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Computers for Teachers

Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what the definition of a Key Stage 3 maths teacher is for the purpose of determining qualification for the second phase of the £500 subsidy for the purchase of computer equipment; and if it is a requirement that the recipient be a maths graduate. [147553]

Mr. Wills [holding answer 26 January 2001]: The definition of Key Stage 3 mathematics teacher for the purposes of determining qualification for the second phase of the Computers for Teachers scheme is that their current responsibilities include teaching mathematics at Key Stage 3 in the maintained secondary sector (including non-maintained special schools and middle schools) in England. (They must teach at least

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one mathematics Key Stage 3 lesson per week). Those that qualify need not be mathematics graduates.

School Playing Fields

Mr. Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment, pursuant to his answer to the right hon. Member for Penrith and The Border (Mr. Maclean) of 22 January 2001, Official Report, columns 439-40W, on school playing fields, what the basis is for his estimate of the number of school playing fields sold in England in every month between 1979 and 1997. [147774]

Jacqui Smith [holding answer 29 January 2001]: Public concern about the loss of school playing fields led directly to the introduction in October 1998 of section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. Before section 77 was introduced, only grant-maintained schools were required to seek consent from the Secretary of State before selling land, including areas of their playing fields. Local authorities and other schools that owned their own playing fields were free to sell without restriction. It is estimated that an average of 40 playing fields a month were sold in this way before October 1998. This estimate is based on the number of playing field disposals at grant-maintained schools between April 1996, when the previous Government further encouraged the disposal of playing fields by relaxing the Local Authority Capital Finance Regulations which governed the use of sale proceeds, and 1 October 1998, when section 77 took effect. During this 30-month period, some 64 grant- maintained schools were given approval to dispose of areas of playing field, which is an average of over two a month. Using the proportion of grant-maintained schools at that time compared with the number of other schools, we estimate the total number of playing field disposals each month to have been around 40. These estimates are in line with answers given previously by the Minister of State, Home Office, my hon. Friend the Member for Norwich, South (Mr. Clarke), when he was Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at this Department.

Travel Industry Students

Mr. Fearn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what financial assistance his Department provides to students studying for qualifications relating to the travel industry. [147950]

Mr. Wicks: We make no specific provision for students on courses related to tourism. Financial support is therefore available to those students who are eligible on the same basis as students in further and higher education generally.

We have, in 2000-01, contributed £103,000 through the Travel, Tourism, and Events National Training Organisation towards a variety of projects to assist employers in the development of a lifelong learning framework to address the current and future skill needs in the industry.

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Education Rights (UN)

Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what communications he has received regarding the October 1999 visit of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education; and what measures he is taking to take account of UN concerns, with particular respect to provision for traveller children. [148044]

Jacqui Smith: Following the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education's visit to the UK in October 1999, and her visit report which was presented to the Commission on Human Rights in 2000, I have not received any external communications about her earlier visit in October 1999.

I am nevertheless meeting the Special Rapporteur again on 7 February to discuss the report of her visit. I will use the opportunity to explain the provision we are making to promote access to, and achievement of, traveller children in school.

The Special Rapporteur will also be meeting my right hon. Friend the Minister of State and Deputy Home Secretary on 7 February, to discuss her concerns about the provision of education in prisons.

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New Deal for Schools

Mr. Gareth R. Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will list the (a) primary and (b) secondary schools in the Harrow, West constituency which have received funding under the New Deal for Schools since May 1997, with the amount of funding in each case. [148266]

Jacqui Smith: The table shows the schools in the Harrow, West constituency which have benefited from investment through the New Deal for Schools programme, which commenced in 1997-98. These allocations formed part of the £4.554 million investment made so far in schools in the London borough of Harrow local education authority, and of the £6.415 million made so far in schools in the London borough of Brent local education authority, under the New Deal for Schools. The New Deal for Schools was introduced as a new additional programme targeted specifically at addressing the backlog of urgent repairs in school buildings that had built up after 18 years of underfunding under the previous Administration. It is in addition to other capital funds made available to the London borough of Harrow and the London borough of Brent local education authorities.

Nationally, investment in school buildings has tripled from £683 million a year in 1996-97 to over £2 billion in 2000-01. It will be £3.2 billion in 2003-04, including grant, credit approvals and Private Finance Initiative credits. There will be central Government investment of £7.8 billion in school buildings in total from 2001-02 to 2003-04.

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New Deal for Schools: Allocations to schools in the Harrow, West constituency

Year/school	Project details	Grant awarded (£)
1997-98
Included within LEA wide package:
St. George's First and Middle RC (Voluntary Aided)	Internal alterations	(19)88,000
1998-99
Included within 3 school package:
Rooks Heath High
Harrow Tuition Service PRU	Provision of extended fire escapes	(19)138,800
Hatch End High
Pinner Park Middle	Replacement of aging boiler	46,000
Whitmore High	Rewire of technology block and upgrading of key equipment	38,750
Shaftesbury High	Repairs to roof structure, coverings and gutters	184,000
Grimsdyke First and Middle	Rewire of whole school	155,250
Included within 5 school package:
West Lodge Middle	Renew boilers and/or pipework	(19)299,000
Roxbourne First and Middle	Rebuild deteriorating parapet wall	23,000
LEA wide package for 25 schools	Waterproof envelope works	(20)1,058,900
LEA wide package for 8 schools	Repair, renewal or demolition of dangerous structures	(20)263,000
1999-2000
Included within 6 school package:
Longfield First and Middle	Urgent health and safety repairs to unsafe structures	(19)374,000
Rooks Heath High
2000-01
Roxbourne Middle	Structural repairs and recladding to first floor link	29,568

⁽¹⁹⁾ Denotes total allocations made to a package of several projects covering a number of schools in the London borough of Harrow local education authority, which will be able to advise the value of projects at individual schools in the Harrow, West constituency which benefited from these allocations.

⁽²⁰⁾ Denotes total allocations made to a package of several projects covering a number of schools in the London borough of Brent local education authority, which will be able to advise the value of projects at individual schools in the Harrow, West constituency which benefited from these allocations.

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Atrocity Lessons

Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what guidance he has issued to schools on the provision of education on the Holocaust and other brutalities that have taken place in recent years. [148309]

Jacqui Smith: Within the History National Curriculum all pupils are required to study the Holocaust during Key Stage 3. Within that section there is also an opportunity to examine post war issues including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD) Education Working Group comprising experts from non- governmental organisations and DfEE officials produced an education pack for HMD, which was distributed to all schools by the Holocaust Educational Trust. Within the extensive cross-curricular resource pack there is reference to contemporary issues of brutality, and specific material on the recent genocides in the Balkans and Rwanda. The Education Working Group will be developing a strategy for sustainable resources on Holocaust education to support Holocaust Memorial Day in the future.

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