Oral QuestionDepartment for Education

What steps he is taking to ensure that the attainment gap between disadvantaged children and their peers does not widen during the covid-19 outbreak.

Tabled: 28 April 2020Answered: 5 May 2020

Asked by

Sarah Jones

LabourCroydon West

Answering Minister

the Secretary of State for Education

Answer from Hansard

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government (Alex Norris)

I am very excited that high street rental auctions are capturing the imagination of local communities and colleagues in this place. A common view for all of us is that vacant shops are a blight and that high street rental auctions are a great tool with which to tackle them. We are working with some early adopters, but I encourage all local authorities to come forward and be active in this space. As of 15 January, we have made a £1.5 million fund available to support the delivery of those powers across the country.