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Education Act
Julie Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which children are excluded from the exercise of a local authority's functions under section 14 of the Education Act 1996. [51800]
Mr. Ivan Lewis [holding answer 23 April 2002]: Section 14 of the Education Act 1996 (the 1996 Act) sets out the duty of the local education authority (LEA) to provide sufficient primary and secondary schools for its area. Schools must be sufficient in number, character and equipment to provide education for all pupils, suitable to their age, ability and aptitude and the different periods for which they may remain at school, including appropriate practical instruction and training.
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Section 14 does not impose any duty in respect of children under five. It allows an LEA to provide education for people over compulsory school age and under 19, including those from other areas.
In exercising its functions under section 14, an LEA must have regard to the need to provide primary and secondary education in different schools, the need to secure special educational provision for pupils with special educational needs, and the expediency of securing boarding provision where necessary.
The duty is general and does not give rise to a specific duty for an individual child or for a class of children.
None of the LEA's duties under the 1996 Act applies in respect of any person who is in custody because of a court order or an order of recall made by the Secretary of State.
Further Education (Incomplete Courses)
Mr. David: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of further education college students failed to complete their courses in the last two years. [52280]
John Healey: 17 per cent. in both 1999–2000 and 1998–99.
Students may take more than one qualification and complete a proportion of them, so the completion rate is calculated on the basis of qualifications. The figures relate to qualifications due for completion in these years in further education colleges in England.
PFI/PPPs
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) if she will make a statement on the criteria that were used to decide on the recent allocations of PFI/PPP to local authorities; [52325]
- (2) what bids were received from Gloucestershire local education authority for access to PFI/PPP funds in the recent round; and what discussions took place between her officials and local authority officers as a result, including debriefing on the bid. [52326]
John Healey [holding answer 26 April 2002]: The Department issued guidance to all local education authorities on 31 July 2001 setting out the criteria against which all bids for capital allocations, including PFI credits, would be assessed. Paragraph 2.5.12 of that guidance sets out in some detail the specific criteria for PFI bids.
Gloucestershire local education authority submitted a bid for PFI funding in the recent round to replace three secondary schools. A meeting has been arranged between local authority officers and a senior official from the Schools Private Finance Team on 26 April 2002, at which debriefing on the unsuccessful bid will be given.
School Funding
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills by what means she will ensure that the additional payments to primary and secondary schools, referred to in the Chancellor's Budget, reach the schools. [52363]
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John Healey: All the direct funding for schools of which the Chancellor gave examples in his recent Budget speech goes to schools. It is for schools themselves to decide how this money is used within the context of standard guidance.
The Chancellor announced additional capital funding of £85 million for schools and colleges in England in 2002–03, which will be delivered to schools as an additional allocation of the existing New Deal for Schools devolved formula capital programme. This money is allocated by formula with a fixed amount per school plus a fixed amount per pupil. It is channelled through local education authorities, which must allocate it to schools using the standard national formula, and may not retain any part of the grant. Schools can hold this grant in their own suitable bank accounts, on request.
The Chancellor also included school standards grant in his examples of what typical schools will receive in 2002–03. This recurrent funding is again passported to schools through local education authorities, which must pass on 100 per cent. of the grant. Schools can use this grant for their priorities to improve educational attainment.
Salaries
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much was spent on salaries in schools in England in 2001–02. [52514]
Mr. Timms: The total teachers' pay bill for the financial year 2001–02 was £13,585 million and covered 421,300 qualified and unqualified full-time equivalent teachers in maintained schools in England. My Department does not record the cost of salaries of non-teaching staff in schools.
Mr. Hurst: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the average annual salary is for (a) a newly qualified teacher in mainstream secondary schools in England and (b) a newly qualified lecturer in colleges and further education in England. [52586]
Mr. Timms: In the financial year 2001–02 the average pay of newly qualified teachers in maintained secondary schools in England and Wales was estimated to be £17,480.
The Department does not collect data on average pay of new entrants to lecturing in Further Education colleges in England and Wales.
Compensation Awards
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what has been the total amount of compensation awards against schools and colleges in each of the past five years. [52527]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Department does not collect central records of compensation claims against schools and colleges.
