Written questions by Anderson.

Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to support places of worship in rural areas with building conservation projects.

There is a range of funding available via DCMS and the Department’s Arm’s-Length Bodies that supports places of worship, including in rural areas. These include Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme; the National Lottery Heritage Fund's £15m Heritage in Need: Places of Worship initiative, funded through the National Lottery between 2023 and 2026; the Churches Conservation Trust, which funds repairs and maintenance of over 350 churches in the CCT portfolio; and Historic England's Heritage At Risk grants, funding £9 million worth of repairs to buildings on Historic England’s Heritage at Risk register between April 2024 and March 2025.

Communities and Local Government, if she will take steps to publish a private parking code of practice.

The Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019 places a duty on the Government to prepare a code of practice containing guidance about the operation and management of private parking facilities.The Government is determined to drive up standards in the private parking sector and we will announce our plans for the new Code in due course.

What steps she is taking to help ensure that the introduction of VAT on private school fees does not negatively impact the academic progress of children with special educational needs and disabilities.

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) 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 those with the most complex needs.At the Autumn Budget 2024, the government announced a £1 billion uplift in high needs funding for the 2025/26 financial year, providing additional support and improving outcomes for the more than a million children in the state sector with SEND.Pupils who need a local authority funded place in a private school, including those with local authority funded education, health and care (EHC) plans, will not be impacted by the changes. This is because local authorities can reclaim the VAT that will be charged.Most children with SEND, including most with an EHC plan, are educated in mainstream state funded schools. All state funded schools support children with SEND and 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 to ensure there are sufficient state school places in their area. Local authorities routinely support parents who need a state funded school place, including where private schools have closed or where pupils move between schools. The department works with local authorities to support place planning and ensure there is capacity in the state funded sector to meet demand.

Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to help leisure centres conduct renovations to reduce their energy consumption.

The Government recognises that leisure centres are important to communities up and down the country. High-quality, inclusive facilities help people get active.The ongoing responsibility of conducting renovations to public sport and leisure facilities lies at Local Authority level. Local Authorities work in partnership with operators who manage leisure services.

What steps his Department is taking to improve mental health facilities in rural areas.

Integrated care boards are responsible for providing health and care services to meet the needs of their local populations. We plan to recruit an additional 8,500 mental health workers across children and adult mental health services in England to reduce delays and provide faster treatment.The Suicide Prevention Strategy for England 2023-2028, published September 2023, sets out an ambition to conduct and commission research and data linkage projects, including supporting the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to look at agricultural workers to understand the unique challenges in that occupational group and respond appropriately.In addition, people of all ages who are in crisis or who are concerned about a family or loved one can now call 111, select the mental health option, and speak to a trained mental health professional. National Health Service staff can guide callers with next steps such as organising face-to-face community support or facilitating access to alternative services, like crisis cafés or safe havens, which provide a place for people to stay as an alternative to accident and emergency or a hospital admission.

Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to reduce the number of rural areas with no wifi access.

Presuming that the Member is referring to broadband access via Wi-Fi in the home or premises, rather than public Wi-Fi, Project Gigabit is delivering gigabit-capable broadband (accessible to consumers as Wi-Fi) to UK premises, with the goal for nationwide gigabit coverage by 2030, ensuring at least 99% of UK premises can access a gigabit-capable connection. For parts of the UK where this is not possible, the government is considering alternative ways to improve connectivity. These may include wireless or satellite provision. Premises unable to access a decent broadband connection, may be able to get an improved connection through the broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO), which provides a right to request a decent broadband service of at least 10 Mbps download and 1 Mbps upload speed.

What recent discussions he has had with Ofcom on the effectiveness of Royal Mail's delivery of the universal service obligation on letter delivery delays.

Ministers and officials meet with Ofcom regularly to discuss a range of issues in relation to its role as the regulatory authority for the postal sector, including the overall provision of the universal service obligation. It is for Ofcom, as the independent regulator, to monitor and enforce Royal Mail’s delivery of the universal service obligation.

What steps his Department is taking to improve local healthcare provision in rural communities.

Rural populations increasingly include people who are most likely to need care. South Shropshire is facing particular challenges. The waiting list for Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin ICB has increased by 12,000 compared to 2023. This is why we must continue to focus on patient access, including in rural areas, as part of plans to build an NHS fit for the future.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to employer National Insurance contribution rates on social care providers in South Shropshire constituency; and whether she plans to provide additional funding to help them with these costs.

