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28 Jun 2006 : Column 471W—continued
Mr. Dhanda
[holding answer 26 June 2006]: Each local authority, through their children’s services authority arrangements, is required by the Every Child Matters: Change for Children programme to set up an accessible children’s services directory, including information on services for vulnerable young people
such as those who run away or go missing. Local authorities must also produce a Children and Young People Plan setting out how services, including those for vulnerable young people, will operate. Such services are for local authorities to determine, in partnership with the relevant stakeholders in their area, according to local need.
Many local authorities have already placed their service directories on their existing website, while others have created new sites, giving them easy-to-find titles appropriate to local community circumstances (e.g. Help4me.info in Cheshire and Merseyside).
In 2005 the Department commissioned research by the National Family and Parenting Institute to look at how local authorities were linking up their directories. From those who took part, we have compiled a list of local authority children’s services web links. These are available on the Every Child Matters website. However, my Department has no other current plans to collect and publish information nationally on what specific services operate in every area.
Helen Southworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what progress has been made in giving teachers more support online on how they can help prevent running away; and if he will ensure that the schools pack produced following the Social Exclusion Unit report on running away is available online. [80004]
Mr. Dhanda [holding answer 26 June 2006]: The schools pack referred to was developed by Shelter and Connexions, and launched by the Department in 2004. It is available via the teachernet website (teachemet.gov.uk) and Shelter's own website. Shelter also produced a pack for personal social and health education (PSHE) teachers: “Talk before you walk", which is available via their website.
Opportunity exists within the current PSHE and citizenship frameworks for schools to explore issues to do with recognising and managing risks involved in running away. The Department is however not prescriptive with schools about what issues they must explore, what resources they must use, or how they should access them, to achieve the learning objectives set out within those frameworks.
DfES has also run six development projects to test out community-based responses. When we disseminate the lessons learnt so far from these later this year, this will include information, materials and support models from work with schools in the pilot areas.
New School Buildings (Energy Efficiency)
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps are taken to ensure that the new builds under Building Schools for the Future use energy efficient methods. [79697]
Jim Knight:
All new buildings must comply with the latest 2006 edition of Part L of the Building Regulations “The Conservation of Fuel and Power”. Approved Document L (ADL) in support of Part L of the Building Regulations was published in March 2006 and has considerably increased the energy efficiency
required of all new buildings including schools compared with the 2002 edition. In addition the new Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method “BREEAM Schools” which all new build schools are required to complete gives credits for improving the energy efficiency beyond the requirements of ADL. DfES expects all major new build and refurbishment school projects to achieve a very good or excellent rating on “BREEAM Schools”.
New Technologies
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of the Department's budget was spent on researching new technologies in the last period for which figures are available. [76810]
Phil Hope: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (Jim Fitzpatrick) on 21 June 2006, Official Report, columns 1882-86W.
Parent School Advisers
Mr. Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what progress is being made in establishing the pilot areas for parent school advisers; and if he will make a statement. [80551]
Jim Knight: 20 local authorities have accepted an invitation to run pilots for parent support advisers in schools. There will be 600 advisers in primary and secondary schools, and recruitment will start this summer. They will take a preventive role, supporting children and families where there are early signs that additional help is needed. They will build on the best that schools are already doing to raise standards by enhancing home-school relationships.
Pupil Attainment
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what information his Department collects on pupil attainment and social class. [79800]
Jim Knight [holding answer 26 June 2006]: The Department for Education and Skills collects the following information on pupil attainment.
1. Results for the foundation stage profile.
2. Results at key stages 1, 2 and 3.
3. Results at GCSE and equivalent qualifications approved for use pre-16 4. Results at GSE/VCE A/AS levels and equivalent qualifications approved for use post-16.
The Department does not collect details of the social class of pupils. However, one commonly used measure of low socio-economic status is eligibility for free school meals (FSM). Pupil attainment figures broken down by FSM eligibility are calculated by the Department.
Attainment figures have also been available since 2004 by ACORN (A Classification of Residential Neighbourhoods). The ACORN classification
combines geography with demographics and lifestyle information to categorise UK postcodes into five categories. This classification describes people according to the neighbourhood in which they live, and works on the premise that people living in the same neighbourhood will have similar purchasing habits and attitudinal characteristics.
The Department also uses the Indices of Deprivation 2004 and the Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index developed by the Social Disadvantage Research Centre of the University of Oxford on behalf of the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) to identify deprived areas and highlight variations between areas.
Pupil-Teacher Ratio
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the average pupil-teacher ratio is in (a) secondary schools, (b) specialist schools, (c) academies and (d) grammar schools in England. [79799]
Jim Knight [holding answer 26 June 2006]: The following table shows the pupil to teacher ratio in maintained secondary schools, special schools, academies and grammar schools in England, January 2006.
| Pupil teacher ratios( 1) in maintained secondary schools, specialist schools, academies and grammar schools in England, January 2006( 2) | |
| Pupil teacher ratio | |
| (1) The pupil teacher ratio is the full-time equivalent number of pupils divided by the full-time equivalent number of qualified teachers. Dually registered pupils are excluded. (2 )Provisional. Source:. Annual Schools Census | |
Qualifications and Curriculum Authority
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what estimate he has made of the proportion of staff at the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority who will (a) relocate and (b) resign when it relocates; and if he will make a statement. [78339]
Jim Knight: This is a matter for the Board of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, as it considers the plans for the relocation of the organisation, in response to the review by Sir Michael Lyons on relocating public sector jobs outside London and the south-east.
The QCA Board agreed in principle to relocate by March 2010 at its March 2006 meeting, and in May agreed the criteria it will use in considering possible locations. Decisions on its preferred location are
expected at the September meeting of the QCA Board, after which recommendations and a business case will go to the Secretary of State, although the final decision is for the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on the advice of the Office of Government Commerce.
School Attendance
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children living in England attend schools in Wales, broken down by (a) type of school, (b) sex and (c) age. [79582]
Jim Knight [holding answer 22 June 2006]: The Department only collects information on pupils who attend schools in England and therefore we are unable to supply information requested. This is a matter for the Welsh Assembly.
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children living in Wales attend schools in England, broken down by (a) type of school, (b) age and (c) sex. [79583]
Jim Knight [holding answer 22 June 2006]: The numbers of pupils residing in Wales who attend maintained schools in England has been provided in the following tables .
| (a) By type of school | |
| Number of pupils | |
| (b) By age | |
| Age( 3) | Number of pupils |
| (c) By gender | |
| Number of pupils | |
| Sources: (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) Includes special schools and non-maintained special schools. (3) Age of pupils calculated at start of the academic year. | |
School Closures
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many school closures there were in each local education authority in each year since 2000; and what percentage this represented of the total number of schools in each area. [79553]
Jim Knight: The number of schools closed by local authority during the calendar years 2000 to 2006 are as follow:
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