils, charities and others to do precisely that. The highest possible standards and quality of care are essential for children and young people who have been through so…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I commend my hon. Friend and his council on the work they have undertaken to deliver better outcomes for care-experienced young people. It is crucial, and I am sure there is much we can learn from that work. The Under-Secretary of State for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Lewisham East (Janet Daby) will be hap…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join my hon. Friend in praising the work of council staff and the many councils across our country taking action in this area. I agree that we can learn a lot from the best examples of support for care-experienced young people and the overall approach taken around children’s social care. I look forward to working wit…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to identify the urgent need to do more to support care leavers at the point when they move through the system and throughout their lives. That is why I am working with the Deputy Prime Minister and other Government colleagues so that we all pull together and do much more to deliver better life c…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend: that joint working is important, and it provides much clearer support for families who often do not want to have to repeat their experiences time and again to different sets of professionals and who want better and more targeted support. I have seen great examples, including in Lewisham ear…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for sharing her and her constituents’ concerns with the House. We will act to ensure that Ofsted has the powers it needs to tackle unregistered, unsafe and unsuitable placements and accommodation. Our most vulnerable children deserve the best possible support, and right now we are sadly …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I pay tribute to my hon. Friend for his tremendous work in this area. I am delighted that we have been able to act in many of the areas that he identified as part of his review. He is right to draw our attention to the thousands of people, including those with lived experience, who contributed to his vital work. It is …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend’s local authority has done brilliant work in this area. We are keen to build on the best examples that already exist around the country. I know that my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary was impressed with everything that she saw as part of that visit. We are determined to ensure that we back councils and t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful for all my hon. Friend’s work in this area. She is right that councils were left at the mercy of private providers, often paying extortionate costs for poor-quality provision that did not deliver safety, dignity and better life chances for our children. We are determined to turn that around, and I look fo…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are calling time on the excess profiteering of big private providers, which are seeing profits of 20% to 30%. If they fail to act and bring down costs, we will legislate to cap their costs. This cannot continue; it has been left to drift for far too long, and local authorities such as my hon. Friend’s have been up a…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right. There are big differences based on geography. I find it quite astounding that 25% of registered places are in the north-west of England. That is a staggering number, and sadly it means that far too many children are moving far from home, away from family networks and moving school or education …
Violence against Women and Girls: Prevention in Schools13 Nov 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Education has a role to play in the prevention of violence against women and girls, and it is essential to the Government’s safer streets mission. We are reviewing the relationship, sex and health education guidance to ensure that it enables schools to tackle harmful behaviour, because we are determined to ensure that misogyny is stamped… out and not allowed to proliferate in schools.
Hansard · 13 Nov 2024 · parliament.uk
JG
Jodie Gosling
If she will make an assessment of the effectiveness of primary prevention measures in schools in tackling violence against women and girls.
JG
Jodie Gosling
We know that sexual violence is a critical problem in our schools. In 2021, in response to Ofsted’s rapid review, 92% of girls and 74% of boys said that sexist names were used “sometimes” or “a lot”. Harassment of this kind has become commonplace in educational settings, and harmful sexual practices are becoming a risk…
JS
Jim Shannon
When it comes to young boys and young girls in schools, and when it comes to bullying and, sometimes, things that happen at home, the relationship between the teacher or classroom assistant and the pupil is very important, making it possible to identify problems that may arise at home and then roll over into school. Ca…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I would be more than happy to meet my hon. Friend to discuss that issue further. She brings real expertise from her background in education, and it is essential that we do more to tackle the behaviour that she has identified. I welcome the work of White Ribbon, and I hope other Members will be able to support that work…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Gentleman has raised an important issue. It is crucial for teachers and school staff to have what they need in order to tackle harmful behaviour and language in schools. Sadly, sometimes the very staff he talks about are on the receiving end of such attitudes and behaviour, which is completely unacceptable. As…
Supporting Women into Work13 Nov 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are laying the foundations for all employers to create conditions that enable women to return to work and to thrive in their careers. As part of our efforts to make work pay, we will improve access to flexible working, strengthen workplace protections for new mothers and review the parental leave system.
Hansard · 13 Nov 2024 · parliament.uk
CV
Caroline Voaden
What steps the Government are taking to support women back into work.
CV
Caroline Voaden
Parents of pre-school children in South Devon are finding it all but impossible to find nursery or pre-school places due to the lack of availability and the financial pressure that such establishments are under. This is making it extremely difficult for parents, often mothers, who would like to return to work after hav…
AB
Apsana Begum
The all-party parliamentary group on domestic violence and abuse was reconstituted this week. As its chair, I am pleased to report that, at our first meeting, we heard from survivors and organisations that support survivors in the workplace. The Minister will be aware that the gender pay gap persists. Does she agree th…
MD
Mims Davies
It is working women who will pay the price for Labour’s Budget of broken promises, with the increase to employers’ national insurance contributions making working people worse off and affecting childcare settings. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has said that single-parent families—80% of them are headed by women—will, …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady is right to identify that accessible and affordable childcare is essential for making sure that women, in particular, are able to work, to work the hours that suit them and to progress in their careers. That is why we have confirmed that we will be expanding Government-funded childcare with an initial £1.…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with the hon. Lady. Before I came to this place, I ran a refuge for women and children affected by domestic violence. During that time, I saw some good examples of employers supporting women who were going through a very difficult time in their lives. There is more that we can ask of employers, and there is mor…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are committed to transforming the lives of women across our country, and that applies to single parents, too. I am leading the child poverty taskforce with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. Unlike the last Government, we are committed to driving down the number of children growing up…
Topical Questions13 Nov 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I draw the House’s attention to Islamophobia Awareness Month. No one in our country should be targeted because of their faith or race, and British Muslims are a crucial part of Britain’s history and society. More widely, the Office for Equality and Opportunity is already making great strides. The new Employment Rights Bill will legislate… for a stronger duty to prevent sexual harassment, and action plans will cover the gender pay gap and menopause issues. We will open a consultation on extending pay gap reporting and equal pay rights to ethnic minorities and disabled people.
Hansard · 13 Nov 2024 · parliament.uk
DF
Daniel Francis
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
DF
Daniel Francis
The disability charity Sense estimates that 200,000 disabled children across the UK are struggling to get the right school support, because of funding issues and a need to employ more multisensory impairment teachers to ensure deafblind children can access education. What steps is the Minister taking to ensure disabled…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Minister for Equalities.
CC
Claire Coutinho
I am honoured to take on the role of shadow Minister for Equalities and I pay tribute to my predecessor, my right hon. Friend the Member for North West Essex (Mrs Badenoch) , who will be at this Dispatch Box shortly. The equalities brief underpins values that I cherish: fairness, freedom, meritocracy and equality under…
CC
Claire Coutinho
During the election campaign, the Conservative party committed to clarifying the definition of “sex” in the Equality Act 2010 to protect women’s rights. At the end of this month, For Women Scotland v. Scottish Ministers will be heard in the UK Supreme Court. The case will have far-reaching consequences for sex-based ri…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend champions the rights of disabled children. He is right to do so because when it comes to support for children with special educational needs and disabilities, the system we have at the moment just is not working, as shown all too clearly by the recent National Audit Office report. I am determined to list…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I welcome the right hon. Lady to her place. I look forward to working with her on areas where we can agree and where we can take such concerns forward on a cross-party basis, wherever possible. I believe that she, like me, is passionate about tackling violence against women and girls. As she sets out, I believe that ev…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The right hon. Lady will appreciate that I will not comment on ongoing cases. However, I can be clear that the Equality Act 2010 sets out that providers, for example, have the right to restrict access to service on the basis of biological sex. This Government are proud of our achievements in legislating for the Equalit…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend brings real expertise to the House in this area. We are committed across Government to tackling the social determinants of health and the stark health inequalities that sadly blight the life chances of too many across our country.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady raises an important point, and I am very sorry to hear about her constituent’s experience. I will make sure that a Health Minister picks up on that point and has a conversation with her, because new mothers, including those who are breastfeeding, absolutely deserve the right level of support and advice.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Mr Speaker, please forgive me, but I did not quite hear all of my hon. Friend’s question, but I will make sure that the issue she identifies is picked up by the relevant Minister and that she receives a full response.
Childcare Availability4 Nov 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The early years are my No. 1 priority as Education Secretary. We will deliver a sea change in early years education to give parents better work choices and children better life chances. We will start by repurposing empty classrooms to create or expand school-based nurseries, making childcare more accessible and affordable for hard-pressed families. I… encourage state-funded primary schools, working with their local authorities, to consider applying before the application window closes on 19 December .
Hansard · 4 Nov 2024 · parliament.uk
JM
James MacCleary
What steps she is taking to increase the availability of high-quality childcare.
JM
James MacCleary
With Government data showing that 70,000 more early years places need to be created by next year, and with an overhaul of outdated business rates promised, will the Secretary of State commit to removing unfair business rates from nurseries and pre-schools, which will now be mostly delivering Government-funded childcare…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call Ashley Dalton. Oh, you are not standing. This is not directed at you personally, but when you stand I think you are going to ask a question, and then when you sit down I am left high and dry.
KE
Kirith Entwistle
As a mother in the north-west, I thank the Secretary of State and welcome the Government’s £1.8 billion commitment to expanding publicly funded childcare. As we transition towards more publicly funded childcare, can she share any plans for interim support to keep childcare affordable for working families relying on pri…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
We welcome the new shadow Secretary of State.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is undoubtedly a challenge to deliver the roll-out, but we are determined to do it because it is so important for parents and for children’s life chances. We intend to reform the early years sector overall. We will be looking very closely at this into next year; I would welcome further input from the hon. Gentleman …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right. As the roll-out continues, we will shortly reach a situation in which 80% of childcare is Government-backed. It is therefore right that in those circumstances we look closely at whether we are getting the best-quality provision for our children. As part of our early years strategy review, we wi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I welcome the right hon. Lady to her place: it is the best job in opposition, just as mine is the best job in government. I am sure that whatever disagreements we might have in the weeks and months to come, we can all get behind the importance of education to our country. We will set out more detail on funding rates in…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As was announced at the Budget, we expect to provide £8.1 billion for the early years entitlements in 2025-26, which is an increase of about 30% on the previous year. We will continue to deliver the roll-outs, because this Government have sought to protect education priorities in the Budget. On the hon. Member’s precis…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that it is important we get the balance right. That is why the Deputy Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Business and Trade are looking carefully, as part of our wider reforms to employment support and employment law, at what more we need to do around parental leave entitlements. I share the hon. Mem…
Teaching Assistants and Support Staff4 Nov 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
School support staff are crucial to ensuring that we give children the best possible life chances. That is why we are reinstating the school support staff negotiating body, the new national voice for some of those who do the most important work in our schools. In 2010, the Tories scrapped the body. Within our first… 100 days, Labour started the legislative process to bring it back. That is because we value the vital role that support staff play in our education system.
Hansard · 4 Nov 2024 · parliament.uk
IL
Ian Lavery
What steps she plans to take to improve the pay, terms and conditions of teaching assistants and support staff.
IL
Ian Lavery
Low pay and limited career progression are driving many teaching support staff out of our classrooms. Three quarters of the profession are either considering leaving or are actively looking to leave, with one in five teaching assistant posts currently vacant. Will my right hon. Friend recommit to addressing this recrui…
CV
Caroline Voaden
Teaching assistants in my constituency are struggling to support a growing number of children who need extra help with speech and language skills. What is the Secretary of State doing to ensure that all school support staff have access to relevant training in speech and language development so that they can better supp…
NO
Neil O'Brien
On pay, what is the cost to schools and colleges of the national insurance increase? How much will be provided to them in compensation? Will the Secretary of State confirm clearly that they will be fully compensated for the increased prices that suppliers and indirectly employed members of staff, such as caterers and I…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend can be assured that the school support staff negotiating body will be tasked with establishing a national terms and conditions handbook, training, career progression routes and fair pay rates for support staff to make sure that we can recruit and retain the brilliant people, including teaching assistants…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady is right to raise that. Our teaching assistants in particular have a crucial role to play in supporting children with special educational needs and disabilities. That is why we have committed additional funding this year so that we can roll out the Nuffield early language intervention to ensure that there…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I welcome the hon. Gentleman to his place. Schools and colleges will be compensated at a national level. I would, however, point out to him that when I became Secretary of State in July, I was presented with the teachers’ pay review body award of 5.5% that the last Government received, put in a drawer and then ran away…
Curriculum and Assessment Review4 Nov 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Our independent curriculum and assessment review was launched in July. It will support our ambition for high and rising standards for all, and for a broader curriculum with an excellent foundation in the core subjects. The review has launched its call for evidence, and there is still time to participate. The review will publish its… interim report in early 2025, with final recommendations in autumn 2025.
