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Former Incapacity Benefit Claimants

Mr. Alan Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment (1) what research her Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated into the employment needs of people who have previously claimed incapacity benefit; [2771]

(2) what assessment she has made of the similarities and differences between the employment needs of people registering as unemployed who were formerly incapacity benefit claimants who (a) first claimed incapacity benefit after April 1995 and (b) formerly were on invalidity benefit before 1995. [2772]

Mr. Forth: Responsibility for the subject of the questions has been delegated to the Employment Service agency under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

Letter from M. E. G. Fogden to Mr. Alan Howarth, dated 12 November 1996:

The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question about the research and evaluation which has been commissioned into the employment needs of people who have previously claimed Incapacity Benefit (IB). You also asked what assessment has been made of the similarities and differences between the employment needs of people registering as unemployed who were formally IB claimants, who first claimed IB after April 1995 and those who were on Invalidity Benefit before 1995. I will answer both questions in this one reply. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency.
The needs of people who have previously claimed a sickness benefit have been examined by Employment Service (ES) Occupational Psychology Division. This work compared the needs of those people who had been disallowed IB (which we refer to as ex-IB) at the time they make a claim to unemployment benefit with those of other jobseekers at the same point. It was hoped that through this work it would be possible to identify whether ex-IB jobseekers had different employment needs so that the package of help that the ES offers these people could be reviewed to ensure that it is correctly focused. This package of help includes a full advisory interview when they first make their claim, early access to ES programmes such as Jobplan and Jobclub and, if appropriate, help from our specialist disabilities services.
The work by our Psychologists showed that this was a diverse group with a wide range of employment and jobseeking needs. It did not specifically compare those who had been on Invalidity Benefit (IVB) with those who made a claim to IB after April 1995, but looked across the board, finding that other personal factors influenced need rather than purely the time that they had been claiming a sickness benefit and the nature of that benefit.
The psychologists found that the full advisory interview was valuable and that ES programmes could meet the needs of many of these people. The work has led ES to consider the possibility of a specially tailored programme for people who have previously claimed a sickness benefit, should the future volumes of such clients warrant it. The work of the psychologists has also enabled us to provide additional guidance for our advisers dealing with people who have claimed Incapacity Benefit.
I hope this is helpful.

Safety Measures (Guidance)

Mr. Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what guidance she plans to issue to local education authorities and schools on the development of action plans for implementing and monitoring the effectiveness of safety measures. [2753]

12 Nov 1996 : Column: 134

Mr. Robin Squire: The Department produces a wide range of safety guidance for local education authorities and schools, for example, on improving school security, safety aspects of outdoor education and safety in science education.

Schools (Selection Applications)

Mr. Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many schools have applied to select more than 15 per cent. of their intake; and in each case if she will list (a) the percentage selected, (b) the selection criteria and (c) the status of the schools concerned. [2754]

Mr. Robin Squire: Since 1989, 25 schools have applied to select more than 15 per cent. of their intake. The following table lists the percentage of selection, the selection criteria, and whether the proposals were approved, rejected, or are still under consideration.

LEA area	School name	Selection
Approved
Grant maintained
Barnet	Queen Elizabeth Boys' School	100 per cent. including 10 per cent. by aptitude for music
Barnet	Mill Hill County High School	30 per cent. by aptitude for technology
Berkshire	Southlands School	One selective form of entry (18 per cent.)
Cumbria	Queen Elizabeth Grammar School	100 per cent. by ability
Hammersmith and Fulham	London Oratory School	20 boys at age 7 on musical and general ability
Hertfordshire	Watford Grammar School for Girls	50 per cent. selection by ability
Hertfordshire	Watford Grammar School for Boys	50 per cent. selection by ability
Hertfordshire	Parmiters School	50 per cent. selection by ability
Hertfordshire	Rickmansworth School	50 per cent. selection by ability
Kent	Chaucer Technology School	100 per cent. by aptitude for technology
Kingston	Holy Cross School	15 per cent. selection by ability
Lambeth	Archbishop Tenison's GM school	banding including
Lambeth	St. Martin in the Fields High School	40 per cent. of above average
Lambeth	Dunraven GM School	ability
Surrey	Roseberry GM Girls' School	30 per cent. selection on academic ability and 10 places on aptitude for music
Wandsworth	Graveney GM School	50 per cent. selection by ability
Wandsworth	Burntwood School	50 per cent. selection by ability
Voluntary aided
Liverpool	The Blue Coat School	100 per cent. selection by ability
Rejected
Grant maintained
Hertfordshire	The Bishop's Stortford High School	50 per cent. selectionby ability
Kent	The Westlands School	One selective form of entry (11 per cent.)
Kirklees	Castle Hall GM School	100 per cent. selection by ability
Lambeth	Dunraven GM School	50 per cent. selection by ability
Surrey	Glyn ADT GM Technology School	40 per cent. selection by aptitude for technology
Sutton	Cheam High School	50 per cent. selection by ability
Under consideration
Grant maintained
Bromley	Hayes School	25 per cent. selection by ability

12 Nov 1996 : Column: 135

Nursery Education

Mr. Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many three and four-year-olds were in (a) nursery classes in primary schools, (b) nursery schools and (c) reception classes at January 1996. [2756]

Mr. Robin Squire: The available information is shown in the following table:

Pupils aged 3 and 4 in maintained nursery and primary schools in EnglandPosition as at January

Nursery classes in primary schools	312,094
Nursery schools	52,177
Infant classes in primary schools(17)	344,222

(17)Includes reception and other classes.

Jobseeker's Agreement

Mr. Alan Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what is her estimate of the costs to the Employment Service of administration of the jobseeker's agreement. [2770]

Mr. Forth: Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

Letter from M. E. G. Fogden to Mr. Alan Howarth, dated 12 November 1996:

The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question about the costs to the Employment Service of administration of the Jobseeker's Agreement. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency.
The Jobseeker's Agreement is an integral part of the effective delivery of the Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA). It is an agreement which is entered into by a Jobseeker and an employment officer and which complies with the prescribed requirements in force at the time when the agreement is made.
The Jobseeker must sign the agreement which states their availability for, and what they will do to actively seek employment. The Jobseeker's Agreement is used during the Jobseeker's intervention to discuss their efforts to find work.
However, the agreement is only one aspect of an intervention under JSA, and therefore it is not possible to separately identify the cost of administering just the Jobseeker's Agreement within the overall costs of Jobseeker's Allowance.
I hope this is helpful.

12 Nov 1996 : Column: 136

Books Expenditure

Mr. Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what was the average amount spent per pupil on books, for each of the past five years, broken down by (i) special schools, (ii) primary schools and (iii) secondary schools. [2763]

Mr. Robin Squire: The following table shows expenditure per pupil on books and equipment for local education authority maintained (i) special, (ii) pre-primary and primary, and (iii) secondary schools from 1990-91 to 1994-95, the latest year for which figures are available. Spending on books is not recorded separately.

Books and equipment cost per pupil

	£
Special
1990-91	177
1991-92	236
1992-93	255
1993-94	241
1994-95	249
Pre-primary and primary
1990-91	41
1991-92	54
1992-93	59
1993-94	62
1994-95	64
Secondary
1990-91	80
1991-92	93
1992-93	98
1993-94	102
1994-95	103

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