| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
8 Jan 2003 : Column 230W—continued
Departmental Meetings (Wales and Scotland)
Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when (a) Ministers and (b) officials from his Department last met representatives from (i) the Welsh Assembly and (ii) the Scottish Parliament. [89335]
Mr. Stephen Twigg: Ministers in this Department are in regular contact with representatives from the Welsh Assembly and the Scottish Parliament, most recently on 31 October 2002 and 18 December 2002 respectively.
Officials in the Department work regularly with the Devolved Administrations on matters of mutual interest. Information about the frequency of meetings is not held centrally.
Grammar Schools
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what recent discussions he has had with local education authorities about the future of grammar schools; [87851]
- (2) what recent representations he has received from local education authorities seeking an end to academic selection. [87852]
Mr. Miliband [holding answer 17 December 2002]: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has not held any specific discussions with local education authorities, nor has he had any representations from them, about the future of grammar schools or ending academic selection. However, he has recently had a meeting with representatives of Kent LEA about how school standards in general can be raised.
Legislation does not allow for LEAs to propose that grammar schools stop being selective; that is a matter for the schools themselves, or local parents, through the ballot system.
Language Teaching
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what estimate he has made of the percentage of children in maintained schools learning a foreign language at Key Stage 2; and what he expects the percentage to be in (a) September 2003, (b) September 2004 and (c) September 2005; [89328]
- (2) by what date he expects that every primary school should have a language co-ordinator. [89332]
Mr. Stephen Twigg: While the Department does not hold precise information about the numbers of children learning a modern foreign language at Key Stage 2, we are aware from a recent survey conducted by Warwick University that approximately 20 per cent. of primary schools currently offer some form of language teaching. We plan to carry out research this year to verify that percentage, and Ofsted will take account of language learning programmes in the primary schools they inspect. This will allow us to estimate the percentage of children who will be learning a foreign language at Key Stage 2 for the years cited and beyond.
We expect that, by the end of the decade ,every pupil at Key Stage 2 will be offered the opportunity to study at least one foreign language. To support this offer, we are concentrating on building capacity and supporting best practice, enabling schools to introduce early language learning at a pace which is right for them.
Ministerial Visits
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will list the overseas visits on departmental business undertaken by Ministers in his Department during the last 12 months. [89323]
Mr. Stephen Twigg: In the last 12 months, Ministers in this Department have travelled on departmental business to Belgium, France, Slovakia, Italy, Australia and the United States.
All trips undertaken by Ministers comply with the requirements of the Ministerial Code.
8 Jan 2003 : Column 231W
School Funding
Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the SSA average grant per pupil in (a) primary schools and (b) secondary schools will be in each LEA in England and Wales in (i) 2003–04 and (ii) subsequent years for which figures are available. [88325]
Mr. Miliband: The average primary and secondary formula spending share per pupil for LEAs in England are set out in the tables for 2003–04: figures for future years will become available at the time of the Local Government Finance Settlement for each year. These figures are not comparable with primary and secondary SSA per pupil for 2002–03 and previous years. The new system of funding for LEAs consists of a basic entitlement which is the same for all pupils, plus a top up for all deprived pupils, which is the same for all deprived pupils, and a further top up for those LEAs in areas with additional costs for recruitment and retention of staff. Where the average formula spending share per pupil is higher, that reflects a higher number of deprived pupils, and higher area costs. The system in Wales is different and is the responsibility of the Welsh Assembly.
8 Jan 2003 : Column 233W
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |