The department expects all schools to provide pupils with access to clean, safe and suitable toilet facilities that support their health and welfare. The School Premises (England) Regulations 2012 require schools to provide adequate toilet and washing facilities, including separate toilets for boys and girls aged eight and over, except where individual lockable toilets are provided. It is for school leaders to manage the day-to-day operation of their schools, including arrangements for pupils’ access to toilet facilities.

I refer the Hon. Member to the press release issued in December 2025, setting out the action we are taking to improve access to National Health Service dental services, available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/major-boost-for-millions-of-nhs-dental-patients

The latest NHS Dental Statistics show continued improvement across a range of key measures, with more NHS dental care being delivered, more dentists providing NHS services, improved access for patients, increased preventative care for children, and record levels of urgent dental activity. The publication of the annual dental statistics is available at the following link:

https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/statistical-collections/dental-england/dental-statistics-england-202526

Through the department’s Careers Hub programme, The Careers and Enterprise Company and the North East Mayoral Strategic Authority are working in partnership with Goldman Sachs and Sir Richard Harpin to pilot the type of public-private partnership called for in the Maple Review, which recommended the establishment of a National Business Skills Guarantee. We welcome this pilot and will be monitoring it closely to assess the lessons that can be learned and whether the model could be rolled out nationally.

This public-private partnership pilot will:

• Connect more local entrepreneurs and start-ups with young people to help develop creativity, resilience and entrepreneurial skills.

• Support teachers through targeted professional development to increase their confidence and understanding of enterprise education.

• Offer a place-based model to connect local schools into priority growth sectors where the small business economy is needed and can thrive.

• Bring schools closer to the industries and businesses driving local economic growth, helping young people build relevant skills and aspirations.

We recognise that access to childcare support is essential in enabling parents to move into or progress in employment.

Eligible UC customers can claim back up to 85% of their eligible childcare costs each month regardless of the number of hours they work. Childcare costs can be claimed up to three months in advance but will be reimbursed in the month the childcare is provided. Parents who need help with their upfront childcare costs to move into work or increase their working hours may be eligible for support from the Flexible Support Fund (FSF).

School support staff, including teaching assistants, play a vital role in children’s education, and that is why this government is establishing the School Support Staff Negotiating Body (SSSNB).

The SSSNB will be a new statutory body specifically for school support staff. Its purpose is to bring employers and employee representatives together to negotiate minimum standards for pay and conditions for school support staff in all state-funded schools in England. It will also advise on training and career progression for school support staff. The SSSNB is expected to be established in autumn 2026.

The initial focus of the SSSNB will be on establishing new minimum levels for terms and conditions with incremental changes to contracts that lead to cumulative improvements in support staff terms and conditions each year.

Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) is a top priority for this Government. Our ambition is to halve the levels of these crimes within a decade. To do this we must take steps to reform the police response to VAWG, bring the police closer to the communities they serve and make sure we have the right policing in the right places.

We are committed to strengthening the criminal justice system and empowering victims with specialist support. This includes implementing specialist rape and sexual offence teams in every police force in England and Wales by 2029.

We have established the National Centre for VAWG and Public Protection (NCVPP) to provide coordinated leadership on VAWG within policing, ensuring it is treated as a top priority alongside counter terrorism and serious organised crime. Backed by over £13 million of Home Office funding this year, the NCVPP will work with every force across England and Wales to drive consistent practice and support operational improvements through strengthened training for officers, updated national guidance, and targeted support to improve practice.

We are taking decisive action to revive our criminal courts and address long-standing issues that impact victims of VAWG. After commissioning Sir Brian Leveson to undertake an independent review of our criminal courts, on the 25th of February the Government introduced the Courts and Tribunals Bill. The Bill introduces measures to reduce demand on the Crown Court and modernise our court system, to ensure swifter justice for victims including victims of VAWG offences. It introduces a package of crucial reforms protect victims, particularly victims of sexual offences, from unnecessary and intrusive cross-examination about their personal lives at court.

The Government has committed to reform the WaterSure scheme, including eligibility criteria. These reforms were consulted on July to September 2025. The changes to the scheme will expand eligibility to include households in receipt of non-means-tested disability benefits – meaning a further 53,000 low-income households with a medical need of high-water use are expected to save around £325 per year. Government intends to implement these reforms in early 2027, subject to parliamentary processes. The Government response to the consultation can be found on GOV.UK.

