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Universities
35. Mr. Rammell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make a statement on the future level of funding for universities. [152585]
Mr. Wicks: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced last November increases of £412 million, £268 million and £298 million over 2001-02 to 2003-04 for higher education in England: between 1998-99 and 2003-04 the total additional funding will be over £1.7 billion. For the first time in over a decade the unit of funding per full-time equivalent student will increase in real terms in 2001-02 and expansion will be fully funded in the following two years.
There is also additional funding for research. In July 2000 the Government announced £1 billion in funding for improvements in research infrastructure, available to institutions in 2002-03 and 2003-04. Universities will be able to bid for part of an extra £250 million provided by Office of Science and Technology for research into genomics, e-science and basic technology.
Early Excellence Centre
36. Mr. Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what plans he has to develop the early excellence centre programme. [152586]
Ms Hodge: The EEC programme is at the forefront of our policies to develop good practice in integrated care, education and family services. 29 centres are making a real difference to the lives of children and their families. On 27 February we announced the designation of six new centres and an additional £17 million to expand the programme. Working closely with Sure Start and Neighbourhood Nurseries, we will create up to 100 centres across the country by 2004.
Disability Taskforce
38. Mr. Joyce: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make a statement on the Government's response to the disability taskforce report. [152588]
Ms Hodge: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave on 5 March 2001, Official Report, column 14W.
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Long-term Unemployed
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what measures he is taking to encourage small businesses to recruit long-term unemployed people from disadvantaged communities. [152561]
Ms Jowell: At least 275,000 long-term unemployed young people have already found work through the New Deal, the majority in small and medium sized businesses. From April this year we will pilot a new project called Recruit, a simplified employment subsidy for small and medium sized businesses which employ people from the New Deal in disadvantaged areas. Less bureaucracy, more people into jobs--that is our commitment to small employers and the unemployed.
Nursery Places
Ms Ryan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how the new neighbourhood nurseries initiative will support the national childcare strategy. [152567]
Ms Hodge: The national childcare strategy aims to create 1 million new childcare places for 1.6 million children across the country by 2004. 45,000 additional places in up to 900 new or expanded neighbourhood nursery centres will also be created. These nurseries will be in the most disadvantaged areas of the country where many families cannot presently access high quality childcare. The places created should be in well-designed buildings and sustainable over time, meeting childcare needs now and in the future.
New Classrooms
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many new classrooms have been created in the Warrington, North constituency; and which schools have received them since 1997. [149484]
Jacqui Smith [holding answer 8 February 2001]: Figures on the number of new classrooms created are not readily available. I refer my hon. Friend to the replies I gave on 27 June 2000, Official Report, columns 472-74W, for details of specific allocations made to schools in the Warrington, North constituency. The table shows the total capital investment made in schools in Warrington local education authority since 1997-98.
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| £000 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Funding stream | 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | 2000-01 |
| Basic Credit Approvals | 5,295 | 1,189 | 829 | 2,389 |
| Supplementary Credit Approvals | 534 | 193 | 90 | 92 |
| Grant to Voluntary Aided Schools | 1,277 | 207 | 438 | 505 |
| New Deal for Schools | 972 | 1,083 | 1,500 | 2,776 |
| School Security Grant | 275 | 66 | 67 | 67 |
| Energy Efficiency Initiative | -- | 62 | -- | -- |
| Key Stage 1 Class Size Initiative | -- | 218 | 1,436 | 442 |
| National Grid for Learning Grant | -- | 401 | 465 | 670 |
| Assistance with Asset Management Plans | -- | -- | 27 | -- |
| Seed Challenge Funding | -- | -- | -- | 152 |
| Devolved Formula Capital for Schools | -- | -- | -- | 1,438 |
| Renewal of School Laboratories | -- | -- | -- | 149 |
| Schools Access Initiative Grant | 20 | 5 | 9 | 48 |
| Outside Toilets | -- | 56 | -- | -- |
| Secondary Support Learning Units | -- | -- | -- | 43 |
| Total | 8,373 | 3,480 | 4,861 | 8,771 |
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Warrington local education authority was established in 1998. Figures shown for 1997-98 are for Cheshire local education authority, which included Warrington at that time.
Schools Funding (Stroud)
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will list the additional resources he has made available to schools in Stroud since 1997 according to sector; under which (a) scheme and (b) funds they are provided; and if he will make a statement. [152178]
Jacqui Smith [holding answer 6 March 2001]: I refer my hon. Friend to the letter sent to him on 16 February by the Secretary of State concerning increases in funding that the Government have made available to Gloucestershire local education authority since 1996-97.
Information showing the schools in the Stroud constituency, which benefited under the New Deal for Schools, is shown in Table A. These allocations formed
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part of the £12.482 million investment made so far in schools in Gloucestershire local education authority under the New Deal for Schools programme.
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 under the previous Administration. It is in addition to other capital funds made available to Gloucestershire local education authority.
In total, since 1997, Gloucestershire local education authority has received some £54.887 million of funding for capital investment in school buildings as shown in Table B.
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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(36) Denotes total allocations made to projects in Phase 1 of the New Deal for Schools programme. Gloucestershire local education authority will be able to advise the value of projects at this school.
(37) Denotes total allocations made to package projects covering more than one school. Gloucestershire local education authority will be able to advise the value of projects at schools in the Stroud constituency which benefited from these allocations
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