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Motion that this House has considered the use of CCTV for safeguarding purposes in nurseries and early years providers. Agreed to on question
Motion that this House has considered the use of CCTV for safeguarding purposes in nurseries and early years providers. Agreed to on question
I beg to move,
That this House has considered the use of CCTV for safeguarding purposes in nurseries and early years providers.
It is a pleasure to serve under you, Mr Stringer. I have now been a public servant for 15 years, initially as a local councillor and then as a local...
I beg to move,
That this House has considered the use of CCTV for safeguarding purposes in nurseries and early years providers.
It is a pleasure to serve under you, Mr Stringer. I have now been a public servant for 15 years, initially as a local councillor and then as a local...
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his support for all my campaigns throughout the years. He has hit on a point I will definitely comment on. However, as he said, we cannot put a price on a child’s safety.
I said that I have been a public servant for 15 years,...
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his support for all my campaigns throughout the years. He has hit on a point I will definitely comment on. However, as he said, we cannot put a price on a child’s safety.
I said that I have been a public servant for 15 years,...
I absolutely agree. As elected officials, we must ensure that we protect our constituents and that when they trust a nursery or childminder with their children, they know they are doing the right thing.
I have some examples in which CCTV has helped to secure convictions, but I warn everyone that...
I absolutely agree. As elected officials, we must ensure that we protect our constituents and that when they trust a nursery or childminder with their children, they know they are doing the right thing.
I have some examples in which CCTV has helped to secure convictions, but I warn everyone that...
I am very sorry to hear about that case. I fully agree that if we are to have CCTV as a safeguarding tool, we must be able to access it in incidents like the one my hon. Friend described.
Another case I want to mention is that of Riverside nursery in...
I am very sorry to hear about that case. I fully agree that if we are to have CCTV as a safeguarding tool, we must be able to access it in incidents like the one my hon. Friend described.
Another case I want to mention is that of Riverside nursery in...
I am coming to my questions to the Minister; I know she is highly focused on the early years sector and has done an enormous amount for it. One of those questions is about Ofsted; I will get to that in a minute.
The Secretary of State talked about appointing an...
I am coming to my questions to the Minister; I know she is highly focused on the early years sector and has done an enormous amount for it. One of those questions is about Ofsted; I will get to that in a minute.
The Secretary of State talked about appointing an...
I have a lot of sympathy for the situation that the hon. Lady describes. The number of people who are NEET is very high, but that trend started in 2021, when her party was in government—the election was not until two years ago. Why did the Conservatives not do anything...
I have a lot of sympathy for the situation that the hon. Lady describes. The number of people who are NEET is very high, but that trend started in 2021, when her party was in government—the election was not until two years ago. Why did the Conservatives not do anything...
The Secretary of State will know about the horrific sexual abuse case in one of my local nurseries. Will she introduce mandatory CCTV in nurseries so that we can use it as a safeguarding tool?
The Secretary of State will know about the horrific sexual abuse case in one of my local nurseries. Will she introduce mandatory CCTV in nurseries so that we can use it as a safeguarding tool?
I thank my hon. Friend for her advocacy for her constituents in what has been an absolutely appalling case. My thoughts remain with all the children and families who have been affected. The safety of our children comes first, so we are considering the mandatory use of CCTV in early years settings through the review we are getting under way rapidly.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help improve safeguarding practices in nurseries and early years settings.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help improve safeguarding practices in nurseries and early years settings.
The safety and wellbeing of children in nurseries and early years settings is our priority and we continually monitor and review safeguarding requirements for early years settings to ensure children are kept as safe as possible. Where evidence shows that changes are needed, we take action to strengthen requirements and provide clearer expectations for providers.
In September 2025, the government introduced changes to the safeguarding requirements within the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) statutory framework. These changes were informed by evidence and engagement with the early years sector and were designed to strengthen safeguarding practice across settings, including clearer and more robust expectations around safer recruitment, whistleblowing and staff training.
The department is developing free, online safeguarding training in collaboration with the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. The training will support providers to meet statutory requirements and promote a strong and open safeguarding culture across early years settings.
