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19 Jul 2004 : Column 91W—continued
Employment Tribunals
Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many cases against his Department, the agencies for which it is responsible and its predecessor organisations have been brought to employment tribunals in each year since 1997 in relation to (a) equal pay, (b) sex discrimination, (c) race discrimination, (d) disability discrimination and (e) unfair dismissal; how many cost awards were made against (i) respondents and (ii) applicants; and how much has been spent (A) settling and (B) contesting claims. [181473]
Mr. Charles Clarke:
My Department is committed to embedding diversity and equality into its employment policies and practices.
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The number of employment tribunal cases against my Department is set out as follows:
| Equal pay | Sex discrimination | Race discrimination | Disability discrimination | Unfair dismissal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 1 | 1 | — | — | |
| 2003 | — | 1 | (62)3 | 2 | |
| 2004 | 3 | — | 1 | 1 | |
| Total | 4 | 2 | 4 | 3 |
(62) Two cases included unfair dismissal.
Information before these years in the form requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
There were no awards made against my Department during the years quoted, however, applicants did receive out of court settlements totalling £26,356. The cost for contesting claims during the years quoted totalled just over £99,500.
Fair Admissions Taskforce
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the cost of recruitment of the Head of the Fair Admissions Taskforce was; and what his (a) salary and (b) other employment costs for the next three years are estimated to be. [184321]
Mr. Charles Clarke [holding answer 15 July 2004]: Professor Schwartz receives no remuneration as Chair of the Admissions to Higher Education Review, other than expenses. There were no costs of recruitment.
As Vice-Chancellor of Brunel University, Professor Schwartz's salary is a matter for Brunel University. All Vice-Chancellors' salaries are in the public domain, and the THES of 20 February 2004 listed his pay for the year 2002–03 as £174,000.
Fieldwork
Mr. Collins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what assessment he has made of a possible link between falling numbers of science graduates and the availability of fieldwork and out-of-classroom activity in schools; and if he will make a statement; [183157]
(2) if he will make fieldwork and out-of-classroom learning part of the core science curriculum; what assessment he has made of the obstacles to biology fieldwork; and if he will make a statement; [183158]
(3) what assessment he has made of the benefits of fieldwork and out-of-classroom activity in developing practical skills for use (a) at undergraduate level, (b) at postgraduate level and (c) in employment; and if he will make a statement. [183159]
Mr. Ivan Lewis:
No assessment has been made of the impact that the availability of fieldwork in school science has on science graduate numbers. We will set out measures to increase the number of students studying the physical sciences and engineering through the Government's 10 year investment framework for science and innovation, published alongside the 2004 spending review.
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Out of classroom learning is already a statutory requirement in National Curriculum Geography and we will continue to encourage schools to provide fieldwork opportunities in science. We are developing training and guidance for science teachers in fieldwork, including risk assessment, through our new network of Science Learning Centres.
The Field Studies Council's recent 'Review of Outdoor Learning', which the Department part funded, pointed to the potential learning, attitudinal, interpersonal and social outcomes of fieldwork and out of classroom activity such as leadership, team working, enquiry and self-reliance.
Formula Spending Share
Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the average (a) primary formula spending share per pupil and (b) secondary formula spending share per pupil is for each local education authority for 2005–06 listed in descending order of secondary formula spending share. [184955]
Mr. Miliband: Figures for 2005–06 will not be available until the provisional Local Government Finance Settlement is announced in the autumn.
Foundation Schools
Glenda Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills with whom a school must consult should it wish to adopt foundation status; and how such consultations are funded. [184704]
Mr. Miliband: The Secretary of State's statutory guidance currently says that those bringing forward proposals for a change in the category of a school should consult all interested parties. These include:
any local education authority likely to be affected by the proposals;
other schools in the area;
parents and teachers in the area who may be affected by the proposals;
if proposals involve, or are likely to affect, a school which has a particular religious foundation, the appropriate religious body;
if the proposals affect the provision of full-time 16–19 education, the Learning and Skills Council.
Funding of consultations is the responsibility of those bringing forward the proposals.
The Five Year Strategy document proposes a simpler and quicker procedure for schools to change category. We intend that the new procedures should retain a requirement for consultation.
Free School Transport
Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children in Weston-Super-Mare constituency he estimates would lose the right to free school transport under the proposals contained in the Draft School Transport Bill. [183819]
Mr. Charles Clarke:
This would be a matter for the LEA. The School transport Bill (which has been published for prelegislative scrutiny) allows local education authorities to apply to the Secretary of State to run pilot schemes which will cater for ALL pupils, not
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just those currently qualifying for free school transport. Pilot authorities may charge for transport, except for pupils eligible for free school meals, but charges must be set at a level that does not encourage car use and caters for the needs of large and low income families.
The Local Government Association, the Audit Commission and the Social Exclusion Unit have all asked us to trial alternatives to the current regime. No authority will be forced to run a trial, and we have no plans to require all authorities to change their existing arrangements.
Higher Education
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of higher education students studied (a) physical sciences, (b) medicine, (c) dentistry, (d) engineering and technology and (e) architecture, building and planning in (i) 1996–97 and (ii) 2002–03. [183268]
Alan Johnson: The available information is given in the table. A new method of allocating students to subject groups was introduced in 2002/03, the effect of which was to decrease the number of students in the 'combined' category and increase those who were allocated to specific subjects. This means that the figures for 2002/03 are not directly comparable with those for earlier years so the comparisons in the table have been made with 2001/02 instead.
| Subject group | 1996/97 | 2001/02 | 2002/03 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physical Sciences | 4.1 | 3.2 | 3.3 |
| Pre-clinical/Clinical Medicine | 1.9 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Pre-clinical/Clinical Dentistry | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.3 |
| Engineering and Technology | 7.5 | 6.4 | 6.0 |
| Architecture, Building and Planning | 2.7 | 2.2 | 2.1 |
Source:
Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA)
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills in which academic areas the percentage of higher education students studying a particular subject has fallen since 1997; and by what amounts. [183312]
Alan Johnson: The available information is given in the table. A new method of allocating students to subject groups was introduced in 2002/03, the effect of which was to decrease the number of students in the 'combined' category and increase those who were allocated to specific subjects. This means that the figures for 2002/03 are not directly comparable with those for earlier years so the comparisons in the table have been made with 2001/02 instead.
n/a=Not applicable.
Source:
Higher Education Statistics Agency.
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| Subject | 2002/03 |
|---|---|
| Medicine | 2.3 |
| Subjects Allied to Medicine | 11.4 |
| Biological Sciences | 5.9 |
| Veterinary Science | 0.2 |
| Agriculture and Related Subjects | 0.7 |
| Physical Sciences | 3.3 |
| Mathematical Science | 1.2 |
| Computing Science | 6.1 |
| Engineering and Technology | 6.0 |
| Architecture, Building and Planning | 2.1 |
| Social Studies | 7.7 |
| Law | 3.7 |
| Business and Administrative Studies | 13.0 |
| Mass Communications and Documentation | 1.9 |
| Languages | 5.9 |
| Historical and Philosophical Studies | 3.9 |
| Creative Arts and Design | 6.3 |
| Education | 7.3 |
| Combined | 11.2 |
(63) For the academic year 2002/03 HESA uses a different method of allocating students to subject groups and so figures are not comparable to earlier years.
Source:
Higher Education Statistics Agency.
19 Jul 2004 : Column 96W
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