Written questions by Pinkerton.

What steps she is taking to help support students with special educational needs who have left independent schools in Surrey Heath constituency following the application of VAT to private school fees.

This government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity and ensuring every child has access to high-quality education. The government’s ambition is that all children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or in alternative provision receive the right support to succeed in their education and as they move into adult life. We are committed to improving inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools, as well as ensuring special schools cater to children and young people with the most complex needs. At the Autumn Budget 2024, the government announced a £1 billion uplift in high needs funding in financial year 2025/26, providing additional support and improving outcomes for the more than a million children in the state sector with SEND. Most children with special educational needs, including most with education, health and care (EHC) plans, are already educated in mainstream state-funded schools. All state-funded schools support children with SEND. All children of compulsory age are entitled to a state-funded school place that is free for parents. Where a private school place is necessary to support a child with SEND, the local authority will fund it through an EHC plan. Local authorities have a statutory duty for ensuring sufficient state school places in their area. Local authorities routinely support parents that need a state-funded school place, including where private schools have closed or where pupils move between schools. The department does not collect data on in-year school applications or admissions, but where local authorities are experiencing difficulties in ensuring there are enough school places for children that need them, the department will offer support and advice. The department expects all schools admitting new pupils in-year to provide them with appropriate support, including where they have SEND. Schools will need to work with their local authority where pupils have additional needs that cannot be met within the school.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the current integration of digital literacy into school curriculums.

Digital literacy is currently taught through the compulsory curriculum subjects of computing, relationships, sex and health education and, at key stage 3 and 4, citizenship.Last summer, the government established an independent Curriculum and Assessment R...

What steps her Department is taking to improve special educational needs and disabilities provision in (a) Surrey Heath constituency and (b) Surrey.

The last local area special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) inspection by Ofsted and Care Quality Commission for Surrey was in September 2023. The department’s regional team has put in place systems to track outcomes against the areas for improvement found by inspectors and the progress made by children and young people with SEND. Surrey County Council are committed to working closely with the department to improve services. Surrey County Council also entered into a Safety Valve agreement with the department in March 2022. Safety Valve agreements aim to improve the effectiveness of local authority high needs systems and ensure their long-term financial sustainability. A new special school, Hopescourt School, will open in Walton-on-Thames in September 2024, delivered by Surrey County Council, with support from the department. The school will provide high quality specialist education for both autistic children and children who have communication and interaction needs. It will create up to 77 school places in its first year of opening, increasing to 200 at full capacity, as an 'all through-school'. All children and young people with SEND or in alternative provision receiving the support to succeed is at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best start in life. The department is committed to taking a community-wide approach, improving inclusivity and expertise in mainstream schools, as well as ensuring special schools cater to those with the most complex needs.