In December, my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, announced that she will be appointing an expert panel to inform guidance for the sector on the effective and safe use of digital devices and CCTV in relation to safeguarding. The panel will consider the question of whether CCTV should be mandated and will set out best practice, technical information and clear expectations on CCTV and digital device usage. No decisions have been taken in advance of this work.
The safety of the youngest children is our utmost priority, which is why the EYFS statutory framework includes clear requirements on safe sleep. The framework requires that babies are placed down to sleep safely and in line with the latest government guidance and that sleeping children are frequently checked. To make the existing requirements clearer for all, we plan to add in more detail to the EYFS frameworks. We have worked with safe sleep experts, including the Lullaby Trust, on proposed new wording.
Ofsted inspects early years providers against the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the EYFS statutory framework. Through our Best Start in Life strategy, we are investing in raising the quality, frequency and consistency of inspections, including work to strengthen oversight of larger nursery chains.
The government is also strengthening multi-agency safeguarding arrangements through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. These measures place duties on safeguarding partners to ensure education providers and childcare settings are appropriately involved in local safeguarding arrangements, while not changing any existing duties on providers.
I thank the Secretary of State for Education for her statement and for reassuring us that the case is being given the importance and treated with the urgency it deserves. This is every parent’s worst nightmare. I pay tribute to my constituents and to the brave parents, who are here...
I thank the Secretary of State for Education for her statement and for reassuring us that the case is being given the importance and treated with the urgency it deserves. This is every parent’s worst nightmare. I pay tribute to my constituents and to the brave parents, who are here...
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to make an assessment of the potential merits of statutory codification of the duty of care to students in higher education.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department plans to make an assessment of the potential merits of statutory codification of the duty of care to students in higher education.
I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for Hampstead and Highgate to the answer of 8 January 2025 to Question 21514.
I thank the hon. Member for bringing such an important debate to the House, and I congratulate her for having three teenagers and still holding down this job—that is a remarkable achievement. Relationship education is very important for how young people relate to their peers, but one of the common...
I thank the hon. Member for bringing such an important debate to the House, and I congratulate her for having three teenagers and still holding down this job—that is a remarkable achievement. Relationship education is very important for how young people relate to their peers, but one of the common...
What steps she is taking to increase the number of children and young people who read for pleasure.
What steps she is taking to increase the number of children and young people who read for pleasure.
High and rising school standards, and excellent foundations in reading, writing and maths, are a key part of our plan for change, which aims to ensure that every child gets the best start in life. Reading for pleasure is hugely important. Last month, Labour announced £2 million of investment in driving high and rising standards by embedding the success of phonics and ensuring that children and teachers develop reading skills. That includes children reading for pleasure.
When I was growing up in the 1980s, my nose was always buried in a book, and I let my imagination run wild. Nowadays, nine in 10 children have a mobile phone by the time they reach the age of 11, and statistics show that there has been a steep decline in the number of children reading for pleasure. Does the Minister agree that the likes of Roald Dahl and Jacqueline Wilson should not be replaced by a smartphone, and will she prioritise children’s reading for pleasure in the school curriculum?
When I was growing up in the 1980s, my nose was always buried in a book, and I let my imagination run wild. Nowadays, nine in 10 children have a mobile phone by the time they reach the age of 11, and statistics show that there has been a steep decline in the number of children reading for pleasure. Does the Minister agree that the likes of Roald Dahl and Jacqueline Wilson should not be replaced by a smartphone, and will she prioritise children’s reading for pleasure in the school curriculum?
I am sure all Members joined in celebrating World Book Day in their schools. I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend, and recognise how important it is to encourage children to read for pleasure. We know that reading for pleasure does happen in schools; teachers already encourage their students to listen to, discuss and read a wide range of stories, poems, books and plays. Importantly, this can also start at home, where parents can show how much they love reading. That is why I commend the LBC campaign, Kids Who Read Succeed, an excellent initiative to encourage reading and ensure that all children, parents and teachers get that message.
The Secretary of State will be well aware of the impact of covid on the wellbeing and attainment of children who are now at primary school, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds. This welcome intervention will make a massive difference to that covid cohort, but may I press the Secretary of...
