PARLIAMENTARY DEBATE
Curriculum and Assessment Review - 14 September 2026 (Commons/Commons Chamber)

I thank the hon. Lady for all the work she does on the Education Committee.

Reforms to curriculum and assessment go hand in hand with our vision to ensure that education is a passport for work, life and success. Becky Francis did a fantastic job for us on the review, and we will soon publish proposals to go out to consultation that build on it. The proposals will ensure a broader and more inclusive education system, with fewer barriers to progression, stronger technical and vocational options, more emphasis on oracy and more stepping-stone qualifications.

The Government have committed to providing an enrichment entitlement for every child, including access to nature. Evidence shows that outdoor education can be part of the solution to some of the biggest issues facing our young people, such as the mental health and obesity crisis, the rise in NEETs and a failing SEND system. However, when a fifth of children in the most deprived parts of the country never spend meaningful time outdoors, something has to change. A framework for schools is not enough; we need a step change. Will the Secretary of State back my Outdoor Education Bill so that every child can grow up outdoors with better mental wellbeing, physical health, attainment, attendance and employability?

Again, I thank the hon. Lady for all the campaigning she has done on this and for bringing to this House a really important Bill so that we can debate these issues. I think those issues go wider than the school system. This is a bigger piece about what childhood means in the 21st century, and how we can all support children to be independent, to have success and good wellbeing, and to be happy. Playing and being outdoors are of course a critical part of that.

An important feature of the curriculum and assessment review was the recognition of and the commitment to strengthening financial literacy as a vital life skill for young people. To ensure we can deliver on that ambition, participating in the OECD’s PISA financial literacy assessment will help us to both measure our progress and identify gaps in that progress. Can the Secretary of State set out what assessment she has made of the merits of UK participation in 2029, and will she meet me to discuss it?

My hon. Friend is absolutely right, and we have expressed an interest in taking part in the PISA financial literacy assessment in 2029. We recognise the importance of financial education for children and young people, which we will strengthen in the upcoming maths and citizenship curricula. I would be happy to meet with him to discuss how we can take that further.

I commend my hon. Friend the Member for South Devon (Caroline Voaden) for her Bill. I draw the Secretary of State’s attention to the recent change of the law by the Scottish Parliament that entitles every young person at school to five days outdoors with four nights in residential accommodation, which brings massive benefits to their resilience, love of learning and capacity to work together in teams. Given that 81% of children from the poorest backgrounds never get access to outdoor education, is it not time that we considered doing something similar?

I am absolutely with the hon. Member on the importance of residential activities, and for every young person to have access to them. I am not sure if Ghyll Head is in his constituency—

The hon. Member is nodding. I went to Ghyll Head as a child—it is owned by Manchester city council—and my children have been there. It is a fantastic facility, and my ambition is that every child has the opportunity to go somewhere as fantastic as that. I am happy to work with him on these issues.

This summer, the Prime Minister set out his ambition for our education system:

“Whether you choose construction, coding or classics…Labour will build an education system where you’ll get the skills you need”.

As chair of the all-party parliamentary group on classics, I really welcome that. Will the Secretary of State set out her vision for the arts and humanities in our curriculum to ensure that more young people take up these subjects, which are so good at empowering them with skills?

My hon. Friend has already spoken to me a number of times about these issues, because he is a very good chair of the APPG on classics. I thank him for his question, and he is absolutely right. We have to recognise that the current offer in our education system has got narrower and narrower, and even bringing in measures such as the EBacc has not helped to preserve important subjects such as classics and computer science. In fact, they have fallen significantly since its introduction. I want to ensure that all our young people have access to these great academic subjects as well as to technical ones.

I welcome the new shadow Minister.

Oh dear, Mr Speaker—honestly! They had a go at it last week and it did not go very well, so they are having another go this week. If the hon. Gentleman can find where I said that I wanted to bring back coursework then he can bring it to me, because I did not say that. [Interruption.] No, I did not at all.

Order. Members can come in with their own questions. We do not need anything further.

I gave a 10-minute statement to the House last week and I answered questions for 90 minutes. I think that gave a very clear account of what I want to do. The Opposition want to defend their narrowing and narrowing of the curriculum without accepting responsibility for the effects of that. I do want to ensure that great subjects such as computing involve using a computer, because they took that out of the curriculum entirely. I want to ensure that PE involves some PE. Call me a radical, Mr Speaker, but I think that goes in hand in hand. I make no apology either for wanting to see oracy very much at the heart of our curriculum in school. They send their kids to private school, where they all come out really confident in speaking. I want that for every child.