Hansard · 4 Nov 2024 · parliament.uk
CH
Claire Hazelgrove
What recent progress the independent curriculum and assessment review has made.
NT
Nick Timothy
What progress the independent curriculum and assessment review has made.
CH
Claire Hazelgrove
Research from the University of Cambridge shows that financial habits are often set by the age of seven, yet financial education for young people is still a postcode lottery. It is not part of the primary curriculum, and many teachers at secondary level, where it is part of the curriculum, lack resources and confidence…
NT
Nick Timothy
I think parents will be quite alarmed by the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich (Patrick Spencer) , as it had very little focus on academic attainment. The Education Secretary appointed Becky Francis, who attacked the Blair Government for their obsession with academic achiev…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for highlighting this important area, which has been raised by many Members in the past. I am sure the review will carefully consider what financial education young people need to meet that aim, and it will, of course, consider what support we need to provide to enable teachers to teach …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I rather fear that the hon. Gentleman and his party have learned nothing from the massive defeat inflicted upon them by voters in July. I can assure this House that the review will be evidence-based and will not seek to fix things that are not broken. However, I remind the hon. Gentleman that his record is a SEND syste…
Topical Questions4 Nov 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Last week’s Budget protects key education priorities, putting education back at the forefront of national life and breaking down barriers to opportunity for every child at every stage. The Department for Education’s settlement means that we can begin to deliver on this Government’s mission: rolling out funded childcare, rebuilding and maintaining our school and college… estate, reforming the SEND system, investing in children’s social care, and ensuring that young people have the skills that they need to seize opportunity. Additionally, the £2.3 billion increase in core schools funding, together with July’s fully funded 5.5% teacher pay award, further supports our commitment to recruit 6,500 new teachers. This Government will fix the foundations to deliver change, and there is no better place to start than education.
Hansard · 4 Nov 2024 · parliament.uk
EM
Edward Morello
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
EM
Edward Morello
West Dorset has seen a 134% increase in the number of children requiring SEN support in the last six years. As of the latest data, more than 275 children are waiting for education, care and health plan assessments, with the average waiting time well in excess of the 20-week statutory limit. Will the Minister outline wh…
MH
Meg Hillier
Schools are closing across inner London, and across London more widely, for various reasons, leaving premises empty or at risk of being sold off. What strategic oversight is the Secretary of State taking to ensure that we get the best value for our children from these properties?
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
There has been a lot of discussion about our record in government. Under the Conservatives, England climbed international educational league tables, but what happened to Labour- run Wales? It fell. Under the Conservatives, youth unemployment went down and school standards improved —that is the record of the Conservativ…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Gentleman is right to raise his concern, as so many have this afternoon, about the state of the system for supporting children with SEND. It is not working, and we know it needs reform, but committing an extra £1 billion into the system at this crucial time was an important first step. We face choices on how t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising that important issue, about which there was a lack of thinking by the previous Government on how we do this properly and seriously. Challenges come with demographic change, but there are opportunities too. That is why we have announced more primary-based nurseries in empty cl…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am sorry to disappoint the right hon. Lady, but we will be talking about the Conservatives’ 14 years of failure for a very long time indeed.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Children across our country were failed by her party time and again, including the children with SEND we have heard about this afternoon—
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are focused on driving up standards for our children, the length and breadth of our country, by providing more teachers and improved school budgets, and by ensuring our children do not go to school in crumbling buildings, unlike the Conservative party, which made sure that our children went to school in buildings th…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Conservative party has learned absolutely nothing and parents will not buy it. We were faced with some very tough choices because of the £22 billion hole in the public finances, as the right hon. Lady, the former Chief Secretary to the Treasury, knows all too well—[Interruption.] We are fixing the foundations and r…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We expect the additional funding to go directly to providing provision for children and young people. We will set out wider plans about the issues the hon. Gentleman raises in due course.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Ensuring that there is the right level of provision for and identification of SEND in the early years is an essential part of our review of the early years system and of the reform that is required.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It was a pleasure to visit my hon. Friend ahead of the election—and what a brilliant champion he is for Burnley and his constituents. I would be very happy to visit again. As part of setting out our commitment to further education, at the Budget we put in place an additional £300 million, alongside £300 million of capi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will look carefully at the case and ensure that the hon. Gentleman has a meeting with the relevant Minister to discuss it further.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I do agree, and I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising the point. I am leading the work across Government on breaking down the barriers to opportunity in order to break the unfair link between background and success. We know that tackling child poverty is a crucial part of that process, and it is essential that we…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As I said to the right hon. Gentleman during the last Education questions, I believe in the vital importance of freedom of speech and freedom of expression within our university campuses. University is a place where young people should be exposed to views that they might find difficult or challenging; however, it is im…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady is right to identify that this is an area where we must do more, and do it better. I hear, as she doubtless does, from teachers and support staff that they want additional training and support in this crucial area, and we will ensure that it is part of our SEND reform.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for the work that she leads on behalf of this House on the Education Committee. Our child poverty taskforce is absolutely focused on this area. We will listen to and engage directly with families across the UK, including those who have children with SEND. As she identifies, child poverty…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We know that having a well-supported, highly qualified teacher at the front of the class makes the single biggest difference to children’s life chances, but it is also crucial that we tackle issues around workload and pay. That is why I was delighted that we were able to bring in a fully funded 5.5% pay award for our t…
Higher Education Reform4 Nov 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Mr Speaker, may I begin by expressing my deep regret that the content of the statement that I am about to make appeared in the media earlier this afternoon? It had always been my intention to come before this House to make the statement first, given its significance and importance. I appreciate that you, Members… across the House, and our conventions, rightly demand and expect that. I hope that you can accept my deep frustration and regret at what has taken place. I will take whatever steps I can to keep you updated on the matter, because I do respect the conventions of and my responsibilities to this House.
Hansard · 4 Nov 2024 · parliament.uk
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
Before I call the Secretary of State for Education to make a statement, I note that reports about the possible increase in higher education tuition fees started appearing in the media earlier this afternoon.
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
Mr Holden, you don’t help yourself, do you? The Secretary of State is here to make a statement, so hon. Members will have the opportunity to question her. If the premature media reporting is due to an unauthorised leak, that is a great discourtesy to this House. I hope the Secretary of State will be able to identify th…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
Can we take it that there will be a full inquiry into how this has happened—that everybody will be brought in and questioned, and you will then update us on that full inquiry? That is what I really want.
JC
Judith Cummins
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
LT
Laura Trott
I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of her statement. The Budget last week declared war on business and private sector workers, and on farmers, as we have just heard. It seems that today the Secretary of State wants to add students to that list. Not content with pushing up the cost of living for everyone w…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I can give you that undertaking, Mr Speaker, and I will speak to officials about the matter, as you request.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
With permission, I would like to make a statement about the future of our higher education sector and the changes that we will be making for students in the upcoming academic year, 2025-26. Before I go further, I want to make clear the approach that this Labour Government take to our universities and, above all, to the…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Amid the faux outrage that we just heard from the shadow Education Secretary, I did not hear whether she will support the measure. She, like her party for many months during the election campaign, had nothing to say other than doing down the ambition and aspiration of young people and their families who want the opport…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her question, and I look forward to speaking with her and her newly constituted Select Committee about this issue and many others. I recognise the importance of communicating the message that university should be for all young people who have demonstrated that they have the qualifica…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his questions. I gently observe that although it might have been slightly before his time in this House, his party has got a bit of form on this topic, but I will address his questions in the spirit in which he asked them. I appreciate the constructive approach that he has taken. As part …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend makes an important point, and we will absolutely take that into consideration. It is important that we look at student accommodation, which is a big challenge in many university towns, including in her constituency. I believe the sector should be doing more to address issues around student accommodation,…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman. He is correct in the question he asks; what I would say about the commencement of the provisions and the wider, long-term future of the Act is this. I believe it is important that our universities are places of robust challenge and disagreement, and that students should be exp…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend, who recognises, both in his professional life before coming to this House and as a constituency MP, the crucial role that our universities play in towns and cities, as well as by providing opportunities for lots of young people. Alongside that, one area where we need to make more progress—a…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
What I am announcing today is very much in line with the approach that we took at this Budget—a one-year settlement that allows us to fix the foundations, given the need to bring financial sustainability to the sector, because we recognise the acute financial pressures that many universities are facing after years of f…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend has long championed our fantastic universities. He is right to draw attention to the need for further efficiencies, but he is also right to identify that efficiencies do not mean making staff do more with less, or indeed with fewer staff. They do mean reeling in needless or excessive spend and waste, and…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I remain slightly bewildered by the right hon. Gentleman’s approach. He has clearly learned nothing from the election campaign we have just been through and clearly was not listening when he heard time and again about the £22 billion black hole his party left behind and the difficult decisions it ducked year after year…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend brings real expertise on these matters to the House. While the Government ensure that we play our part in securing financial sustainability, I have been clear with the sector that it too must do more. That involves playing an expanded role in driving economic growth, including in towns and cities across …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with the hon. Gentleman on the important contribution that international students make to our country and the reach they give us around the world through soft power, influence and the business and trading links that they grow and develop, but I am afraid I cannot give him the answer he seeks on his wider questi…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to raise those issues and to highlight the important contribution that universities make to employment opportunities, and not just for academics and others engaged in research and teaching, but for a wide range of jobs right across the board. From security staff to hospitality staff and library …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that there is more that universities can do to ensure that they have a wide source of income. That includes greater work around economic growth, around spin-offs and much more besides—I will be working with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology on precisely those que…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We will be setting out further plans in the coming months around the wider reform that we intend to bring to the sector. I recognise my hon. Friend’s genuine concern about making sure that talented young people who want to expand their minds and benefit from university have the chance to do so. There is much more that …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Gentleman raises important points not just about the state of our further education sector, but about the important collaboration between further education and higher education providers, including in communities where travelling times might be longer, and about ensuring that access to education is available t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
International students play an important role in our communities and make an important contribution to our economy, but my hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the fact that there can sometimes be pressures. I know that can be especially acute where expansion happens and the right levels of accommodation do not fo…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are working closely with the Office for Students on the areas that the hon. Lady identifies. She is right that we need to do more on quality, particularly teaching quality, and we will be discussing that further in the months to come. I would be more than happy to discuss that issue with her and her party.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
One of the first actions I took as Secretary of State was to refocus the work of the Office for Students on precisely those areas that my hon. Friend identifies, because it is important that we ensure that the student experience at university is strong and that students have the opportunity to take part in a wider rang…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I can tell the hon. Gentleman that we will look at this issue as part of wider reform, but he will appreciate that after 14 years of Conservative failure when it comes to our universities, there are no easy options. This is a difficult decision and a difficult choice, but I can give him the assurance that I want to ens…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend brings real experience on these matters to the House. He will know it is important that the independent regulator retains the autonomy to act, but we will work with it closely on quality, student outcomes and much more besides. As he will know, under the last Conservative Government, that regulator was i…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman. For many young people, the chance to go to university is a long-term investment in their future prospects, which offers not just the chance to study and to learn, but the chance to take on a new career in the way he described, particularly in our health service. Of course, this matt…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend, who raised a number of important points. In addition to those he made about the record in Scotland, he will know better than most of us the shameful record of the SNP Government when it comes to opportunities for university study for our more disadvantaged students. The share of first-t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I would be delighted to visit and meet my hon. Friend and other colleagues in neighbouring constituencies to discuss the approach that has been taken there. She made the wider point that our higher education sector is diverse and includes a range of providers who offer different kinds of opportunities, training and stu…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree. My hon. Friend will recognise that over many years we heard the Conservatives doing down young people’s ambitions to go on and study. Like me, he will have heard dismissive talk, which I will not repeat, about types of degrees and the kind of study that our young people were engaged in. It is essential for a m…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That is my expectation. Excessive and wasteful spend in universities needs to be reined in. There must be a much greater push for efficiency. As a Government, we have made the difficult decision to increase fees to provide sustainability for the sector. Now, the sector must play its part.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Going to university is often a long-term investment in someone’s earning potential and career opportunities, but the chance to study is also good in and of itself. That means that we must value and respect a wide range of courses and opportunities, including subjects like music, art and much more besides, although many…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree very strongly. It is crucial that our university sector does more to open up opportunities, including to working-class young people and those who do not have a family history of going to university. The experience that my hon. Friend described was very much my experience too—not just the encouragement that I re…
Impact of Energy Costs on Disabled People9 Oct 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We understand that energy bills are a concern for many people. We believe that the only way to protect bill payers permanently, including disabled people, is to accelerate the green transition to home-grown clean energy. We continue to work closely with energy suppliers to ensure that vulnerable customers are supported.
