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EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT

National Vocational Qualifications

Mr. Bryan Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what percentage of NVQs at each level have been awarded by each awarding body in each year since their introduction. [23084]

Mr. Paice: Due to a confidentiality agreement between the National Council for Vocational Qualifications and the awarding bodies, information showing the number or

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percentage of awards made by each awarding body is not available.

Mr. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many full NVQs have been awarded at each level in each year since their introduction; and how many awardees were mostly or wholly trained for these awards in (i) further education or sixth form colleges, (ii) secondary schools, (iii) private training providers and (iv) other enterprises. [23085]

Mr. Paice: Information on the number of NVQ awards made at each NVQ level, broken down by year, is available from NCVQ and is shown in the following table. By the end of 1995, the total number of awards made at each level were: 262,000 at level 1; 613,000 at level 2; 126,000 at level 3; 42,000 at level 4; and 2,000 at level 5.

Comprehensive information on the type of centre at which the awardee was trained is not available.

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Awards of NVQs by year and level
Thousands

Year to endLevel 1Level 2Level 3Level 4Level 5Total
199019288.003058.00
19914553.007.005.000111.00
19924092137(10)--152.00
199349127.0018.0081202.00
199455.00144.0029.0011.001.00240
199554168.00518.001282.00

Note:

(10)Fewer than 500 awards.

Source:

NCVQ.


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Bishop Challoner School

Dr. Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment when Bishop Challoner school entered into franchise agreements with Solihull college; and what is the current status of those agreements. [23522]

Mr. Robin Squire: I understand that the school entered into a franchise arrangement with Solihull college from September 1994 and that it ended in July 1995.

Dr. Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment when the head teacher and bursar of Bishop Challoner school were suspended; and if she will make a statement on the finances of the school. [23520]

Mr. Squire: The school's external auditors have raised concerns about the school's draft 1994-95 accounts. In the light of that, the school's governing body, on the instruction of the Funding Agency for Schools, appointed outside consultants, Robson Rhodes, to help draw up a recovery plan which will also report on the precise financial position of the school.

The school's governing body took the decision to suspend the headteacher and the bursar on 15 February 1996 and to call in the police to investigate its concerns about some aspects of the management of the school's finances.

Dr. Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment (1) when Bishop Challoner school

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applied to change its status from an 11-to-16 to an 11-to-18 years school; what objections have been received in respect of the application; when these were received; and what is the current position with regard to that application; [23519]

Mr. Squire: The governors of Bishop Challoner Roman Catholic grant-maintained school published proposals on 28 March 1995 to make a significant change in the character of the school by changing the age range from 11-to-16 to 11-to-18 with effect from 1 September 1996. The Further Education Funding Council and Birmingham local education authority submitted statutory objections to the proposals on 4 and 24 May 1995 respectively. The proposals are currently under consideration.

Dr. Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what was Bishop Challoner school's overspend at the time grant-maintained status was granted; and what were the financial implications of this for the local education authority. [23523]

Mr. Squire: The Funding Agency for Schools determined the school's annual maintenance grant for 1993-94, taking into account the financial position of the school when it became grant maintained on 1 October

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1993. I have asked the chairman of the funding agency to arrange for a reply to be sent to the hon. Member.

Careers Service

Mr. David Nicholson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what representations she has received that the careers service does not provide advice to school leavers about the opportunities for self-employment; and if she will make a statement. [23581]

Mr. Paice: I met representatives from the Princes youth business trust on 7 February and this matter was discussed. The Secretary of State requires careers services to provide school leavers with advice on the full range of education, employment and training options, including self-employment and the financial help available to support it. Careers services must help their clients to make decisions which are appropriate in their individual circumstances.

Sixth Forms (Birmingham)

Dr. Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if she will list all 11-to-16 schools in Birmingham that have franchise agreements with sixth form and further education colleges enabling them to open sixth forms. [23451]

Mr. Robin Squire: I understand that the following 11-to-16 schools have franchising arrangements with institutions in the Further Education Funding Council sector: Selly Park girls' school, Holy Trinity Roman Catholic school, Holyhead school, Aston Manor school, Park View school, and Holte school. For an 11-to-16 school, the establishment of a sixth form would constitute a significant change in the character of the school, which would require the publication of proposals under sections 12 or 13 of the Education Act 1980, or section 96 or 97 of the Education Act 1993, as appropriate.

Maintained Schools

Mr. David Nicholson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what is (a) the estimated number of pupils in maintained schools and (b) the amount allowed in the annual capital guidelines in respect of each such pupil for (i) 1994-95, (ii) 1995-96 and (iii) 1996-97, for (1) Somerset, (2) Shropshire, (3) Devon, (4) Dorset, (5) Buckinghamshire, (6) Kent, (7) Hampshire, (8) Norfolk and (9) Oxfordshire. [23580]

Mrs. Gillan: The information requested is set out in tables 1 and 2 in respect of 1994-95 and 1995-96, with the pupil numbers dating from the preceding January.

Since annual capital guidelines--ACGs--are mostly for capital work at county and voluntary controlled schools, the amount allowed per pupil is based on pupils at such schools in the local education authorities concerned, but the ACGs will have been used for specific work at particular schools, not for all schools in the LEAs. Total pupils at all maintained schools are listed separately. Estimates of numbers in maintained schools at January 1996 are not yet available on an individual LEA basis.

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Table 1: Annual Capital Guidelines and pupil numbers

LEAAnnual Capital Guideline (ACG)January county and controlled school populationACG total per pupil
££
1994-95
Somerset3,240,00057,73856
Shropshire6,990,0052,498133
Devon7,961,000121,78465
Dorset5,395,00062,21787
Bucks6,829,00079,97085
Kent15,660,000161,57897
Hampshire18,583,000185,178100
Norfolk3,890,00085,73245
Oxfordshire3,745,00067,35256
1995-96
Somerset2,608,00058,59745
Shropshire7,423,00053,155140
Devon11,627,000124,54693
Dorset3,340,00062,87153
Bucks9,245,00080,147115
Kent21,248,000157,204135
Hampshire14,762,000187,54679
Norfolk3,122,00086,06336
Oxfordshire6,767,00069,04198

Table 2: Pupil numbers at all maintained schools

January 1994January 1995
Somerset64,83666,129
Shropshire60,83062,158
Devon140,257143,538
Dorset85,91987,981
Bucks99,194101,378
Kent232,055266,310
Hampshire217,545221,186
Norfolk103,705105,170
Oxfordshire76,83878,806

Post-16 Education (Birmingham)

Dr. Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if she will make a statement about surplus post-16 years places in educational establishments in Birmingham. [23521]

Mr. Robin Squire: The Department does not routinely collect information in this form.


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