Saqib Bhatti MP: written questions
154 published records · newest first.
Written questions
Special Educational NeedsDepartment for EducationTabled 19 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 122254More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the projected costs per child of pupils in Targeted, Targeted Plus and Specialist layers of support are, respectively.
Answer: The department is providing additional funding to boost the capacity of mainstream settings to meet the continuum of needs children have, before any legislative changes.The ‘SEND Reform: putting children and young people first’ consultation document inclu...
Answered 29 Apr 2026
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational NeedsDepartment for EducationTabled 19 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 122253More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of when mainstream schools will have the baseline staffing levels required to deliver the universal inclusion expectations set out in the Schools White Paper.
Answer: Recruiting and retaining expert teachers is at the heart of the government’s Plan for Change, with good progress already being made: the teaching workforce has grown by 2,346 FTE between 2023/24 and 2024/25, in secondary and special schools; the schools w...
Answered 8 Apr 2026
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational NeedsDepartment for EducationTabled 19 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 122252More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she will publish guidance on quality standards for Individual Support Plans to prevent variation between local authorities and ensure consistent support for children nationwide.
Answer: There will be a legal duty on education settings to produce an Individual Support Plan (ISP) for every child or young person receiving targeted or specialist support, ensuring help keeps pace with their development, prevents challenges from escalating, an...
Answered 8 Apr 2026
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational NeedsDepartment for EducationTabled 19 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 122251More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when the Government plans to publish the detailed national SEND standards and how compliance with those standards will be monitored and enforced across local authorities.
Answer: The National Inclusion Standards will set out evidence-based tools, strategies and approaches to identify and support children and young people with additional needs. Settings should consider the National Inclusion Standards when planning their Inclusion ...
Answered 15 Apr 2026
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational NeedsDepartment for EducationTabled 19 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 122250More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what enforcement mechanisms will apply to ensure full compliance with Individual Support Plan commitments.
Answer: There will be a legal duty on education settings to produce an Individual Support Plan (ISP) for every child or young person receiving targeted or specialist support, ensuring help keeps pace with their development, prevents challenges from escalating, an...
Answered 8 Apr 2026
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational Needs: ReformDepartment for EducationTabled 18 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 121840More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has undertaken an impact assessment of the potential reduction in enforceable rights for families arising from restricting EHCPs to only the most complex needs.
Answer: Our ambition is to provide more opportunities for health and education professionals to support the needs of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) more effectively and inclusively. This is why we are investing £1...
Answered 29 Apr 2026
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational NeedsDepartment for EducationTabled 18 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 121839More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether safeguards will be introduced to help ensure that Individual Support Plans (ISPs) do not become resource-led documents due to limited specialist provision.
Answer: The special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) Code of Practice sets out that the provision made for pupils with special educational needs should be recorded accurately and kept up to date. As a result, many settings already keep records of the nee...
Answered 8 Apr 2026
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational Needs: Unpaid WorkDepartment for EducationTabled 18 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 121838More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much has been spent on Supported Internships; and what the projected cost of the 12-month extension is.
Answer: Since 2022, the department has invested around £33 million into supported internships to provide more opportunities for young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) to transition into sustained, paid employment. This investment has ...
Answered 25 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational NeedsDepartment for EducationTabled 18 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 121837More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will publish modelling underpinning its projection that EHCP growth will slow by 2029–30 and then fall.
Answer: The department has made modelling information available in the ‘Background on projections’ annex published alongside the special educational needs and disabilities consultation. These projections are illustrative of our proposed policy approach and update...
Answered 8 Apr 2026
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational NeedsDepartment for EducationTabled 18 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 121836More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how the proposed fast-track route for early intervention will be defined, including eligibility thresholds, time limits and approved evidence-based programmes.
Answer: To achieve this, we will work with the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC), and NHS England to enable better information sharing between health professionals and local authorities. This will speed up the process of matching children to the right ...
Answered 25 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational Needs: FinanceDepartment for EducationTabled 17 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 121420More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of the £4 billion SEND investment package is allocated to universal SEND training for the 0–25 workforce, and what training standard will apply.
Answer: The department is investing over £200 million over the course of this Parliament to upskill staff in every school, college and nursery, ensuring a skilled workforce for generations to come. This significant investment, forms a central pillar of the govern...
Answered 24 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational Needs: StaffDepartment for EducationTabled 17 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 121419More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many additional educational psychologists, speech and language therapists and occupational therapists will be required annually to deliver the Experts at Hand programme.
Answer: The government is providing substantial, targeted investment to help local areas grow and strengthen their specialist workforce. Over the next three years, £1.8 billion will be made available to local area partnerships to develop and rollout of the Expert...
Answered 24 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordSchools: Special Educational NeedsDepartment for EducationTabled 17 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 121418More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how compliance with ISP duties will be enforced at school and local-system level, and which body will hold ultimate enforcement responsibility.
