House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 17 Feb 2000 (pt 12)

Labour Market Access

30. Laura Moffatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what assessment his Department has made of the measures required to improve labour market access for the most disadvantaged groups; and what policies are in place to address this situation. [109161]

Ms Jowell: My Department assesses continuously the progress of groups at a disadvantage in the labour market. All of our policies and programmes are underpinned by a clear focus on equality of opportunity.

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Improving access for those at a disadvantage is an important element of all of our New Deals with early help for those facing particular problems. The Policy Action Team on Jobs identified a range of proposals to help people living in deprived areas and from ethnic minority backgrounds as part of the Social Exclusion Unit's work on neighbourhood renewal. Some are already being acted upon, such as the piloting of the use of intermediary organisations in New Deal.

Improving participation in learning by people from the most disadvantaged groups will be a key objective for the Learning and Skills Council. The Connexions Service, for all young people, will target intensive advice and support on those with greatest need. And our drive to improve standards in schools will also ensure that young people from disadvantaged communities are properly equipped to compete for jobs.

Early-years Education

31. Charlotte Atkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what measures the Government have taken to raise the status of those who work in early-years education since May 1997. [109162]

Ms Hodge: The Government are committed to raising the status of early-years workers and improving the quality of early education. We have listened to early-years practitioners who have said that early education should be recognised as a distinct phase of education. The Foundation Stage of the National Curriculum will be launched in September, with the new Early Learning Goals which most children should achieve at the end of the reception year. And we will be providing significant extra training and support to help deliver that.

A highly trained and qualified workforce is the key to attracting and retaining good people. Our aim is to introduce minimum levels of qualifications for leaders of early-years settings and for the practitioners that work in them. In October 1999, we introduced "A Framework of Nationally Accredited Qualifications in Early Years Education, Childcare and Playwork". The framework provides for the first time clear, comprehensive and integrated information about the skills, competencies, training and qualifications that are needed for the wide range of jobs in the sector. It will be updated this spring. We are developing occupational standards for the sector which will form the basis for further qualifications. This work is being led by the Early Years National Training Organisation, which was established in November 1998.

I believe the steps we are taking will provide people working in early-years education with a more clearly defined career structure and better recognition of the contribution they make to children's development.

Sure Start

32. Mr. Nigel Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make a statement on progress in implementing the sure start programme. [109163]

Yvette Cooper: Forty-seven of the 60 trailblazer programmes in England have now been approved and are starting to help children. The remaining 13 will follow shortly. In November 1999 we launched the second wave of Sure Start by inviting a further 69 areas to start work

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to develop local programmes. All of these are now working on drawing up outline plans. My Ministerial colleagues in Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland have responsibility for implementing Sure Start in their areas of responsibility.

Training and Further Education Spending

33. Mr. Quinn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what plans he has to re-direct resources for training and further education from spending on administration to vocational and academic education. [109164]

Mr. Wicks: Our plans to create a Learning and Skills Council will bring together, for the first time into a single coherent system, the current range of learning opportunities for individuals and workforce development. The new arrangements will cut through the present duplication and bureaucracy, and will secure savings of at least £50 million a year across post-16 learning.

These savings will be redirected to improving the quality of learning for individuals, raising standards, widening participation and tackling the skills deficit.

Disability Rights Task Force

34. Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what steps his Department plans to take to implement disability rights task force proposals as they affect education. [109165]

Ms Hodge: We announced our intention on 13 December to bring forward legislation to give people with disabilities equal access to schools and further, higher and adult education. The proposed legislation will address the key education recommendations of the final report of the Disability Rights Task Force.

Illegal Drugs

36. Mr. Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment when he last met the UK anti-drugs co-ordinator to discuss the use of illegal drugs in schools and places of work. [109167]

Jacqui Smith: I met the UK anti-drugs co-ordinator at the end of November last year, to discuss the DfEE's contribution to the Government's Anti-Drugs Strategy. We have agreed to meet quarterly in future.

