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Learning and Skills Councils
Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) how many (a) teachers and (b) head teachers there are on each learning and skills council; [14573]
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- (2) what proportion of those who sit on learning and skills councils are (a) teachers and (b) head teachers. [14574]
Margaret Hodge [holding answer 13 November 2001]: All 47 local Learning and Skills Councils include representatives with relevant experience from the school sector. In total, there are three teachers (0.4 per cent.) and 17 head teachers (2.4 per cent.—this figure includes one headteacher who has just retired from the profession but is still on the council) represented on local Learning and Skills Councils (LSC) and one head teacher represented on the LSC's Young Peoples Advisory Committee. In total 2.8 per cent. of members are teachers or head teachers. However 20 per cent. of all LSC members have an interest in and particular experience of school education either as school governors (14 per cent.), LEA officials (four per cent.) or members (one per cent.). Also eight local Executive Directors (1 per cent.) have either previous LEA or headteacher experience.
Almost all LLSCs have other local authority representatives (often at council leader or chair of education level).
There are also 45 FE heads and three FE lecturers who are local council members.
In April 2002, the LSC assumes responsibility for school sixth form funding, and in recognition of this we will encourage the LSC to appoint further representatives from the school sector as and when council vacancies arise.
A breakdown showing the number of teachers, head teachers, FE heads, FE lecturers, school governors and LEA/LA reps on each LSC is outlined in the table:
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Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much VAT it is estimated that the Learning and Skills Council will pay in the current financial year. [23926]
Margaret Hodge: This is a matter for the Learning and Skills Council. I have, therefore, asked John Harwood, the Council's Chief Executive, to write to the hon. Member with the information requested and to place a copy of his reply in the Library.
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the projected staff numbers were for the Learning and Skills Council in its first year of operations, and how many staff are in post. [23927]
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Margaret Hodge: The set up figure for the Learning and Skills Council is 4,757 posts. At the end of November, it employed 4,575 people. This figure equates to 4,444 full time equivalents and gives a profile of 93.4 per cent. of posts filled.
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the total projected spend this financial year is on the LSC (a) administration and (b) staff budget and what percentage of its total budget will be spent on administration. [23928]
Margaret Hodge: The total projected spend by LSC on administrative costs in 2001–02 is £213 million.
The total projected spend by LSC on staff costs in 2001–02, included in the above figure, is £138 million.
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The percentage of the LSC's total budget to be spent on administration is 3.9 per cent.
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills on what date her Department received the LSC request for an increase in its administration budget. [23929]
Margaret Hodge: Officials from the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) have been in contact with officials from the Department for Education and Skills for many months, to discuss the LSC's running costs.
The original administration budget for the LSC was set a couple of years ago, based on the then best estimates of the costs of the previous arrangements. The LSC became operational in April 2001 and inherited the majority of its costs from its predecessors (in particular Training and Enterprise Councils, and the Further Education Funding Council). It was always going to be the case that the actual running costs of the LSC would not be clear until it was up and running.
We now have more up-to-date and accurate estimates of the administration costs of the previous arrangements, which are significantly higher than the earlier estimates. We announced a £25 million increase in the LSC's administration budget on 10 December, which delivers the commitment given to Parliament of at least £50 million savings compared to the previous arrangements.
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