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3 Mar 2004 : Column 1004W—continued

School Fire Alarms

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills who is responsible for ensuring that fire alarms in schools comply with legislation and regulations. [157946]

Mr. Miliband: Under health and safety legislation responsibility for fire safety, including the maintenance of fire alarm systems, rests with the employer. With community schools, community special schools, voluntary controlled schools, maintained nursery schools and pupil referral units, the employer is the local education authority. For foundation schools, foundation special schools and voluntary aided schools, the employer is usually the governing body. With independent schools, the employer is usually the governing body or proprietor.

3 Mar 2004 : Column 1005W

Kurdish

Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans he has to allow students in UK schools to take Kurdish at GCSE level. [158303]

Mr. Charles Clarke: The decision whether or not to offer particular subjects at GCSE is one for the awarding bodies which are independent commercial enterprises. They do not currently offer a GCSE in Kurdish. The Department has no power to prescribe that subjects outside of the statutory national curriculum should be available at GCSE. For some areas of study, such as Kurdish, which are likely to have a relatively low number of candidates, the cost of providing an examination would be an important consideration for the awarding bodies.

Vocational Qualifications

Mr. Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether level 2 entitlements for adults are available to individuals who are economically inactive. [156069]

Mr. Ivan Lewis: As we said in our Skills Strategy White Paper, "21st Century Skills", we will create a new guarantee of free tuition for any adult without a good foundation of employability skills to get the training they need to achieve such a qualification at level 2. We intend that it will apply to those in the workforce or of working age—including the economically inactive who are seeking those employability skills—who do not already have a full level 2 qualification, and who commit to trying to achieve one. The Government already waive tuition fees for certain categories of adults receiving income-based benefits such as income support, housing and council tax benefits and those undertaking basic skills learning. Many colleges also offer free or discounted learning for other groups of people including those not on state benefits.

Medical Students

Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many students entered universities to study medicine in (a) 1992, (b) 1997, (c) 2001 and (d) 2003. [148408]

Alan Johnson: The available figures are given in the table and cover accepted applicants through the Universities and Colleges Admission Service (UCAS).

Accepted applicants through UCAS to pre-medicine study at UK institutions

Year of entry	Number
1992	4,425
1997	5,029
2001	6,240
2002	6,959

Source:

The Universities Central Council on Admissions (1992) and Universities and Colleges Admissions Service.

3 Mar 2004 : Column 1006W

Postgraduate Education

Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment his Department has made of the impact of the proposals for higher education on the number of students choosing to continue in postgraduate education. [157496]

Alan Johnson: As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education and Skills stated in the Second Reading debate on 27 January, there will be a review by an independent commission, reporting to Parliament directly on the impact of the new fee regime three years after implementation. Evaluation of the impact on postgraduate education will be considered as part of that review.

My right hon. Friend has also commissioned a report to examine the Gateways into the Professions which will be led by Sir Alan Langlands. The report will examine how the public sector and the professions can sustain and improve recruitment opportunities for graduates, especially those who do not qualify for the full £3000 support. Sir Alan will be reporting to us by mid 2005.

Pupil Numbers

Mr. Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many pupils were on the roll in each secondary school in Newcastle upon Tyne in each year since April 2000; and what percentage of those students (a) were eligible for and (b) took up free school meals. [157053]

Mr. Miliband: The available data are shown in the table.

Maintained secondary schools⁽³⁷⁾: School meal arrangements Newcastle upon Tyne local education authority area—Position in January each year

	Number on roll(38) , (39)	Number known to be eligible for free meals	Percentage known to be eligible for free meals	Pupils taking free school meals	Percentage taking free school meals
2000	17,874	4,572	25.6	3,123	17.5
2001	18,071	4,573	25.3	2,988	16.5
2002	17,805	4,190	23.5	2,783	15.6
2003	17,808	4,213	23.7	2,890	16.2

⁽³⁷⁾ Includes middle schools as deemed.

⁽³⁸⁾ Includes dually registered pupils.

⁽³⁹⁾ For 2000–02 excludes boarding pupils.

Source:

Annual Schools' Census

It is the Department's current policy not to publish school level information unless the schools concerned have had the opportunity to confirm the information available through processes such as the performance tables. Information on free school meals has not been confirmed in this way.

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children were being educated at each key stage in the Romsey constituency in each school year since 1997–98. [157077]

Mr. Miliband: The information requested is shown in the table.

3 Mar 2004 : Column 1007W

Maintained primary and secondary schools: number of pupils by key stage^{(40) , (41)}—Position in January each year 1997 to 2003 Romsey parliamentary constituency

	Primary		Secondary
	Key stage 1(42)	Key stage 2(43)	Key stage 3(44)	Key stage 4(45)
1997	2,020	3,960	4,140	2,730
1998	2,010	4,010	4,140	2,710
1999	2,010	4,020	4,260	2,700
2000	1,930	4,120	4,350	2,720
2001	1,850	4,090	4,470	2,810
2002	1,750	4,020	4,490	2,860
2003	1,850	4,070	4,470	2,910

⁽⁴⁰⁾ Key stage based on pupils' age.

⁽⁴¹⁾ Figures have been rounded to the nearest 10.

⁽⁴²⁾ Pupils aged 5 and 6 at the start of the academic year.

⁽⁴³⁾ Pupils aged 7, 8, 9 and 10 at the start of the academic year.

⁽⁴⁴⁾ Pupils aged 11, 12 and 13 at the start of the academic year.

⁽⁴⁵⁾ Pupils aged 14 and 15 at the start of the academic year.

Source:

Annual Schools' Census

Recruitment Advertising

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what his Department's expenditure on recruitment advertising was in each of the last three years, broken down by publication; and what proportion of such expenditure was (a) to advertise vacant posts and (b) in the form of other general recruitment advertising. [155517]

Mr. Stephen Twigg: My Department uses the most appropriate national, regional, trade magazine publication or website for recruitment advertising, depending on the nature of the vacancy to be filled. The media used most regularly included the Guardian/Observer, Times/Sunday Times, TES, Economist, Ethnic Media Group and Personnel Publications.

The following table gives the advertising costs for Civil Servants recruited to work within my Department for the years 2001/02 and 2002/03. The figures represent a significant investment in bringing into the Department, at a senior level, people with delivery skills and experience in the wider education and skills sector and beyond.

The Department for Education and Skills was established in June 2001 and therefore the figures quoted for 2001/02 are from June 2001–March 2002. The figures for 2002/03 are for a complete financial year.

£

	2001/02	2002/03
Central Recruitment relating to Grades AA–Grade 6	187,890.24	134,016.11
Senior Civil Service Recruitment	111,266.54	256,669.66
Totals	299,156.78	390,685.77

Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much his Department has spent on recruitment advertising in each year since 1997. [156452]

Mr. Charles Clarke: The following table gives the advertising costs for civil servants recruited to work within my Department for the years 2001/02 and 2002/03. The figures represent a significant investment in

3 Mar 2004 : Column 1008W

bringing into the Department, at a senior level, people with delivery skills and experience in the wider education and skills sector and beyond.

The Department for Education and Skills was established in June 2001 and therefore the figures quoted for 2001/02 are from June 2001-March 2002. The figures for 2002/03 are for a complete financial year.

£

	2001/02	2002/03
Central recruitment relating to Grades AA–Grade 6	187,890.24	134,016.11
Senior civil service recruitment	111,266.54	256,669.66
Total	299,156.78	390,685.77

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