Answer: I refer the hon. Member for Meriden and Solihull East to the answer of 20 April 2026 to Question 120023.
Answered 20 Apr 2026
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational NeedsDepartment for EducationTabled 17 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 121417More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance the Department plans to issue to help ensure that Individual Support Plans (ISPs) are portable across phases and settings, including post-16 and further education.
Answer: There will be a statutory duty on schools and colleges to produce an Individual Support Plan (ISP) for every child or young person receiving targeted or specialist support, ensuring help keeps pace with their development, prevents challenges from escalati...
Answered 24 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordDepartmental Expenditure LimitsMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled 17 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 121416More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the long-term impact of the 2025 increase to the RDEL envelope on the financial resilience of local authorities.
Answer: The final 2026-27 Local Government Finance Settlement will make available £78 billion in Core Spending Power for local authorities in England in 2026-27, a 6.1% increase compared to 2025-26. By the end of the multi-year Settlement (2028-29), the governmen...
Answered 24 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordTeachers: Maternity PayDepartment for EducationTabled 16 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 120954More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the cost to the public purse of her proposed maternity pay reforms; and how she plans to fund this additional cost.
Answer: This government is committed to tackling recruitment and retention challenges and supporting teachers to stay in the profession and thrive.The recent Schools White Paper announced our commitment to fund improvements to maternity pay for school and college...
Answered 23 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordTeachers: Materinty PayDepartment for EducationTabled 16 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 120953More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of maternity pay reforms on teacher retention.
Answer: This government is committed to tackling recruitment and retention challenges and supporting teachers to stay in the profession and thrive.The recent Schools White Paper announced our commitment to fund improvements to maternity pay for school and college...
Answered 23 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordSpecial Educational Needs: FinanceDepartment for EducationTabled 16 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 120952More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the potential impact of trends in the growth of EHCPs on costs to the public purse.
Answer: Families are having to fight and go through bureaucratic and legal processes to get special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) support for their children despite funding increases to the high needs budget. These and other failures in the current sy...
Answered 21 Apr 2026
Original Parliament recordPrivate Education: VATDepartment for EducationTabled 16 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 120951More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number and proportion of pupils that would need to move from the independent to the state sector for VAT revenue from school fees to fall below the additional cost of educating
Answer: HM Treasury published a tax information and impact note on applying VAT to private school fees: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/vat-on-private-school-fees/applying-vat-to-private-school-fees. This is a comprehensive assessment of the VAT policy...
Answered 8 Apr 2026
Original Parliament recordPrivate Education: PupilsDepartment for EducationTabled 12 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 120536More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many pupils left independent schools in 2024 compared with 2025, and how this compares with the estimated figure of 3,000 pupils.
Answer: There were 129 private school closures between 1 January 2024 and 31 December 2025. In 2024, there were 58 closures and in 2025 there were 71 closures.The government does not collect pupil-level data from private schools.
Answered 18 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordSchools: ClosuresDepartment for EducationTabled 12 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 120535More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many independent schools closed in 2024 compared with 2025.
Answer: There were 129 private school closures between 1 January 2024 and 31 December 2025. In 2024, there were 58 closures and in 2025 there were 71 closures.The government does not collect pupil-level data from private schools.
Answered 18 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordFurther EducationDepartment for EducationTabled 12 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 120534More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what evidence supports the proposal to restrict all V Level qualifications to 360 guided learning hours: and what assessment has been made of the potential impact of this restriction on progression to higher ed
Answer: V Levels are designed to be 360 guided learning hours to enable them to be taken alongside A Levels or other V Levels to form broad study programmes, enabling breadth of study for young people who want to keep their options open. For young people who know...
Answered 23 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordFurther EducationDepartment for EducationTabled 12 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 120533More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the capacity of further education providers to deliver the proposed Level 2 and Level 3 reforms within the planned timetable, including workforce, facilities and
Answer: V Levels are designed to be 360 guided learning hours to enable them to be taken alongside A Levels or other V Levels to form broad study programmes, enabling breadth of study for young people who want to keep their options open. For young people who know...
Answered 23 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordFurther EducationDepartment for EducationTabled 12 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 120532More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment has the Department made of the potential impact of the proposed Level 3 and below reforms on participation by students with protected characteristics; and whether an equality impact assessment w
Answer: V Levels are designed to be 360 guided learning hours to enable them to be taken alongside A Levels or other V Levels to form broad study programmes, enabling breadth of study for young people who want to keep their options open. For young people who know...
Answered 23 Mar 2026
Original Parliament recordFurther Education: ReformDepartment for EducationTabled 12 Mar 2026AnsweredUIN 120531More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment has her Department made of potential the impact of the proposed Level 3 and below reforms on progression to higher education.
Answer: V Levels are designed to be 360 guided learning hours to enable them to be taken alongside A Levels or other V Levels to form broad study programmes, enabling breadth of study for young people who want to keep their options open. For young people who know...
Answered 23 Mar 2026
Original Parliament record
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