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Technology College Initiative
Mr. Sutcliffe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what are the criteria for bids for the technology college initiative. [13101]
Mrs. Gillan: The criteria for applications for technology college designation are set out in "Technology College Applications: A guide for Schools". A copy of this publication is available in the Library.
Mr. Sutcliffe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many schools that were successful under the technology college initiative were members of the Technology Colleges Trust. [13095]
Mrs. Gillan: Of the 180 technology colleges so far operating or announced, 154 are members of the Technology Colleges Trust.
Mr. Sutcliffe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what feedback was given to those schools whose bids for the technology college initiative failed to be accepted. [13096]
Mrs. Gillan: Letters to schools unsuccessful in their applications for designation as technology colleges give a general indication of the reasons. Schools which contact
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the Department are given some further feedback but the Department does not enter into detailed discussion about applications.
Mr. Sutcliffe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what is the role of the Technology Colleges Trust in advising on submissions for the initiative. [13097]
Mrs. Gillan: Applicants for technology college designation may request advice from the Technology Colleges Trust about seeking sponsorship, drawing up development plans and preparing applications. This carries no commitment that a school's application will be approved or that it will be given preference over applications from other schools. Information about this is set out in the guidance document available to all schools from the Department.
Mr. Sutcliffe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many grant-maintained schools were awarded technology college initiative status.[13098]
Mrs. Gillan: Of the 180 technology colleges so far operating or announced, 92 are grant-maintained schools.
Mr. Sutcliffe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what is the geographical distribution of schools awarded the technology college initiative status. [13099]
Mrs. Gillan: An analysis by Government office area of the 180 technology colleges so far operating or announced is given in the table.
| Government office region | Number of technology colleges |
|---|---|
| Eastern | 18 |
| East midlands | 18 |
| London | 18 |
| Merseyside and north-west | 33 |
| North-east | 12 |
| South-east | 32 |
| South-west | 17 |
| West midlands | 19 |
| Yorkshire and Humberside | 13 |
| Total | 180 |
Mr. Sutcliffe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many schools achieved technology college initiative status. [13100]
Mrs. Gillan: One hundred and fifty-one schools are now operating as technology colleges under the specialist schools programme. A further 29 technology colleges were announced on 3 January to operate from September 1997.
Grant-maintained Schools, Kent
Sir John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what is the proportion of state (a) primary schools and (b) secondary schools in Kent that are grant maintained. [13173]
Mr. Robin Squire: Five per cent. of primary schools and 54 per cent. of secondary schools in the Kent local education authority area are grant maintained.
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Sir John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what was the number of grant-maintained (a) primary schools and (b) secondary schools for which the Kent local education authority no longer had financial responsibility as at the end of the 1992-93 financial year; and in respect of how many grant-maintained (i) primary schools and (ii) secondary schools Kent local education authority has ceased to have financial responsibility since the beginning of the 1993-94 financial year. [13172]
Mr. Squire: At 31 March 1993, there were three primary and 33 secondary grant-maintained schools in the Kent local education authority area. Since 1 April 1993, 25 primary and 35 secondary schools in Kent have become grant maintained. Since 1 April 1994, the recurrent budgets for these schools have been determined and paid by the Funding Agency for Schools, with their annual maintenance grants being recouped from the local education authority.
WALES
BSE
Mr. Jon Owen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish evidence that he has evaluated on whether BSE-infected meat is currently present within the human food chain in Wales. [12162]
Mr. Gwilym Jones: The Government have put in place a number of measures to protect the public health from any risk from BSE. These include the destruction of all cattle suspected of suffering from BSE and the removal of specified bovine material to ensure that issues in which BSE infectivity might be found do not enter the human food chain. No infectivity has ever been found in meat.
Returns for BSE enforcement measures show continuing high compliance rates. Full details of all measures and compliance are published on a regular basis in the BSE enforcement bulletin. This is widely available and copies are placed in the Library.
Mr. Barry Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement on his policy concerning BSE as it affects farms in Flintshire. [12287]
Mr. Jonathan Evans:
The control measures introduced by the Government have put the BSE epidemic into sharp decline. The number of new cases is currently at the lowest level for over six years.
We announced on 16 December 1996 that we would be moving ahead with the selective cull throughout the UK. We will have fulfilled all the Florence preconditions by implementing the cull; we shall be pressing for early progress on lifting the ban. We have listened carefully to the views of the farming industry on this matter, and have undertaken consultations both on the selective cull and on proposals for certified herds.
Mr. Barry Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how he proposes to safeguard the existing funding of those voluntary organisations devoted to supporting deaf and profoundly deaf people in Flintshire and other locations in the former county of Clwyd. [12283]
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Mr. Jonathan Evans:
The future funding of voluntary organisations which work in support of deaf people in Flintshire is a matter for the local authority and the health authority.
Mr. Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what amounts of cash he gave to the former county of Clwyd for the support of deaf and profoundly deaf people in the former county of Clwyd. [12284]
Mr. Evans:
Between 1992-93 and 1996-97 grants of over £182,000 were allocated under the flexible forms of community care and support for people with disabilities grant schemes to projects supporting deaf people in the former county of Clwyd. This includes £30,000 allocated to the North Wales Deaf Association.
Mr. Barry Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the mileage of dual carriageway in the county of Flintshire. [12280]
Mr. Gwilym Jones:
According to the latest estimates provided by the local authority based on Ordnance Survey maps published in 1990 the length of dual carriageway in Flintshire, measured in one direction only, was 35.7 miles.
Sir Wyn Roberts:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the average parental income of children currently assisted under the assisted place scheme in Wales. [12607]
Mr. Jonathan Evans:
Details of gross parental incomes are not held centrally. However, currently 46 per cent. of parents of children participating under the scheme pay no fees at all because their relevant annual incomes are below the contribution threshold of £9,783.
Mr. Rowlands:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what estimate he has made of the (a) percentage and (b) number of dental practices in Wales which do not currently treat children under the national health service. [12481]
Mr. Gwilym Jones:
The information requested is not held centrally.
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much was allocated to agri-environmental schemes in Wales other than Tir Cymen and environmentally sensitive areas in the last year for which figures are available; and how much has been allocated to farmers whose land is designated as severely disadvantaged within the less favoured area. [12645]
| Scheme | £000 |
|---|---|
| Habitat scheme | 610 |
| Moorland scheme | 1,280 |
| Organic aid | 382 |
| Countryside access | 2 |
| Total | 2,274 |
There is no separate allocation for less favoured areas. These schemes are voluntary and the amount paid in less favoured areas depends on the number of farmers from those areas who choose to enter the scheme.
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Mr. Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what has been the total amount allocated by the Countryside Council for Wales for the Tir Cymen scheme during the current financial year; and how much has been allocated to farmers whose land is designated as severely disadvantaged within the less favoured area. [12646]
Mr. Evans: In 1996-97, £5.36 million has been allocated. A number of farmers whose land has been designated as severely disadvantaged within the less favoured areas have entered the scheme, although there is no separate record of how much has been allocated to them.
Mr. Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what has been the total sum allocated under the environmentally sensitive area scheme for the current financial year; and how much has been allocated to farmers whose land is designated as severely disadvantaged within the less favoured area. [12647]
Mr. Evans: The provision for 1996-97 is £6.76 million. There is no separate allocation for less favoured areas. The scheme is voluntary and the amount paid in less-favoured areas depends on the number of farmers from those areas who choose to enter the scheme.
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