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Ruth Kelly: Of course I can confirm to my hon. Friend that the position has not changed and that those schools will make a valuable addition to our education system. In delivering this agenda, they will have to be able to work with other schools in their local area. I see it as a fundamental part of these reforms that we open up schools to work in partnership with one another to deliver an all-round education that meets the needs of every pupil.
Paul Holmes (Chesterfield) (LD): I was a secondary school teacher for 22 years, mostly in comprehensive schools. The problem with vocational courses was always that they were seen as second best. Only this morning, the new vice-chancellor of Oxford university confirmed in the Education and Skills Committee that that university has no intention of and no interest in admitting students with vocational qualifications. Will the Secretary of State think again about rejecting the key part of Tomlinson, as otherwise the vocational diplomas will go the same way as the GNVQ, the BTEC, the CPVE and all the rest?
Ruth Kelly: Of course, at that point the vice-chancellor did not have the opportunity to study these proposals and he did not know that the new specialised diplomas will include A-levels and GCSEs where appropriate. An engineering diploma, for example, could include A-level maths or an advanced optional paper at the end of A-level maths, where a student can show their potential. If we design these advanced level diplomas in specialised subjects together with HE, for the first time, HE will have a real say in what pupils learn. As a result, the qualifications will be taken seriously. That is what employers and HE have been telling us.
Mr. Brian Jenkins (Tamworth) (Lab):
My right hon. Friend will be aware that at present a comprehensive
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system is in operation in my constituency. I have six comprehensive schools and one college, which work as a consortium. It is the intention from September to convert one of the comprehensive schools into a skills academy. We have almost everything on board, but we need a little extra money to ensure that there is parity of esteem as regards the equipment in the skills academy. We have a conference in March to try to get more business people on board. We have many; we are trying to attract more. Will she accept the offer of being top of the bill at that conference?
Ruth Kelly: How could I ever refuse my hon. Friend? I know that he has been pursuing this matter. He has brought to my attention and to that of my hon. Friend the Minister for School Standards the practical experience of his constituency. We can all learn from practical experiences such as the ones that the pupils in his constituency are lucky enough to be having. We must now ensure that all our youngsters have that opportunity.
Mr. Henry Bellingham (North-West Norfolk) (Con): On page seven of her statement, the Secretary of State talks about the first four employer-designed diplomas. She then mentions sectors such as engineering, health and social care, and talks about large companies, but most of the companies in those sectors are small and medium-sized, or very small. How will she engage small firms organisations to get their contribution?
Ruth Kelly: I mentioned—the hon. Gentleman may be interested in this—that the NHS is very keen on taking part in these proposals. It is one of the largest employers not just in this country but in Europe. I also mentioned that IBM, Hewlett Packard and Rolls-Royce are very keen to get involved too. We want small firms to be included too. In fact, they will be essential to delivering our new route for 14 to 16-year-olds, which will, I hope, remotivate children who are at risk of dropping out of the system entirely. I am delighted to say that Digby Jones, head of the Confederation of British Industry, has said that he will work with us in trying to attract employers to get involved in the education system, so that more and more young people have the opportunity to work not just in vocational subjects but in the workplace, learning in the way that most motivates them.
Mr. Khalid Mahmood (Birmingham, Perry Barr) (Lab): I welcome my right hon. Friend's statement, particularly in relation to vocational education. I welcome too the investment that her Department has made in my constituency. I thank her and her predecessor for the investment of £45 million in a PFI school, which is working brilliantly. Children were working in huts before that. I welcome her commitment of £5 million for the new Kingsland school in Oscott, which is to be completed in 2007. Will she, in order to meet the commitment to increase staying-on rates by 90 per cent., allow Great Barr school, the largest in the country, to have a proper sixth form, so that such rates can be achieved?
Ruth Kelly:
My hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the fact that many successful schools want to expand
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to open sixth forms, which is one of the reasons why there should be a presumption that successful schools that want to open sixth forms should be allowed to have them. That is also something that will be central to achieving our proposals.
Mr. Damian Green (Ashford) (Con): I hope that the Secretary of State sticks to her guns in rejecting the notion that by re-badging vocational qualifications as academic qualifications, one thereby raises the esteem of vocational qualifications. It is the quality of the vocational education on offer that raises the esteem. Can she clear up one ambiguity? Will the work-based route for those over the age of 14 be available only to those whom she described as disaffected, or will it be available to those who show a particular aptitude in some vocational skill, who could clearly benefit from it hugely?
Ruth Kelly: The hon. Gentleman makes some important points. One does not achieve parity of by esteem by offering the same to all. One achieves it by offering something that is valued and worth while in its own right, and that is recognised in my proposals. For 14 to 16-year-olds who are at risk of dropping out of the system, the route will clearly involve employers, but those children who are motivated by learning in the workplace, in an FE college or in a practical way in another setting should also have the opportunity to be motivated and to learn in that different place and in that different way. We will work with employers to open up opportunities for everyone who would benefit from that experience to work in the workplace.
Helen Jones (Warrington, North) (Lab): While I welcome much of what my right hon. Friend has said today, as a Member of the House and a parent, I am deeply disappointed that she has not taken the opportunity to implement the whole of the Tomlinson report, which is about broadening and enriching the curriculum, not just about dealing with vocational and academic divisions. What funding streams will she introduce to ensure that schools do not have a vested interest in ensuring that children go either one way or the other, and what assessment has she made of the training requirements necessary to implement the structures for vocational education and the extra teaching in English and maths as well as the major project?
Ruth Kelly: My hon. Friend makes some interesting points. May I tell her that we will return to the theme of broadening and enriching the curriculum over the remaining weeks and months? I shall have a lot to say about that. On Mike Tomlinson's report, we are implementing the extended project that he recommended, which will provide an opportunity for students to demonstrate their potential in a different way from the current approaches.
My hon. Friend is also right to draw attention to potential barriers in the funding system between schools and further education colleges. Learning and skills councils will have to work flexibly with local authorities to deliver in practice. I can tell her that, where it is in practice at the moment, it works. We have real practical experience of seeing delivery happen. We know it can be
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done: it will be a challenge not just to overcome the barriers but to train the work force to deliver the skills in an appropriate way. We must face those challenges head on, and we will overcome them to deliver this agenda.
Mr. Speaker: Order. It would be unfair of me not to call the remaining Members who wish to speak, but I must appeal to them and tell them that their questions must be brief, because the rules of the House recommend that ministerial statements end after an hour.
Mr. Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis and Littlehampton) (Con): The Secretary of State's decision to reject Tomlinson is welcome—if, indeed, that is what she is doing. It is refreshing to see a Minister who does not slavishly follow the advice of the education establishment. I hope that she will adopt the same approach to the teaching of reading and writing in primary schools, but I am concerned about her intention to introduce a diploma for those with five or more good GCSEs, as many of the most damaging proposals in Tomlinson may still be implemented. Will she give an assurance that she will rule out the Tomlinson proposal to reduce external examination at the age of 16 and replace it by more teacher assessment? Will she categorically rule—
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