The Budget will provide support for government departments and other public sector employers for additional Employer NICs costs. Private sector firms or charities, including social care providers, that are contracted by central or local Government will not be exempt from these changes.This is consistent with the approach to previous Employer NICs changes, as was the case with the previous Government’s Health and Social Care Levy.The Government is supporting local authority services through a real terms increase in core local government spending power of around 3.2%, including at least £600 million of new grant funding to support social care.

What steps her Department is taking to increase access to careers advice in rural communities.

The National Careers Service in England provides free, up to date, impartial information advice and guidance on careers, skills and the labour market, helping customers make informed choices about their career options, whatever their age, ethnic group and background.The service is delivered via three channels. These are face to face, telephone and webchat. It is delivered by local, community-based contractors in nine geographic areas, drawing on localised labour market information to provide guidance, helping those who face barriers, including those within rural communities.The National Careers Service website gives customers 24/7 access to information and advice. Careers advisers are co-located in the majority of Jobcentre Plus offices, providing specialist careers guidance.The service operates in other settings including community centres, training providers, libraries. A recent initiative in the South West used a specially equipped bus to take careers advice directly to local communities. In some rural settings, where travel can be an issue, telephone appointments are arranged. Virtual jobs fairs and online webinars are offered for customers who may find it difficult to access face to face workshops.Looking ahead, alongside the Department for Work and Pensions we are working in England to bring together Jobcentre Plus with the National Careers Service to create a greater awareness and focus on skills and careers, as well as join-up between employability and careers provision, enabling everyone to access and progress in good, meaningful work.The new service will be a one-stop shop for anyone, including those in rural areas, who wants to look for work, wants help to increase their earnings, or who wants help to change their career or re-train. Employment and careers support will be available to all, not just those on benefits, who want support to find or progress in work. The department will ensure the service is responsive to local employers, inclusive for all users, and works in partnership with other local services. We will set out more details about this and other labour market reforms through our forthcoming White Paper to Get Britain Working.

Whether she plans to extend the targeted STEM retention incentive payments for secondary school teachers to those teachers in further education colleges.

In October, the department expanded eligibility for retention incentives to include early career further education (FE) teachers in key science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and technical subjects. FE teachers can currently apply for the payment between 14 October 2024 and 31 March 2025 on GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/targeted-retention-incentive-payments-for-fe-teachers. The targeted retention incentive, aimed at boosting the recruitment and retention of teachers, gives eligible teachers in disadvantaged schools and all colleges up to £6,000 after tax. This has doubled the previous retention payments paid to school teachers and is now available to eligible teachers at all FE colleges, for the first time.

What steps he is taking to increase levels of community energy infrastructure.

The Government recognises the role community groups play in our efforts to tackle climate change. Great British Energy’s Local Power Plan will support Local and Combined Authorities and Community Energy Groups to roll out small and medium‑scale renewable energy projects, to develop up to 8GW of cleaner power by 2030. The Government also supports the community energy sector through the £10 million Community Energy Fund, which enables communities across England to access grant funding to develop local renewable energy projects for investment.

What steps he is taking to increase the availability of automated external defibrillators in rural areas.

The treatment and prevention of cardiovascular disease is a priority for the Government. We want people to have the best chance of survival from cardiac arrest, and rapid intervention is central to improving outcomes. This is why the Government increased the number of publicly accessible automated external defibrillators (AEDs).The Government is committed to improving access to AEDs in public spaces, and reducing inequalities in access to these life saving devices. We made a further £500,000 available from August 2024 to fulfil existing applications to the Department’s Community AED Fund. The criteria specified for the original grant continues to apply and will go to applications for AEDs in areas where there is the greatest need, including in areas of high footfall, hot spots for cardiac arrest, and areas that already have low access to AEDs, which could include rural areas.

What steps she is taking to help increase prosecution rates for rural crime.

This Government is committed to working with the police and other partners to address the blight of rural crime – broadly classified as any crime and anti-social behaviour occurring in rural areas. We are introducing tougher measures to clamp down on anti-social behaviour, stronger neighbourhood policing, and robust laws to prevent farm theft and fly-tippers.We are recruiting 13,000 more neighbourhood police and police community support officers across England and Wales.The National Police Chiefs’ Council Wildlife and Rural Crime Strategy 2022-2025 provides a framework through which policing, and its partners, can work together to tackle the most prevalent threats and emerging issues which predominantly affect rural communities.Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) prosecutors work closely with local police officers to tackle farm equipment theft, fly-tipping and other rural crime, and officers from the National Wildlife Crime Unit to tackle wildlife offences.The CPS provides specialist training to ensure that its prosecutors have the expert knowledge needed to prosecute rural crime.Each CPS Area also has a crown prosecutor dedicated to act as a Wildlife, Rural and Heritage Crime Coordinator to ensure the specialist knowledge needed to prosecute such offending is readily available.

