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13 Jun 2006 : Column 1100W—continued
School Sprinkler Systems
Dr. Tony Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether he plans to make it mandatory to install fire-safety sprinklers in schools. [76742]
Jim Knight: We do not have plans to require the installation of sprinklers in all schools. Our current guidance to local authorities, promoters, governing bodies and all those involved in the provision and design of schools, is to use risk assessments as the basis for deciding whether or not sprinklers should be installed in new school buildings.
Secondary Schools (Wellingborough)
Mr. Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of (a) secondary school and (b) primary school aged children taught at home in (i) Northamptonshire and (ii) Wellingborough in the most recent year for which figures are available. [75301]
Jim Knight: The requested information is not collected centrally.
Mr. Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many pupils there were in each year group in the (a) Wrenn, (b) Sir Christopher Hatton and (c) Weavers secondary schools in Wellingborough in the most recent period for which figures are available; and what the maximum admission number is for each group in each school. [75302]
Jim Knight: The number of pupils in each year group for each school is given in the table.
Information about the published admission numbers of schools is not collected centrally. Northamptonshire county council has informed us that the admission numbers for each school is as follows:
| School | Number of admissions |
| (1) Northamptonshire county council has provided an additional year 9 class at Weavers School and so there are 376 places available in that year. | |
| Number of pupils by national curriculum year group( 1) , as at January 2006( 2) | |||
| Headcount | |||
| Year group | Weavers School | Sir Christopher Hatton School | Wrenn School |
| (1) Excludes dually registered pupils. (2) Provisional. Source: Schools' Census | |||
Selective Mutism
Sir Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) which organisations received funding from his Department to research selective mutism in each of the last five financial years; and how much each organisation received in each year; [76375]
(2) which organisations received funding from his Department to support (a) teachers and (b) parents in their work with children exhibiting selective mutism in each of the last five financial years; and how much each organisation received in each year; [76376]
(3) what guidance is provided by his Department on selective mutism to (a) local education authorities, (b) schools and (c) teacher training institutions; [76377]
(4) what assessment his Department has made of the incidence of selective mutism among children under the age of 16 years; and if he will make a statement; [76378]
(5) what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the provision of information to teachers and parents about assisting children who exhibit selective mutism; and if he will make a statement. [76379]
Mr. Dhanda: The Department has not commissioned any recent research or produced guidance specifically on selective mutism, although it is one of a number of communication difficulties addressed in our Early Support publication "Speech and language difficulties", published in 2005.
Where a child is exhibiting selective mutism in a school or early years setting we would normally expect early referral to a speech and language therapist and/or psychologist. Selective mutism often appears associated with anxiety, and thus may be linked to a number of factors. Patience and understanding, coupled with measured interventions designed to build the child's confidence, appear to have beneficial effects, as does reducing pressure on the child.
The Department has not made any assessment of the incidence of selective mutism, or any assessment of the adequacy of information available. In 2002-03 and 2003-04 we gave grants of £30,000 and £2,000 respectively to help the Selective Mutism Information and Research Association (SMIRA) produce an instructional video entitled "Silent Children—Approaches To Selective Mutism" and an associated booklet.
Supply Teachers
Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will take steps to prevent teacher employment agencies from employing experienced supply teachers only if they accept the lower pay scale of newly qualified teachers. [76667]
Jim Knight: Teachers who are not employed by a school or local authority are free to choose whether or not to work for an employment agency. Employment agencies are not bound by the national School Teachers Pay and Conditions Document, and are free to set their own rates.
Minister for Women
Career Advice
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what steps she is taking to improve career advice for girls. [75803]
Meg Munn
[holding answer 12 June 2006]: The “Youth Matters: Next Steps” document, published on 8 March
2006, sets out proposals for improved information, advice and guidance for young people. It recognises the importance of access to individually tailored information, advice and guidance that challenges rather than perpetuates traditional stereotypes.
Central to improved information, advice and guidance will be the development of quality standards. The challenging of traditional stereotypes will be included in these standards. The Equal Opportunities Commission is represented on the Steering Group that is supporting the development of the standards.
Domestic Violence (Refuge)
Ms Abbott: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what discussions she has had with ministerial colleagues about improving the services offered to women seeking refuge from domestic violence. [75353]
Meg Munn: As Deputy Minister for Women and Equality, I sit on the Inter-Ministerial Group for Domestic Violence (chaired by my hon. Friend Baroness Scotland of Asthal) which undertakes the performance management of the cross-Government National Domestic Violence Delivery Plan by reviewing progress at quarterly meetings. This is the mechanism for improving the services offered to women seeking refuge from domestic violence nationally.
A substantially revised domestic violence Best Value Performance Indicator will help assess overall provision and effectiveness of local authority services designed to help victims of domestic violence.
Management Positions
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what steps she is taking to encourage firms to consider women for senior management positions. [75804]
Meg Munn [holding answer 12 June 2006]: Encouraging firms to consider more women for senior management positions is something that the Government take very seriously. The Government support initiatives such as the FTSE 100 cross company mentoring scheme ‘Women Directors on Boards’, which is backed by 29 Chairmen and CEOs.