Hansard · 9 Oct 2024 · parliament.uk
BD
Bobby Dean
What discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on the potential impact of the cost of energy on disabled people.
BD
Bobby Dean
In my constituency of Carshalton and Wallington, Scope research estimates that disabled households face bills of up to £1,500 a month more than the average household. We also know that disabled households are much less likely to claim the benefits that they are entitled to. Has the Government Equalities Office made any…
DA
Debbie Abrahams
Disabled people are also concerned about the use of artificial intelligence in Departments under the previous Government, including within the Department for Work and Pensions. Given the recent United Nations report on AI governance, what discussions has the Minister had with other colleagues across different Departmen…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.
CJ
Christine Jardine
Further to the question that my hon. Friend the Member for Carshalton and Wallington (Bobby Dean) asked, DWP statistics show that 45% of people over the state pension age have a disability. As we have already heard, they can face hugely inflated energy costs because of the need for equipment such as stair lifts, extra …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Equality analysis was released in September, and the Government carried out our statutory duties in doing so, but I recognise the wider concerns that the hon. Member raises, especially around the additional costs faced by many disabled people. That is why the Minister for Energy Consumers, my hon. Friend the Member for…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Discussions are ongoing across government, including with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology. There are wider opportunities and challenges that technology presents us, and we want to ensure we get the balance right.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Lady will recognise the difficult state of the public finances that we inherited and the tough choices that were necessary to stabilise our economy. Those decisions were not easy. My hon. Friend the Minister for Energy Consumers is leading on much of this work to ensure we secure a fairer deal for all consumer…
Impact of Socio-economic Disadvantage on Future Earnings9 Oct 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Government are committed to breaking the link between young people’s backgrounds and their future success. I am proud to lead our opportunity mission across government, through which we will ensure that every child thrives in education and achieves their ambitions in work and later life, no matter what their background.
Hansard · 9 Oct 2024 · parliament.uk
GG
Gill German
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to tackle the impact of socioeconomic disadvantage on future earnings.
BC
Beccy Cooper
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to tackle the impact of socioeconomic disadvantage on future earnings.
GG
Gill German
In Wales, breaking down barriers to opportunity has long been an area of work, but with so many levers of change having been in the hands of a UK Tory Government, success over the past 14 years has been greatly hampered. Will my right hon. Friend assure me that Cabinet colleagues in this Government will work closely wi…
BC
Beccy Cooper
Coastal areas, including my constituency of Worthing West, experience lower life expectancy and higher preventable ill health than many non-coastal areas. That is directly related to the fact that they often have higher levels of socioeconomic deprivation. What steps is my right hon. Friend taking to address the specif…
LS
Lisa Smart
Young people in my community with care experience are campaigning for care and care experience to be classified as a protected characteristic. Will the Minister meet them and me to discuss whether the Government plan to do that?
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, I give my hon. Friend that assurance. We will work closely with devolved Governments to make sure that we are all pulling together to break down the barriers that too many of our young people face. That is why the work on child poverty that the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and I are leading on is so cr…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is a real champion for her constituents and for coastal communities, and I recognise that different communities have distinct challenges. Work is already under way to ensure that where someone is from does not determine whether they can succeed, but I would be happy to discuss that further with my hon. F…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We are looking carefully at what more we need to do to ensure that all care-experienced young people receive the support they need. We know that outcomes are often incredibly poor, and we recognise the disadvantage that care-experienced young people face. We are looking at what more we can do through legislation and be…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am afraid I did not catch all of the hon. Gentleman’s question, but I am happy to discuss it with him further. I have met my counterparts in Northern Ireland. I recognise our shared challenges and want to ensure that we work constructively across the devolved Governments on areas of concern.
Topical Questions9 Oct 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
This Black History Month, I would like to reiterate that people’s race or ethnicity should never be a barrier to opportunity. We are enhancing rights through upcoming legislation on race and disability, equality, employment rights and banning conversion practices. To deliver that important work, we are reforming the Equality Hub to create the office for… equality and opportunity in the Cabinet Office. There is much to do, working within and beyond Government, to create opportunity and promote equality across the UK.
Hansard · 9 Oct 2024 · parliament.uk
MH
Meg Hillier
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
MH
Meg Hillier
We have had some progress since the Government were elected on issues relating to black and minority ethnic women and domestic violence. However, Valerie Forde, who was my constituent, was brutally murdered by her partner, and Valerie’s law— named for her and campaigned for by her daughter and the charity Sistah Space …
MD
Mims Davies
The Conservative Government introduced the hugely successful opt-out HIV and hepatitis testing programme for A&Es in London, Brighton, Blackpool and Manchester, with a £20 million commitment to expand the programme to 33 more, diagnosing more than 1,300 people with HIV in the first two years and tackling health inequal…
SR
Steve Race
Many of my constituents in Exeter benefit from maternity pay, which supports women while they spend precious time with their new-born children. Is the Minister of the view that maternity pay, in the words of one Tory leadership candidate, has “gone too far”?
AD
Anneliese Dodds
Absolutely not, and my hon. Friend is right to mention the fact that that kind of assessment flies in the face of not only common sense, but all the economic evidence. When we support women to return to work and to progress at work, while being able to spend time with their families, we grow our economy—something that …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I pay tribute to my hon. Friend for all the campaigning work that she has done in this crucial area in the face of the tragic loss of Valerie Forde. We must do everything we can to ensure that all victims of violence against women and girls receive the support that they need. I will make arrangements for her to discuss…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I thank the hon. Lady for raising such an important issue, on which all Members across the House want to make progress. Officials are working on further plans, which we will set out very shortly, but we will be keen to work with her and colleagues across the House to make sure that we eradicate new HIV and AIDS infecti…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I assure the right hon. Lady that we are absolutely determined to encourage our women and girls to take part in sport and physical activity—something that falls off all too often as girls reach their teenage years. In my work in the Department for Education, through the curriculum and assessment review, we are looking …
Parliamentary Debate9 Sep 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Qualifications must deliver on our missions, enhancing and spreading opportunity, and growing our economy. The last Conservative Government botched the roll-out of T-levels and defunded them. That is why this Labour Government have announced a pause and review of qualifications reforms, to support skills growth and students, and to bring certainty where there has been… chaos. This short, focused review, along with other measures, such as the curriculum assessment review and the creation of Skills England, will allow the Government to improve skills training, unlock opportunity and harness talent.
Hansard · 9 Sep 2024 · parliament.uk
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is certainly the case that there is a big workforce challenge, and making sure that we have specialists in critical areas is a central part of making sure children and young people can access the support they need. Our school support staff will play a crucial role in that, which is why Labour will reinstate the scho…
Level 3 Vocational Pathways9 Sep 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Qualifications must deliver on our missions, enhancing and spreading opportunity, and growing our economy. The last Conservative Government botched the roll-out of T-levels and defunded them. That is why this Labour Government have announced a pause and review of qualifications reforms, to support skills growth and students, and to bring certainty where there has been… chaos.[Official Report, 7 October 2024 ; Vol. 754, c. 1WC.] (Correction) This short, focused review, along with other measures, such as the curriculum assessment review and the creation of Skills England, will allow the Government to improve skills training, unlock opportunity and harness talent.
Hansard · 9 Sep 2024 · parliament.uk
BE
Bill Esterson
What steps she is taking to ensure the adequacy of the provision of level 3 vocational pathways for students.
SB
Sureena Brackenridge
What steps she is taking to ensure the adequacy of the provision of level 3 vocational pathways for students.
BE
Bill Esterson
There are a great many opportunities for technicians and engineers, which will only increase with the Government’s plans for clean energy and their industrial strategy. However, we are currently short of intermediate and advanced-level skilled workers in this country, so will the Secretary of State tell us how her plan…
SB
Sureena Brackenridge
As a former deputy headteacher, I have seen at first hand the impact of the previous Government’s rushed plans to eliminate most BTec qualifications, in the midst of a botched roll-out of T-levels. How does my right hon. Friend intend to fix the mess that she has inherited and ensure that the diverse aspirations and va…
TF
Tim Farron
The Secretary of State is absolutely right that the previous Government botched the roll-out of T-levels. In particular, the failure to deliver the T-level in hospitality and tourism was a huge blow to our communities in the lakes and dales. Her predecessor said that was caused by a failure to gain placements in the to…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I know how passionate my hon. Friend is about ensuring that young people in Sefton and across our country are able to seize the new opportunities of the future. We are determined to drive forward and make Britain a clean energy superpower. Our reformed growth and skills levy will give businesses greater flexibility and…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Given her background in education, my hon. Friend knows all too well how important it is that all our young people have the opportunity to achieve and thrive. She is right that we inherited a big mess, but we have acted swiftly and we are conducting a focused, intense review to ensure that all our young people have opt…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Gentleman makes an important point about ensuring that placements are available. I am happy to ensure that he has a discussion with the Minister for Skills to make sure we address his concerns about hospitality.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I pay tribute to all the businesses across our country that are providing high-quality skills training and apprenticeship starts. However, apprenticeship starts for the under-25s fell by 38% in the period 2015-16 to 2022-23. It will fall to this Labour Government to turn that around.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, I would be very happy to meet my hon. Friend. In this period of review, we are speaking to employers, training providers and colleges to ensure that we get this right.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Gentleman makes an important point about ensuring that people from a range of different backgrounds, including young women, see the opportunities that exist. I have had the opportunity to meet my counterparts in Northern Ireland and I look forward to working with them to ensure that, across the UK, we can driv…
Office for Students9 Sep 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
For too long, universities have been treated as political battlegrounds. This Labour Government will treat them as engines of opportunity and growth. On 26 July , I published the report of the independent review of the Office for Students and appointed Sir David Behan, who led the review, as the interim chair. Under new leadership… and with a sharpened remit, the Office for Students will concentrate on securing the future of universities and putting students first.
Hansard · 9 Sep 2024 · parliament.uk
MW
Matt Western
What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Office for Students.
DA
Dan Aldridge
What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Office for Students.
MW
Matt Western
I welcome the Secretary of State to her position. Last year, the House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee presented its report, which was very critical of the OfS—we did not need to read between the lines to understand just how poorly the Committee thought of it. It felt that it was serving neither the students…
DA
Dan Aldridge
Young people in Weston-super-Mare and across our country deserve the very best opportunities. Since 2016, University Centre Weston has transformed access to higher education in our town, meaning that more can study closer to home, improving access. How will the Labour Government seek to strengthen the strategic objecti…
JN
Jesse Norman
I am delighted to hear the right hon. Lady talk about engines of growth and opportunity, because that is exactly what universities are when they are well run. In my county we have a new university, the New Model Institute for Technology and Engineering, which is doing exactly that, and offering incredible opportunities…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I thank my hon. Friend for all his work in this important area to ensure that our universities are recognised as a crucial part of how we drive growth in our country. Sir David’s review, which we published in July, is a platform for improvement, and I welcome and accept its core findings. The Government will support th…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I strongly agree with my hon. Friend about the importance of widening participation, and he sets out clearly how universities are a key part of towns and cities right across our country. The last Government wanted to use our world-leading sector as a political football, talking down institutions and watching on as the …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for raising this matter. I would be happy to meet with him to discuss it further.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The shadow Minister will know that the Office for Students is independent, but I will ensure that it looks very carefully at the concerns that he has set out, and addresses them accordingly.
Academic Freedom in Higher Education9 Sep 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Government fully support academic freedom. Higher education must be a space for robust discussion and intellectual rigour, and it was a Labour Government that enshrined freedom of expression into law. Our recent decision to pause the implementation of further parts of the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023 was precisely because we believe… in academic freedom. It is therefore crucial that the legal framework is workable. Baroness Smith in the other place and officials are speaking with a range of stakeholders. Their views will form part of our consideration of all options for protecting academic freedom into the future. No options are off the table.
Hansard · 9 Sep 2024 · parliament.uk
RH
Richard Holden
What assessment she has made of the adequacy of levels of academic freedom in the higher education sector.
RH
Richard Holden
I thank the Secretary of State for that answer, and welcome her to her new position. Can she give the House a cast-iron guarantee that when she decided to reverse the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act, she gave no consideration to the consequences of the new freedom of speech duties that the Act would impose on …
TA
Tonia Antoniazzi
I congratulate the Secretary of State on taking the hard decisions that are needed in Government, and I am very pleased to hear that no options are off the table. What reassurances can she give me and other women that she will protect female academics, such as Jo Phoenix, Kathleen Stock and Selina Todd, from being bull…
GM
Gagan Mohindra
I welcome the Secretary of State to her place. The Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023 would have ensured that universities in England had the tools they needed to deal with interference and threats to freedom of speech and academic freedom, wherever they originated. Now that the Government will no longer imp…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Yes, I can give the right hon. Gentleman that reassurance. We looked very carefully and very closely at the way in which the legislation was going to operate. I want to ensure that we have good, strong, workable legislation. I was concerned about what I had heard from Jewish groups and other minority communities about …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Like my hon. Friend, I take having strong freedom of expression in our universities, and students being exposed to a range of views—some of which they might find difficult or disagree with—extremely seriously. That is why it is so important to have a wide-ranging education. Officials will ensure that we engage with a w…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Gentleman will know that freedom of expression and academic freedom are incredibly important. The Office for Students sets out duties, and many of those principles are already enshrined in law. However, I want to ensure that we get this right. I am confident that he would not have wanted to be in a position wh…
SEND Provision9 Sep 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Conservatives left a trail of devastation across education, and nowhere is that clearer than in our current special educational needs and disabilities system. We know that, for too many children and families, the system is just not working, but I give my personal commitment to hon. Members across the House that the Government will… listen to and work with families to deliver reform, improving inclusivity in mainstream schools and ensuring that special schools are able to help those with the most complex needs.
Hansard · 9 Sep 2024 · parliament.uk
AG
Allison Gardner
What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the provision of SEND services.
KB
Kevin Bonavia
What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the provision of SEND services.
SA
Sadik Al-Hassan
What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the provision of SEND services.
LM
Luke Murphy
What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the provision of SEND services.
DC
Deirdre Costigan
What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the provision of SEND services.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to stress the need to listen to children, families and all those working in the system in order to deliver reform. If she can share some more detail with me, I will happily take a look.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the significant interest in the Westminster Hall debate, and the level of interest today demonstrates the importance of getting this issue right. I know from speaking to him that he is concerned about the issue. I agree that it is important that there is a fair education fun…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is certainly the case that there is a big workforce challenge, and making sure that we have specialists in critical areas is a central part of making sure children and young people can access the support they need. Our school support staff will play a crucial role in that, which is why Labour will reinstate the scho…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I joined my hon. Friend in Basingstoke during the general election campaign, so I know that many families in Basingstoke and right across our country were concerned about this issue, and I can give him that commitment. Members on the Conservative Benches may recall that the previous Education Secretary described the sy…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is right to highlight how important it is that all of our children have strong speech and language skills. That is why this Government will roll out early language interventions to make sure that all of our children get support at the earliest possible point, including extending the Nuffield early langua…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As the first ever Labour MP for Hexham, my hon. Friend will be a champion of rural communities across the country. I would be more than happy to meet with him—or my hon. Friend the Minister for School Standards will meet with him—to discuss this important concern, which I know many Members wish to discuss.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for his question, and will make sure that officials engage with him on that point. If there is anything further he would like to share, I will happily look at it. He is right: this is a difficult area, and we need to make sure we get it right. I am determined to deliver a syste…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We were elected on a manifesto of driving high and rising standards in our state schools. The public back our policy. We think it is right that we prioritise investment in our state schools where the vast majority of our children go to school, including the vast majority of children in the hon. Gentleman’s constituency…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As the Under-Secretary of State for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Portsmouth South (Stephen Morgan) , has set out, we will make sure that, where children have an education, health and care plan, the VAT on fees policy change will not affect those children. I recognise the point the right hon. Member makes an…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the challenge the hon. Lady sets out, and part of it is making sure that our mainstream schools are better able to cater for children with a wide range of needs. I am very sorry to hear about the experience of her constituent, and I am sure my hon. Friend the Minister for School Standards will be happy to m…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Gentleman is right to draw attention to any emerging evidence that shows new ways of doing things. As a new Government, we are keen to do precisely what he describes to make sure, particularly when it comes to a better join-up between health and education, that we see faster improvement. I would be happy to me…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Member is right in his characterisation of a system that is adversarial and where so many parents have to fight to get a good education and support for their children. I would be happy to do so, or perhaps my hon. Friend the Minister might take that meeting.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am genuinely surprised that the hon. Gentleman thinks that question is a source of strength. It represents significant failure over 14 years that we have ended up in such a desperate position facing our councils. We will of course look closely at all of this but, after 14 years when he will have heard that families h…
Topical Questions9 Sep 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As we start the new academic year, I want to say thank you to all staff working across education, and to wish all learners the best for the year ahead. It will be the mission of this new Government to break down barriers to opportunity, so that where a person is from does not determine… what they can go on to achieve, and so that every child has the best start in life. We launch our mission against a backdrop of many inherited challenges: a childcare pledge without a plan for delivery; a crumbling schools estate; a school attendance crisis; large attainment gaps; and falling apprenticeship starts and training opportunities. I am determined to turn this around. We will drive high and rising standards across education, from early years right through to adult learning.
Hansard · 9 Sep 2024 · parliament.uk
NG
Nusrat Ghani
We are moving on to topicals; the questions will be short, and the ministerial responses will be snappy.
TR
Tim Roca
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
TR
Tim Roca
Across the Macclesfield area, we have fantastic schools, but the legacy of 14 years of Conservative mismanagement means that they have some of the lowest funding in the country. Will Ministers meet me to discuss how we can turn the situation about and fund our schools properly?
DH
Damian Hinds
The Opposition share the Secretary of State’s good wishes to all for the new term and the new year, but does she recall that last time Labour was in office, not only did England tumble down the world education rankings, but we ended up as the only country in the developed world where the literacy and numeracy of recent…
IL
Ian Lavery
As the new school year begins, far too many students in my constituency have not yet been able to secure a school place of their choice. Does my hon. Friend agree that the schools allocation policy needs a desperate overhaul? Many people believe that it is not fit for purpose. Could she tell the House what steps the Go…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I know that my hon. Friend cares deeply about the life chances of children in Macclesfield and across Cheshire East. I would be happy to meet him to discuss the matter further.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The right hon. Gentleman, as a former Minister in the Department, knows all too well that he and others were cautioned about how they should be using data. When we look at the raw numbers, we see that under the last Conservative Government, reading standards were going down, as were standards in maths and science. One …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I share the hon. Lady’s concern about making sure that we target funding in the most effective way. That is why I have said that my No. 1 priority is ensuring that we support children and young people at the earliest possible point, and give a real commitment around early education and childcare, because that is the si…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the important point that my hon. Friend raises. Many parents are doing everything they can, often in very challenging circumstances, to support their children into school. For my part, I can assure her that this Government will do everything we can to make sure children find welcoming, safe environments at …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I would caution the hon. Gentleman about believing everything he reads in the press. Times tables are an important part of our system. We will drive high and rising standards from Government. Rather than picking pointless fights and avoidable industrial action, what he will see from this Government is a different relat…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. Conservative Members do not like it, but it is absolutely true. I would add that, when it comes to the concerns my hon. Friend raises, we see stark attainment gaps in the difference between what our poorest and more affluent children are able to achieve. That blights the life chances…
Education and Opportunity24 Jul 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I beg to move, That this House has considered education and opportunity. It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair, Madam Deputy Speaker, and I congratulate you on your election. I am grateful for the opportunity to speak about the Labour Government’s mission to break down the barriers to opportunity. We are bringing… change to this nation. However, I know that any change we deliver will be brought about in partnership with our wonderful workforces, so let me take this opportunity, at the end of the academic year, to thank them for all that they do for our children, our young people and our country. Let me begin by saying two things. First, I welcome my new opposite number, the right hon. Member for East Hampshire (Damian Hinds) , to his place. In the previous Government he stood out for his commitment to his brief, his passion and dedication, and the collegiate and effective way in which he worked with colleagues in all parts of the House. We have disagreed on many things, and I am sure that we will go on to disagree on many things, but I hope that whenever we can, we will work together to build a country where children come first. Secondly, I want to make an announcement, here and now, because our mission is urgent. I am pleased to announce that the Department will undertake a short pause and review of post-16 qualification reform at level 3 and below, concluding before the end of the year. This means that the defunding scheduled for next week will be paused. The coming year will see further developments in the roll-out of new T-levels, which will ensure that young people continue to benefit from high-quality technical qualifications that help them to thrive. I will update the House with more detail tomorrow.
Hansard · 24 Jul 2024 · parliament.uk
JB
Jonathan Brash
I welcome the Secretary of State’s announcement; I know it will also be welcomed by colleges throughout the country. Teachers in my constituency, like teachers everywhere else, do an extraordinary job in supporting our young people, but it is vital for them to be paid properly for it. Can the Secretary of State update …
DA
Debbie Abrahams
My right hon. Friend has mentioned the inequalities experienced by children with special educational needs and disabilities. What is she able to say about what we will do, and the difference that we will make to their lives?
SG
Stephen Gethins
The Secretary of State has talked about turning a page, and about opportunity. She will be aware that young people today have fewer opportunities than our generation enjoyed, owing to disastrous Tory policies that removed their freedom of movement as well as Erasmus, which included apprenticeships. Will she turn the pa…
NG
Nusrat Ghani
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
DH
Damian Hinds
Madam Deputy Speaker, may I first welcome you to the big Chair on behalf of the Opposition? It is great to see you there, and may you have much success. We will no doubt all enjoy serving under you. May I also welcome the Secretary of State and her entire team to their places? They have among the most important jobs in…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We take the work of the pay review body extremely seriously, but the previous Government did not act responsibly in that regard. They sat on the report, and then they called an election. I understand the frustrations that school leaders and teachers are experiencing, but as my hon. Friend knows, we are moving as quickl…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I recognise the concern expressed by my hon. Friend, and by Members throughout the House, about that important issue. I will say more about it later in my speech, but let me say now that not for a second do I underestimate the challenge that we face. I give my hon. Friend this commitment: I want to ensure that we deliv…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I can tell the hon. Gentleman that I welcomed the opportunity to meet my opposite number in Scotland recently, and I want to find areas on which we can reach agreement constructively and collaboratively. As for his specific question, I am afraid I cannot give him that commitment, but I want to ensure that all young peo…
Topical Questions29 Apr 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I associate myself with the Secretary of State’s comments, and send my thoughts and best wishes to all those in the school community of Ammanford at this very difficult time. “The extension does not achieve its primary aim or demonstrate value for money”. That is a damning line from the National Audit Office’s report into… the Government’s childcare expansion. For months, the Secretary of State has told parents and providers that they were wrong to be concerned, yet now we learn that even her own Department considers delivery to be “problematic”—her own failure exposed. Why has she not listened and got a serious plan in place, or is she simply waiting for Labour to publish ours so that she can steal it? [Laughter.]
Hansard · 29 Apr 2024 · parliament.uk
DD
David Davis
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
GK
Gillian Keegan
With your permission, Mr Speaker, I start by sending our thoughts and prayers to the whole school and the community in Ammanford in Wales. With exams season nearly upon us, I wish all our students and teachers the very best of luck over the coming months. We should be very proud of all the progress that our students an…
DD
David Davis
On a personal level, may I thank the Secretary of State for sponsoring my charity event yesterday for disabled children with SYNGAP1? Of course, I welcome the Government’s funding of 60,000 new school places for children with special educational needs, but we need a fairer funding formula for those resources, and we ne…
GK
Gillian Keegan
I thank my right hon. Friend, who is doing exceptional work to raise awareness of the impacts of SYNGAP1, and has so far raised over £29,000 to support vital research. As he has pointed out, we are investing record amounts in special educational needs and disability funding. We review that funding and look at the formu…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Nonsense, Mr Speaker. What people right across this country want is a general election, and it cannot come soon enough. It is not only on childcare that the Secretary of State is in a total mess; school leaders, teachers and staff have been dismayed by her failure to reform Ofsted. She simply refuses to listen to staff…
Topical Questions11 Mar 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Neither the Secretary of State nor any Treasury Minister met representatives of the early years sector in the months before last year’s Budget announcement on childcare. Now, with just three weeks to go, parents, providers and even the Government’s own civil servants are sounding the alarm. More than seven in 10 providers say they will… not offer additional places and a quarter say they are likely to close within a year. Will the Secretary of State now guarantee that all parents will be able to access the childcare places that she promised?
Hansard · 11 Mar 2024 · parliament.uk
DH
Darren Henry
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
GK
Gillian Keegan
We are delivering the largest ever expansion of childcare in England’s history, which begins rolling out in just three weeks’ time, from 1 April . We did it before when we more than doubled the entitlements there had been under the previous Labour Government, and I am delighted to update the House that our latest proje…
DH
Darren Henry
I recently visited Fairfield Spencer Academy in my Broxtowe constituency, where I met Craig Jones, who is doing good work with the Junior Adventures Group, a leading provider of school-age childcare. During my visit, I observed staff providing crucial support to children beyond regular school hours. However, it is evid…
GK
Gillian Keegan
We are making wraparound childcare available for all parents who need it, and we are supporting hard-working parents to balance having a family and a successful career. Our £289 million investment will help schools develop exciting programmes before and after school, which will provide more flexibility for working pare…
GK
Gillian Keegan
Absolutely; I set that out in my topical statement. We are working with every local authority to ensure the places are available. I am glad the hon. Lady mentioned childcare, because it is yet another policy area that the Labour party has no plan for. We are delivering the largest expansion of childcare in history so t…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
There is one way we can find out what the public think: call a general election. Last week, we heard another promise from the Chancellor for a new funding mechanism for early years providers. There was talk of hundreds of millions of pounds more for the sector, but strangely no news about where the promised £500 millio…
Topical Questions29 Jan 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Students at St Leonard’s School in Durham are working hard for their exams, but they are facing sustained and ongoing disruption, including challenges to doing practical coursework, off-site teaching and being bussed around the city, all because of RAAC. There is no firm date for the rebuilding to commence, and that is just not good… enough. It is putting young people’s futures at risk. Will the Secretary of State now work with the regulator and the exam boards on mitigations for the small number of young people whose life chances are being put at risk by Government failure?
Hansard · 29 Jan 2024 · parliament.uk
EH
Emma Hardy
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
GK
Gillian Keegan
As was mentioned by the hon. Member for Feltham and Heston (Seema Malhotra) , next week is National Apprenticeship Week. When I did my apprenticeship I benefited from brilliant training and opportunities, thanks to General Motors, which got me where I am today, and I want to spread those opportunities to everyone, ever…
EH
Emma Hardy
I look forward to Fact Check’s assessment of the Secretary of State’s comments. Given that 2,730 children in Hull are waiting more than 12 weeks for their first mental health appointment, is it pride or inattentiveness that prevents the Secretary of State from adopting Labour’s plan for a mental health professional in …
GK
Gillian Keegan
If I may “fact check” the hon. Lady, I think that the plan is for a mental health professional in every secondary school. The plan that we have is to introduce mental health support teams in every primary and secondary school. As usual, our plans, on which we are delivering, are better thought through, cover more peopl…
AF
Anna Firth
Very welcome remediation work on reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete—RAAC—is now under way at Kingsdown School in Leigh-on-Sea, meaning that parts of the school will be open from half term. However, the school has still not had confirmation, given the extent of the RAAC, on whether there will be a rebuild of the sch…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
“It’s not our fault” always seems to be this Government’s catchphrase, and now it applies to childcare too: it is not the Secretary of State’s fault but that of local authorities; it is not her responsibility to deliver on her Government’s own pledge. Even her own civil servants are saying that some parents just will n…
Children Not in School: National Register and Support23 Jan 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I beg to move, That this House condemns the Secretary of State for Education for her failure to tackle the crisis of persistent school absence; calls on the Government to immediately introduce legislation to amend the Education Act 1996 in order to establish a mandatory duty on local authorities in England to maintain a register… of eligible children not in school, as set out in Part 3 of the Schools Bill [Lords] published in the 2022-23 Parliamentary session; and therefore makes provision as set out in this Order: (1) On Wednesday 7 February 2024 : (a) Standing Order No. 14(1) (which provides that government business shall have precedence at every sitting save as provided in that order) shall not apply; (b) any proceedings governed by this order may be proceeded with until any hour, though opposed, and shall not be interrupted; (c) the Speaker may not propose the question on the previous question, and may not put any question under Standing Order No. 36 (Closure of debate) or Standing Order No. 163 (Motion to sit in private) ; (d) at 3.00pm, the Speaker shall interrupt any business prior to the business governed by this order and, notwithstanding the practice of this House as regards to proceeding on a Bill without notice, call the Member for Houghton and Sunderland South or another Member on her behalf to move the order of the day that the Children Not in School (National Register and Support) Bill be now read a second time; (e) in respect of that Bill, notices of Amendments, new Clauses and new Schedules to be moved in Committee may be accepted by the Clerks at the Table before the Bill has been read a second time. (f) any proceedings interrupted or superseded by this order may be resumed or (as the case may be) entered upon and proceeded with after the moment of interruption. (2) The provisions of paragraphs (3) to (18) of this order shall apply to and in connection with the proceedings on the Children Not in School (National Register and Support) Bill in the pre
Hansard · 23 Jan 2024 · parliament.uk
RW
Rosie Winterton
It is probably a good idea if I share some of my thinking about this afternoon. Obviously, we have two debates and normally there would have been more time for them. I imagine the opening speeches will last about 15 minutes each, but I will have to put a time limit in place if we are to have time for the speeches in th…
Miscellaneous23 Jan 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree with my hon. Friend. She makes an important point about the wider pressures that children and young people are facing. I will come on to precisely that point a bit later, but it is why I was so delighted that Sir Kevan Collins, the former Government catch-up commissioner, backed Labour’s long-term plan to… ensure that we do address those challenges coming out of the pandemic.
Hansard · 23 Jan 2024 · parliament.uk
RA
Rushanara Ali
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for giving way and congratulate her on exposing this scandal that is affecting children across our country. In my borough, the problem has gone up significantly since 2016-17. Does she agree that, given what happened during the pandemic and the failure of the Government to meet the requi…
MG
Margaret Greenwood
I thank my hon. Friend for giving way and congratulate her on raising this important issue. Analysis by Labour estimates that more than 1,300 pupils in Wirral will miss half their lessons by 2026. That is an absolutely staggering figure. The National Education Union has pointed out that the scale of the impact of pover…
KM
Kerry McCarthy
One reason why children might drop out of the school system and, as my hon. Friend says, go under the radar is because they have had a parent sentenced to imprisonment. The charity Children Heard and Seen tells us that we know exactly how many Labradors are in this country but have no idea how many children are affecte…
ED
Edward Davey
Will the hon. Member give way?
ED
Edward Davey
I am grateful to the hon. Lady for giving way. It is important that she has brought this critical issue to the House. Many groups of young children, as we have heard, are not in school for many reasons. One group that is particularly close to my heart is young carers. I am sure that she will know from all the evidence …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her support. Those are precisely the kinds of measures that a Labour Government would take right now to back families, cut child poverty and ensure that children are set up to succeed.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for all her campaigning work on the important issue of supporting families and children where imprisonment is a factor in their lives, such as when a parent is spending time in prison or is in the criminal justice system. She raises the important issue—one that I will come to in the deba…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will give way one final time, then I must make some progress.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I agree that we absolutely must do more to support young carers, and I give the undertaking that a Labour Government would ensure that young carers’ voices, needs and rights and the support that should be made available to them are taken seriously. Members on both sides of the House will be familiar with the view widel…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right about the challenges right across our SEND system—a system that the Secretary of State herself has described as “lose, lose, lose.” School leaders know that this is a disaster, yet earlier this month the Department updated us all on the work of the workload reduction taskforce. It is …
Funded Childcare22 Jan 2024
BP
Bridget Phillipson
(Urgent Question): To ask the Secretary of State for Education if she will make a statement on her Department’s plans to roll out 15 hours of funded childcare to 2-year-olds in working families from April 2024.
Hansard · 22 Jan 2024 · parliament.uk
DJ
David Johnston
The Government are rolling out the single largest expansion in childcare in English history. By September 2025, we will provide working parents with 30 hours of free childcare a week from when their child is nine months old, all the way until they start school. By 2027-28, this Government expect to spend in excess of £…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
In which case, it would have been good to have come forward with a statement, rather than me granting an urgent question. So, please bear that in mind before you make a comment.
DJ
David Johnston
I will try to pick out the questions from the bluster. On the £120 million, this is a specific issue that affects September 2024 onwards, where we allocated to local authorities 22 weeks of funding because that is the period from September to March. Some then said that they pay 26 weeks to their providers, so we have t…
KM
Kit Malthouse
The expansion of childcare is extremely welcome, and I have every confidence that the Minister and the excellent team at the Department for Education will deliver this current expansion on time and that the funding will reach all the families who need it. To be fair, however, the Minister is dealing with a system that …
DJ
David Johnston
My right hon. Friend has written some articles, which I have read, proposing that very idea. We think that our present system is the best way of achieving what we want to achieve, but I am of course happy to continue my discussions with him.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Thank you, Mr Speaker, and thank you for granting the urgent question. Crumbling school buildings, botched school budgets and now the hat trick: a childcare pledge in tatters because of Conservative bungling. It is not Ministers, but families across the country paying the price for Tory incompetence. How did we get her…
Topical Questions11 Dec 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
May I start by again sending my condolences and those of the entire Labour party to the family of Ruth Perry? We must all now listen and learn to deliver an inspection system that works in the best interests of children, school staff and communities. The Education Secretary has said that her Government are doing… everything to get children into school, yet this term the attendance rate has declined consistently, hitting a terrible new low in the latest figures. Is not the real truth simply that the Government see attendance as a problem affecting other people’s children?
Hansard · 11 Dec 2023 · parliament.uk
SJ
Simon Jupp
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
GK
Gillian Keegan
Ruth Perry’s death was a tragedy that left a hole in the hearts of her family, her community and her school. Throughout this year, I have been honoured to work closely with Ruth’s sister Julia and her friends Lisa and Edmund to introduce important changes to inspection practice alongside Ofsted, which ensure that headt…
SJ
Simon Jupp
I thank my right hon. Friend for her statement; I agree with those sentiments. This Conservative Government will fund a new school to replace the flood-prone Tipton St John Primary School, which has had to close three times this year and had another near miss last week due to intense heavy rainfall. It is vital that sp…
GK
Gillian Keegan
Our school rebuilding programme is transforming 500 schools across England, and I am delighted that Tipton St John Primary School is one of them. The school is currently in a flood zone and was impacted by the recent storms. We are working actively with the diocese of Exeter and Devon local authority to identify suitab…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
If it is the Secretary of State’s No. 1 priority, why is she not legislating for a register of children not in school? That measure has wide support right across this House, but it was missing from the King’s Speech despite the Secretary of State’s repeated promises to legislate, despite it having been in the Governmen…
Breaking Down Barriers to Opportunity8 Nov 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
It is a pleasure and a privilege to close today’s debate for the Opposition on what we hope will be the last King’s Speech from a Conservative Government for many years, because the general election cannot come soon enough and the British people should have the opportunity to have their say. Opening the debate today,… my right hon. Friend the Member for Ashton-under-Lyne (Angela Rayner) powerfully and movingly set out Labour’s case that this Government have let down our country and our people: our schools—crumbling; our skills system—broken; our housing market—failed. Our country cannot go on like this. What we need is change, and the time for change is now. Crucially, the only party to deliver the change that we all need is today’s changed Labour party. Today’s contributions from so many of my colleagues have spelled out the urgency of that change. We heard from many of my hon. and right hon. Friends on the challenges our country is facing right now and the actions a Labour Government would be taking on the side of working people. My right hon. Friends the Members for East Ham (Sir Stephen Timms) and for Hayes and Harlington (John McDonnell), and my hon. Friends the Members for Wallasey (Dame Angela Eagle), for Lewisham, Deptford (Vicky Foxcroft), for Oldham West and Royton (Jim McMahon), for Bristol East (Kerry McCarthy), for Lewisham East (Janet Daby), for Batley and Spen (Kim Leadbeater), for Brentford and Isleworth (Ruth Cadbury), for Newport West (Ruth Jones), for Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle (Emma Hardy) and for Preston (Sir Mark Hendrick) all set out very clearly the difference a Labour Government would make to our country. One of the divides that such debates show so powerfully is between the core beliefs of our parties. Today it is distinctively Labour to believe that government can be and must be a force for good in people’s lives—not just administration but transformation, and not just keeping the show on the road but defining the road ahead—and onl
Hansard · 8 Nov 2023 · parliament.uk
GK
Gillian Keegan
It is an honour to open today’s King’s Speech debate on behalf of His Majesty’s Government. Education is the key that unlocks the door to opportunity. Get it right, and it is the single most transformative thing that any Government can do. That is why this Conservative Government have spent the last 13 years doing just…
MW
Munira Wilson
Will the Secretary of State give way?
