Contributions
1,330 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDPreschool Children: Digital TechnologyMy Lords, the Government recognise concerns about the impacts of screen time on young children. We have produced guidance for the Help for Early Years Providers platform, which…18 Dec 2025HANSARDPreschool Children: Digital TechnologyI thank the noble Baroness for our useful and informative meeting, from which we have already taken further action. She is right about, and we particularly discussed in that…18 Dec 2025HANSARDSpecial Educational Needs: InvestmentThe noble Lord makes a very important point. This funding is an opportunity to support those pupils to remain in schools close to home and enable them to learn and thrive…17 Dec 2025HANSARDSpecial Educational Needs: InvestmentMy Lords, the £3 billion in high needs capital announced last week is intended to support children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities and those who…17 Dec 2025HANSARDSpecial Educational Needs: InvestmentThe 50,000 additional places that will be funded through the £3 billion that we announced last week are on top of the 10,000 new specialist places in mainstream and special…17 Dec 2025HANSARDSpecial Educational Needs: InvestmentAs the noble Earl knows, or should know, primary numbers have been falling since 2019, which is why our additional investment—the 10% pay award for teachers, which applies across…17 Dec 2025HANSARDSpecial Educational Needs: InvestmentI am very pleased that the noble Lord is one of the over 2,000 teachers that we have been able to retain in the classroom, despite his busyness in this House as well—I am very…17 Dec 2025HANSARDSpecial Educational Needs: InvestmentMy noble friend is right, of course, that every teacher needs to be a teacher for children who have special needs. That is why, as part of this Government’s commitment to…17 Dec 2025HANSARDSpecial Educational Needs: InvestmentActually, what happened in the special schools pipeline, as I said, was not the cancellation but a choice that was offered to local authorities over how to proceed with special…17 Dec 2025HANSARDSpecial Educational Needs: InvestmentThe noble Baroness is absolutely right: there will be a small number of children for whom the excellent special schools that we already have—or, in some cases, additional spaces…17 Dec 2025HANSARDFree School MealsThere are many schools that, in thinking about the sourcing of their free school meals, see the benefits of having those responsible for buying and cooking the food in the school…16 Dec 2025HANSARDFree School MealsAs I have outlined, we are fully funding the expansion, with £1 billion additional funding over the next spending review period. We provide the funding for free school meals…16 Dec 2025HANSARDFree School MealsI agree with my noble friend. This Government, in providing the additional commitment to children and the additional investment to expand free school meals, have recognised that,…16 Dec 2025HANSARDFree School MealsWe have been clear with schools about the 10% increase in teacher pay that we have delivered since we came into government. Additional funding has been provided but, of that, we…16 Dec 2025HANSARDFree School MealsIt is the nature of devolution that different Governments make different decisions on how they fund and how they distribute that funding. Since this Government came into power, we…16 Dec 2025HANSARDFree School MealsAs I have outlined, the national funding formula already includes provision for the funding of free school meals. It quite rightly targets funding to schools on the basis of those…16 Dec 2025HANSARDFree School MealsMy Lords, the Government already spend £1.5 billion annually supporting the provision of free and nutritious meals for around 3.4 million children. We have set aside a further £1…16 Dec 2025HANSARDFree School MealsI am sure the noble Earl will realise that that would not necessarily be possible in every school. I refer him to the good food cycle, the food strategy produced by my colleagues…16 Dec 2025HANSARDFree School MealsI am sure the noble Lord provided excellent food education for the pupils he was responsible for. The rollout of breakfast clubs started originally with the 750 early adopters.…16 Dec 2025HANSARDFree School MealsAs I suggested earlier, the Department for Education is already providing advice to schools on how to procure their provision of school meals, and how to do it effectively and…16 Dec 2025