We remain focused on ensuring our smooth and orderly withdrawal from the EU with a deal as soon as possible. As a responsible Government, for almost three years we have been undertaking extensive work to prepare for a no deal scenario and minimise disruption to ensure trade continues to operate smoothly from the day we leave.

The UK has a high degree of food security built on access to a range of sources, including strong domestic production and imports from other countries. This will not change whether we leave the EU with or without a deal. Defra, as the lead Government department for food supply, has long established relationships with industry, and we are working closely with key stakeholders to prepare for all scenarios.

Public sector food provision for specific sectors including hospitals, prisons, schools and care settings is led by the relevant Government departments. However, Defra has been working closely with lead departments (DfE, DHSC, MOJ, MOD) to support their contingency planning for food supply to public services. Defra is providing advice and support to these departments especially to support their engagement with the food industry. Lead Government departments are engaging with key suppliers for schools, hospitals and prisons to ensure the supply chain is prepared and supply is maintained.

We are keen for funding allocated through the schools’ block to be passed on to schools, which is why as part of the introduction of the national funding formula (NFF), we made the decision to ring-fence this funding from 2018-19 onwards. However, in recognition of the importance of local flexibility, we have allowed local authorities to transfer of up to 0.5% out of the schools funding block of the dedicated schools grant to the high needs funding block, with the agreement of their schools forum. We produced an equalities impact assessment alongside the NFF, which considered potential impacts on children with protected characteristics, which can be accessed at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/648520/NFF_Equalities_Impact-Assessment.pdf.

Exceptionally, local authorities can apply for transfers outside these rules. Within the schools revenue funding operational guide (paragraph 138): https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pre-16-schools-funding-guidance-for-2019-to-2020, we set out what evidence we expect a local authority to present to their schools forum to support any proposals to transfer funding from the schools block.

In submitting an exceptional case to transfer funding from the schools block, local authorities have to carry out an assessment of the equalities implications of their proposal. These equalities assessments, the published equalities impact assessment (link above) and the quality of the evidence provided by local authorities are all taken into account in the evaluation of exceptional cases put forward by local authorities.

This is a matter for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman. I have asked her to write to the hon. Member and a copy of her reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

This is a matter for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman. I have asked her to write to the hon. Member and a copy of her reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

This is a matter for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman. I have asked her to write to you directly and a copy of her reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

To teach a class of pupils with vision impairment, a teacher must hold a mandatory qualification, in addition to qualified teacher status. The Department is currently reviewing the educational outcomes of the mandatory qualifications for teachers of classes with vision impairment, to ensure they reflect the changing needs of the education system.

The Children and Families Act 2014 requires local authorities to work with parents, young people, and schools and colleges to keep the provision for children and young people with special educational needs and disability (SEND) under review and to consider carefully how best to meet the needs of children and young people in their area, including those with vision impairment. To support local authorities, the Department has announced an additional £250 million high needs funding, over this year and the next. This will bring the total allocated for high needs next year to £6.3 billion.

In addition, £3.4 million is being provided for 2018 to 2020 to equip the school workforce to deliver high quality teaching across all types of SEND, including vision impairment.

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State has made his decision in respect of all requests to move funds from the schools block to the high needs block. All schools block movement requests are reviewed against the criteria set out in paragraph 138 of the schools revenue funding operational guide 2019-20 and the disapplication request form.

The table below provides information on local authorities that have had: approved requests to move up to 0.5%, approved requests to move in excess of 0.5%, and rejected requests to move block funding.

X indicates the transfer requested

Southampton, Stockport and Lambeth have received funding from the What Works Centre for Children’s Social Care to test having social workers in schools. As part of the application process the local authorities were required to provide the What Works Centre with information about key risks to delivery and the contingencies they would undertake to mitigate them. The local authorities provided their assessment as part of the application and these continue to be reviewed through project monitoring.

We announced the first wave of 25 trailblazer sites on 20 December. The trailblazer sites will test out the plans previously announced in ‘Transforming children and young people’s mental health provision: a green paper’, published in December 2017, creating new mental health support teams working in and near schools and colleges to support children and young people with mild to moderate mental health conditions; piloting a four week waiting time for access to specialist National Health Service children’s mental health services; and training Designated Senior Leads in mental health in schools and colleges. There will be 59 mental health support teams across the first wave of 25 sites, covering a population of around 470,000 children and young people. The first cohort of new staff for the Support Teams, the Education Mental Health Practitioners, start training in January 2019.

The information requested, which identifies post-16 specialist SEND schools specifically, is not held by the department. The age range of pupils within specialist SEND schools varies significantly, and specific phases, including post-16, are not reported on.

The information requested on the capacity of post-16 specialist SEND schools is not held by the department. The Children and Families Act (2014) requires local authorities to work with parents, young people, and providers to keep the provision for children and young people with special needs and disabilities under review, including its sufficiency.

The information requested, which identifies post-16 specialist SEND schools specifically, is not held by the department. The age range of pupils within specialist SEND schools varies significantly, and specific phases, including post-16, are not reported on.

The information requested on the capacity of post-16 specialist SEND schools is not held by the department. The Children and Families Act (2014) requires local authorities to work with parents, young people, and providers to keep the provision for children and young people with special needs and disabilities under review, including its sufficiency.

The new funding is for maintained nurseries, primary and secondary schools, academies and free schools, special schools, non-maintained special schools, pupil referral units, sixth-form colleges, and special post-16 institutions that have eligible state-funded pupils. Any institution that is eligible for devolved formula capital will also be eligible for the new funding. A full list of the institutions eligible for devolved formula capital in the financial year 2018-19 can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/​publications/capital-allocations.

‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’ is statutory guidance to which all schools must have regard. The guidance is clear that all schools should have an effective child protection policy. The policy should be updated annually (as a minimum), and be available publicly either via the school website or by other means.

The 28 cases where a local authority requested a direction for the academy to admit from the Secretary of State, via the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA), relate to 24 different academies. The 28 requests included the four formal direction cases.

Due to the sensitive nature and low volume of these cases, it would not be appropriate to name the individual academies due to the risk that already vulnerable children could be identified from the information.

The Department recognises that looked after children are amongst the most vulnerable in our society. That is why the School Admissions Code requires admission authorities of all schools to prioritise looked after children and previously looked after children in their admissions criteria.

Local authorities (LAs) have the power to direct the admission authority for any maintained school in England to admit a child who it ‘looks after’, even if that school is full. Therefore, the Department does not hold information on individual applications to maintained schools made on behalf of the looked after child. The Department itself can direct a maintained school if required, but so far it has not had to.

For academies, trusts and LAs work together at a local level to prioritise the admission of looked after children. As a last resort, a LA can request a direction for the academy to admit from the Secretary of State, via the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA). The ESFA has collected and recorded data on such direction requests since March 2017. Since then, there have been 28 requests. However, the ESFA have successfully worked with LAs and academies to ensure that a formal direction was only required in four cases.

The Education and Skills Funding Agency publishes the 16 to 19-year olds funding allocations data for individual institutions annually. This includes the amount of disadvantage funding allocated to each institution. Further information on allocations is available at GOV.UK: www.gov.uk/guidance/16-to-19-education-funding-allocations#published-allocations.

The department does not collect data on how institutions spend the disadvantage portion of their allocations.