GK
Gillian Keegan
Let me make some progress before I take interventions. Earlier this year, we announced the largest ever investment in childcare in England’s history. Very soon, we will be spending £8 billion a year. That investment will ensure that every child gets the best start in life. It means that working parents will be entitled…
MW
Munira Wilson
Will the Secretary of State give way?
GK
Gillian Keegan
I will in a moment, honestly, but this is important. I want to address one of the key challenges we face, which is school attendance. Following the pandemic, we have seen a phenomenon where more children are staying home and not going to school. That challenge is not unique to the UK. At the G7, my counterparts from th…
Topical Questions23 Oct 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join the Secretary of State in recognising the impact of the conflict in the middle east on our education system here and the importance of every child being able to attend school safely. Rates of persistent absence are now double what they were five years ago. Labour’s plan starts with resetting the relationship between… families and schools, delivering new mental health hubs, and having counsellors in every secondary school and breakfast clubs for every primary school child. The Prime Minister’s first step was to say that he had maxed out on supporting our children, and now the Secretary of State is blaming parents for keeping children at home with a cold. When are Ministers going to get a grip on this serious problem?
Hansard · 23 Oct 2023 · parliament.uk
DE
David Evennett
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
GK
Gillian Keegan
Mr Speaker, I stand with this House in condemning the barbaric terrorist attacks on Israel. The brutal actions of Hamas have sent shockwaves that have reverberated all the way to our shores. My ministerial team and I recently met leaders from the Jewish education community. I was deeply moved by the experiences that th…
DE
David Evennett
I join my right hon. Friend in the comments that she has just made. Strike action in schools has caused significant disruption to children and parents in my constituency and resulted in the loss of some 25 million school days across the country. I welcome the part that my right hon. Friend played in bringing the disput…
GK
Gillian Keegan
My right hon. Friend is correct: it is unacceptable that the disruption caused over 10 days of strike action saw millions of school days lost. That is why the Government are introducing minimum service levels in schools and colleges, to protect children and parents from the damaging impact of future strike action. We m…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Persistent absence is a symptom of a wider breakdown of trust right across our school system. It is no surprise, given that the Conservatives reopened pubs before they reopened schools, that they have left schools to crumble, and that they have allowed disruptive strike action to drag on for months. Labour’s first prio…
Core School Budget Allocations17 Oct 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
(Urgent Question): To ask the Secretary of State for Education if she will make a statement on the 2023-2024 core school budget allocations.
Hansard · 17 Oct 2023 · parliament.uk
NG
Nick Gibb
As the Government confirmed in a written ministerial statement yesterday, the Department for Education has corrected an error in the notional allocations of the schools national funding formula for 2024-2025. Those allocations were originally published and notified to the House on 17 July 2023 . However, the Department…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
Order. The Minister has taken three, nearly four, minutes. I hope that he is coming to the end of his remarks.
NG
Nick Gibb
This is my final sentence, Mr Speaker. The Department is working closely with school stakeholders, including unions, to communicate this change and support schools and local authorities.
NG
Nick Gibb
The hon. Lady refers to RAAC. We took the only decision that any responsible Government would take when the evidence changed on RAAC in school buildings that surveyors had previously assessed as not in a critical condition and we discovered it was not safe for pupils to stay in those schools. There are 174 schools so f…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
We come to the Chair of the Select Committee.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Thank you for granting this urgent question, Mr Speaker. Since the House returned from the summer recess, Ministers have been forced to come here twice, first to explain how this Government left school buildings in such a parlous state that many are now at risk of collapse, and now to explain that the Conservatives are…
School Building Closures19 Sep 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
(Urgent Question): To ask the Secretary of State for Education if she will make a statement on the number of schools affected by reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete and the impact of building closures on children’s learning.
Hansard · 19 Sep 2023 · parliament.uk
GK
Gillian Keegan
As I said in my statement to the House on 4 September , this Government are supporting affected schools and colleges to minimise disruption to education. I thank headteachers, staff, local authorities and trusts who continue to provide face-to-face education to their pupils. Two weeks ago, we published a list of educat…
GK
Gillian Keegan
I thank the hon. Lady for her questions. As soon as we had information, we took a decision in every case. When we first saw the incident in 2018, we took a decision and we put out new guidance and warnings. We put out new guidance in 2021-22. We started surveys directly in 2022, when the previous Secretary of State sta…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the Chair of the Education Committee.
RW
Robin Walker
I am grateful to the Minister with responsibility for the schools system and the permanent secretary for spending two hours this morning with the Education Committee on this issue. They were able to provide a number of useful answers, including on the provision of temporary classrooms. I have to say that I was very dis…
GK
Gillian Keegan
I thank my hon. Friend, the Chair of the Education Committee. I apologise about the written answer the previous night; we had more recent information at the Education Committee. The cases are always being assessed and the numbers are always being updated, which is why we choose a date to publish the latest information.…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Thank you for granting this urgent question, Mr Speaker. Before I go any further, let me emphasise that the safety of children should rightly be the priority of every Member of this House. However, the question today is not simply about whether that should be our priority, but about the colossal shambles of a Secretary…
Points of Order18 Sep 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. I am seeking your guidance and assistance on how I might ensure that I receive answers from the Secretary of State for Education to questions from me and a number of Members across this House about the growing crisis of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete in our schools—questions… which, in some cases, have remained unanswered for more than 10 days after the due date has passed. May I also ask whether you have received notice that an Education Minister proposes to update the House about the situation across our schools estate before the House rises tomorrow? In particular, have you received notice of whether Ministers intend to publish a new and accurate list of the affected school premises?
Hansard · 18 Sep 2023 · parliament.uk
RW
Rosie Winterton
I thank the hon. Lady for her point of order, and for notice of it. Obviously, I am not responsible for the timing of answers to parliamentary questions, but I know Mr Speaker is very keen to remind Ministers of the importance of answering questions in a timely manner. The Procedure Committee also takes a close interes…
DJ
Diana R. Johnson
On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. I was not able to raise this issue at Home Office questions this afternoon, due to the limited time available for Back Benchers. It relates to the role of the Home Affairs Select Committee. As part of our scrutiny function, the Committee has asked to accompany the independent …
RW
Rosie Winterton
I thank the right hon. Lady for her point of order and also for giving me notice of it. I think all Members of this House agree that it is incredibly important that Select Committees of the House have the access they need to facilitate effective scrutiny, and I am also very aware that this is not the first time that th…
AT
Alison Thewliss
On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. At 12 noon tomorrow, we will see the publication of the long-awaited Brook House inquiry, and I wondered whether the Home Office had been in touch with your office to ask whether some time might be made tomorrow for a statement in the House on this issue. It will be some weeks…
RW
Rosie Winterton
I thank the hon. Lady for her point of order. I did not have prior notice of it, so I have not been able to make any investigations. I am not aware at this point that a statement is intended; however, the hon. Lady is a very experienced Member of the House, and I am sure she will be seeking ways to clarify whether a st…
Safety of School Buildings6 Sep 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I beg to move, That an humble Address be presented to His Majesty, that he will be graciously pleased to give directions that there will be laid before this House by 13 September 2023 the following papers – (a) submissions from the Department for Education to HM Treasury related to the spending reviews in 2020… and 2021; and (b) all papers, advice, and correspondence, including submissions and electronic communications (including communications with and from Ministers and Special Advisers) within and between the Cabinet Office (including the Office of the Prime Minister), the Department for Education and HM Treasury relating to these submissions concerned with school buildings. Today we seek the release of papers that would tell us what has and what has not been happening in our schools—papers that the Government refused again yesterday to release and about which the Prime Minister again evaded questions today. However, this debate is about much more than just the documents. It is about more than reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete. It is about more than school buildings and their safety. This debate quite simply is about responsibility, and whether the Prime Minister will come clean about the allegation that he knew the risks, that he was warned, that he was told. That is the issue in the motion before the House today: whether the Prime Minister was told that urgent action was needed to secure the safety of schools, but instead he slashed the cost of champagne; whether he will accept responsibility for his choices and whether he will be clear where responsibility lies. All of us are here with deep responsibilities to our constituents, to be open, to be honest, to take decisions objectively and selflessly, to accept accountability, to have integrity and to show leadership. Let me be clear right from the outset that a Labour Government would have shown leadership on this, not just in the last few weeks but for years on end. That was our record in government. A Labo
Hansard · 6 Sep 2023 · parliament.uk
EL
Eleanor Laing
Order. She is not giving way. Perhaps she will give way later.
LR
Lloyd Russell-Moyle
Is it not always the case that when the Conservatives are in power, our schools crumble? In 1997 one in five schools were inadequate and needed to be rebuilt by a Labour Government. Because the Conservatives slashed the rebuilding programme, under this Government we are in the same dire situation again, and the only pa…
HW
Hywel Williams
The Welsh Labour Government have complained that the briefing they received lacked the technical detail required to take forward the work on schools. Does the hon. Lady agree that the Secretary of State should provide the other Governments with full details from the working group when they become available?
AC
Alun Cairns
The hon. Lady has made a whole series of allegations and challenges about the Secretary of State and the Prime Minister, but surely, in a devolved arrangement, all those responsibilities and challenges apply equally to the First Minister. She has recognised that the list of schools in England has been published; why ha…
MH
Meg Hillier
Does my hon. Friend not think that the vast, overinflated amounts of money spent on some free school sites could have been better spent dealing with the collapsing schools?
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We would remember the lesson from the pandemic that every school day matters. We would be ensuring the continuity of education for every child in school. We would be ensuring in-person learning for all our children. We would be doing that right now, and we would not be looking for plaudits, blaming others, or demanding…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. Like him, I remember the transformation that that Labour Government delivered. I will come to that in more detail during the debate.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I know that Conservative Members have a keen fascination with all things going on in Wales at the moment, and that Ministers have not always been in full possession of the facts at the Dispatch Box, so I will put a few on the record so that we can all be clear about the situation in Wales. In Wales, school capital fund…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The difference between the Labour Government in Wales and the Government here in Westminster is that, over the last 13 years, the Welsh Government have continued with a school rebuilding programme, unlike the UK Government, who have cut funding and cut support to our schools time and again. We want to be clear, open an…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for all the work that she has done over many years, as Chair of the Public Accounts Committee, to draw our attention to the problems. I will say a bit more about the recent report by the National Audit Office on many of these issues. When we leave risks unattended, they worsen and, in ti…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I have here a briefing document. It would save us all a bit of time and energy if Conservative Members just gave us the number and let us deal with it. The Welsh Labour Government have been taking consistent action to rebuild schools during their time in office; the hon. Gentleman might not like it, but it is a fact, a…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My right hon. Friend is right to draw our attention to that matter, and I appreciate the work that his Committee has done on it. It would also be helpful if we had some clarity today from the Secretary of State about the risks that might arise when RAAC interacts with asbestos. If she could say a little bit more about …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am just going to make a bit more progress. For a responsible politician, being in government is not simply a matter of pressing the agenda of their political party, their donors or those who profit from Government contracts. It is about rising to the challenges that face our country, and accepting the blame when thin…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. If Ministers are confident about everything they have done and the decisions that were taken, they will back our motion today, allow us to see the papers, and be transparent with this House.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend, who makes a very important point. Finally, let me turn to the wording of the motion. I know that many Conservative Members share Labour’s concerns, and I ask them today to think of the young people and the school staff in their constituency. However loyal they have been in every past de…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The hon. Gentleman would do well to show a little humility for the mess that his party has created right across our schools.
Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete in Education Settings4 Sep 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of her statement. I will turn in a moment to the sorry story of how we got here, but let me first ask the House to reflect on two things. First, the safety of children and staff in schools today should be our highest priority, and… while the voices of children are rarely heard in this place, it is their welfare, their hopes and their fears that should be uppermost in our minds today. Secondly, the mark and measure of each of us as politicians is our willingness to take and to accept responsibility: collective responsibility, not just for our own actions but for those of the Governments in which we serve—and this week, as the school year begins, there is an awful lot of responsibility for Ministers to take. What an utter shambles this is. The defining image of 13 years of Conservative Government is one of children cowering under steel props, there to stop the ceiling falling in on their heads. Thirteen years into a Conservative Government, the public realm is literally crumbling around the next generation. The Education Secretary said this morning that in her view it was not the job of her Department to ensure the safety of our children’s schools, and that she was doing a good job. Schools are literally at risk of collapse. She is the Education Secretary, so whose responsibility does she think it is? This is the tragic endgame of the sticking-plaster politics of the last 13 years. Children have been failed by this Conservative Government. It is RAAC that is our focus today, but the issue is wider and deeper across our schools and across our country. It is deeper because school buildings are only part of the wider failure in our education system, over which Ministers have been presiding for 13 long years. It is wider because thousands upon thousands of schools and other public buildings were built in the last century, and were not intended to last for more than a couple of decades. This was system build—quick, cheap, too
Hansard · 4 Sep 2023 · parliament.uk
GK
Gillian Keegan
With permission, Madam Deputy Speaker, I would like to make a statement about the steps that my Department is taking to support education settings to respond to the risk of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete, commonly known as RAAC. Before I go into specifics, I want to be clear that absolutely nothing is more impo…
GK
Gillian Keegan
I thank the hon. Lady, and of course that is me, but what matters is what you do. When I was given new information and had to consider the impact that this would have on our schools and children, I took action even though it was politically difficult. Yesterday, when the hon. Lady was asked about Wales and RAAC, she wa…
GK
Gillian Keegan
Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I think I answered the hon. Lady’s question. The information will be published this week. Everything will be fully funded: the mitigation, any revenue that is required on a case-by-case basis, and also the rebuilding of the schools. When it comes to doing a good job, I make no apologies…
MM
Maria Miller
My right hon. Friend is absolutely right to put the safety of children first and to take a cautious approach, but I know from speaking to headteachers in my constituency that her Department has been speaking to schools about RAAC and how to mitigate it not just for weeks or months, but for years. One of my schools, in …
GK
Gillian Keegan
I thank my right hon. Friend, her local authority and her responsible bodies for responding to the questionnaire. Ninety-five per cent. have done so, which is why I am really worried about the 5% that have not. We will survey those with suspected cases in the next few weeks—we will probably get to them in the next two …
Topical Questions17 Jul 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Ministers have known since last year that strike action by teachers was likely, yet after months of refusing to talk, it was only last week that the Secretary of State finally settled the dispute. Will she take this opportunity to apologise to parents for the completely needless and avoidable disruption to their children’s education for… which she is responsible?
Hansard · 17 Jul 2023 · parliament.uk
JS
Jamie Stone
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
GK
Gillian Keegan
This week, I have accepted the independent review body’s recommendation in full, so our fantastic teachers will receive their highest pay award for 30 years—it will be at least 6.5%. From September, we will have delivered on our manifesto commitment by raising teachers’ starting salaries to £30,000. To support our scho…
JS
Jamie Stone
UK students who have been offered opportunities to study abroad are waiting for funding decisions under the Turing scheme. Clearly, for students from less well-off families this is tough, as visas and accommodation have to be paid in advance. Will the Secretary of State, out of the kindness of her heart and to a man fr…
GK
Gillian Keegan
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question. The Turing scheme is a great success. Disadvantaged students will take up two thirds of the international study and work opportunities from September, with students going to 160 different countries. It is a remarkable scheme, given that it has been introduced so quickly. It …
SM
Sheryll Murray
I attended a meeting of the all-party parliamentary group on fisheries, which I normally chair, where a keenness was expressed to encourage young people to have an interest in a career in fishing at the education stage. I have heard similar pleas from farmers. What more can the Department do to make that a reality?
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Last week, the Institute for Fiscal Studies said that ending private schools’ tax breaks will raise up to £1.5 billion in additional revenue, confirming that Labour’s plans are fiscally credible. We would use that money to invest in 6,500 new expert teachers and better mental health support for all our young people. Wi…
Higher Education Reform17 Jul 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of her statement. Today’s statement tells us several stories about this Government. It tells a story about their priorities: why universities, and why now? It tells a story about their analysis: what they think is wrong and what they think is not. It tells a story… about their competence: why these changes, when their own regulator has used a different approach for so long? It tells a story about their prejudice, about why they continue to reinforce a binary choice for young people: either academic or vocational, university or apprenticeship. Above all, it tells a story about values—about the choice to put caps on the aspirations and ambitions of our young people; about Ministers for whom opportunity is for their children, but not for other people’s children; about a Government whose only big idea for our world-leading universities is to put up fresh barriers to opportunity, anxious to keep young people in their place. It tells you everything you need to know about the Tories that this is their priority for our young people. This is the Tories’ priority when we are in the middle of an urgent crisis in this country; when families are struggling to make ends meet; when patients are facing the biggest waiting lists in NHS history; when children are going to school in buildings that Ministers themselves acknowledge are “very likely” to collapse; and when a spiral of low productivity, low growth, and low wages under the Tories is holding Britain back. It is because the Prime Minister is weak and he is in hock to his Back Benchers that we are not seeing action on those important priorities. Instead, after more than 13 years in power, the Government have shown what they really think of our universities, which are famous across the world, are core to so many of our regional economies and were essential to our pandemic response: that they are not a public good, but a political battleground. The Government’s concept of a success
Hansard · 17 Jul 2023 · parliament.uk
GK
Gillian Keegan
With permission, Mr Speaker, I would like to announce the publication of the Government’s higher education reform consultation response. This country is one of the best in the world for studying in higher education, boasting four of the world’s top 10 universities. For most, higher education is a sound investment, with…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
GK
Gillian Keegan
As usual, the hon. Lady has more words than actions. None of those actions was put in place either in Wales, where Labour is running the education system, or in the UK when it was running it in England. We have always made the deliberate choice of quality over quantity, and this is a story of a consistent drive for qua…
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the Father of the House.
PB
Peter Bottomley
I thank the Secretary of State. Those of us with long memories know that we either ration places by number or we give people choice. If she is giving people the choice of being able to discriminate between the courses and universities on offer, I congratulate her, as I do especially on the lifetime learning and the deg…
Industrial Dispute Resolution12 Jun 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We were all reminded today that the Secretary of State is already keen to move on, yet parents know that it is her ongoing failure to resolve the disputes that is damaging our children’s education. She told us to wait for the independent pay review body’s recommendations. Those have been made and now she refuses… to publish them. Will she come clean, allow headteachers to plan for September and publish the recommendations today?
Hansard · 12 Jun 2023 · parliament.uk
TV
Theresa Villiers
What steps she is taking to resolve the industrial dispute with education trade unions.
GK
Gillian Keegan
After an intense negotiation with all four trade unions, we made a fair and reasonable offer, which would have been fully funded through £620 million of additional funding, on top of the additional £2 billion already announced for both this year and next—a cash injection that means that by next year we will be funding …
TV
Theresa Villiers
I thank the Secretary of State for her answer. One issue in the dispute is recruitment and retention. Recent stats show a record number of teachers—nearly 48,000—entering the profession. That means that in Barnet there are 227 more teachers than in 2010. Does she agree that those encouraging figures are another good re…
GK
Gillian Keegan
I, too, am encouraged by the record numbers entering the teaching profession. We are doing a lot to attract the top talent into teaching through financial incentives totalling £181 million, including bursaries, scholarships and a levelling-up premium in priority areas. We are also delivering on our commitment to raise …
EH
Emma Hardy
It is six weeks until the end of the summer term and headteachers are desperately trying to budget. They need the STRB proposals on pay now, as well as information on how they will be funded. The release of that information could prevent all the strikes, which we know will damage the education of so many. When will hea…
Topical Questions12 Jun 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Today’s announcement by Ofsted is a welcome recognition of the need for change, but it does not go far enough. Labour is the party of high and rising standards in our schools, which is why we would give parents a comprehensive picture of their children’s school in the form of an Ofsted report card, rather… than a simplistic one-word judgment. Why is the Secretary of State content to sit back, rather than drive improvement in our schools?
Hansard · 12 Jun 2023 · parliament.uk
CS
Cat Smith
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
GK
Gillian Keegan
Teachers are the ultimate opportunity creators, giving all of us the tools we need to reach our potential. I am delighted that new data shows a record number of teachers joining the profession, so today we have over 468,000 teachers in our schools. That is a year-on-year increase of 2,800, meaning that there are over 2…
CS
Cat Smith
The decision to make it harder for those on postgraduate courses to bring dependants will once again mean that Britain’s universities will be looking to China for international students. At a time of growing tension and concern about Chinese foreign policy, not least on the Secretary of State’s own Benches, is she conf…
GK
Gillian Keegan
I thank the hon. Lady for her question. We discussed this a little earlier. There is a large and growing desire for the education that our top universities provide and there are many countries in the world where the middle class is developing, so there is a lot of opportunity for our universities as long as they keep o…
GB
Gareth Bacon
I welcome the relationships, sex and health education curriculum review. The Secretary of State herself has said that she shares concerns about inappropriate lessons being taught in schools. Can she reassure my Orpington constituents that the review will strengthen the ability of parents to view teaching materials, so …
Safety of School Buildings23 May 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I beg to move, That an humble address be presented to His Majesty, that he will be graciously pleased to give directions that there will be laid before this House by 5 June 2023 a document or dataset containing the detailed school level data, including condition grades for individual building elements for all schools, from… the latest Condition of School Buildings Survey. This debate is taking place just over a year since the public, parents, school staff and children learned—not from a ministerial statement in this House but from a document leaked to The Observer—that many school buildings in England are in such a state of disrepair that they are a risk to life. It has been a full year and still the Government have not shared information with parents and the wider public about which schools, which buildings, and how much of a risk to life. Labour has tabled this motion to require Ministers finally to be up front with school staff, parents and pupils about the true state of our school buildings, the extent of disrepair, and their neglect over the last 13 years. Conservative MPs will have the opportunity to vote with Labour in the public interest and to do what is right by their constituents. I am sure that the Minister will point to the condition improvement fund announced yesterday. At the third time of asking, a school in my constituency has finally received some funding so that it can at least comply with legal requirements on the boiler and the drains. Enabling schools to comply with legal requirements that the Government set out should be an absolute basic, but it has taken three rounds of bidding to get to that stage. I know that Members on both sides of the House will have had exactly the same experience. The parlous state of school buildings is a national disgrace. It is shameful, and it comes from a Government and a Department who have given up on ambition for our children. They have given up on openness, given up on accountability, given up on standards and
Hansard · 23 May 2023 · parliament.uk
RW
Rosie Winterton
I call the shadow Secretary of State to move the motion.
TS
Tulip Siddiq
I spoke to Jim Roebuck, the deputy headteacher of West Hampstead Primary School in my constituency. He told me that the school’s roof is in dire need of repair, the tarmac on the playground is dangerously uneven and a lot of the windows will not open properly, so the school has spent thousands of pounds buying fans for…
CW
Catherine West
The shadow Secretary of State is making an excellent speech. The gymnasium of Highgate Wood School is being patched up endlessly. Does she agree that it is financially illiterate to continue to patch up when a new build would be so easy and much, much cheaper to put in place?
SB
Shaun Bailey
One of my schools in Tipton is built under a PFI—private finance initiative—contract. I am sure the hon. Lady remembers those. Between the £40,000 bill for standard repairs or buying school books, what would she advise them to do?
IH
Imran Hussain
My hon. Friend is, in her usual fashion, making an excellent speech. Does she agree with me that one of the reasons Government Members will not release the data is that they know that over the last decade 50% of the capital budget has been cut through their ideological austerity agenda?
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to my hon. Friend, who makes a powerful case on behalf of her constituents and the school concerned. I have heard stories like that right across the country. The difficulty we have is that we do not know the full scale of the challenge because Ministers refuse to publish the data. What we do know, however…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Like my hon. Friend, I have seen countless examples across the country of the short-term approach the Government are taking. It is our children, parents and school staff who lose out. I am sure we will hear a lot more examples, including from those on the Government Benches, during the course of today’s debate.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My suggestion and the advice I would offer to the hon. Gentleman is to ask the Minister exactly what the state of school funding has been like over the last 13 years. His Government have been in power now for longer than the last Labour Government. He ought to take some responsibility for the state of schools in our co…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I think we probably all have reasons to reflect on why the Government will not be upfront about that. There are many reasons why that might be the case, but we have the Minister with us today. He can tell us why he said previously that he would publish this and why he has now changed his mind. I look forward to hearing…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend makes a powerful case for the impact we can all see in our communities when we bring together services to support children and families. We, all of us, know the difference the last Labour Government made around the Sure Start programme in making sure all our children got the best possible start in life, …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I looked very carefully at all the data that was published, and I pay tribute to our amazing teachers and school support staff who have been involved in making sure that our children get the best possible start in life. I will always be led by the evidence on what is right for children and what is best for their future…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Like my hon. Friend, I saw the difference that a Labour Government made in transforming life chances through the fabric of our buildings with the transformation of the schools estate across our country, but not just that: lifting children out of poverty; more teachers in our classrooms; children better supported; and S…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My right hon. Friend makes an important point about how we spend public money and how we spend it wisely. Sadly, what we have seen all too often is a sticking plaster approach, as she says, where short-term measures are taken even though in the long run the schools are sometimes beyond repair. Expecting schools to go t…
Topical Questions17 Apr 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
As this is the first session of Education questions since the tragic death of Ruth Perry was made public, may I take the opportunity to extend my condolences and those of the entire Labour party to her family, her school community, and everyone who knew her? Parents know that accountability is crucial for our schools.… A year ago I said that as Ofsted turned 30, it was time for it to turn a corner. The former chief inspector of schools, Sir Michael Wilshaw, has now said that the Secretary of State must respond as a matter of urgency to what he describes as “a groundswell of opinion building up” that Ofsted is getting some things wrong. Does the Secretary of State still believe that there is no room for improvement in the inspection of schools?
