Department for Education

The Department for Education is responsible for children’s services and education, including early years, schools, higher and further education policy in England. DfE is a ministerial department, supported by 14 agencies and public bodies.

Website

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-education

Ministers

• The Rt Hon Gillian Keegan MP
  Secretary of State for Education
• The Rt Hon Nick Gibb MP
  Minister of State (Minister of State for Schools)
• The Rt Hon Robert Halfon MP
  Minister of State (Minister for Skills, Apprenticeships and Higher Education)
• Claire Coutinho MP
  Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Minister for Children, Families and Wellbeing)
• Baroness Barran MBE
  Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Minister for the School System and Student Finance)

Petitions linked to this department

Sorted by date, most recent first

• Newest
• Oldest
• Most signatures

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• Increase the £100k childcare income cap in line with inflation
  Opened on Friday 20th March 2026
  1,383 signatures so far

• Introduce a Fixed Cap on Total Interest for Pre-Existing Plan 2 Student Loans.
  Opened on Friday 20th March 2026
  36 signatures so far

• Exempt all military families from school fines — let them be with family.
  Opened on Friday 20th March 2026
  3,574 signatures so far

• Implement a national education framework to help students affected by cancer
  Opened on Thursday 19th March 2026
  23 signatures so far

• Remove all interest from Plan 2 student loans and recalculate balances
  Opened on Thursday 19th March 2026
  49 signatures so far

• Make school libraries statutory in all secondary schools
  Opened on Wednesday 18th March 2026
  1,552 signatures so far

• Make teaching the dangers of the oversexualisation of women compulsory for KS4/5
  Opened on Tuesday 17th March 2026
  56 signatures so far

• Allow mothers to stay with children in foster care when parenting isn’t the risk
  Opened on Tuesday 17th March 2026
  77 signatures so far

• Make a statutory requirement for schools to have a bereavement policy for pupils
  Opened on Tuesday 17th March 2026
  960 signatures so far

• Add Politics & Economics lessons to the secondary school curriculum
  Opened on Tuesday 17th March 2026
  63 signatures so far

• Schools to allow absence exceptions for students with mental health struggles
  Opened on Monday 16th March 2026
  55 signatures so far

• Reduce Interest on Student Loans & Cap Total Debt at One Year’s Average Salary
  Opened on Monday 16th March 2026
  94 signatures so far

• Review educational provision for children with SEMH needs
  Opened on Monday 16th March 2026
  52 signatures so far

• Fund free therapy access for students in all schools
  Opened on Friday 13th March 2026
  33 signatures so far

• Require schools to accept part-time working requests for people with children
  Opened on Friday 13th March 2026
  18 signatures so far

• Change the statutory term ‘Special Educational Needs’ to more inclusive language
  Opened on Friday 13th March 2026
  209 signatures so far

• Ban interest on student loans above RPI and reform loans system
  Opened on Thursday 12th March 2026
  35 signatures so far

• Introduce mandatory ankle and feet checks by school nurses in school
  Opened on Thursday 12th March 2026
  26 signatures so far

• Raise the threshold for postgraduate loan repayments in line with inflation
  Opened on Wednesday 11th March 2026
  36 signatures so far

• Review accountability of schools using local authority SEN funding
  Opened on Wednesday 11th March 2026
  28 signatures so far

• Review education about nutrition and responsible farming in schools
  Opened on Wednesday 11th March 2026
  56 signatures so far

• Automatically remove parental responsibility for parents convicted of abuse
  Opened on Wednesday 11th March 2026
  7,336 signatures so far

• Bring the teaching of Key Word Signing in to all nurseries and schools
  Opened on Wednesday 11th March 2026
  784 signatures so far

• Align Plan 2 student loan interest rates with Plan 5 (RPI only).
  Opened on Tuesday 10th March 2026
  159 signatures so far

• Pause & review the Children’s Wellbeing & Schools Bill regarding home education
  Opened on Tuesday 10th March 2026
  1,614 signatures so far

• Fund the construction of more special education schools
  Opened on Tuesday 10th March 2026
  35 signatures so far

• Include more financial education in secondary school curriculum
  Opened on Tuesday 10th March 2026
  50 signatures so far

• Ban schools from issuing absence fines to both parents if they’re separated
  Opened on Tuesday 10th March 2026
  40 signatures so far

• Give kinship carers equal financial & legal support to foster carers
  Opened on Tuesday 10th March 2026
  211 signatures so far

