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8 Feb 2007 : Column 1109W—continued

DHL

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much his Department paid to DHL in each financial year between 1997-98 and 2005-06. [104166]

Alan Johnson: DfES paid £20,028.27 to DHL for collection and delivery services during the period 1 April 2004 to 30 September 2004. DfES have not used DHLs services since 1 October 2004.

Information in respect of costs for the financial years 1997-98 through to 2003-04, could be made available only at a disproportionate cost to the Department.

Disabled

Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what progress his Department has made on implementing recommendations in the Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit report on Improving the Life Chances of Disabled People. [119660]

Mr. Dhanda: My Department has made progress on two key areas identified in the Life Chances report. Since the report was published we have improved significantly the provision of child care and education for disabled children and developed good practice guidance to improve the transitions of disabled young people to adult life. The work we are doing with the Treasury through the Disabled Children’s Review is designed to further improve the life chances of disabled children and young people.

Education: Assessments

Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many school leavers at Key Stage 4 in England left with (a) no passes, (b) one pass, (c) two passes, (d) three passes, (e) four passes, (f) five passes and (g) five passes or more in GCSE examinations in each year since 1997. [119185]

Jim Knight [holding answer 6 February 2007]: I refer to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend on 30 January 2007, Official Report, column 212W.

Education: Barnet

Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what allocation Barnet education authority has received for personalised learning in 2006-07; how much is expected to be allocated for 2007-08; and if he will make a statement. [118478]

Jim Knight: Schools receive funding for personalised learning through the following funding streams: the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG), the Standards Fund (SF) and the School Standards Grant for Personalisation (SSG(P)). The DSG is distributed to
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local authorities who should consult locally through their schools forum to decide how best to distribute it in a way that reflects national priorities and local needs. The SF is allocated to local authorities who should target this funding at those schools with the highest number of pupils who have fallen behind. The SSG(P) is allocated directly to schools according to a formula set by the Department.

During 2006-07 the total funding allocated to Barnet LA for personalised learning was £2,696,471. We estimate that the total funding for 2007-08 will be around £4,164,153 if pupil numbers remain the same. The funding breakdown is as follows:

£
2006-07 2007-08

DSG

1,257,000

1,951,000

SF

150,000

150,000

SSG (P)

1,289,471

(1)2,063,153

Total

2,696,471

4,164,153

(1) Estimated.

This funding reflects the Government’s commitment to tailor the support available for every child that allows them to reach their full potential, irrespective of their background or circumstances. This also provides extra support for those who need additional help to catch up and those who need further stretch to develop a particular gift or talent. Schools need to decide on their own plans to deliver personalised learning and determine how best to invest their additional resources and deploy their staff to deliver them.

Graduates: Coventry

Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of people of working age in Coventry South hold a qualification at degree level or equivalent or above. [119440]

Phil Hope: In the 2005 annual population survey, 32.0 per cent. (18,000) of people of working age in Coventry South held a qualification at degree level or equivalent or above. This compares to 23.0 per cent. (732,000) in the west midlands and 26.2 per cent. (7,997,000) in England.

Headteachers: Recruitment

Mr. Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how the recruitment process for academy principals was conducted; and how many principals have been appointed. [119204]

Jim Knight: The Department expects academy principals to be recruited by national advert, though in some areas where headteacher recruitment is difficult an executive search company might also be employed. We expect the process after long-listing to include an assessment centre and interviews with different expert panels before three or four candidates are put forward for final selection.

The final selection panel consists of sponsors advised by a DfES representative. Sometimes a LA representative is present as an observer.

In addition, we have employed an executive recruitment agency to conduct a national advertisement (to provide
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a pool of potential principals who have passed an assessment centre and interview process). This has been done to help sponsors, but they can if they wish conduct their own recruitment exercise.

There are 46 open academies with principals in post at each. Eight academies have had more than one principal due to retirement or moving to new posts. We have also appointed a further 36 principals for academies due to open over the next two years.

Higher Education: Finance

Rob Marris: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the average amount spent by his Department was on each full-time undergraduate student attending a (a) university and (b) place of higher education in England in each year from 2003-04 to 2006-07. [110707]

Bill Rammell: The funding per full time equivalent higher education student studying at English institutions is shown in the following table.

These funds include recurrent resources for teaching and research provided to the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) and the Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA). The ‘total funding per planned student’ series also includes fee income. With the introduction of variable fees in 2006, there is no longer a fixed fee paid for each student, and so a new measure ‘funding per planned student’ is now used. All figures exclude expenditure on student support costs.

It is not possible to disaggregate these figures between universities and other higher education providers or by course type because recurrent funds are provided to HEFCE and TDA with total expected student numbers irrespective of institution or course type. HEFCE uses the same teaching funding formula for all of the institutions it funds.

Real terms (2004-05 prices)( 1) (£)
2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07

Total funding per planned student

5,500

5,530

5,670

Funding per planned student

4,820

4,880

(1) All figures are at 2004-05 prices using the March 2006 GDP deflators, rounded to the nearest 10, and consistent with the plans set out in the annual grant letter to HEFCE, and the Department's 2006 annual report.

The coverage of these figures is Home (i.e. UK) and EU domiciled students studying at higher education institutions and further education colleges in England.

Higher Education: Isle of Sheppey

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when he expects to sign off the plans for the academy for the Isle of Sheppey. [118236]

Jim Knight: Subject to the satisfactory outcome of local consultations and the completion of the feasibility stage, the funding agreement for an academy on the Isle of Sheppey would be in place by June 2007.


