Tag: Sarah Wollaston

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Wollaston on 2015-12-17.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of statutory PSHE education for the health of school pupils; and if she will make a statement.

Edward Timpson

We want all children to lead healthy and active lives. Schools have a key role to play in supporting this; the new national curriculum sets the expectation that pupils are taught, across a variety of subjects, about the importance of leading healthy and active lives.

Schools and teachers already recognise the importance of good PSHE education and know that healthy, resilient, confident pupils are better placed to achieve academically and to be stretched further. In the introduction to the national curriculum, we have made clear that all schools should make provision for PSHE, drawing on examples of good practice.

The Secretary of State for Education has regular discussions with the Secretary of State for Health about children’s health and the role schools can play in tackling childhood obesity.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Wollaston on 2016-04-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, in the event that the actual cost of a Section 106 highway infrastructure scheme exceeds the previously estimated and agreed contribution, (a) what options exist for making good that shortfall, (b) whether the local authority or the developer is liable for any additional costs and (c) whether Section 106 contributions originally allocated for other schemes may be reallocated to cover such costs.

Brandon Lewis

It is for the local planning authority to determine what is required and seek planning obligations through a Section 106 agreement in order to make a development acceptable in planning terms. There are three statutory tests that need to be applied when considering a planning obligation, that it is: necessary to make the development acceptable in planning terms; directly related to the development; and fairly and reasonably related in scale and kind to the development.

Developers may be asked to provide contributions for infrastructure in several ways. This may be by way of planning obligations in the form of Section 106 agreements but can also include contributions through payment of the Community Infrastructure Levy and Section 278 highway agreements.

It is for local planning authorities to decide what provisions they make in Section 106 agreements, and agree these with the interested parties, and therefore any liabilities would depend on the individual agreement. Local authorities and developers can renegotiate planning obligations by mutual agreement at any time or under Section 106A of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. However, Local planning authorities are expected to use all of the funding they receive through planning obligations in accordance with the terms of the individual planning obligation agreement. This is to ensure that new developments are acceptable in planning terms; benefit local communities and support the provision of local infrastructure.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Wollaston on 2016-06-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment his Department has made of the barriers that prevent women from attending cervical screening.

Jane Ellison

There is a range of work going on to understand the reasons for the decline in cervical screening uptake amongst women aged 25 to 29 and to try to address them. They include:

a) Data and information – access to data, cleansing, benchmarking for providers, timely and useful information for commissioners;

b) Behavioural insight – communication with commissioners, providers, patients and public;

c) Commissioning levers – commissioning contracts in public health (S7a) and primary care;

d) Partnership work – relationships with commissioners and providers; and

e) Sharing best practice – what works well, evaluation and how to embed quality improvement

Public Health England (PHE) is working with colleagues in NHS England and Health and Social Care Information Centre to implement the Accessible Information Standard which is intended to improve access to services for vulnerable and disadvantaged groups. Through the re-development of cervical Information Technology systems opportunities will arise to review how to help improve uptake.

PHE supports providers to help meet the Accessible Information Standard through the provision of high quality information for people with learning disabilities or sensory loss. A national group of experts and service users has been set up to oversee this work and will be updating the existing easy read leaflets and developing new materials over the next 18 months.

PHE is aware that there are a range of factors which may act as barriers in hindering women from attending cervical screening. It is hoped that through the STRATEGIC (Strategies to Increase Cervical screening uptake at first invitation) interventions will be identified to help minimise barriers and assist women to attend screening whilst increasing uptake across all quintiles. The STRATEGIC trial was completed in 2015 and researchers are expected to publish findings later this year.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Wollaston on 2016-09-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether staff at the National Maritime Operations Centre in Fareham are required to record a reason for not calling on a lifeboat or coastguard team or another resource.

Mr John Hayes

Her Majesty’s Coastguard staff at the National Maritime Operations Centre and Coastguard Operations Centres around the United Kingdom are encouraged to record the rationale for decisions taken for operational reasons during the coordination of maritime search and rescue incidents.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Wollaston on 2015-12-17.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Health on the Chief Medical Officer’s recommendations that PSHE education be made a routine part of children’s education.

Edward Timpson

We want all children to lead healthy and active lives. Schools have a key role to play in supporting this; the new national curriculum sets the expectation that pupils are taught, across a variety of subjects, about the importance of leading healthy and active lives.

Schools and teachers already recognise the importance of good PSHE education and know that healthy, resilient, confident pupils are better placed to achieve academically and to be stretched further. In the introduction to the national curriculum, we have made clear that all schools should make provision for PSHE, drawing on examples of good practice.

The Secretary of State for Education has regular discussions with the Secretary of State for Health about children’s health and the role schools can play in tackling childhood obesity.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Wollaston on 2016-04-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether Section 106 contributions for highways infrastructure works can be used to pay for (a) the costs of administrative, legal or design work or general highways maintenance works required prior to the installation of highways infrastructure works and (b) other associated overhead costs incurred by the local highways authority or its contractors.