The Secretary of State will be well aware of the impact of covid on the wellbeing and attainment of children who are now at primary school, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds. This welcome intervention will make a massive difference to that covid cohort, but may I press the Secretary of...
My hon. Friend is making a powerful speech based on his personal experience. He talks about the importance of support, and I want to talk about the importance of advocacy services that advise children on their rights when they receive social care services. Advocacy can be transformative to the lives...
My hon. Friend is making a powerful speech based on his personal experience. He talks about the importance of support, and I want to talk about the importance of advocacy services that advise children on their rights when they receive social care services. Advocacy can be transformative to the lives...
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that children with autism are adequately supported at school.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that children with autism are adequately supported at school.
In the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and alternative provision Improvement Plan, the department set out a vision to improve mainstream education by setting standards for the early and accurate identification of need and the timely provision of access to support. The standards will clarify the types of support that should be ordinarily available in mainstream settings and who is responsible for securing the support. This will give parents confidence and clarity on how their child’s needs will be met.
As part of this, the department has committed to developing practitioner standards, which were known as practice guides in the Improvement Plan, to provide advice to education professionals. At least three practitioner standards will be published by the end of 2025, one of which will be focused on autism. The department will build on existing best practice and will include guidance on how an education environment may be adapted to better support the needs of autistic pupils.
The department's Universal Services contract brings together SEND-specific continuous professional development and support for the school and further education workforce to improve outcomes for children and young people, including those who are autistic.
The contract offers autism awareness training and resources delivered by the Autism Education Trust (AET). Over 135,000 education professionals have undertaken autism awareness training as part of AET's ‘train the trainer’ model since the Universal Services programme commenced in May 2022.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the impact on educational attainment of denial of mitigated circumstances for children whose parent or guardian passed away outside of the current six month cut off prior to examinations.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the impact on educational attainment of denial of mitigated circumstances for children whose parent or guardian passed away outside of the current six month cut off prior to examinations.
This is a matter for Ofqual, the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation. I have asked its Interim Chief Regulator Sir Ian Bauckham, to write to the hon. Member and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to page 206 of the policy paper entitled National food strategy for England, updated in July 2021, whether her Department has made a recent assessment of the implications for its policies of the recommendation to remove the requirement for schools...
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to page 206 of the policy paper entitled National food strategy for England, updated in July 2021, whether her Department has made a recent assessment of the implications for its policies of the recommendation to remove the requirement for schools...
The government’s school food standards regulates the food and drink provided at both lunchtime and at other times of the school day. Beyond this, the department believes that headteachers, school governors and caterers are best placed to make decisions about their school food policies, taking into account local circumstances and the needs of their pupils. The school food standards guidance is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-food-standards-resources-for-schools.
The government recognises the importance of plant-based foods from a cultural and environmental point of view. The standards for school food allow schools the freedom to provide plant-based meals as needed. Meat must be served on three or more days each week and, beyond this, schools may provide a meal with a vegan source of protein every day if they choose to.
The department believes that the current standards provide a robust yet flexible framework to ensure that pupils in England continue to receive high-quality and nutritious food that encourages healthy eating habits for life. The department is keeping the standards under review.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help support PhD students with the increased cost of living.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to help support PhD students with the increased cost of living.
The Government introduced doctoral loans in the 2018/19 academic year. These loans, which offer up to £28,673 for courses starting in 2023/24, are a contribution to the costs of study, and are the first direct government funding for doctoral study available to students on an open to all basis. For example, available to all eligible students who have gained a place on an eligible programme of study.
The government is considering options for doctoral loans for the 2024/25 academic year and will be making an announcement in due course.
The government recognises the cost-of-living pressures that have impacted students. That is why the department asked the Office for Students to maintain Student Premium and Mental Health funding for the 2023/24 financial year at the same levels as the previous year.
The department has made available £276 million of Student Premium and Mental Health funding for the 2023/24 academic year to support students who need additional help. This funding will complement the help universities are providing through their own bursary, scholarship and hardship support schemes.