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Grammar Schools
7. Sir Teddy Taylor (Rochford and Southend, East) (Con): What percentage of secondary school children in England attend grammar schools; and what the percentage was (a) 10 and (b) 20 years ago. [162121]
The Secretary of State for Education and Skills (Mr. Charles Clarke): Currently, 4.6 per cent.—150,750—of secondary school children in England attend grammar schools. In 1993, the figure was 3.8 per cent.—111,846; and in 1983, it was 3.1 per cent.—117,147. However, before the School Standards and Framework Act 1998, there was no legal definition of a grammar school. Section 104 of the Act defines a grammar school as one that selects all, or substantially all, of its pupils by reference to academic ability.
Sir Teddy Taylor : Is the Secretary of State aware that the very positive and helpful attitude to grammar schools now being taken by the Government is greatly appreciated, especially in Southend-on-Sea where we have four such schools? Following that positive move, will the right hon. Gentleman consider establishing grammar schools in some of our major cities, where despite all the efforts of the Government and local councils there is a system of virtual class segregation and children of ability from poor homes do not have a chance to break through? Will he follow up the good policy by extending it to major cities?
Mr. Clarke: The short answer is no. The city academy programme, which was referred to earlier, is precisely the kind of investment of high-quality schools in the poorest communities in the country that is needed to allow every child to fulfil their own aspirations, and it is not just for some children who have been sieved off in a particular way.
As an aside, I may say that the kind of portakabin passport that the Opposition Front-Bench policy is all about will do nothing to assist standards in areas such as that represented by the hon. Gentleman.
Dr. Phyllis Starkey (Milton Keynes, South-West) (Lab): Grammar schools in Buckinghamshire receive generous funding by contrast with the underfunding of certain other secondary schools in the county, especially those with a high proportion of ethnic minority pupils, which has been highlighted by the "missingbucks" campaign. Will my right hon. Friend ensure that the current Ofsted inspection of the Buckinghamshire local education authority is aware of the information highlighted by the campaign and considers both the poor level of attainment by ethnic minorities in those schools and what the LEA should be doing to improve standards in them?
Mr. Clarke: I agree with my hon. Friend and commend her work on the "missingbucks" campaign. She has previously raised the different types of funding for different schools in Buckinghamshire in the House,
and we need to put the matter right in the way that she suggests. The pupil funding guarantees in the settlements for this year and next year to which my hon. Friend the Minister for School Standards referred a moment ago will go some way to protecting every school, but my hon. Friend the Member for Milton Keynes, South-West (Dr. Starkey) is right to focus on getting Buckinghamshire county council to allocate proper resources to schools that face the greatest challenges.School Meals
8. Helen Jones (Warrington, North) (Lab): What steps he is taking to improve the quality of school meals. [162122]
The Minister for Children (Margaret Hodge): In April 2001, the Government introduced nutritional standards for school lunches, the first for 20 years. The standards are based on the appropriate foods and not on the appropriate nutrients that are necessary to make up a balanced diet. They prescribe the types of food that should be available from the four main food groups and the frequency with which they should be served.
Helen Jones : Is my right hon. Friend aware that the food group approach is leading to food being served in our schools as, for example, meat or fish, when it contains little of those items and is highly processed? Will she revisit the matter and examine the recommendations in the Education and Skills Committee's report on school meals, which strongly recommends the nutrient-based approach rather than the food group approach?
Margaret Hodge: I know that my hon. Friend has a great interest in the issue, which, together with the Department of Health, we keep under constant review, and we are working with the Food Standards Agency and Ofsted to review adherence to standards. In my experience, basing school lunches on foods rather than nutrients gives greater choice to children and young people, which increases take-up of school meals and results in less food being wasted and thrown away.
Apprenticeships
9. Bob Spink (Castle Point) (Con): Which employers' organisations he has met with regard to the modern apprenticeship programme. [162123]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education and Skills (Mr. Ivan Lewis): The employer-led modern apprenticeship taskforce chaired by Sir Roy Gardner is advising Ministers on the development of modern apprenticeships. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State recently met the Engineering Employers Federation, and Ministers regularly meet the CBI, the Small Business Council and representatives from the network of sector skills councils.
Bob Spink : Those hon. Members who, like me, did an apprenticeship will know how valuable apprenticeships are not only to the individual but to society as a whole. However, this country lags behind its competitors: only
28 per cent. of Britons are qualified to apprentice craft or technical levels, whereas in France the figure is 51 per cent. and in Germany 65 per cent. I make no party political point—the matter is too important. What innovative measures can we take to draw the attention of the public and teachers to the need for more people to take up modern apprenticeships and to promote those apprenticeships? These days, it costs more to call out a plumber at the weekend than a brain surgeon.
Mr. Lewis: I will not comment on the respective requirements for brain surgeons on each side of the House. There should be maximum consensus on this policy, and I am delighted to tell the House that a record 255,000 young people are undertaking modern apprenticeships and that 36,000 employers offer apprenticeships. In the next few weeks, we intend to announce a significant marketing and advertising campaign aimed at attracting more employers who are willing to offer apprenticeships. Many young people see apprenticeship as a high-status, high-quality route into the labour market, but as a country, we need far more employers to offer apprenticeships. The hon. Member for Tunbridge Wells (Mr. Norman) will be delighted to hear that Asda has joined the apprenticeship scheme this year and is offering 1,000 apprenticeships. That kind of lead by large, better-known companies is important. I ask all hon. Members to communicate with employers in their respective constituencies and ask them to offer apprenticeships to our young people.
Lawrie Quinn (Scarborough and Whitby) (Lab): My hon. Friend will note the shortage of skills, particularly in the construction industry. Will he take every opportunity to tell the Learning and Skills Council that we need more construction skills courses in our colleges around the country? Local businesses in my area find it difficult to send apprentices long distances in order for them to attend the necessary courses.
Mr. Lewis: I agree entirely with my hon. Friend. If we are to meet the challenging targets that the Government have rightly set for the housebuilding programme, for example, we will need skilled people to deliver high-quality craftsmanship. We want the sector skills councils, the employer-led organisations, to determine the nature of the apprenticeship need and the colleges and learning and skills councils to ensure that courses are available. We want an education and training system that is far more responsive to the needs of the economy than it has been in the past. The work that is being done in construction is an innovative example of how we can make such progress.
Sir Nicholas Winterton (Macclesfield) (Con): I am very pleased to see such strong cross-party support for apprenticeships. I hope that the figures that the Minister has announced today will be dramatically increased, because they are still inadequate. Does he agree that the manufacturing and construction industries desperately need apprentices—people with qualifications—and will he seek to attract more people into apprenticeships? Will he also have a word with the Chancellor of the Exchequer about encouraging industry further to employ apprentices and to ensure that when they are
qualified they have proper status? In many other countries, engineers are highly respected. Can we achieve the same respect for engineers in this country?
Mr. Lewis: I agree entirely with the hon. Gentleman. One of the challenges identified by the Tomlinson review is to ensure that we have a high-quality, high- status vocational route available to young people and that once they have received that qualification it is valued every bit as much as a degree. Many advanced modern apprentices should be able to go on to do a foundation degree, because that will meet the needs of their sectors. The policies of the Conservatives on higher education would deny those young people in apprenticeships the opportunity to move on to higher education. It is when the route does not lead to higher education that it is perceived as being of lower status.
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