Brandon Lewis

It is for the local planning authority to determine what is required and seek planning obligations through a Section 106 agreement in order to make a development acceptable in planning terms. There are three statutory tests that need to be applied when considering a planning obligation, that it is: necessary to make the development acceptable in planning terms; directly related to the development; and fairly and reasonably related in scale and kind to the development.

Developers may be asked to provide contributions for infrastructure in several ways. This may be by way of planning obligations in the form of Section 106 agreements but can also include contributions through payment of the Community Infrastructure Levy and Section 278 highway agreements.

It is for local planning authorities to decide what provisions they make in Section 106 agreements, and agree these with the interested parties, and therefore any liabilities would depend on the individual agreement. Local authorities and developers can renegotiate planning obligations by mutual agreement at any time or under Section 106A of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. However, Local planning authorities are expected to use all of the funding they receive through planning obligations in accordance with the terms of the individual planning obligation agreement. This is to ensure that new developments are acceptable in planning terms; benefit local communities and support the provision of local infrastructure.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Wollaston on 2016-06-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to increase cervical screening rates among (a) women with learning disabilities and (b) women in deprived communities.

Jane Ellison

There is a range of work going on to understand the reasons for the decline in cervical screening uptake amongst women aged 25 to 29 and to try to address them. They include:

a) Data and information – access to data, cleansing, benchmarking for providers, timely and useful information for commissioners;

b) Behavioural insight – communication with commissioners, providers, patients and public;

c) Commissioning levers – commissioning contracts in public health (S7a) and primary care;

d) Partnership work – relationships with commissioners and providers; and

e) Sharing best practice – what works well, evaluation and how to embed quality improvement

Public Health England (PHE) is working with colleagues in NHS England and Health and Social Care Information Centre to implement the Accessible Information Standard which is intended to improve access to services for vulnerable and disadvantaged groups. Through the re-development of cervical Information Technology systems opportunities will arise to review how to help improve uptake.

PHE supports providers to help meet the Accessible Information Standard through the provision of high quality information for people with learning disabilities or sensory loss. A national group of experts and service users has been set up to oversee this work and will be updating the existing easy read leaflets and developing new materials over the next 18 months.

PHE is aware that there are a range of factors which may act as barriers in hindering women from attending cervical screening. It is hoped that through the STRATEGIC (Strategies to Increase Cervical screening uptake at first invitation) interventions will be identified to help minimise barriers and assist women to attend screening whilst increasing uptake across all quintiles. The STRATEGIC trial was completed in 2015 and researchers are expected to publish findings later this year.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Wollaston on 2016-09-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many unanswered telephone calls the National Maritime Operations Centre has each day.

Mr John Hayes

Her Majesty’s Coastguard does not record the number of unanswered routine telephone calls at the National Maritime Operations Centre or at any of the Coastguard Operations Centres within the national network.

It should be noted that there is a robust system, in line with the Public Emergency Call Service (PECS) Code of Practice, to ensure that ‘999’ calls to Centres within the network are answered. This is through a cascade system across the network and if necessary to other emergency services.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Wollaston on 2015-12-17.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education on the Chief Medical Officer’s recommendations that PSHE education be made a routine part of children’s education.

Jane Ellison

The Chief Medical Officer’s Annual Report for 2012, Our Children Deserve Better (published October 2013) included a recommendation that: ‘Public Health England, the PSHE Association and other leading organisations in the field should review the evidence linking health and wellbeing with educational attainment, and from that promote models of good practice for educational establishments to use.’

There was no recommendation as such that Personal, Social and Health Education be made routine or mandatory in schools; however the Department for Education is working with a group of head teachers and experts to improve the quality of PSHE.

The Department of Health’s Framework for Sexual Health Improvement in England (2013) sets out our objectives and ambitions to improve the sexual health of all people, including young people. For young people the Framework highlights the importance of: building knowledge and resilience through good-quality sex and relationship education; access to confidential advice and support about wellbeing, relationships and sexual health; understanding consent (including sexual consent and abusive relationships), and understanding the benefits of delaying sex.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Wollaston on 2016-04-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether regulations are in place to ensure that (a) town councils, (b) parish councils and (c) local communities have access to itemised expenditure on any associated administrative, legal, design, preparatory or maintenance works associated with individual highways infrastructure works within their areas on which Section 106 contributions have been spent.

Brandon Lewis

Section 106 agreements are negotiated and agreed between a local planning authority and a developer and/or landowner along with other interested parties in the land, such as mortgage providers. National planning policy makes clear that Section 106 requirements, modifications and discharges should be transparent and available for inspection.

Local planning authorities are expected to use all of the funding they receive through planning obligations in accordance with the terms of the individual planning obligation agreement. This is to ensure that new developments are acceptable in planning terms; benefit local communities and support the provision of local infrastructure.

Planning decisions should be based on Local Plan policy unless material considerations indicate otherwise. Representations from interested third parties may constitute material considerations. Town councils, parish councils and local communities can influence infrastructure and other considerations in Local Plans through the consultation process.

The Community Infrastructure Levy was introduced to provide a faster, fairer and more transparent approach to collecting developer contributions toward infrastructure. The Government launched a review of the Levy in 2015. This review will consider a range of issues, including the relationship between the Levy and Section 106 planning obligations.