• Add mental health therapy training to school curriculum
  Opened on Monday 9th March 2026
  51 signatures so far

• Fund education on gender-based violence and misogyny in schools
  Opened on Monday 9th March 2026
  96 signatures so far

• Improve funding, pay & professional recognition for the Early Years workforce
  Opened on Friday 6th March 2026
  26,346 signatures so far

• Add more female scientists to the National Curriculum
  Opened on Friday 6th March 2026
  1,129 signatures so far

• All schools/SEND & disability units to be fitted with CCTV
  Opened on Friday 6th March 2026
  45 signatures so far

• Restore Plan 2 student loan repayment threshold increases from April 2026
  Opened on Friday 6th March 2026
  70 signatures so far

• Review and reform Plan 2 student loan repayment terms
  Opened on Friday 6th March 2026
  236 signatures so far

• Ban school attendance fines for parents of reception age
  Opened on Thursday 5th March 2026
  43 signatures so far

• Government must increase practical elements in Drama GCSE guidelines
  Opened on Wednesday 4th March 2026
  16 signatures so far

• Make CCTV compulsory on all SEND transport
  Opened on Tuesday 3rd March 2026
  35 signatures so far

• Cap student loan interest rates at inflation (CPI), do not apply retrospectively
  Opened on Friday 27th February 2026
  241 signatures so far

• Reduce school to 4 days a week and have optional extra activities
  Opened on Thursday 26th February 2026
  110 signatures so far

• Launch a cross departmental review into school term times, holiday care & work
  Opened on Wednesday 25th February 2026
  62 signatures so far

• Fund history teachers free/discounted entry to historical sites
  Opened on Tuesday 24th February 2026
  464 signatures so far

• Give home fee status to students who came as dependents & with no settled status
  Opened on Monday 23rd February 2026
  545 signatures so far

• Introduce lessons on neurodivergence to the curriculum for all children
  Opened on Monday 23rd February 2026
  76 signatures so far

• Uni Students with Coeliac Disease to be eligible for enhanced bursary
  Opened on Monday 23rd February 2026
  44 signatures so far

• Make British politics compulsory in the secondary school curriculum
  Opened on Monday 23rd February 2026
  107 signatures so far

• Include more modern and diverse authors in the GCSE English curriculum
  Opened on Monday 23rd February 2026
  78 signatures so far

• Require teachers to follow the school uniform standards as pupils
  Opened on Monday 23rd February 2026
  42 signatures so far

• Set policy that exam boards should give students notice of GCSE exam topics
  Opened on Monday 23rd February 2026
  23 signatures so far

• Free School Meal criteria to include all families receiving UC, DLC & benefits
  Opened on Monday 23rd February 2026
  21 signatures so far

• Make road safety lessons a mandatory part of the curriculum
  Opened on Monday 23rd February 2026
  62 signatures so far

• Replace RPI with CPI in the calculation of interest added to student loans
  Opened on Monday 23rd February 2026
  95 signatures so far

• Reject Lords amendment on age checks to the Children’ Wellbeing & Schools Bill
  Opened on Friday 20th February 2026
  125 signatures so far

• Expand free school meals provision to cover all school children
  Opened on Friday 20th February 2026
  1,042 signatures so far

• Fund and distribute first-period boxes through schools and healthcare settings
  Opened on Friday 20th February 2026
  113 signatures so far

• Fund information campaign for secondary school teachers about generative AI
  Opened on Friday 20th February 2026
  40 signatures so far

• Introduce national support standards for autistic children with PDA
  Opened on Friday 20th February 2026
  13,839 signatures so far

• Abolish the Office of the Children’s Commissioner
  Opened on Friday 20th February 2026
  317 signatures so far

• Allocate share of per-pupil education funding to support home-educated children
  Opened on Friday 20th February 2026
  188 signatures so far

• Do Not Scrap the 1265 Directed Time Provision for Teachers
  Opened on Thursday 19th February 2026
  10,422 signatures so far

• Introduce Romanian into the GCSE Curriculum
  Opened on Thursday 19th February 2026
  3,003 signatures so far

• Require all schools to start at 10AM
  Opened on Thursday 19th February 2026
  90 signatures so far

• Launch a review into increasing the teaching of LGBTQ education in schools
  Opened on Thursday 19th February 2026
  62 signatures so far

