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London Borough of Wandsworth
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how much funding he has given to the London borough of Wandsworth in each of the last three years. [145157]
Ms Estelle Morris: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I sent him on 18 December 2000.
Standards Fund (Newcastle)
Mr. Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will list the schools in Newcastle upon Tyne that will receive extra resources because they are below the target of 25 per cent. A to C grade GCSEs; how much each will receive; and where in the ranking of the eligible schools each eligible school in Newcastle appears. [145249]
Ms Estelle Morris: All secondary schools in Newcastle benefit from additional targeted funding through the Excellence in Cities initiative. The four with 25 per cent. or fewer pupils gaining with five or more GCSEs at grades A* to C in summer 2000 will receive further support. West Denton High will receive £70,000 in 2001-02 from the new element of the School Improvement Grant targeted on low attaining schools, the rate for such schools in special measures. Walker Technology College and West Gate Community College will each receive £20,000, the standard rate for schools in Excellence in Cities areas. Firfield benefits from a separate Fresh Start grant, of £250,000 in 2000-01, and will receive notification by March of further grant in 2001-02. We have not produced a ranking of eligible schools.
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Mr. Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how much money was available to the City of Newcastle upon Tyne under the Standards Fund for each year of the Fund; how much was spent; and what was the total amount available under the Fund for 2001-02. [145250]
Ms Estelle Morris: The table shows how much supported expenditure was available to Newcastle upon Tyne for each year from 1997-98 and how much was spent up to 1999-2000. Figures on expenditure for 2000-01 are not yet available. Final allocations for 2001-02 have not yet been made. The figures include all grants paid through the Standards Fund payment system, excluding New Deal for Schools capital, which is not part of the Standards Fund programme. All figures include both Government and local authority contributions.
| £ | ||
|---|---|---|
| Allocations | Expenditure | |
| 1997-98 | 2,594,095 | 2,464,546 |
| 1998-99 | 5,148,626 | 5,025,456 |
| 1999-2000 | 6,585,062 | (18)6,527,165 |
| 2000-01 | 13,492,656 | Not available |
(18) Subject to final audit
Children and Young People's Unit
Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what the staff complement is of the Children and Young People's Unit located in his Department; from which Government Departments and in what numbers his staff has been drawn; what is the (a) total estimated annual cost to each Department and (b) overall estimated annual cost of the unit; and what arrangements are in place to secure co-ordination with the work of Departments with responsibilities for the unit. [145397]
Mr. Boateng: The Children and Young People's Unit has a total of 26 staff at present. Twelve are from the Department for Education and Employment; four from the Department of Health; two from the Home Office; two from the Employment Service; one from the Treasury; and one from the Department of Social Security. A further four members of staff are new to the civil service, and include two from the voluntary sector. Althea Efunshile, currently the Executive Director for Education and Culture with the London borough of Lewisham, will take up post as Head of Unit later this month. Funding for the Unit is drawn from the £450 million allocation for the Children's Fund and not from individual Departments. The Unit is still at an early stage of its development and it is not yet possible to confirm its annual costs.
The Unit has an inter-departmental steering group which helps ensure effective co-ordination between officials. As my answers to the other questions the hon. Member poses make clear, the new Ministerial Committee on Children and Young People's Services is the guarantor of co-ordination across Government.
Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what proportion of the time
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of the Minister of State, Home Office, the right hon. Member for Brent, South (Mr. Boateng), is devoted to the work of the Children and Young People's Unit within his Department; and on whose departmental vote the support costs are carried. [145398]
Mr. Boateng: It is not possible to quantify the proportion of time that I devote to my role as Minister for Young People. However, the remit given to me by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister is one of my key priorities.
The Children and Young People's Unit has its own Request for Resources within the Department for Education and Employment's Estimate. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education and Employment's answer on 31 October 2000, Official Report, column 369W, sets out in some detail the accounting arrangements.
Youth Policies
Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make a statement on co-ordination of the activities of the Connexions Unit, the Children and Young People's Unit and the Youth Service Unit. [145399]
Mr. Boateng: The Government recognise that it is vital to ensure their policies affecting children and young people are co-ordinated and coherent. The Cabinet Ministerial Committee on Children and Young People's Services co-ordinates work across Government on services for children and young people aged 0-19. This work includes that of the Children and Young People's Unit and of the Connexions Service National Unit, which now embraces the Youth Service Unit.
The Children and Young People's Unit supports the Cabinet Committee in its co-ordination role and also manages the Children's Fund, which will help to improve services for vulnerable young people. As Minister of State for Young People, I have day-to-day responsibility for the Children and Young People's Unit and its activities. My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State responsible for Lifelong Learning is the Minister responsible for the Connexions Service, a universal service for all 13 to 19-year-olds, and on behalf of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education and Employment chairs an Inter-departmental Connexions Ministerial Group.
Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make a statement on the work of inter-ministerial and Cabinet Committees in co-ordinating youth policies. [145400]
Mr. Boateng: The Cabinet Ministerial Committee on Children and Young People's Services is chaired by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor, with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education and Employment as its vice-chair. Its remit to co-ordinate policies to prevent poverty and under-achievement among children and young people, co-ordinate and monitor the effectiveness of delivery and work with the voluntary sector to build a new alliance for children. I chair an inter-departmental ministerial sub-committee which supports the Cabinet Committee.
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CABINET OFFICE
Social Exclusion Unit
Mr. Kilfoyle: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how the work of the Social Exclusion Unit is incorporated into her initiatives on drug abuse. [145191]
Marjorie Mowlam: The Government's anti-drugs strategy fully acknowledges the close link between problems associated with drug abuse and other social problems, and the work of the SEU helps to inform the ways in which the various strands of the drugs' strategy are delivered on the ground. Drug misuse is one of a combination of linked problems that can lead to social exclusion. It has been a recurrent theme in reports produced so far by the Social Exclusion Unit, in particular the reports on rough sleepers, poor neighbourhoods and opportunities for 16 to 18-year-olds not in education, employment or training.
As examples of joined up government in action, the UK Anti-Drugs Co-ordination Unit is working closely with the Rough Sleepers Unit to tackle the multiple problems facing the homeless. A study of young homeless people will shortly be commissioned under the Government's drugs research programme focusing on vulnerable groups.
Also, the Department for Education and Employment is implementing the action plan set out in the Unit's "Bridging the Gap" report. All young people between the ages of 13 to 19 will have access to a Connexions Personal Adviser to provide advice, guidance and support to help them overcome barriers to effective participation in learning and society more generally. Personal Advisers will be trained in recognising the symptoms of drug misuse, making referrals and brokering access to appropriate drugs projects and agencies.
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