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7 Mar 2006 : Column 1423W—continued
Education (Staffing)
Dan Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) how many (a) full-time teachers and (b) school support staff were employed in South Gloucestershire in each year since 1992; [54396]
(2) how many (a) full-time teachers and (b) school support staff were employed in Bath and North East Somerset for each year since 1992. [54399]
Jacqui Smith: The following table provides the full-time and full-time equivalent number of regular teachers and the full-time equivalent number of support staff employed in South Gloucestershire and Bath and North East Somerset local authorities in each January since 1997. Support staff data can only be provided on a full-time equivalent basis.
South Gloucestershire and Bath and North East Somerset local authorities were created on 1 April 1996. Figures are not available prior to April 1996.
Note:
Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.
Source:
Survey of teachers in service and teacher vacancies (teachers), Annual School Census (support staff).
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Education Maintenance Allowance
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when institutions whose students are eligible for education maintenance allowance were first informed that the administrative costs would be covered by the individual institutions in academic year 2007–08. [48934]
Maria Eagle: Institutions were first formally notified of the arrangement for EMA administrative payments to schools and colleges on 30 January 2006.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans she has to ensure that those who are entitled to Education Maintenance Allowance from April, but who do not live with parents or are of no fixed abode, continue to receive support to continue their studies, with particular reference to those who are not eligible for a bank account. [55410]
Maria Eagle: Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) is not designed to provide support for a young person's living costs. It is an incentive to encourage learning post compulsory education.
Where a young person in full time non advanced education is estranged from their parent or guardian, income support is available (subject to satisfying the other qualifying conditions). EMA is paid in addition to income support in these circumstances.
In response to its stakeholder consultation, the Learning and Skills Council (LSC), who have operational responsibility for EMA, has been supporting learners to open bank accounts. LSC have been working with the British Bankers Association (BBA) to publicise basic bank accounts. These bank accounts are easier to obtain than a full current account. The BBA has also agreed to act as an intermediary if learners experience specific problems.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans she has to provide funding for individuals between payments of Education Maintenance Allowance and those made to trainees undertaking work-based learning courses including E2E. [55411]
Maria Eagle: The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) who have operational responsibility for Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA), is putting in place transitional arrangements for those learners starting an LSC funded E2E/Programme Led Pathway (PLP) Programme before 10 April 2006. Learners starting provision before that date will continue to receive Minimum Training Allowance (MTA) until the end of their course, or 31 December 2006, whichever is the sooner.
For learners beginning their programme after 10 April 2006, the LSC has been able to secure £1.8 million of funding for a Hardship Fund in 2006/07 for E2E/PLP learners replicating the Learner Support Fund available to Learners in Further Education.
The LSC has been undertaking a range of activities to maximise EMA take up and to minimise the risk of payment delays to learners who are eligible for EMA
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payments. This includes making the EMA application more user friendly and spreading good practice to try to help households get applications right the first time.
Education Provision (Hendon)
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) if she will make a statement on progress with Sure Start in Hendon; [56748]
(2) how many (a) Sure Start and (b) under fives places are available in Hendon; and if she will make a statement. [56749]
Beverley Hughes: Sure Start Underhill and West Hendon, a sixth wave local programme has been offering services to under fours and their families since 2003. The number of children under four in the programme catchment area is 722. The latest figure for the percentage of children 'reached' by the programme was 33 per cent. at March 2005. This compares well with the national average of 23 per cent. of children 'reached' at March 2005.
Sure Start Underhill and West Hendon will form part of a purpose built children's centre on the site of Parkfield School in West Hendon, to be opened by September 2006. Wingfield Children's Centre in Colindale is due to open at the end of March 2006. The two centres will create an additional 91 child care places and will reach around 2,192 children. The London borough of Barnet has a target to create a further 15 children's centres by March 2008. These centres are in the initial planning stages, but early indications are that eight of these children's centre will be in the Hendon constituency.
According to the Ofsted register, there were 4,208 childcare places available for children aged under eight in the London borough of Barnet at December 2005. Information on places by constituency and places for under fives is not available.
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children in Hendon participated in the Bookstart programme in the last year for which figures are available; and if she will make a statement. [56751]
Beverley Hughes: The Government are providing funding of £27 million to Bookstart from 2005–08. The aim of the Bookstart Programme is to support children's early communication and language development and social and emotional development by encouraging parents to share books, story telling and rhymes with their babies and toddlers. A total of 371 Bookstart packs were issued in the Hendon area during 2005. The figure for the number of Bookstart Plus vouchers issued in Hendon in 2005 is not yet available, but 197 vouchers for Bookstart Treasure Chest packs have been distributed in Hendon since October 2005.
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps her Department is taking to support school sport in Hendon. [56758]
Jacqui Smith:
The Department for Education and Skills and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport are jointly implementing the national PE, School Sport
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and Club Links strategy in England. In the five years to 2008 over £1.5 billion is being invested (including £686 million lottery funding) to implement the strategy.
The strategy is delivering an ambitious public service agreement target to increase the percentage of 5–16 year olds who spend a minimum of two hours a week on high quality PE and school sport within and beyond the curriculum to 75 per cent. by 2006 and then 85 per cent. by 2008. The long-term ambition, by 2010, is to offer all children at least four hours of sport every week. The 2004/05 school sport survey results found that overall, 69 per cent. of pupils in the 11,498 schools taking part were participating in at least two hours of high quality PE and school sport a week. In 2003/04 this figure was 62 per cent.
Spearheading this strategy is the creation of a national PE/sports infrastructure, by establishing a network of Sports Colleges and School Sport Partnerships (families of schools which work together). Hendon is in the London borough of Barnet, which currently has 85 schools within a School Sport Partnership. By September this year all maintained schools in the borough will be included within a partnership.
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many schools in Hendon had (a) computer suites and (b) classroom interactive whiteboards in (i) 2005 and (ii) 1997; and if she will make a statement. [56826]
Phil Hope: Data on ICT resources in schools are available nationally but not on a constituency or authority basis. In 2005, the average pupil to computer ratio was 6.7 pupils per computer in primary schools and 4.1 pupils per computer in secondary. There was no comparable survey in 1997, but in 1998 there were 17.6 pupils per computer in primary schools and 8.7 pupils per computer in secondary.
In 2005, 76 per cent. of primary and 95 per cent. of secondary schools had interactive whiteboards. Data on interactive whiteboards (or equivalent technologies) were not collected in 1998 but in 2001, when data were first collected, 9 per cent. of primary and 40 per cent. of secondary schools had interactive whiteboards.
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much her Department has made available for capital expenditure in Hendon schools since 1997; and if she will make a statement. [56827]
Jacqui Smith: Capital allocations for Hendon are made to Barnet Local Authority and its schools. Details of annual capital allocations made to Barnet local authority since 1997–98 are set out in the table.
| £ million | |
|---|---|
| 1997–98 | 1.8 |
| 1998–99 | 5.6 |
| 1999–2000 | 3.9 |
| 2000–01 | 11.9 |
| 2001–02 | 7.5 |
| 2002–03 | 15.9 |
| 2003–04 | 12.0 |
| 2004–05 | 18.5 |
| 2005–06 | 15.1 |
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Capital allocations to local authorities and schools are higher than ever before. In 2005–06 they are £5.5 billion and they are planned to rise to £6.3 billion in 2007–08, an increase from £683 million in 1996–97.
It is the responsibility of schools and local authorities to determine how they allocate these funds, taking account of local needs and priorities.
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