Claire Coutinho: Ofsted hold this data and have provided the department with the information that they have registered 6 multi-builds, all the same provider. Each can accommodate between 4 to 6 children. Ofsted do not hold occupancy figures.
Claire Coutinho: On 29 March 2022, the department published the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Green Paper, which sets out plans to improve the experience and outcomes for children and young people with SEND and those who need AP, within a fairer and more financially sustainable system. The Green Paper consultation closed on 22 July 2022. The department is...
Claire Coutinho: In the 2021 Spending Review, the department announced additional funding for early years of £160 million in 2022/23, £180 million in 2023/24 and £170 million in 2024/25, compared to the 2021/22 financial year. The department has recently announced that we will invest an additional £20 million into early years funding in 2023/24, on top of the additional £180 million for 2023/24 announced...
Claire Coutinho: The department recognises the important role that kinship carers play in looking after children through kinship arrangements, and are aware that many kinship carers make great sacrifices to fulfil this role. The Independent Review of Children’s Social Care made a set of bold and ambitious recommendations which seek to improve the financial and practical support kinship carers receive, and...
Claire Coutinho: The department is investing £2.6 billion between 2022 and 2025 to support local authorities to deliver new places and improve existing provision for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities or who require alternative provision. This represents a significant, transformational investment in new high needs provision. It will support local authorities to deliver...
Claire Coutinho: The department is aware of the Ofsted Annual Report which highlights areas of the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system including recruitment and staff turnover, local area SEND inspections, and the increase in the number of pupils identified as having SEND. The SEND and Alternative Provision (AP) Green Paper set out the department’s proposals for how we will improve the...
Claire Coutinho: The Children and Families Act 2014 (part 3, section 36) sets out that a request for a local authority in England to secure an education, health and care needs assessment for a child or young person may be made to the authority by the child’s parent, the young person themselves or a person acting on behalf of a school or post-16 institution. The department’s aim is to create a more...
Claire Coutinho: The Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Green Paper looks at the full range of the SEND system, spanning early years provision through to further education and encompassing education, health and care. Underpinning the proposals is the creation of a new set of national SEND and AP standards. The proposal aims to improve clarity and drive national...
Claire Coutinho: Every local authority in England must appoint a Virtual School Head, who has a statutory duty to promote the educational achievement of all children in their care, wherever they live or are educated. Looked-after children draw Pupil Premium Plus funding of £2,410 per child up to age 16, which is managed by the Virtual School Head, to work with the child’s education setting to deliver...
Claire Coutinho: The department has committed over £200 million this year for the holiday activities and food programme. This provides free holiday club places, including healthy meals, to children from low-income families, and is available in the Christmas, Easter and summer holidays. This enables local authorities to provide support to the families who need it most this Christmas. The government has also...
Claire Coutinho: In early 2023, the department will publish an Improvement Plan which will outline our response to the public consultation on the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Green Paper entitled SEND Review: right support, right place, right time, and set out the steps the department will take to improve the system. The department will also publish an...
Claire Coutinho: In the 2021 Spending Review the department announced additional funding for early years of £160 million in 2022/23, £180 million in 2023/24 and £170 million in 2024/25, compared to the 2021/22 financial year. The department has recently announced that we will invest an additional £20 million into early years funding in 2023/24, on top of the additional funding announced in the 2021...
Claire Coutinho: The Early Years Foundation Stage statutory framework (EYFS) sets the standards that all early years providers must meet for the learning, development and care of children from birth to age five. Currently, there are no plans to add any mandatory requirements regarding sensory food education into the EYFS. The department has published an article promoting sensory food education. This supports...
Claire Coutinho: Bexley, the local authority in which Bexleyheath and Crayford falls, has a statutory responsibility under the Children and Families Act 2014 for keeping their local offer of services and provision for children and young people with special education needs and disabilities (SEND) under review. This should be done in co-production with parents, young people and educational providers. It is for...
Claire Coutinho: It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Hosie. I thank everybody for coming to this end-of-term debate, and for their continued presence in all of the debates we have had on this important subject. I congratulate the hon. Member for Slough (Mr Dhesi) on securing the debate today. I know how crucial early years are for children’s development and for their parents to get into...
Claire Coutinho: I am not entirely familiar with that figure. Perhaps we can discuss it after the debate and I can come back to him with a fuller answer. As I have said, over the last five years, we have spent £20 billion on early years. Not only are we supporting the sector with the money that I have set out today but we are also supporting it with energy support. I know from talking to lots of people in...
Claire Coutinho: As of last year, we had set out half a billion pounds of extra funding to go into the sector. We have also set up energy support, as I mentioned, which will help with the increased costs, which we know lots of providers are facing this winter. Of course I will continue to look at everything that I can do in this area and I am committed to ensuring we can make this work.
Claire Coutinho: As ever, my hon. Friend makes a detailed and interesting point that I will take away. I will look at the underspend and see what can be done, and I will come back to him as soon as I can. In addition to the 30 hours, we remain committed to continuing the universal 15 hours of free early education, which this year helped over 1 million children get a positive start to their education....
Claire Coutinho: Funding is already available through the Adult Education Budget (AEB) for qualifications in, or focusing on, British Sign Language (BSL) up to and including Level 2. About 60% of the AEB has been devolved to Mayoral Combined Authorities and the Greater London Authority who determine which provision to fund for learners in their areas. The Education and Skills Funding Agency provides the...
Claire Coutinho: The department's Holiday Activities and Food programme grant letter sets requirements for local authorities programme expenditure. It specifies that up to 10% of an authority’s funding allocation may be spent on programme administration, with the remaining 90% being spent on the direct delivery of free places for eligible children. Local authorities must confirm through an annual...