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13 Jan 2003 : Column 468W—continued
Language Assistants
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many language assistants are currently employed in maintained private schools. [89329]
Mr. Miliband [holding answer 7 January 2003]: Information on non-teaching staff in independent schools is not collected centrally.
Language Teaching
Mr. Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what choices first to third year pupils at secondary school and those at GCSE level have as to the languages they wish to learn; which languages are compulsory; and how long these are taught for. [87368]
Mr. Miliband: The National Curriculum currently states that secondary schools must offer, in key stages 3 and 4, one or more of the official working languages of the European Union. Only when they have met this condition may they offer non-EU languages. Within this requirement, it is for schools to decide which and how many languages they choose to offer.
However, as we announced in our Languages Strategy, published on 18 December 2002, we intend to amend the statutory requirement at key stage 4 so that schools will no longer be required to teach modern foreign languages to all pupils. All schools will be required to ensure that they are available to any pupil wishing to study them.
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National Director for Languages
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the job description for the National Director for Languages will be; when the appointment will be made; and what resources will be allocated to the National Director. [89327]
Margaret Hodge: The National Director for Languages post has yet to be advertised but we expect the successful candidate to take up post by September 2003. The National Director will, by 2005–06, have financial resources of #10 million per annum to deliver the numerous initiatives detailed in our strategy document.
Public Education
Mr. Challen: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what areas of public education are supplied in competition with the private sector. [88592]
Mr. Miliband: There are many areas of public education that are supplied by both the public and private sectors. They range from basic schooling, where there are 2,190 independent schools in England, to the provision of education services such as curriculum services, IT support, school transport and support for failing schools.
School Funding (Kent)
Jonathan Shaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many pre-school places the Government funded in Medway in (a) 1996 and (b) 2002; and what the change in cost is. [87729]
Mr. Miliband: The available information relates to early years places for three and four-year-olds and is shown in the table.
Nursery Education Grant (NEG) funding for early years places for four-year-olds was introduced in 1996–97; the NEG rate was #1,100 per place. Places in the private, voluntary and independent sectors were eligible for NEG funding. Standard Spending Assessment (SSA) funding for early years places for four-year-olds was introduced and replaced NEG funding in 2001–02; the SSA rate was #2,341 per place in maintained nursery and primary schools and #1,188 per place in the private, voluntary and independent sectors.
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NEG funding of free early years places for three-year-olds was introduced in 1999–2000; for 2001–02, the NEG rate was #1,188 per place. Places in the private, voluntary and independent sectors were eligible for NEG funding.
In 1996–97, Medway received #3.3 million to fund early years places for four-year-olds. In 2001–02, Medway received #6.6 million to fund early years places for four-year-olds and #2.6 million to fund early years places for three-year-olds. Total funding of early years places increased by #5.9 million, from #3.3 million in 1996–97 to #9.2 million in 2001–02.
| Medway(31) | |
|---|---|
| 1997 | |
| 3-year-olds | |
| Maintained nursery and primary schools(30) | 310 |
| Other maintained and private, voluntary and independent providers | n/a |
| 4-year-olds | 3,000 |
| Total 3 and 4-year olds(33) | 3,300 |
| 2002 | |
| 3-year-olds | |
| Maintained nursery and primary schools(30) | 390 |
| Other maintained and private, voluntary and independent providers(32) | 2,200 |
| 4-year-olds | |
| Maintained nursery and primary schools(30) | 2,400 |
| Other maintained and private, voluntary and independent providers(32) | 860 |
| Total 4-year-olds | 3,300 |
| Total 3 and 4-year-olds | 5,900 |
(30) Headcount of children at 31 December in the previous calendar year, from the Annual Schools' Census.
(31) Local Government re-organisation established Medway as a local authority in 1998; figures for 1997 were obtained by apportionment.
(32) Part-time equivalent number of children at 31 December in the previous calendar year, from the Nursery Education Grant data collection exercise.
(33) Summer term 1997.
School Staff (Turnover Rates)
Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the staff turnover rates were in schools in England in each year since 1997, broken down by (a) local education authority and (b) Government Office region. [89296]
Mr. Miliband: Staff turnover rates are not available at Local Education Authority level.
The staff turnover rates for schools in England by Government Office region are shown in the table.
(34) Revised data.
(35) Provisional data.
(36) The figure excludes 10 per cent to 20 per cent. of part-time teachers not included on the teacher pension scheme records.
Full-time turnover is defined as all teachers in full-time service in the English maintained schools sector on 31 March who were not in full-time service in the same establishment on 31 march the following year. Turnover therefore includes wastage, transfers to other establishments within the maintained schools sector and teachers leaving to part-time service. Not all employers record all movements between schools within their employ so rates are underestimated.
Part-time turnover is defined as all teachers in part-time service in the English maintained schools sector on 31 March who were not in part-time service in the same establishment on 31 March the following year. Turnover therefore includes wastage, transfers to other establishments within the maintained schools sector and teachers leaving to full-time service. Not all employers record all movements between schools within their employ so rates are underestimated.
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School Standards
Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans he has to run pilot schemes for plans contained in his Department's report XTime for Standards", to remove administrative and clerical tasks from teachers; and if he will publish the results of those pilots. [89305]
Mr. Miliband: On 4 January 2002 my right hon. Friend the then Secretary of State for Education and Skills announced the Transforming the School Workforce Pathfinder Project—which is working with 32 schools to explore new ways of working to tackle workload, including the use of support staff and ICT to relieve teachers of non-teaching tasks so that they can concentrate on their core teaching responsibilities. Lessons learnt from these projects will be shared with all schools. The project is being evaluated and a report will be published towards the end of 2003.
As set out in XTime for Standards", we are seeking agreement with national partners on a range of contractual and other changes, including relieving teachers of administrative and clerical tasks.
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