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22 May 2006 : Column 1372W—continued
Postgraduates
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will place in the Library a list of titles of research projects being undertaken by postgraduate students from (a) Iran, (b) Syria, (c) the Sudan, (d) China, (e) Arab Palestine and (f) North Korea into (i) nuclear physics, (ii) biochemistry,(iii) pollution dispersal, (iv) genetics, (v) ballistics,(vi) rocketry and (vii) explosive reactions; and if he will indicate the research funder in each case. [71400]
Bill Rammell: This information is not collected centrally.
Public Consultations
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many public consultations his Department undertook in the last 12 months; and what the cost was (a) in total and (b) of each consultation. [70473]
Mr. Dhanda: A list of consultations my Department has consulted the public on can be found at www.dfes.gov.uk/consultations/ Over the year 2005 the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) undertook 36 formal public consultations in orderto inform the Department's policy development. Information on the cost of each consultation and the total cost of all consultations could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Runaways
Helen Southworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what development projects have been established to test services for children and young people who run away or go missing from home or care. [72154]
Mr. Dhanda [holding answer 18 May 2006]: Following the recommendations of the SEU report on Young Runaways (2002), six development projects have tested how best to provide safe, flexible and responsive community-based services to young runaways that can be easily incorporated into mainstream children’s services. We are currently analysing the evaluations from the projects in order to disseminate the lessons learned to local authorities.
In addition, DfES is monitoring the progress of a “Talk Don’t Walk” project in Warrington, funded through the ‘Treasury’s Invest to Save’ initiative, working on similar issues for young runaways. This project will run until 2008, and lessons from this will also be disseminated.
More widely, all local authorities have responsibilities to minimise and respond to ‘missing from care’ incidents as part of their wider duties to safeguard and promote the welfare of children in their care. They are also required to appoint a senior manager to monitor missing from care incidents, so that local trends in children being absent from care can be identified and any necessary action to respond to these can be taken, to identify and address any patterns of young people going missing.
School Finance
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the total schools budget is of each local education authority for 2006-07; and what proportion is delegated to schools in each authority. [72359]
Jim Knight: The information requested is not yet available. The Department is awaiting a complete dataset relating to the 2006-07 financial year. I shall write to the hon. Member as soon as the information is to hand.
Dr. Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the funding per pupil in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools is in each (i) region of England and (ii) local education authority in the north-east region; and if he will make a statement. [72554]
Jim Knight: Detailed information on 2006-07 is not yet available. In 2005-06 the relevant funding was:
| Funding per pupil (£) | ||
| Government region | 3-10 | 11-15 |
| Funding per pupil (£) | ||
| Local authorities in north east region | 3-10 | 11-15 |
| Notes: 1. Total 2005-06 Education Revenue Funding per pupil (£s) aged 3-10 and 11-15, cash terms. Figures include the pensions transfer to EFS. 2. Figures reflect relevant sub-blocks of Standard Spending Assessment/Education Formula Spending (EFS) settlements. Figures include the pensions transfer to EFS. 3. Total funding also includes all revenue grants in DfES Departmental Expenditure Limits relevant to pupils aged 3-10 and 11-15 and exclude Education Maintenance Allowances (EMAs) and grants not allocated at LEA level. 4. The pupil numbers used to convert m figures to per pupil are those underlying the EFS settlement calculations. 5. Figures are provisional as some grants have not yet been finalised/audited. Figures are rounded to the nearest £10. |
School Leavers
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many pupils left school without basic (a) arithmetic and (b) English language skills in 2005. [68634]
Jim Knight: The answer to this question is based on the English and mathematics indicators that were piloted as part of the 2005 Achievement and Attainment tables.
The following table shows the number of pupils ending Key Stage 4 without the following qualifications in mathematics or English in 2005.
| Pupils | Percentage(1) | |
| (1) Of the number of pupils at the end of Key Stage 4. |
The trend over the last ten years is of continued improvement in achievement. The 14 to 19 White Paper placed achieving functional skills in English and mathematics at the heart of the 14 to 19 phase. We will expect more teenagers to achieve five plus A* to C grade GCSEs including English and maths and will toughen the Achievement and Attainment Tables to encourage this. We will ensure that no-one can get a GCSE grade C or better without mastering the functional elements; where a teenager achieves the functional element only, we will recognise that separately.
School Statistics
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will list the 20 lowest performing (a) primary and (b) secondary schools over the last five years. [69790]
Jim Knight: The information requested has been placed in the Library.
School Transport Subsidies
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether he plans to issue guidance to local education authorities on the provision of transport subsidies to faith schools in their area; and if he will make a statement. [72157]
Jim Knight: The Department made draft guidance to local authorities on school travel available to Committee Members scrutinising the Education and Inspections Bill. This includes advice to local authorities on their duties and powers relating to travel arrangements to schools preferred on grounds of religion or belief.
The draft guidance will be subject to formal consultation later this year, and final guidance will be published in early 2007.
Schools (Energy)
Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what requirements there are for new schools (a) to use renewable sources of energy and
(b) to maximise energy efficiency under the Building Schools for the Future programme. [70811]
Mr. Dhanda: Schools built under Building Schools for the Future need to comply with the new Part L of the Building Regulations which came into force in April 2006. It requires low and zero carbon energy sources and renewable energy to be considered and to be used where feasible on all new build projects over 1,000 square metres in size. The 2006 edition of Part L also requires buildings to be energy efficient so that they emit 25 per cent. less carbon than buildings built to the previous 2002 edition. Where it is not feasible to use low and zero carbon energy sources Part L requires an increased energy efficiency to deliver the same carbon target as would have resulted from 10 per cent. of the energy being provided by on-site renewable energy sources. Many Planning Authorities are also making the 10 per cent. contribution from on-site generated renewable energy a condition of planning.
In addition, the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive requires the energy certification of both new and existing schools over 1,000 square metres in area. This will lead to increased energy efficiency as a result of improved operational performance.
Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what his assessment is of the contribution of the Building Schools for the Future programme to achieving the Government's targets on reducing carbon emissions. [70812]
Mr. Dhanda: DfES have not made an assessment of the contribution of the Building Schools for the Future programme to achieving the Government's targets on reducing carbon emissions. However, schools built under Building Schools for the Future need to comply with the new Part L of the Building Regulations which came into force in April 2006. Part L requires buildings to be energy efficient so that they emit 25 per cent. less carbon than buildings built to the previous 2002 edition.
Southend-on-Sea (Schools)
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what are the names and addresses of (a) primary schools and (b) secondary schools in Southend-on-Sea; what the (i) name of the head teacher and (ii) number of pupils attending is in each case; and on what date each was last inspected by Ofsted. [71962]
Jim Knight: The following table provides the information requested for maintained primary and secondary schools in Southend-on-Sea local authority. The pupil numbers are as at January 2006 (provisional).
The head teacher names are the latest available. It is possible that the Department has not been notified of some head teacher changes.
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