• Permit childminders to claim funding for children who they are related to
  Opened on Tuesday 17th February 2026
  20 signatures so far

• Introduce a statutory duty to acknowledge and support menstrual health.
  Opened on Tuesday 17th February 2026
  32 signatures so far

• Review levels of pay for Teachers' Maternity Leave
  Opened on Tuesday 17th February 2026
  774 signatures so far

• Require all LAs in England to publish why children enter elective home-ed
  Opened on Tuesday 17th February 2026
  54 signatures so far

• Pause Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill for consultation with children
  Opened on Monday 16th February 2026
  4,348 signatures so far

• Review staff ratios for educational and early years settings based on need
  Opened on Monday 16th February 2026
  50 signatures so far

• Fund an increase in school meal sizes
  Opened on Monday 16th February 2026
  21 signatures so far

• Mandate yearly exams in secondary school
  Opened on Monday 16th February 2026
  16 signatures so far

• Require social workers to use body-worn cameras during statutory visits
  Opened on Monday 16th February 2026
  1,066 signatures so far

• Commission an independent inquiry into social care and social work
  Opened on Monday 16th February 2026
  419 signatures so far

• Make Monday a half day for all secondary schools
  Opened on Friday 13th February 2026
  31 signatures so far

• Explicitly exclude sex offenders from accessing children’s data under CWS Bill
  Opened on Friday 13th February 2026
  1,110 signatures so far

• Create a free, government-backed retraining programme for adults
  Opened on Wednesday 11th February 2026
  24 signatures so far

• Abolish interest charges on student loans
  Opened on Wednesday 11th February 2026
  22,128 signatures so far

• Give children 5 school days of "bookable" leave per academic year
  Opened on Wednesday 11th February 2026
  370 signatures so far

• Fund high-quality, non-partisan political and citizenship teaching resources
  Opened on Wednesday 11th February 2026
  1,109 signatures so far

• Increase 30 free hours childcare availability to cover 52 weeks per year
  Opened on Wednesday 11th February 2026
  337 signatures so far

• Allow unpaid trainee teachers on placement to access 30 hours of free childcare
  Opened on Tuesday 10th February 2026
  183 signatures so far

• Expand statutory SEN allowance entitlement to Teaching Assistants in SEN schools
  Opened on Tuesday 10th February 2026
  680 signatures so far

• Introduce UK Safe Haven Laws & fund baby boxes
  Opened on Tuesday 10th February 2026
  47 signatures so far

• Review ways for children with ECHPs to go to mainstream schools and colleges
  Opened on Friday 6th February 2026
  21 signatures so far

• Amend the Government’s statutory school guidance to tackle misandry
  Opened on Thursday 5th February 2026
  43 signatures so far

• Let low-income parents take kids on short term-time holidays without fines
  Opened on Thursday 5th February 2026
  52 signatures so far

• Review the amount of written exams for GCSEs
  Opened on Wednesday 4th February 2026
  37 signatures so far

• Require schools to teach British Sign Language from Key Stage 2 & at GCSE
  Opened on Wednesday 4th February 2026
  248 signatures so far

• End the practice of placing children for adoption in NAI cases
  Opened on Monday 2nd February 2026
  23 signatures so far

• Review family planning support for parents who lose custody
  Opened on Thursday 29th January 2026
  21 signatures so far

• Require schools prioritise comfort in uniforms & more personal choice for pupils
  Opened on Tuesday 27th January 2026
  54 signatures so far

• Require consent for child images in political or controversial articles
  Opened on Monday 26th January 2026
  75 signatures so far

• Stop T-Levels replacing funding for BTecs
  Opened on Monday 26th January 2026
  28 signatures so far

• Ban all face coverings on school grounds for the security
  Opened on Monday 26th January 2026
  90 signatures so far

• Require every secondary school to have access to a counsellor
  Opened on Wednesday 21st January 2026
  56 signatures so far

• Introduce a Kannada language GCSE
  Opened on Tuesday 20th January 2026
  625 signatures so far

• Fund a universal Government Grant for all PGCE trainee teachers
  Opened on Friday 16th January 2026
  22 signatures so far

• ​Mandate stricter childcare staff ratios: In-room presence & 2:1 qualified staff
  Opened on Friday 16th January 2026
  39 signatures so far

• Make SEND awareness a mandatory part of primary school curriculum
  Opened on Friday 16th January 2026
  65 signatures so far

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