Vertical segregation and the ‘glass ceiling’ is something that the Women and Work Commission identified as a cause of the gender pay gap. The Government will issue an Action Plan in response to the Commission’s recommendations later in the year. Companies from a range of sectors have committed to develop and deliver programmes that support the Work and Work Commission’s recommendations, including initiatives, which support women into senior management positions.
Sex Industry
Mr. Bone: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what steps the Government are taking to assist women who have been trafficked into the UK to work forcibly in the sex industry; and if she will make a statement. [76029]
Mr. Coaker: I have been asked to reply.
Since March 2003 the Home Office has funded Poppy, a scheme run by Eaves Housing for Women to provide
safe accommodation and tailored one-to-one support for adult female victims who have been trafficked into the UK for the purposes of sexual exploitation.
In April of this year the Home Office entered into a two-year, £2.4 million funding agreement with Eaves Housing for Women. This funding will not only provide for the continuation of the existing crisis provision service for up to 25 women it will also meet the costs of: 10 additional “step-down” places which will help the women to live semi-independently; the introduction of the first ever specialist national outreach service in the UK for victims trafficked into sexual exploitation; and the development of a resource pack for victims, service providers and law enforcement agency staff.
Vocational Training
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what steps she is taking to increase the take-up of vocational training by girls. [75805]
Meg Munn [holding answer 12 June 2006]: There are a number of steps we are taking to increase the take up of vocational training by both boys and girls. In particular we are challenging stereotypical choices through the Young Apprenticeship programme for 14 to 16-year-olds, the 14-19 Pathfinders and in the development of new specialised Diplomas.
Working in partnership with the EOC, we have been evaluating how equal opportunities are being addressed in practice by Young Apprenticeship partnerships, particularly to encourage all young people to consider non-traditional options, through, for example, vocational tasters.
Computer Clubs for Girls is also an innovative, award-winning initiative created by e-skills UK and funded by DfES. Clubs are being run in partnership by schools and employers in order to raise the standard of girls’ ICT skills while transforming girls’ attitudes to careers in IT.
Underpinning all this work is access to information, advice and guidance so that young people, and girls in particular, can make informed choices. The “Youth Matters: Next Steps” document, published on 8 March 2006, sets out proposals for improved information, advice and guidance for young people. Central to improved information, advice and guidance will be the development of quality standards. The challenging of traditional stereotypes will be included in these standards. The Equal Opportunities Commission is represented on the Steering Group that is supporting the development of the standards.
Treasury
Criminal Offences
Mr. Clegg: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the criminal offences created in legislation sponsored by his Department since April 2005, broken down by Act. [76905]
John Healey: There were no provisions creating criminal offences in primary legislation sponsored by Her Majesty's Treasury since the end of April 2005.
Developing Countries (Health)
Mark Durkan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effect of International Monetary Fund and World Bank targets for achieving longer-term economic growth of public health spending by developing countries; and whether he proposes to make representations on this issue at the International Monetary and Finance Committee meeting in Singapore. [76348]
Mr. Timms: In 2005 the international community committed to double aid flows to Africa by 2010.
To achieve the Millennium Development Goals in health the international community must accelerate support to develop universal and equitable health systems.
Ensuring that the increased aid can be used effectively will require partnership between developing countries, donors and the international financial institutions.
The Bank and the Fund have a critical role to play in this international effort, in supporting countries’ own poverty reduction and development strategies. The World Bank is now the largest provider of development finance in the health sector. We will continue to urge the Bank to do more to help countries scale up their investment in their health programmes.
The IMF plays a crucial role in supporting financially and through policy advice the macroeconomic stability necessary for lasting poverty reduction. We welcome the commitment—expressed in the Managing Directors' medium-term strategy—for the IMF to assist developing countries in the management of increased aid inflows, and will continue to urge the Fund to support countries in increasing their investment in priority sectors including public health, within their frameworks for macroeconomic stability and sustainable growth.
Family Tax Credits (Northern Ireland)
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the uptake of family tax credits has been since its introduction in Northern Ireland, broken down by Westminster constituency; how much in total has been paid and if he will make a statement. [77340]
Dawn Primarolo:
Take up rates for family credit, working families tax credit and child and working tax credit is not available by constituency. Estimates of take up rates for child and working tax credits in 2003-04, including breakdown by country and region, are detailed in the HMRC publication "Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit 2003-04".This publication also details take up rates for family credit and working families tax credit, which preceded the new tax credits. Estimates for the number of in-work families, and amounts paid, receiving working family tax credit and family credit between May 1998 and February 2003 appear in the quarterly published WFTC statistics. Estimates for 2003-04
and 2004-05 of the numbers of in-work families with child and working tax credit awards, including breakdown by constituency, based on final family circumstances and incomes for 2003-04 and 2004-05 are published in "Child and Working Tax Credit. Finalised Awards 2003-04. Geographical Analysis" and "Child and Working Tax Credit. Finalised Awards 2004-05. Geographical Analysis".
These publications are available on the HMRC website at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-take-up.htm
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