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17 Jan 2006 : Column 1224W—continued
Adult Learning Inspectorate
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the national targets are for the Adult Learning Inspectorate; and what the performance of relevant offices in South Devon has been in relation to those targets. [41994]
Bill Rammell: The Adult Learning Inspectorate (the ALI) is a national organisation operating from its single office in Coventry. The grant in aid is allocated to the ALI on the basis of targets for the number of inspections to be delivered. For 2005–06, the target for new inspections was 789 and for re-inspections 262. As a national organisation, local allocations are not made so no details are available for South Devon.
Aimhigher
Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which rural area has been chosen as one of the four area studies to be considered in the research report being conducted as part of the Aimhigher Strategy for Higher Education; and what criteria were considered when choosing the area. [40697]
Bill Rammell: The Aimhigher area studies are being carried out as part of strand 3 of the national Aimhigher evaluation. While we know which areas were shortlisted for interview, we do not know which four areas were actually interviewed by independent contractors EKOS for this forthcoming report, as all individuals and areas were guaranteed anonymity as part of the interview process. This was to ensure that the answers provided reflected the true opinions of the respondent.
The main objective of the area selection process was to identify a broad range of Aimhigher Partnership areas which are reflective of the various types of Aimhigher activity undertaken throughout the country. Rurality was not one of the formal selection criteria of the initial shortlisting process, but a spread of areas with regard to the level of rurality or urbanisation was ensured.
The contractors have informed us that all districts within the rural area selected are formally classified as rural in the ODPM user guide.
Certificate in Education
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) how many teachers working in (a) higher and (b) adult education will be affected by the requirement to take a Certificate in Education in order to continue to be eligible to teach; [42290]
(2) what financial support is available to teachers aged (a) under 55 and (b) over 55 years who are working in (i) adult and (ii) higher education and who are required to take a Certificate in Education in order to continue to be eligible to teach. [42291]
Phil Hope: Since September 2001, all teachers appointed in Further Education colleges have been required by law to obtain the Further Education Teachers' Certificate.
From September 2007, all new teachers within the 'whole' of the publicly funded FE learning and skills sector will be expected to undertake the new teaching
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requirement, which is to obtain Qualified Teacher Learning and Skills status and a full Licence to Practise. This is set out in the Government's November 2004 reform document Equipping our Teachers for the Future: Reforming Initial Teacher Training for the Learning and Skills Sector".
Higher Education teaching staff are not within the scope of the current and future regulations referred to above for FE. But, from 2006, it is expected that all new teaching staff in Higher Education will obtain a relevant teaching qualification accredited against national professional standards for teaching in Higher Education.
The Government expect to spend a total of approximately £18 million on incentives to recruit and retain FE teachers in 2005/06 and a similar amount in 2006/07. Three schemes available to eligible college teachers are Teacher Training Bursaries, Golden Hellos, and Key Worker Living. There are no age limits on these incentives.
The Department has also funded, through the Higher Education Funding Council for England, a Golden Hello programme to encourage new entrants into teaching shortage subjects within Higher Education, totalling £20 million from 2003–04 to 2005–06.
Departmental Expenditure
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will list the (a) public and (b) voluntary and private organisations to which her Department made payments through grants or contracts in excess of £20,000 excluding the Department's administrative expenditure in 2004–05. [38604]
Bill Rammell: The Department's accounting system does not separately identify private organisations who receive grants or contracts and the information could be provided only at disproportionate cost. A list of bodies identified as in the voluntary sector which received grants or contracts, excluding the Department's administrative expenditure in excess of £20,000 are as follows:
Voluntary Organisations who received over £20,000 in 2004–05
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