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Tuition and Top-up Fees

Mr. Best: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the cost of abolishing tuition and top-up fees in 2003–04 would be; and what the cost of administering the eligibility assessment for loans and fees is. [127296]

Alan Johnson: English HE institutions' income from the standard fee of £1,125 is estimated at £847 million for 2003/04, comprising £431 million in private contributions and £416 million in public contributions through the fee remission grant. English HE institutions will not start to receive income from variable fees until 2006/07. Data on the cost to local education authorities of administering the eligibility assessments for loans and fees is not separately identified in the information collected by the Department on LEA spending.

Under-achieving Students

Linda Perham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps he is taking to raise the performance of under-achieving students. [127779]

Mr. Stephen Twigg: The Primary and Key Stage 3 National Strategies are designed to raise standards for all students but include a strong focus on under-achievement. At Primary stage we provide several programmes to help pupils reach the expected level for

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their age by the end of Key Stage 2, plus targeted local support to schools and LEAs on addressing under-performance. Further measures being introduced this September, such as the Primary Leadership Programme, are also designed to tackle lower attainment. Evidence of the impact of our programmes is reflected in the Key Stage 2 results. The 2003 results show that 75 per cent. of 11-year-olds achieved the expected level for their age in English and 73 per cent. in maths. This represents a 10 percentage point increase in English and a 14 percentage point increase in maths since 1998.

We are using a similar model to address under-performance for pupils aged 11–14 through the Key Stage 3 Strategy. There are tailored support programmes in each of the three years at Key Stage 3 to help lower-attaining pupils reach the expected level at age 14. We are also targeting schools and LEAs that we believe would benefit from additional support. After only the first full year of the Strategy, the Key Stage 3 tests results stand at their best ever, Maths is up by three percentage points to 70 per cent. achieving level 5 (the expected level) and science and English are both up by one percentage point to 68 per cent.. There have also been improvements in level 6 attainment of four and seven percentage points in maths and science respectively.

At Key Stage 4 we are also supporting schools where pupil performance is too low. We are directing substantial resources through Excellence in Cities to transform standards in urban areas facing the challenges associated with cities. We are also supporting schools in difficult circumstances to address under-performance through the Leadership Incentive Grant.

Union Learning Fund

Linda Perham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on the Union Learning Fund. [127789]

Mr. Ivan Lewis: Unions have a key role in promoting learning and skills in the workplace, and to help them achieve this, the Department has provided financial support through the Union Learning Fund since 1998. The Union Learning Fund is now in its sixth year and has supported over 400 projects from over 50 different unions, working in almost 3,000 workplaces. Many Union Learning Fund projects are specifically aimed at widening participation in learning: basic skills, social inclusion and equal opportunities and improving access to learning. Evaluation up to 2002, together with performance management data for July 2003, has shown that over 36,000 people have completed learning courses, over 6,500 Union Learning Representatives have been trained and around 180 new learning centres have been opened. Unions have been very successful in engaging non-traditional learners including older males and shift workers.

One of the Union Learning Fund's greatest strengths is the success of Union Learning Representatives, a new type of lay union representative whose main function is to advise union members about their training and development needs. Union Learning Representatives are ideally placed to help and encourage workers to improve their skills, particularly the lowest skilled and

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those with literacy and numeracy problems. They share a level of trust with union members who would be embarrassed about admitting their learning needs to their employer.

Following a consultation exercise in 2001, we introduced legislation to give Union Learning Representatives the same rights to paid time off for training and for carrying out their duties as those enjoyed by shop stewards and other union representatives at workplaces where a union is recognised for collective bargaining purposes. The legislation on Union Learning Representatives came into effect on 27 April along with the revised ACAS Code of Practice.

Additional funding for Union Learning for the next two financial years, announced in the last budget, will help us continue to build on the positive contribution made by Union Learning Representatives.

Vocational Qualifications

Mr. Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on measures to ensure that qualifications offered at apprenticeship, skilled craft and technician level are sufficient to meet the needs of business. [128207]

Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Government published its national Skills Strategy on 9 July in 21st Century Skills: Realising Our Potential. It is a cross-Government strategy that sets out our approach to meeting skill needs, including making sure that qualifications are appropriate to the needs of businesses. There were frequent discussions between the Secretary of State for Education and Skills and the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry during its development, and was a co-signatory to the White Paper published in July. This close involvement will continue in the implementation stage.

At the heart of the strategy is a shared aim that learning programmes and the qualifications that accredit them will respond fully to the skill needs of employers. DTI are closely involved in the joint remit for improving vocational qualifications which is being taken forward by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, the Learning and Skills Council and Sector Skills Development Agency. The high profile, business-led Modern Apprenticeship Task Force is taking a key role in promoting Modern Apprenticeships to employers, improving their quality and increasing take-up. Sir Robin Young, DTI Permanent Secretary, is a member of the Task Force. A close working relationship is also being established with DTI in promoting the development of foundation degrees to meet the growing demand for skills at the higher technical and associate professional level. The White Paper also set out the intention for the DTI to be joint sponsors of the Sector Skills Development Agency. All of this action

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demonstrates the close working relationships between the two Departments to ensure that qualifications are appropriate to the needs of employers.

Mr. Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the level of qualifications at (a) apprenticeship, (b) skilled craft and (c) technician level held in (i) the UK and (ii) other European Union countries. [128208]

Mr. Ivan Lewis: While we compare well at higher education level, our percentage of the workforce qualified to intermediate skill levels (based upon qualifications gained at apprenticeship, skilled craft and technician level) is low: 28 per cent. in the UK compared to 51 per cent. in France and 65 per cent. in Germany. An EU wide comparison is not available.

However, using a different measure the OECD estimates the proportion of adults (aged 25–64) who are qualified to upper secondary level (intermediate level education and based upon the highest level of education completed) in the UK is 63 per cent.. This is similar to France (64 per cent.) and the Netherlands (61 per cent.) but much lower than Germany (83 per cent.), Denmark (80 per cent.) or Sweden (81 per cent.). The UK however performs much better than Italy (44 per cent.) and Spain (40 per cent.).

Mr. Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what action he is taking to encourage school leavers to seek qualifications at (a) apprenticeship, (b) skilled craft and (c) technician level. [128206]

Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Government are committed to ensuring that the work based learning route, and the qualifications and programmes within it (notably Modern Apprenticeships) will continue to deliver high quality, innovative provision, derived from and appropriate to the needs of the UK's industry and economy. The Government have detailed their vision for achievement in the recently published White Papers covering the development of 14–19 year olds and the Skills Strategy for 21st Century. These reveal the importance the Government are giving to vocational development from school to the workplace and the need for cohesion between education and the world of work to achieve the challenging target outlined in the reports. The Government launched a Modern Apprenticeship (MA) Task Force, chaired by Sir Roy Gardner, in February 2003 to oversee and steer the promotion and integration of modern apprenticeships, including vocational qualifications, into the workplace. This Task Force will report regularly to Government on progress widening the choice for young people to take up modern apprenticeship opportunities.

Connexions, the Government's front line support service for young people in England aged 13–19, offers teenagers integrated impartial advice and guidance on career paths and access to personal development opportunities based on the needs and aspirations of young people. This service enables young people to consider a full range of career options and make informed choices which include work-based provision.

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