As DfEE Drugs Minister, I also have met Mr. Hellawell regularly in meetings of the Ministerial Steering Group on Drug Misuse.

Maths Year 2000

Mr. Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what support his Department is giving to the Maths Year 2000. [109138]

Jacqui Smith: We have invested £6.75 million in Maths Year 2000 to promote a "can-do" attitude towards maths throughout the community. Only this morning my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education and Employment launched the first supermarket Maths Corner as part of the ASDA Big Sum Campaign. The funding for Maths Year 2000 is in addition to the £64 million which we have invested in the National Numeracy Strategy this year to raise standards of mathematics in primary schools.

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Remedial Education

Mr. Bill Michie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what studies his Department has commissioned or evaluated on the effectiveness of remedial education in primary schools. [109741]

Ms Estelle Morris: The Literacy and Numeracy Strategies form the core of our programme to raise standards in all primary schools for all pupils including those with special educational needs. These strategies are being formally evaluated by a team from the University of Toronto.

Tuition Fees

Mr. Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will estimate the total cost of abolishing tuition fees in England and Wales for each of the years 2001-02 to 2005-06; and if he will make a statement. [110024]

Mr. Wicks: I refer the hon. Member to my reply of 14 February 2000, Official Report, column 393W. Figures for beyond 2001-02 depend on student numbers on which decisions have not yet been made.

Employment Service

Mr. Pickthall: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what impact the fundamental review of Employment Service Annual Performance Agreement will have on the Annual Performance Agreement for 2000-01. [111060]

Mr. Blunkett: I am today announcing the outcome of a fundamental review of the Employment Service Annual Performance Agreement (APA) which was launched in May 1999. The review included a wide-ranging public consultation involving employers, voluntary, public and private sector organisations and other Government Departments.

The review has been an important staging post in the modernisation of the Employment Service. I want the ES to provide an outward looking, accessible and efficient service, using the latest generation of technology, which can meet the demands of its customers, whether they are jobseekers or employers, by working in close partnership with a wide range of public, private and voluntary sectors. I also want greater emphasis on equal opportunities.

As a result of the review, the Employment Service will have a brand new Vision and Purpose for 2000-01 which describes the key elements for modernising the service. I am also announcing a new Aim and Objectives, which can be easily understood by ES staff and will help them to focus on the service that they provide to employers in helping to fill their vacancies. I believe that these proposals, together with a new set of targets, will help ES to be an inclusive service which helps all people without work and particularly the most disadvantaged jobseekers. During the year I will be exploring alternative ways of weighting targets. I hope to announce target numbers before the end of March 2000.

Vision and Purpose

"The Employment Service aims to make a major contribution to an efficient and flexible labour market and to the Government's objectives of high and stable employment and growth, equality of opportunity and social inclusion. ES works closely with

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employers and with its private, voluntary and public sector partners to provide a quality service for all people without a job and to promote employment opportunities for all who can work. It aims to attract a diverse range of vacancies and to fill those vacancies quickly by matching the right people and skills with the right jobs. Its chief priority is to help individuals facing particular difficulty in the labour market to move from welfare and economic inactivity into sustainable employment. It does this through correct application of the JSA regime, delivery of the New Deals and the pilot ONE service, and provision of appropriate information, advice, training and support. The Agency has achieved much over the past three years. The challenge and opportunity now facing it is to sustain continuous improvement in its services to jobseekers and employers and to make those services more accessible and relevant to customer needs, through effective use of modern technology and close working with a wide range of partners"

Aim

"To help people without jobs to find work and employers to fill their vacancies"

Objective A

To help all people without jobs, and particularly those on welfare and at a disadvantage in the labour market, to find and keep work by providing appropriate information, advice, training and support and by encouraging employers to open more opportunities to them

Objective B

To ensure that the rights and relevant labour market responsibilities of people on JSA and other benefits are fulfilled, while helping to combat fraud and abuse of the benefit system