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Level 2 Qualification

Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what local discretion he will allow to (a) further education colleges and (b) local learning and skills councils in determining entitlement to free study for a Level 2 qualification. [129696]

Alan Johnson: The eligibility criteria for the new entitlement to free learning at Level 2, announced in the Skills Strategy White Paper, will be determined nationally. Our intention is to encourage those not already qualified at full Level 2 to achieve at that level.

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However, further education colleges will continue to have the discretion to waive fees for learners studying at Level 2 who are not covered by the national entitlement.

Modern Apprenticeships

Rob Marris: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the success rates for modern apprenticeships as set out in Statistical First Release ISR/SFR 25 issued on 24 July; what plans he has to improve these rates; and if he will make a statement. [129523]

Mr. Ivan Lewis: The success rates for Modern Apprenticeships (MA) published in July were issued for the first time in this form. The rates vary widely between sectors and some will need to improve markedly if we are to achieve our ambition to revitalise and expand apprenticeship programmes. However, the latest figures we have do show that overall MA success rates have increased to 39 per cent. in the year to January 2003. While this improvement is significant and sustained we and the Learning and Skills Council are not complacent. We need to do more.

We have asked the Modern Apprenticeship Task Force, chaired by Sir Roy Gardner, to focus on this issue. They and the LSC are doing so sector by sector.

In addition as part of the 'Success for All' programme the LSC has introduced minimum performance levels from 2003/04 for all providers, including those of MAs. These should be achieved by 2005/06. The LSC will rigorously monitor and review progress with each of its providers against these targets. Where performance is not satisfactory the LSC will take decisive action with the provider concerned up to and including the withdrawal of contracts.

Older Workers

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make it his policy (a) to monitor the participation levels of various age cohorts of adults and (b) to set targets to reduce the drop-off of learning from age 40 onwards. [129040]

Mr. Charles Clarke: The Department and partner bodies do already monitor participation levels, and other factors such as attitudes and experiences of learning, through a number of sources including the Labour Force Survey, the Learning and Skills Council's Individualised Learner Record, the National Adult Learning Survey and NIACE surveys. Age of learner is an important factor in all of these sources and the Department regularly undertakes analyses based on age. Many of the publications based on these sources do contain breakdowns by age. Results from the 2002 NIACE survey on adult participation showed that the proportion of 35 to 44-year-olds who were current/recent learners had increased from 43 per cent. in 1996 to 49 per cent. in 2002. Participation among 45 to 54-year-olds increased from 36 per cent. to 44 per cent. over the same period. These increases are greater than for younger age groups.

The Government recognises the importance of encouraging all people, regardless of age, to participate in learning and increase their skills and is committed to safeguard the provision of a wide range of earning for

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adults for culture, leisure community and personal fulfilment purposes with a better choice of opportunities to encourage adults back into learning. Through our Success for All reforms we will raise standards, increase participation and improve outcomes for learners and employers. We have introduced targets for learner numbers and learner success rates, including new national floor targets which set out the minimum acceptable levels of performance for colleges and other providers to be met or exceeded by 2006. These are aimed at improving the responsiveness and quality of provision to meet the needs of learners at all ages. The recently published Skills Strategy includes the new guarantee of free tuition for any adult without a good foundation of employability skills to get the training that they need to achieve such a qualification, known as a Level 2 qualification—explicitly noting that a higher than average proportion of older workers do not possess a Level 2 qualification.

The Government has set itself stretching targets to increase the basic skill levels of 1.5 million adults by 2007 and to reduce by 40 per cent. the number of adults without a qualification at NVQ level 2 or its equivalent by 2010. These targets will only be achieved if those over the age of 40 increase their participation and attainment in learning. Government believes that targets focused on ensuring all individuals achieve minimum levels of skill are the most appropriate for meeting the needs of the economy and society.

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the implications of extending modern apprenticeships to all age groups. [129041]

Mr. Ivan Lewis: Our Skills Strategy, "21st Century Skills—Realising Our Potential", explained that we are committed to removing the age cap on Modern Apprenticeships in response to industry's concern that it constitutes a barrier to meeting their skill needs. As a first step, we have changed the rules so that, from 1 August 2003, young people who start their Modern Apprenticeship at any point up to their 25th birthday can complete it. Beyond that, we will invite the Sector Skills Councils (SSCs) to put forward their proposals to design and implement a Modern Apprenticeship programme for adults in their sector as part of the new Sector Skills Agreements. It will be for individual SSCs, the Sector Skills Development Agency (SSDA) and key partners including employers to assess the implications of this change for particular sectors. They will do so taking account of the need to maintain high standards; current budget limitations; and forthcoming European age discrimination legislation.

Pupil Exclusions

Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many (a) primary schools, (b) city technology colleges, (c) other secondary schools and (d) special schools have been fined for excluding pupils in each year since 1998; if he will list each school; and what the size was of the fine for each individual school affected. [127897]

Mr. Miliband: Schools have never been fined for excluding pupils. Between 1999 and 2003 they received more than £350 million in specific funding for

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preventive work with pupils at risk of exclusion in addition to the normal delegated funding for those pupils. If a pupil was excluded LEAs were able to recover between £2,000 and £6,000 from schools to help pay for alternative provision. LEAs were not required to give the Department details of such recoveries. Funding for preventive work and provision for permanently excluded pupils is now mainstreamed so LEAs and schools determine resourcing arrangements locally.

Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what recent correspondence he has had with the teacher unions on the exclusion of pupils from schools; and if he will place that correspondence in the Library. [127898]

Mr. Ivan Lewis: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has had no recent correspondence with the teacher unions on the exclusion of pupils from schools.

Teachers

Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what estimate he has made of the life expectancy of (a) male and (b) female teachers in post aged (i) 50 to 55 and (ii) 55 to 60; and whether he has compared his estimates with those for other professionals in the same age groups. [129101]

Mr. Miliband: Based on the Government Actuary's recent valuation of the Teachers' Pension Scheme, average life expectancy for teachers in each of the age groups is:

	Years
Males
Aged 50–55	33
Aged 55–60	28
Females
Aged 50–55	36
Aged 55–60	31

In carrying out the valuation, the Government Actuary did not make any direct comparisons of life expectancy with other professions.

Training Initiatives

Mr. Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which publicly funded training initiatives are open to (a) EU nationals of other member states resident in the UK and (b) asylum seekers. [129778]

Mr. Ivan Lewis: European Union (EU) nationals and their dependants resident in the UK or elsewhere in the European Economic Area for the previous three years are eligible for further education (FE). EU nationals are also eligible for work based learning for young people, which consists of the Entry to Employment and Modern Apprenticeship initiatives, and are eligible for local authority organised adult education.

Asylum seekers and their dependants who are supported by the National Asylum Support Service or similar, are eligible for FE. Unaccompanied asylum seekers aged 16–18 in the care of social services are also eligible for FE. Asylum seekers are not eligible for Modern Apprenticeships but may be accepted on to

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Entry to Employment courses. Eligibility for access to local authority organised adult education is generally in line with that for FE but local authorities have discretion to set their own criteria and might make provision available to additional categories of asylum seekers.

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