What steps his Department is taking to tackle homelessness among veteran communities in rural areas.

This is a Government of service that will always stand up for those who serve our country. I am working across Government to ensure veterans throughout the UK have access to the support they need on housing, as well as health, employment and other areas. This Government has, just last week, committed £3.5 million for veteran supported homelessness programmes, including Op FORTITUDE, the homelessness pathway for veterans. As of 3 November 2024, Op FORTITUDE has taken over 2,700 referrals and supported nearly 800 veterans into housing. This new funding announcement follows the Prime Minister’s commitment earlier in the year that veterans living in England will be exempt from local connection and residency tests when applying for social housing. I recently attended a roundtable with veteran housing organisations to discuss the implementation of this reform, and I am also a member of the Inter-ministerial Group on Homelessness and Rough Sleeping which is driving progress on the development of our cross-government homelessness strategy.

What assessment she has made of the impact of the alcohol duty freeze on pubs in South Shropshire.

Pubs and breweries make an enormous contribution to our economy and society, and this is recognised in the tax system. At the Budget, the Chancellor cut alcohol duty on qualifying draught products – approximately 60% of the alcoholic drinks sold in pubs. This represents an overall reduction in duty bills of over £85m a year and is equivalent to a 1p duty reduction on a typical pint. This reduction increased the relief available on draught products to 13.9%.

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to improve the enforcement of animal welfare penalty notices.

Enforcement authorities have been able to issue penalty notices for a range of animal health and welfare offences since 1 January 2024. At the end of each financial year, enforcement authorities are required to submit an annual report to Defra on how many penalty notices they have issued. The first annual report from enforcement authorities on penalty notices issued is to be submitted to Defra by June 2025. Defra is funding training to enforcement authorities such as local authorities and the police to support the effective implementation of penalty notices within their enforcement regime and their effective use as an enforcement tool.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of childcare places in rural communities.

High quality, affordable early education and childcare is essential to ensuring that all our children get the best start in life.The department recognises that there are differences in the availability of childcare depending on where you live.The latest data from the Office for National Statistics and Ofsted shows variations in the level of access to childcare places across the country, with the most deprived local authorities and rural areas the most likely to be areas that have faced low childcare accessibility over time. The data is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/changes-to-access-to-childcare-in-england/commentary-changes-in-access-to-childcare-in-england.The government has committed to working with the sector to embed early years within the wider education system, and to find new ways to shift the early education system to better support parents in poorer and rural areas. This starts with the plan to utilise unused space in primary schools to create much needed places in 3,000 nurseries, working in partnership with all parts of the sector and local authorities.Under Section 6 of the Childcare Act 2006, local authorities are responsible for ensuring that the provision of childcare is sufficient to meet the requirements of parents in their area. Part B of the 'Early education and childcare' statutory guidance for local authorities highlights that local authorities are required to report annually to elected council members on how they are meeting their duty to secure sufficient childcare, and to make this report available and accessible to parents. The department has regular contact with each local authority in England about their sufficiency of childcare and any issues they are facingWhere local authorities report sufficiency challenges, the department discusses what action the local authority is taking to address those issues and, where needed, support the local authority with any specific requirements through our childcare sufficiency support contract. We have recently launched a termly local authority readiness self assessment tool, which is intended to enable local authorities to gauge their progress as we move towards rollout. This will enable the department to work with local authorities to address issues as they emerge.

What steps his Department is taking to help increase participation in UK Parliament Week.

The Parliamentary Capability Team within the Cabinet Office designs and delivers training for civil servants on all aspects of parliamentary procedure. Parliament Week is an important part of the training calendar every year. This year a programme of events will take place each day designed to improve the awareness and understanding of Parliament across the Civil Service. This will include discussions with the right honourable Leaders of both houses, officials and members. These events are advertised across all departments and open to all to attend.

Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of animal welfare penalty notices.

The first annual report from enforcement authorities on penalty notices issued is to be submitted to Defra by June 2025 and a consolidated report will subsequently be published.