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Physical Education
20. Mr. Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment when he last had discussions with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport about the allocation of time in school hours for physical education. [138381]
Jacqui Smith: My right hon. Friend and I meet regularly with DCMS Ministers and discuss a wide range of issues including the Government's Sport Strategy. These discussions include the aspiration that schools should provide two hours of physical activity a week. The meetings are backed up by a comprehensive set of arrangements involving a wide range of partners in the educational and sports sectors, to advise on the implementation of the Sports Strategy. A group considering education issues is meeting monthly and will put proposals to both Secretaries of State in December. In September, the Prime Minister also announced further major investment in sport. £750 million of Lottery funding will be targeted at refurbishing PE and sports facilities in over 1,500 schools and outdoor adventure facilities. In conjunction with this, the Schools Sports Co-ordinators scheme will be expanded to 1,000 co-ordinators in communities of greatest need, based in families of primary and secondary schools, and 150 Specialist Sports Colleges will be established by 2004 to provide the lead in innovative practice, and to work with partner secondary and primary schools to share good practice and raise standards.
Teacher Retention/School Standards
21. Mr. Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make a statement on progress in improving teacher retention and school standards. [138382]
Ms Estelle Morris: All of my right hon. Friend's policies for schools are designed to improve standards. Further to the Green Paper "teachers: meeting the challenge of change" policies are being put in place to improve training, pay, leadership and support for the teaching profession, and thereby to improve the quality, morale and retention of teachers.
Training Needs
22. Mrs. Mahon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what measures he is taking to address training needs in areas of high disadvantage and low employment. [138383]
Ms Jowell: By helping unemployed people gain the skills and experience they need to find work, the Government's welfare-to-work programmes are playing a crucial role in helping disadvantaged areas. Training is available for those who need it through the New Deals and, for those aged 25 and over, through work-based learning for adults. In the most deprived areas of the
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country, Action Teams for Jobs are providing additional funds and additional effort to help connect people without work with the employers with jobs to offer.
From next year, local Learning and Skills Councils will play an active role in building the skills of people living in deprived neighbourhoods, and in promoting equality and social inclusion.
New Deal
23. Mr. Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make a statement on the progress of his Department's Employment Service units of delivery review of local variations in the performance of ethnic minorities under the new deal. [138384]
Ms Jowell: The Employment Service strategy for engaging ethnic minority jobseekers and businesses in New Deal includes an action plan which is reviewed every six months with units of delivery in all areas.
Evidence from the reviews shows that the Employment Service are increasingly working in partnership with those representing ethnic minority groups to draw into New Deal those jobless people who are currently outside the system. Young people from ethnic minorities do better on New Deal compared to previous programmes and the general labour market. However, the numbers of those moving into unsubsidised jobs on leaving New Deal is 8 percentage points lower for young people from ethnic minority communities.
The Employment Service, with the help of New Deal Task Force's Ethnic Minority Advisory Group and the Black Training and Enterprise Group, has created an improvement plan focusing on areas where changes are needed. We intend to see significant improvements before the end of this Parliament.
25. Mr. Ian Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many 18 to 22-year-olds (a) have been unemployed for over six months, (b) are on New Deal and (c) are on follow through; and how many had been unemployed for over six months when New Deal came into force on a national basis. [138387]
Ms Jowell: The New Deal for young unemployed people applies to those aged 18-24. New Deal starts with an initial Gateway phase when an individual has had six months of unemployment. Latest figures show that in October 2000 there were 36,500 18 to 24-year-olds who had been claimant unemployed for six months or more. When the New Deal came into force nationally, in April 1998, there were 119,369 18 to 24-year-olds unemployed for six months or more.
Latest figures show that, at the end of August 2000, there were 115,300 young people on the New Deal. Of these 81,100 were claiming JSA--59,600 who were on the Gateway, and 21,500 who were in the follow through stage.
Higher Education Ombudsman
24. Tony Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment when he plans to introduce an ombudsman for higher education. [138386]
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Mr. Wicks: The Committee of Vice Chancellors and Principals (CVCP) will give the Government its proposals for the reform of student complaints procedures at the end of the year. I understand an ombudsman is among the options the Committee is reviewing. We shall consider carefully the implications of the Committee's proposals for the Government.
Autistic Spectrum Disorders
26. Mr. Blizzard: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make a statement on education provision for children with autistic spectrum disorders. [138388]
Jacqui Smith: Local education authorities and schools have a duty to meet children's special educational needs, including those of children with autistic spectrum disorders. Provision for children with autistic spectrum disorders is made in a range of settings from autism specialist to mainstream schools. A recent survey by the National Autistic Society of one thousand of its members found that 73 per cent. of parents were satisfied with the education their child was receiving. My Department continues to work closely with the society and others to bring about further improvement.
School Milk
27. Mr. Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make a statement about his Department's support for the provision of milk in schools. [138389]
Jacqui Smith: The Government strongly recommend, in guidance for school caterers on implementing national nutritional standards for school lunches published on 15 November, that drinking milk is available as an option every day. Where milk is provided, it must be free to all pupils whose parents are in receipt of Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance. All other drinking milk must be charged for. We encourage local education authorities to participate in the European Union's school milk subsidy scheme. Although the level of subsidy is being reduced from 95 per cent. to 75 per cent. from 1 January 2001, my Department, along with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Department of Health, are pleased to be providing £1.5 million a year in England to make up the funding shortfall. This measure will ensure that no additional costs fall to local education authorities or parents.
Literacy and Numeracy Hours
29. Dr. Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what assessment he has made of the impact of the numeracy and literacy hours in primary schools. [138391]
Ms Estelle Morris: This year's Key Stage 2 results show that the literacy and numeracy strategies are raising standards. 75 per cent. of pupils achieved level 4 or above in English, a 10 percentage point increase since 1998, and 72 per cent. in mathematics, a 13 percentage point increase. Ofsted confirm that the strategies are resulting in
"better teaching and better achievement in English and mathematics" and that this
"more structured teaching is having a positive effect in other curriculum areas".
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Ms Estelle Morris: This year's Key Stage 2 test results show that the literacy and numeracy strategies are raising standards. 75 per cent. of pupils achieved level 4 or above in English, a 10 percentage point increase since 1998, and 72 per cent. in mathematics, a 13 percentage point increase. The results also show that the strategies are narrowing the achievement gap between advantaged and disadvantaged LEAs. In English, no LEA is now achieving below 60 per cent., while in 1996, the average LEA achieved only 57 per cent. Ofsted confirm that the strategies are resulting in
"better teaching and better achievement in English and mathematics" and that this
"more structured teaching is having a positive effect in other curriculum areas such as science".
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