Hansard · 17 Apr 2023 · parliament.uk
MM
Mark Menzies
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
GK
Gillian Keegan
This morning I visited the London Screen Academy with the Prime Minister, who described his vision of all young people studying maths until the age of 18. We have set out the next step towards making that a reality and delivering a truly transformational change for the economy and society. As the Prime Minister made cl…
MM
Mark Menzies
I thank the Secretary of State for the record levels of capital spending that we are seeing in Fylde’s schools, most notably on the rebuilding of Lytham St Annes High School. However, the job is never done. Carr Hill High School in Kirkham, and other schools in my constituency, are seeking funds with which to modernise…
GK
Gillian Keegan
I thank my hon. Friend for highlighting the Government’s investment in school buildings. We recently announced the provision of £1.8 billion to fund improvements in the condition of schools in 2023-24, which includes about £15 million for Lancashire County Council, the body responsible for Carr Hill High School. As my …
LH
Lindsay Hoyle
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
BP
Bridget Phillipson
That is why, as we have said, Labour believes that safeguarding reviews should take place annually. Reducing schools’ performance to a one-word headline means high stakes for staff but a low level of information for parents. The current Ofsted chief inspector has described Labour’s plan to move from headline grades to …
SEND and Alternative Provision6 Mar 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I am grateful to the Minister for advance sight of her statement. “Every family in the country with anyone with special educational needs will have felt at times like they’re battling the system…you’re fighting for it, fighting for support.” This is how the Education Secretary spoke about the SEND system last week, and I know… that her words will chime with many parents and families across the country. So my question to the Minister today is this: does she really believe this plan is good enough? Does she truly believe it will shift the dial and end the fight for support, end the battle for places at special schools and end the scandal that sees so many children with special educational needs held back? I know there is support right across this House for action to improve the lives of children and young people, yet in the words of the Children’s Commissioner, the plan the Government have set out risks seeing “more years of children being fed” into a “vicious cycle” of poor outcomes. Much of the substance in this plan will not even come into effect until 2025 or even 2026, at best six years after the review was announced. New national standards, new special school places, new standardised digital education, health and care plans—none of this will be coming online until a further 300,000 children with SEND have left secondary school. So can the Minister say what the Government are doing right now for the children in the system today? How can parents, carers, and families be better supported now for the children whose needs are currently going unmet? I welcome the fact that the Minister has listened to Labour’s call for a focus on the early years. Identifying children’s needs early is vital and the evidence could not be clearer, yet over 5,000 early years childcare providers have closed since August 2021. I am proud of Labour’s record in Government: the network of life-changing children’s centres we delivered across the country. The Minister’s Government closed over 1,3
Hansard · 6 Mar 2023 · parliament.uk
RW
Rosie Winterton
Before we come to the statement, I would like to point out that British Sign Language interpretation of proceedings is available to watch on parliamentlive.tv.
CC
Claire Coutinho
With permission, I will make a statement on our progress to improve outcomes for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities or in alternative provision in England. For those with special educational needs and disabilities, many schools and councils are doing a brilliant job. I have met ma…
RW
Rosie Winterton
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
CC
Claire Coutinho
I would like to come back on some of those points. First, on the ambition of the reforms, these are systemic reforms: we are looking at every single part of the system and addressing a lot of the challenges that providers and parents talk about. Communications with councils comes up a lot with parents, for example, and…
RW
Rosie Winterton
I call the Chair of the Education Committee.
Topical Questions27 Feb 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
May I begin by joining the right hon. Lady the Secretary of State in recognising the tremendous contribution of everyone right across education in welcoming Ukrainian refugees to our country, and reiterate our commitment, right across the House, to facing down Russian aggression? Last week, the Leader of the Opposition set out that spreading opportunity… through reform of our childcare and education systems will be a central mission of the next Labour Government. By contrast, the Prime Minister fails to identify education as a priority for his Government. Can the Secretary of State explain why?
Hansard · 27 Feb 2023 · parliament.uk
AK
Afzal Khan
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
GK
Gillian Keegan
Last Friday marked one year since Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine. All of us in the House should be proud of the support our country has provided to Ukrainians, both at home and abroad. I want to take the opportunity to thank all of our schools, colleges and universities for their steadfast support of children and…
AK
Afzal Khan
I recently met students at Manchester University who are deeply concerned about the quality of student housing and, like all of us, are feeling the incredible strain of the Tory cost of living crisis. The Government’s failure to properly manage student maintenance loans will mean that students are £1,500 worse off in r…
GK
Gillian Keegan
Of course, we always want to support our students, and we have been increasing the maintenance loan. We have kept the fees flat as well, and we have increased the hardship fund. However, I know this is a concern, particularly in some big cities where housing costs have gone up and where perhaps there is a shortage of h…
RB
Rob Butler
JCL Glass, a really successful family business in my constituency, wants to offer apprenticeships, but its directors tell me that there is no scheme in the glass manufacturing industry. Will my right hon. Friend set out what efforts are being made to create apprenticeships in sectors that do not yet have them, and how …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Will the Secretary of State explain to parents why after 13 years of Conservative Governments, her Department escalated the risk of a school building collapsing to “critical—very likely”?
Topical Questions16 Jan 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Department for Education has raised the risk rating of school buildings collapsing to “critical/very likely”. In December, the schools Minister undertook to publish the data on these dangerous buildings by the end of the year, yet parents, staff and pupils are still in the dark. When will the Secretary of State finally publish this… data and own up to the extent of her failure?
Hansard · 16 Jan 2023 · parliament.uk
CO
Chi Onwurah
If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.
GK
Gillian Keegan
Given this is my first Education questions of 2023, Mr Speaker, I would like to wish you, the House and everyone working in our education sector a happy new year, and to share some of what is to come from my Department. Later this month, along with the Minister for Children, Families and Wellbeing, my hon. Friend the M…
CO
Chi Onwurah
Special educational needs provision in school matters. So many parents contact me either because they cannot access such provision or because it is inadequate. One family with two neurodiverse children suffering from bullying and self-harm found that their school’s SEN policy did not even mention autism or neurodiversi…
GK
Gillian Keegan
I take special educational needs very seriously, as does the Minister for Children, Families and Wellbeing. It will be published very soon, so there is not long to wait. I am sure the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne Central (Chi Onwurah) will be delighted with the improvement plan, which we will publish very early …
DB
Duncan Baker
My constituent Hayley Turner is an inspirational campaigner for special educational needs, which she has improved enormously across the whole area. Evidence shows that early diagnosis and autism interventions are paramount to ensuring that children get the help they need. Hayley now uses her experience to help many oth…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Thank you, Mr Speaker. There was no answer there, even though the schools Minister said we would see this data last year. Conservative Members have described their childcare policy as “crazy” and “unnecessarily expensive”, and said that they should “get on” with reforming it. I agree, which is why the next Labour Gover…
Fair Taxation of Schools and Education Standards Committee11 Jan 2023
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I beg to move, That the following Standing Order shall have effect until 31 December 2023: Fair Taxation of Schools and Education Standards Committee (1) There shall be a select committee, to be called the Fair Taxation of Schools and Education Standards Committee, to consider reforming the tax status of private schools in order to… raise funding for measures to increase educational standards across the state sector, including the recruitment of new teachers, additional teacher training, and careers advice and work experience for all pupils. (2) It shall be an instruction to the committee that it shall make a first report to the House no later than 20 July 2023. (3) The committee shall consist of eleven members of whom ten shall be nominated by the Committee of Selection in the same manner as those select committees appointed in accordance with Standing Order No. 121 . (4) The chair of the committee shall be a backbench member of a party represented in His Majesty’s Government and shall be elected by the House under arrangements approved by the Speaker. (5) Unless the House otherwise orders, each member nominated to the committee shall continue to be a member of it until the expiration of this Order. (6) The committee shall have power— (a) to send for persons, papers and records, to sit notwithstanding any adjournment of the House, to adjourn from place to place, and to report from time to time; and (b) to appoint specialist advisers to supply information which is not readily available or to elucidate matters of complexity within the committee’s order of reference. (7) The committee shall have power to appoint a sub-committee, which shall have power to send for persons, papers and records, to sit notwithstanding any adjournment of the House, to adjourn from place to place, and to report to the committee from time to time. (8) The committee shall have power to report from time to time the evidence taken before the sub-committee. In this House we often talk of tough ch
Hansard · 11 Jan 2023 · parliament.uk
SH
Simon Hoare
There will be nobody who does not agree with the basic premise that we want to see excellence in all of our schools. Can the hon. Lady explain why she thinks she needs a Select Committee to achieve her aspiration? Surely she needs either an amendment to a Finance Bill or primary legislation? She does not need a Select …
JG
Jonathan Gullis
May I ask the shadow Secretary of State whether any Labour Members on the current Education Committee have put such ideas forward to its Chair for investigation by the existing Select Committee?
EH
Emma Hardy
When I was on the Education Committee in 2019—just for the information of the hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent North (Jonathan Gullis) , conversations about future work tend to happen confidentially within a Select Committee—we produced a report on special educational needs and disabilities, which one of our best pieces …
AS
Alexander Stafford
The hon. Lady talks about these so-called tax breaks. Does she not appreciate that all private schools have a duty to give bursaries and scholarships? I myself went to a private school, and I could only afford to do so on a bursary. Does she not understand that her plans will destroy that, making private schools the pr…
CD
Caroline Dinenage
Of course, we all agree with the hon. Lady about all children going to excellent schools and being taught by excellent teachers. Can she set out her plans for armed forces families, who are so well supported by private schools up and down the country? My constituency has so many forces families. More than 5,000 forces …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
We will be considering all of our options for how to force this issue, but this is a choice for Conservative Members. There is a clear and straightforward way that we could look carefully at this issue, and the motion sets that out. The question for Conservative Members is whether they are prepared to defend inexcusabl…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I cannot speak on behalf of other hon. Members, but I will happily address the point about the substance of the Select Committee in a moment. Our children are at the heart of Labour’s ambition for Britain. Children alive today can expect to live into the next century, with the pace of change increasing and technologica…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. I will set out in more detail exactly what difference that money could make to delivering a brilliant education for all our children. On money, the case could hardly be stronger. After more than a decade of Conservative Governments, what do we have to show for it? We have childcare i…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will come in more detail to the record of private schools on the means-tested support that they make available, and on falling partnerships, but I have to tell the hon. Gentleman that it is not a great record. I gently suggest to him that the people of Rother Valley and across our country—the vast majority of whom se…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I have heard enough from the hon. Gentleman, thanks. On funding, we could do so much to drive up standards in schools for all our children. The new committee would look at the ways in which money raised from ending tax breaks for private schools could support high standards for all our schools everywhere, including thr…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I join the hon. Lady in paying tribute to our amazing armed forces and the contribution that they make to keeping our country safe. It is right that they are properly supported and recognised. However, those numbers are starting to fall. Clearly, the Committee that we are recommending could consider all such areas. We …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. We all see and recognise the value that our teaching assistants, learning support assistants and school support staff bring to our schools. Our teachers just could not do their jobs effectively without them. We all recognise their contribution, and I join him in paying tribute to the…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
Here in England we see growing and widening attainment gaps in many areas, but I point out to Ministers that we saw that starting to happen even before the pandemic hit. We all recognise and appreciate the impact that covid has had on our children’s education and wellbeing. I still think it is shameful that the Governm…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
My hon. Friend makes an important point. It is incredibly important that we tackle the stigma that exists. That should be on a genuine cross-party basis. It is in all our interest that we make it as easy as possible for people to come forward and get the help they need. Sadly, even when people are able to come forward …
BP
Bridget Phillipson
I will just make a little more progress, if my hon. Friend will allow. Our motion will also task the committee to consider how the money raised by ending tax breaks could deliver the careers advice that young people so desperately need. Two thirds of young people do not have access to professional careers advice. Pre-p…
BP
Bridget Phillipson
The Secretary of State referenced the Baines Cutler report. Can she clarify who were the commissioners of that report and who tends to cite its findings?