As set out in the Renewed Women’s Health Strategy, we will closely review the results of the recent report on the Tommy’s Graded Model of Miscarriage Care pilot study, as part of our wider work on miscarriage care.

My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, is chairing a Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce to develop a national action plan that will reform maternity and neonatal services to deliver lasting change for women, families, and their babies. They will consider all stages of maternity and neonatal, and the plan will be published by the end of the year.

The primary source of financial support for students comes from the student support system through various loans and grants designed for their needs. Students are unable to claim Universal Credit if they are studying full-time, unless they meet specific exceptions such as being responsible for a child. Where eligible students make a claim for Universal Credit, income available to meet their everyday living costs such as a basic student maintenance loan are taken into account, avoiding duplication of support.

The Department is committed to supporting people to retrain, develop new skills and move into jobs in sectors experiencing workforce shortages. Jobcentre Plus works with employers to provide work experience and training placements, including Sector Based Work Academy Programme, helping people gain the experience and skills to fill these vacancies. In addition, we are offering up to 300,000 additional opportunities with priority referrals for young people as part of the Youth Guarantee.

Parental leave and pay entitlements are being considered as part of the Government’s Parental Pay and Leave Review. The Review will report in early 2027 with next steps for taking any reforms forward to implementation.

The Government recognises the significant physical and psychological consequences of birth trauma and the devastating impact this can have on women and their families, including men. We remain fully committed to improving the quality and consistency of care throughout pregnancy, birth, and the critical months that follow.

Specialist perinatal mental health services should offer fathers and partners an assessment of their mental health needs and signpost them to relevant services such as Talking Therapies or community mental health services.

Health visiting perinatal mental health support is focussed on the whole family, and some National Health Service trusts also work with Home Start UK’s Dad Matters project to support paternal mental health.

Through Best Start Family Hubs and Healthy Babies we are investing approximately £37 million in 2026/27 in 75 local authorities in England to provide perinatal mental health and parent-infant relationship support, including for fathers.

The funding enables fathers to access a range of groups and services to strengthen their relationship with their child, gain confidence as parents, and for new and expectant fathers to access mental health support, including for traumatic pregnancies or births.

The Men’s Health Strategy recognises fatherhood as a critical life stage. The strategy sets up a strong foundation for improving how we think and act on men's health and we will learn, iterate, and adapt as challenges emerge.

The ‘Early Education and Childcare’ statutory guidance states that local authorities should encourage providers to offer flexible packages of free hours, which will enable children to access regular, high-quality provision, while maximising flexibility for parents and ensuring a degree of stability for providers.

Local authorities should enable parents to take up their child’s free place in patterns of hours that stretch their child’s entitlement by taking fewer hours a week over more weeks of the year, where there is provider capacity and parental demand.

Additionally, local authorities should ensure that parents and providers are aware that there is no requirement that free places must be taken on, or delivered on, particular days of the week or at particular times of the day.

We are backing cancer patients with a plan to end the postcode lottery that was baked in by the previous Tory Government due to chronic underfunding. We have already announced that more cancer specialists will be allocated to rural and coastal areas, increasing capacity where it is most needed. Over the past year, around 39,000 more people started their cancer treatment within 62 days, compared with the 12 months prior to the 2024 election.

Progress towards and attainment of Level 2 maths and English is essential for helping students seize opportunities in life, learning and work. The 16 to 19 maths and English Condition of Funding ensures students have this opportunity. Students aged 16 to 19 who have not yet achieved a GCSE grade 4 in maths are required to continue studying towards Level 2 maths as part of their study programme. Under the 16 to 19 maths and English Condition of Funding, institutions are required to deliver a minimum of 100 hours in-person, whole class, standalone teaching in maths each academic year for eligible students on 16 to 19 study programmes and T Levels. Any additional support, including remote, online delivery or private tuition can be delivered in addition to the minimum teaching hours.

The government continues to explore the feasibility of technical solutions for the identification of AI-generated content, such as digital watermarking, to support transparency.

AI is a general-purpose technology with a wide range of applications, which is why the government believes that most AI systems should be regulated at the point of use. In response to the AI Action Plan, the government committed to work with regulators to boost their capabilities. The government has been clear that we will legislate where needed but we will do so on the basis of evidence where any serious gaps are.

The Department has no plans to review the current arrangements under which local authorities are responsible for meeting the capital costs of installing fixed speed cameras, as part of their wider capital expenditure responsibilities. Revenue raised through fixed‑penalty notices issued by speed‑camera enforcement is paid into the Consolidated Fund and therefore received by HM Treasury.