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14 Mar 2006 : Column 2205W—continued
Cognitive Ability
Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of children achieved cognitive ability testing scores at (a) the standard level, (b) above the standard level and (c) below the standard level at (i) Key Stage 1 and (ii) Key Stage 2 in each year since the tests were introduced. [46126]
Jacqui Smith: The information is not held centrally.
Connexions
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what role the Connexions Agency plays in admitting students into (a) the workplace, (b) universities and (c) modern apprenticeships; and if she will make a statement. [57807]
Maria Eagle
[holding answer 13 March 2006]: Connexions provides information, advice, guidance and support to all 13–19 year olds to help them enter appropriate further and higher education, training and work. Personal Advisers engage with young people to provide guidance on learning and career options, with a view to raising the aspirations and attainment of each young person. Personal Advisers also work with and support education and training institutions and
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employers in providing opportunities for young people. We have set out our plans to improve information, advice and guidance for young people, including clear minimum expectations and new quality standards, in Youth Matters. This will build on good practice in Connexions.
Deaf Children
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps her Department is taking to raise the educational attainment of deaf children. [54829]
Maria Eagle: The Special Educational Needs (SEN) Code of Practice provides advice to local authorities, and schools on their statutory duties to identify, assess and make provision for children who have special educational needs, including children who are deaf. The Code sets out a graduated approach to providing support. Many children who are deaf will have statements of SEN. All statements must be reviewed at least annually. The purpose of the review is to consider children's progress, to ensure they are achieving desired outcomes and, if necessary, to amend their statements to reflect newly identified needs and provision.
In addition, the development of the New Relationship with Schools brings a focus on how well schools meet the needs of all their pupils. All schools will carry out an annual self-evaluation and publish a single plan setting out their priorities for improvement in which they will need to show how all their pupils are achieving. This process will highlight any gaps in achievement between different groups of children, which will then be discussed with a locally appointed School Improvement Partner.
Our White Paper 'Higher Standards, Better Schools for all' published in October 2005, which builds on 'Removing Barriers to Achievement' published in February 2004, promotes a more effectively tailored education for all children with special education needs by increasing the sharing of expertise between special and mainstream schools, by equipping the work force with appropriate skills, knowledge, awareness and confidence and by promoting more effective measurement of, and accountability for, the progress made by pupils with SEN across a wide range of abilities. The White Paper also set out our plans for personalised learning. These include providing targeted support for groups of children who are at risk of under achieving, including those with SEN. We will spend an additional £565 million by 2007–08 to support schools to tailor teaching to the needs of all their pupils.
Delegated Budgetary Powers
Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many (a) secondary and (b) primary schools in England had their delegated budgetary powers removed by local education authorities in each year since 2001. [58010]
Jacqui Smith:
Under Section 51 and schedule 15 to the Schools Standards and Framework Act 1998, the Secretary of State has been notified of 11 schools since 2001, where budgetary powers have been suspended by the local education authority. The breakdown of the
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number of primary and secondary schools in each year where budgets have been removed under these powers is as follows:
| Primary | Secondary | |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 1 | 2 |
| 2002 | 1 | 1 |
| 2003 | 1 | 0 |
| 2004 | 0 | 3 |
| 2005 | 1 | 1 |
The Department has no record of suspensions under section 17 of the Act, but believes them to be more numerous.
Departmental Assets
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 14 February 2006, Official Report, column 1921W, on departmental assets, how many of the laptops replaced in the last 12 months were replaced due to (a) breakage and (b) normal wear and tear. [54665]
Maria Eagle: The Department does not record the information necessary to provide the required clarification of the figure for broken laptops.
Early Years Programme
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what her policy is on allocation of Early Years Programme funds between voluntary and statutory bodies in relation to children under five years who use each kind of service in equal parts during the week. [55453]
Beverley Hughes [holding answer 2 March 2006]: It is a matter for individual local authorities to determine arrangements for funding private voluntary and independent (pvi) providers to deliver the free nursery education entitlement. In meeting their statutory responsibilities to secure sufficient provision they must have regard to guidance from the Secretary of State. That guidance makes clear the importance of a thriving pvi sector to the provision of sufficient, high quality child care.
The recently updated guidance in the Code of Practice on the Provision of Free Nursery Education Places for Three and Four Year Olds", which comes into effect from 1 April 2006 encourages local authorities, wherever practicable, to apportion funding pro rata in cases where a child takes up the free entitlement in a combination of a maintained and pvi provider.
East Riding (Education Services)
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many and what percentage of pupils being educated in the East Riding of Yorkshire live outside the county's local education authority boundary; and if she will make a statement. [57212]
Jacqui Smith:
The information requested has been provided in the following table.
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(44) Includes pupils aged 5 to 15 years, solely registered or main registration of dually registered pupils, excludes boarders.
(45) Includes middle deemed primary
3 Includes secondary, middle deemed secondary, Academies and City Technology Colleges.
(46) Includes special and non-maintained special.
Source:
Annual Schools Census 2005
Eastern European Students
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps her Department is taking to assist the integration of students from Eastern Europe into English schools. [57463]
Jacqui Smith: Local authorities have a duty to ensure that all children of compulsory school age have access to education, regardless of their nationality.
Local authorities receive additional funding from the Department in the form of the Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant (EMAG). This grant is ring-fenced and must be used by schools to help raise the attainment of ethnic minority pupils who underachieve and to target help for those pupils for whom English is an additional language.
To ensure the educational needs of Eastern European children are taken into account, local authorities are encouraged to develop local policies and procedures to facilitate support within local schools.
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