| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
Climate Change Levy
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what estimate he has made of the impact of the climate change levy on school budgets for 2001-02. [154152]
Ms Estelle Morris [holding answer 16 March 2001]: The climate change levy is broadly revenue neutral. Revenue raised through the levy will finance reductions in employers' National Insurance Contributions and expenditure on energy efficiency measures. The impact of the levy on any sector or business will depend on a number of factors such as employment levels, energy efficiency and the extent to which exempt energy is used. I would expect that as large employers the majority of local authorities will be net gainers from the levy.
Where particular categories of maintained school are entitled to relief from the levy by virtue of their charitable status, local education authorities are free to reflect this in their school funding formulae if they so wish.
Failing Schools
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will list the maintained schools in England designated as (a) failing schools, (b) requiring
19 Mar 2001 : Column: 49W
special measures and (c) having serious weaknesses indicating for each school (i) the parliamentary constituency in which it is situated, (ii) the local education authority in which it is situated and (iii) the number of pupils on roll at the school. [153293]
Ms Estelle Morris [holding answer 12 March 2001]: Schools which have been found by Ofsted to be failing or likely to fail to provide an acceptable standard of education for their pupils require special measures. Schools come in and out of special measures and serious weaknesses on a daily basis. Details are in inspection reports published by the schools themselves and by Ofsted on its website. I shall place a list of schools currently on special measures showing their local education authority and parliamentary constituency in the Library. The Department does not hold a list of schools having serious weaknesses.
More schools on special measures are being turned around and schools are on special measures for a shorter period. Twenty-seven schools were removed from special measures between September 1993 and May 1997 and 684 schools have been turned around since May 1997. The time taken to turn around schools has fallen from 25 months to 18 months.
School Performance Targets
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what the (a) number and (b) percentage of maintained schools is in which the headteacher has agreed performance targets with the governing body. [149801]
Ms Estelle Morris: The Education (School Teacher Appraisal) (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2000 require the governing body to agree objectives with the headteacher by 6 April 2001.
Our latest information is that 20,923 headteachers in 91 per cent. of maintained schools have or will have agreed objectives with their governing body by 6 April 2001.
Nursery Provision (Sefton)
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make a statement on nursery provision in each year since 1996 in the Borough of Sefton. [151332]
Ms Hodge: Table 1 shows the amount of funding available through the Nursery Education Grant, Childcare Grant, European Social Fund and the 0-5 sub-block of the Education Standard Spending Assessment to Sefton local education authority in each year since April 1996.
Table 2 shows the number of early education places created through Nursery Education Grant and other local education authority resources (including the 0-5 sub-block of Education Standard Spending Assessment). This table also shows the number of new places created using the Childcare Grant.
From September 1998, all four year olds have been able to access a free, part-time, early education place. From April 2001, Sefton will be able to offer every three year old a nursery education place funded through either Nursery Education Grant or the LEA's own resources.
19 Mar 2001 : Column: 50W
From September 2004, all three year olds in England will be entitled to a free early education place.
| Early years and childcare funding (£) | |
|---|---|
| 1996-97 | 5,570,000 |
| 1997-98 | 5,320,124 |
| 1998-99 | 7,033,820 |
| 1999-2000 | 7,828,881 |
| 2000-01 | 8,621,138 |
| 2001-02 | 9,215,520 |
| Early years places | New childcare places created | |
|---|---|---|
| 1996-97 | 5,414 | -- |
| 1997-98 | 5,607 | -- |
| 1998-99 | 5,319 | -- |
| 1999-2000 | 5,575 | 323 (number of children = 612) |
| 2000-01 | 6,027 | (22)425 (number of children = 731) |
(22) As at December 2000.
Early Excellence Centre
Mr. Hesford: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what plans he has to develop the Early Excellence Centre programme. [153778]
Ms Hodge: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Heywood and Middleton (Mr. Dobbin) on 15 March 2001, Official Report, column 729W.
Retired People (Employment)
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what his policies are for encouraging retired people aged 60 years and over into employment. [153757]
Ms Hodge: We are seeking to maximise employment opportunities for all whatever their age and circumstances. Our Code of Practice on Age Diversity in Employment encourages employers to support an age diverse workforce. Government programmes of training and support to individuals such as New Deal 50+, Work Based Learning for Adults are open to those over 60.
Wildcat Corporation
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment, pursuant to his answer of 8 March 2001, Official Report, column 299W, on New Deal, what departmental (a) funds, (b) resources and (c) staff have been made available to Wildcat (i) directly and (ii) via New Deal Task Force. [153685]
Ms Jowell [holding answer 13 March 2001]: No Departmental funds, resources, or staff have been made directly available to Wildcat Corporation. The New Deal Task Force is a non-departmental public body. Of Task Force's funds, resources and staff, 20 per cent. of one member of staff's time was allocated to Wildcat Corporation for liaison. The New Deal Task Force have paid just over £10,200 to Wildcat from their own resources for consultancy fees and have also met some incidental expenses associated with Wildcat visits. Wildcat staff have also made use of New Deal Task Force
19 Mar 2001 : Column: 51W
office facilities on an informal basis during their visits when needed to support their work. It is not possible to cost these marginal expenses.
Sure Start (Birkenhead)
Mr. Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many children have benefited from the Sure Start programme in Birkenhead; how many children he expects to benefit over the duration of the Sure Start programme in Birkenhead; and what the Government expenditure on the Sure Start programme in Birkenhead will be in each year of its operation. [154403]
Yvette Cooper: All the 732 children aged under four currently living in the area covered by the North Birkenhead Sure Start programme will benefit from Sure Start. In addition, every new baby born in the area and every family with children under four who moves into the area will also be covered by the programme. Over time, the lessons learned from Sure Start programmes will influence the wider development of services for all children and families, particularly those living in disadvantaged areas.
The programme was awarded £2.4 million over three years. Annual grants allocated for the first three years are as follows:
| Capital | Revenue | |
|---|---|---|
| 2000-01 | 266,500 | 394,500 |
| 2001-02 | 421,000 | 665,400 |
| 2002-03 | 8,000 | 690,700 |
Grants for future years will be agreed at a later stage of the programme.A further Sure Start programme in Birkenhead, in the Rock Ferry and New Ferry area, is now in the early planning stages, and is likely to start work in autumn 2001.
Child Care (Slough)
Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what targets have been set for the provision of extra child care places in Slough; how many extra places have been provided since May 1997; and how many more are planned. [151900]
Ms Hodge: We are unable to show statistics on child care places by local authority prior to April 1999.
Slough Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership (EYDCP) set themselves a target to create 795 new child care places in the two years between 1999-2001. Between April 1999 and September 2000, Slough EYDCP has reported the creation of 243 new child care places, providing care for 464 children.
In addition to the creation of new child care places, from September 1998, all 4-year-olds in Slough have been able to access a free, part-time, early education place. From autumn 2000, Slough has been allocated 340 early education places for 3-year-olds funded through Nursery Education Grant. This increases to 378 places from summer 2001. By September 2004, all 3-year-olds including those living in Slough will have access to a free early education place, some of which will by funded be the local education authority.
19 Mar 2001 : Column: 52W
Slough EYDCP will be proposing targets for the creation of child care places between 2001-04 in the EYDCP plan due to be received by 31 March. We will write again when this has been received.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |