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3 Jul 2003 : Column 435W—continued
Further Education Colleges (Student Satisfaction)
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the percentage of learners who are satisfied with their learning experience in college. [122287]
Alan Johnson: The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) carried out the first national survey of learner satisfaction and published the results in December 2002. These showed that 87 per cent. of learners were satisfied with their learning experience in college.
Findings from the survey are being used to inform strategic national policy and the work of the local LSCs, colleges and other providers.
Gross Earnings
Mr. Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many people have gross earnings of £2,000 per week or more; and what proportion of those with gross earnings of £2,000 per week or more have a Level 4 qualification or higher. [123069]
Alan Johnson: The Labour Force Survey estimates that the number of employees of working age in the UK with gross weekly earnings of £2,000 or more per week is 30,000. Three-quarters of these (76 per cent.) are qualified to Level 4 or above.
Higher Education
Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when he plans to publish a draft Higher Education Bill for consultation. [119788]
Alan Johnson: We have no plans to publish a higher education bill in draft. There has already been substantial consultation on the main policy issues for which we intend to legislate. We will be responding to comments received during the consultation period on the White Paper alongside our response to the Select Committee.
Mr. Win Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what the costs in each of the last three years were of (a) targeted grants and (b) tuition
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fees waivers for (i) students in higher education from Wales and (ii) students from elsewhere in the UK attending higher education institutions in Wales; and what the related administrative costs were; [122471]
- (2) what the cost was in each of the last three years of means tested loans for (a) students in higher education from Wales and (b) students from elsewhere in the UK attending higher education institutions in Wales; and what the identifiable administrative costs were in each case. [122472]
Alan Johnson [holding answer 1 July 2003]: The information is as follows: (a) Expenditure on higher education students domiciled in Wales:
| Financial year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000–01 | 2001–02 | 2002–03 | |
| Income Contingent Repayment Loans (RAB cost) | 38.6 | 48.8 | (15)53.5 |
| Means tested contributions to tuition fees | 19.5 | 23.7 | (15)25.8 |
| Dependants Grants | 3.8 | 5.2 | (15)6.2 |
| HE Supplementary Grants | 1.9 | (15)2.6 | (16)3.4 |
(15) Provisional
(16) Estimated
Sources:
HE Supplementary Grants—DfES
All other data—Student Loans Company.
Loan costs are for income contingent loans only. These loans, of which approximately one quarter of the value is means tested, are repayable on an income contingent basis. Loans made under the previous mortgage style arrangement, which are not means tested, are excluded from the table.
Expenditure on loans is shown in resource accounting and budgeting (RAB) terms, not cash terms.
Dependants grants includes payments on Childcare Grant, Additional Dependants Grant, Travel, Books and Equipment Grant, Loan Parents Grant and Child Dependants Grant.
HE supplementary grants include payments on Disabled Students Allowance, School Meals Grant, Care Leaver's Grant and Travel Grant.
Expenditure on hardship and part-time loans is excluded from the table.
(b) The cost for students from elsewhere in the UK attending higher education institutions in Wales could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
It is not possible to identify the administrative costs of payments under (a) or (b) above.
Modern Language Courses
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to his answer of 6 May 2003, Official Report, column 644W, on modern languages courses, which modern languages he is requiring all maintained secondary schools to continue to make available. [122049]
Mr. Miliband: Through our Green Paper "14–19: extending opportunities, raising standards" we consulted extensively on our proposals to create more choice and flexibility at Key Stage 4. The responses to
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the consultation endorsed our view that schools should no longer be required to teach modern foreign languages to all pupils but that schools should be required to ensure that any pupil wishing to study modern foreign languages should be able to do so. We propose that this entitlement should reflect the current situation in Key Stage 4, so that schools can meet the entitlement by providing access to courses that include the study of one or more of the official languages of the European Union.
The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority are currently consulting on the detailed proposals for the implementation of curriculum changes at Key Stage 4.
Overseas Students (Further Education Colleges)
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many overseas students are learning in UK further education colleges; and what target was set in 1999. [122284]
Miss Melanie Johnson: Latest figures for 2001/02 show there were 47,786 non-European Union international students and 13,100 European Union
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students in UK further education colleges. In 1999 a target was set to attract an extra 25,000 non-European Union international students to UK further education colleges by 2005 compared to the base year of 1996/97 (25,102).
Qualification Levels
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of (a) vocational and (b) academic Level 3 qualifications were awarded in (i) colleges and (ii) schools in the last year for which figures are available. [122285]
Alan Johnson: The table shows the numbers and proportions of vocational and academic awards at Level 3, by centre type during the 2001/02 academic year. The data are taken from the National Information System for Vocational Qualifications (NISVQ) 1 and the Secondary School and College Performance Tables Database. Awards coverage is for England only.
- 1 NISVQ has full coverage of NVQs awarded plus VRQs from three of the largest awarding bodies and other VQs from seven of the largest awarding bodies.
| Vocational | Academic | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Centre type | Number | Percentage | Number | Percentage |
| School | 3,282 | 2 | 206,446 | 64 |
| Further education college/tertiary college(17) | 92,258 | 59 | 53,311 | 17 |
| Sixth form college | 2,638 | 2 | 61,078 | 19 |
| Other(18) | 57,599 | 37 | 17 | 0 |
| Total | 155,778 | — | 320,852 | — |
(17) Includes adult education data.
(18) Institutes classified as 'other' include: university or other higher education centre, private training provider, local government/central Government/NHS, employer, HM Prison/Youth Offenders Institution and armed forces.
Source:
NISVQ and Secondary School and College Performance Tables Database.
Mr. Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of people earning £800 or more per week have level 4 qualifications. [123357]
Alan Johnson: The Labour Force Survey estimates that two-thirds (67 per cent.) of employees of working age in the UK with gross weekly earnings of £800 or more have a level 4 qualification or above.
Senior Departmental Posts
Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many senior departmental posts were advertised in each year since 1999; and how many of those were advertised in the Scottish Press. [120665]
Mr. Charles Clarke: The number of Senior Civil Service posts advertised by my Department since June 1999 are as follows:
| Posts | |
|---|---|
| April 2002 to March 2003 | 12 |
| April 2001 to March 2002 | 6 |
| April 2000 to March 2001 | 16 |
| June 1999 to March 2000 | 8 |
None of these were advertised in the Scottish Press, though where search consultants were used, they considered candidates across the UK.
Sixth-Form Provision
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will estimate the likely impact of sixth form education provision by the exclusive means of sixth form colleges on standards of attainment in secondary schools at (a) Key Stage 4 and (b) GCSE level. [122229]
Alan Johnson: 2002 results for non-selective maintained secondary schools at GCSE/GNVQ (KS4) are as follows:
| Gaining five or more A*-C grades | |
|---|---|
| Schools with sixth form | 51.0 |
| Schools without sixth form | 44.6 |
However, when prior attainment is taken into account, there is little difference between schools with and without sixth form education provision.
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