Teacher Training
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many teacher training places have been available in each of the past 10 years. [52524]
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Mr. Timms: The number of available places on courses of initial teacher training (ITT) at institutions in England is shown in the table.
| Academic year | Number of available places |
|---|---|
| 1992–93 | 24,370 |
| 1993–94 | 27,905 |
| 1994–95 | 29,590 |
| 1995–96 | 29,115 |
| 1996–97 | 30,400 |
| 1997–98 | 30,550 |
| 1998–99 | 30,600 |
| 1999–2000 | 28,610 |
| 2000–01 | 29,715 |
| 2001–02 | 29,890 |
Source: DfES
The figures do not include places available through employment-based teacher training schemes.
Sixth Forms and Colleges
Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment her Department has made of the value to teachers (a) in further education colleges and (b) in schools with sixth forms of this year's pay proposals. [52563]
Mr. Timms: Sixth form teachers in schools have received a pay award of 3.5 per cent. with effect from 1 April, together with a new allowance of £33 in respect of the cost of the fee payable to the General Teaching Councils for England or Wales. Teachers below the maximum of the main pay scale may also receive assimilation increases when the scale is shortened from nine to six points on 1 September. The 2002–03 pay negotiations between the Association of Colleges and representative further education unions started on 16 April and are currently ongoing. I am unable to make an assessment of the value to further education teachers and lecturers at this time.
Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will make a statement on teacher morale in (a) further education colleges and (b) schools with sixth forms. [52567]
Mr. Timms: We are taking action together with the School Teachers' Review Body and the school teacher employers and unions to address the problem of teacher workload; and pay for a good experienced classroom teacher who has passed the performance threshold has increased by nearly 30 per cent. since 1997. We take very seriously the need to raise the status and morale of the teaching profession. The assessment of further education staff morale is a matter for further education colleges, as independent employers, to address in consultation with the relevant unions, just as the terms and conditions for staff are a matter for colleges to determine in discussion with relevant unions. We acknowledge that colleges need help to ensure that they have the right arrangements to recruit, reward and retain excellent teachers. Over the period 2001–04, significant extra resources amounting to an additional £311 million have been made available to the further education sector to reward high calibre staff through our Teaching Pay Initiative.
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Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what estimate her Department has made of the average number of hours per week worked by teachers in (a) further education colleges and (b) schools with sixth forms over the last 12 months. [52568]
John Healey: Information about hours worked is collected for the School Teachers Review Body by the Office for Manpower Economics. The latest information relates to March 2000. It showed average weekly hours as follows:
| Average weekly hours | |
|---|---|
| Head teachers | 60.8 |
| Deputy head teachers | 58.6 |
| Heads of department | 52.9 |
| Other teachers | 51.3 |
These figures are based on diaries kept by teachers in a survey undertaken during a typical term-time week. Averages have not been estimated over 12 months, i.e. including school holidays.
Comparable information is not available for teachers in further education.
Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment she has made of average class sizes in (a) further education colleges and (b) schools with sixth forms. [52569]
John Healey: In January 2001 in maintained secondary schools the average class sizes for National Curriculum Year Groups 12 and 13, for classes taught by one teacher, were 11.9 and 9.4 respectively.
Information on class sizes in FE colleges is not available.
Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will make a statement on (a) pay scales for teachers and (b) the allocation of funds per A-level student in (i) further education colleges and (ii) secondary schools with sixth forms. [52571]
Mr. Timms: Pay scales for schools teachers have increased by 3.5 per cent. with effect from 1 April, and a new allowance of £33 created in respect of the cost of the fee payable to the General Teaching Councils for England or Wales. The main pay scale now has nine points from £16,599 to £25,713. This will reduce to six points from £17,595 to £25,713 with effect from 1 September. The upper pay scale for post-threshold teachers has five points from £27,861 to £32,217. The pay spine for advanced skills teachers runs from £28,917 to £46,131. The pay spine for the leadership group runs from £30,531 to £85,671. Further education sector colleges are run by independent corporations established under the Further Education and Higher Education Act 1992 and there is no national pay structure in place. Colleges are free to establish pay scales that meet their needs and can be agreed with their staff. We continue to encourage employers and unions to work together to ensure that further education staff receive reasonable pay given the substantial extra funding that has been made available for the further education sector.
The figures for school and college funding have not been calculated on the same basis and cannot therefore be used to make comparisons. The further education unit
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funding figure includes total public funding allocated for further education, while the schools' figure does not. It is based only on delegated funds and excludes other funding the school receives centrally from LEAs which impacts on post-16 students. The latest estimate of the average delegated funding per sixth form student in schools per year in England for 2001–02 is £3,330. The total funding per full-time equivalent student in further education sector colleges per year in England for 2001–02 is estimated to be £3,660.
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