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Key Stage 2 Spelling

Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 18 July 2005, Official Report, column 1399W, on Key Stage 2 spelling, if she will revise marking guidelines for Key Stage 2 English tests to ensure that spelling is taken into account in the longer and shorter writing tasks. [16439]

 
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Jacqui Smith: No. In the Key Stage 2 English tests, spelling will continue to be assessed through a discrete spelling test.

Leadership Incentive Grant

Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what her plans are for replacing the Leadership Incentive Grant when it finishes next year. [15291]

Jacqui Smith: Ministers have yet to take decisions on the targeting of additional funds through the new Single School Grant from 2006–07 onwards.

London Olympic Games

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps her Department is taking to use the hosting of the 2012 Olympic Games to encourage school children in London to take up sport; and if she will make a statement. [15571]

Beverley Hughes: Staging the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games in London will undoubtedly boost our national PE, School Sport and Club Links (PESSCL) strategy. We can use the games to inspire children and young people to take up sport and lay the foundations for lifelong participation. Together with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and other partners, we are exploring how we can further utilise the games to enhance the effectiveness of the PESSCL strategy.

The Government are investing—including lottery funding—over £1.5 billion, in the five years to 2008, to deliver the PESSCL strategy. An ambitious public service agreement target has been set to increase the percentage of 5 to 16-year-olds who spend a minimum of two hours each week on high quality physical education and school sport within and beyond the curriculum to 75 per cent. by 2006, and then 85 per cent. by 2008. We are on track to meet the target. Longer term—by 2010—our ambition is to offer children the chance to spend at least four hours a week on sport.

Looked-after Children

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State forEducation and Skills what estimate she has made of the annual cost of looking after the children of adults who have themselves previously been in care in 2004–05. [15935]

Jacqui Smith: The Government have made no estimates of the costs in 2004–05 of looking after the children of adults who had themselves been previously looked-after.

Music Teaching

Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the average cost to those people who have to contribute to the study of a musical instrument at school is. [15996]

Jacqui Smith: This information is not part of the Department's statutory annual data collection. However, in February we undertook a survey of all local authority music services that included questions about
 
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the cost of instrumental tuition provided by music services. The survey findings will be available in November 2005.

NPQH Programme

Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many head teachers and senior teachers have completed the National Professional Qualification for Headship (NPQH) programme; how many middle leaders have completed Leading from the Middle; and how many applicants have failed to complete either NPQH or Leading from the Middle programmes in each of the last five years. [15290]

Jacqui Smith: On the basis of information provided by the National College for School Leadership:

The number of candidates who have completed the National Professional Qualification for Headship (NPQH) in the last five years is—2,258 in 2001; 3,183 in 2002; 3,295 in 2003; 3,838 in 2004; and 1,899 (to date) in 2005. Of those who hold NPQH—4,601 are headteachers and 8,657 assistant and deputy headteachers. While we can say how many candidates completed the NPQH in a given year, this will not necessarily be the same year they were appointed to a headteacher or assistant or deputy headteacher post. It is, therefore, only possible to say how many headteachers, and assistant and deputy headteachers currently hold NPQH.

The number of middle leaders who have completed the Leading from the Middle Programme since it was delivered for the first time in September 2003, is 1,978 in Cohort 1 which started in September 2003; 1,965 in Cohort 2 which started in April 2004; and 3,127 in Cohort 3 which started in September 2004. As the programme lasts for 10 months, no information is available so far for the numbers who have completed Cohort 4 which started in April 2004.

The number of applicants who have failed to complete NPQH in each of the last five years is—77 in 2001; 315 in 2002; 332 in 2003; 508 in 2004; and 328 in 2005.

The number of applicants who have failed to complete the Leading from the Middle programme is 175 from Cohort 1; 193 from Cohort 2; and 124 from Cohort 3.

Overcrowded Housing

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment she has made of the impact on education of overcrowding in housing in England; and if she will make a statement. [15821]

Bill Rammell: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister published The Impact of Overcrowding on Health and Education: A Review of the Evidence and Literature" in May 2004. The report (ISBN 1 85112 7110) was placed in the Library of the House.

DfES has not conducted an independent assessment of the issue. I am not aware of any significant evidence that subsequently adds to the assessment of the ODPM publication.

Part-time Students

Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what research she has conducted on the financial situation of part-time students; [12484]

(2) what research she has conducted on the impact of new fees regulations in higher education institutions with an atypically high level of part-time students; [12485]
 
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(3) what recent assessment she has made of the merits of fee deferrals for part-time students; [12486]

(4) what representations she has received from (a) higher education institutions and (b) the Office for Fair Access on the impact on student access of differences between the full-time and part-time student support regimes. [12487]

Bill Rammell [pursuant to the reply, 18 July 2005, Official Report, c. 1406–07W]: It should be noted that the publication date of the report, Earning, Learning and Paying: The Results from a National Survey of the Costs and Financing of Part-time Students in Higher Education", referred to in my answer was December 2004, not November as previously stated.

A copy of the report is available in the House of Commons Library.

Positive Activities for Young People

Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what research she has published on the impact of the Positive Activities for Young People programme on youth crime and anti-social behaviour. [15978]

Beverley Hughes: An independent evaluation report covering the period April 2003 to March 2005 is currently being finalised. It is the Department's intention to publish on the internet on 28 October 2005. The website address is:

www.connexions.gov.uk

Prince's Trust Team Programme

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what recent funding changes have been made affecting the Prince's Trust Team Programme; and if she will make a statement. [15414]

Bill Rammell: The Prince's Trust Team Programme is funded by lead further education colleges through their allocations from the Learning and Skills Council (LSC). The Programme was developed with the help of funding provided by the LSC. In 2005/06 the LSC has emphasised its priorities for further education which guarantee a place in education or training for all young people and a focus on support for adults without a solid foundation of employability skills. As part of the normal annual cycle of planning provision, colleges decide on their continued support for local Team Programmes on the basis of their effectiveness in meeting the needs of young people, value for money, quality of provision and contribution to meeting the targets outlined in the college's development plan agreed with their local LSC. I met with the Trust's Chief Executive earlier in the summer and I am confident that through the LSC and local providers we will continue to support Team Programmes that meet the needs of vulnerable young people.

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