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Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether he has considered alternatives to the proposed academy on the Isle of Sheppey. [118237]

Jim Knight: Proposals for the establishment of an academy on the Isle of Sheppey have been put forward by the sponsors and Kent county council. The feasibility of these proposals, which include a number of options, is currently being considered.

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many (a) parents, (b) teachers and (c) elected councillors from the Isle of Sheppey are represented on the Shadow Academy. [118238]

Jim Knight: Parents, teachers and elected councillors are not represented on the Project Steering Group for this Academy, but they are involved in the consultations that are held during the feasibility stage of all Academy projects.

Home Education

Mr. Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what his policy is on monitoring home education; and if he will make a statement. [118108]

Jim Knight: Parents who elect to home educate their children must ensure that they receive efficient, full-time education suitable to each child’s age, ability and aptitude and to any special needs they may have. Local authorities can make whatever inquiries they consider appropriate to establish whether education provided at home is in accordance with the law. My officials are currently drafting guidelines for local authorities on elective home education, which are due to be issued later this year.

King Fahad Academy

Mr. Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make inquiries into allegations of racism and religious extremism at the King Fahad Academy, Acton; and if he will make a statement. [119683]

Jim Knight: All independent schools must comply with standards set out in the Education (Independent School Standards) (England) Regulations 2003 as amended. The Department is making inquiries in relation to allegations of racism and extremism at King Fahad Academy to establish whether the school complies with the statutory requirements.

Looked-after Children

Helen Southworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 30 January 2007, Official Report, column 219W, on looked after children, when he expects to disseminate the key lessons learned from the six community-based refuge pilots; and if he will take steps to ensure that
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children who have run away, need refuge and currently access the refuge pilot projects will have somewhere safe to go from April 2007. [118916]

Mr. Dhanda [holding answer 5 February 2007]: We expect to have the report finalised in March and will disseminate key lessons and findings shortly after to all local authorities.

It is the responsibility of local authority children’s services to provide support for runaways. They have statutory responsibility for safeguarding children in their area and are best placed to assess the needs of runaways, and if deemed necessary, to provide them with overnight accommodation. Different options already exist, such as emergency foster care and placement in a children’s home, and this will remain the case after April.

Most children who run away do not require refuge though; they need counselling support and mediation services to help them return home and to address the causes of their running away, and local children’s services can provide this. The number of runaways requiring immediate accommodation in any one area is likely to be low, and specialised ‘static refuge’ may not be seen as a sustainable, effective or cost-effective way of providing solutions to the problems young people face.

Nurseries: Hendon

Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many nursery places were available through the Neighbourhood Nurseries Institute in Hendon in 2006-07; what the average cost per place was; and if he will make a statement. [118450]

Beverley Hughes: The neighbourhood nursery at Barnfield school in the Hendon parliamentary constituency is a 68 place nursery run by the private provider, Buffer Bear. The nursery has received £299,200 Neighbourhood Nurseries Initiative funding over four years, with the final payment being made in 2006/07. The level of fees charged is determined locally by the provider in partnership with the local authority. The nursery is planned to become a Sure Start Children’s Centre by March 2008.

Ofsted

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether he has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated research into the impact of adverse Ofsted reports on schools on the (i) behaviour, (ii) learning outcomes and (iii) self-esteem of pupils in such schools. [112615]

Jim Knight: The Department has not itself commissioned research into the specific impact of adverse Ofsted inspections. However, a number of reports have been produced which examine the impact of inspection, including in relation to the impact of adverse Ofsted inspections on individual schools. Ofsted published, in July 2004, ‘Improvement through Inspection—An evaluation of the impact ofOfsted's work’. The National Audit Office (NAO) published ‘Improving poorly performing schools in England’ in January 2006. In November 2006, Ofsted published
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‘Improving behaviour: lessons learned from HMI monitoring of secondary schools where behaviour has been judged unsatisfactory’.

The evidence indicates that an adverse Ofsted inspection report can be a catalyst to turning around poorly performing schools and most schools judged to be causing concern go on to make the necessary improvements. Based on evidence from monitoring visits of schools in a category of concern which have unsatisfactory behaviour, there is steady progress between these visits in eliminating unsatisfactory behaviour. In relation to learning outcomes, evidence from the NAO report shows that GCSE results for schools that have come out of Special Measures or benefited from Fresh Start do improve. The evidence has not specifically addressed the self-esteem of pupils in schools causing concern. However, Ofsted estimates that around half a million pupils have benefited from a better education as a result of improvements generated by special measures.

Pre-School Education

Mr. Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what funding formula his Department uses to determine the annual budget for the free early years entitlement. [120001]

Beverley Hughes: Each local authority’s total Dedicated Schools Grant for 2006-07 was calculated by multiplying their full-time equivalent pupil numbers (aged 3-15) from the January 2006 pupil count by their Dedicated Schools Grant Guaranteed Unit of Funding (the Dedicated Schools Grant Guaranteed Unit of Funding is unchanged from that set in December 2005).

The Dedicated Schools Grant Guaranteed Unit of Funding for 2006-07 was based on actual spend per pupil in 2005-06, with a basic increase of 5 per cent. per pupil (5.1 per cent. for London authorities) and headroom allocated to reflect five ministerial priorities (including £82 million to fund the extension of the free early years entitlement to 38 weeks). £30 million was also distributed between authorities who spent below the level of undamped Schools Formula Sending Share in 2005-06.

The £82 million extra for the extension of the free early years entitlement from 33 to 38 weeks was distributed on the basis of the number of full-time equivalent children in private, voluntary and independent settings (since pupils in maintained settings already received 38 weeks’ free provision), weighted for area costs.

Where authorities were below 90 per cent. participation for their three-year-olds in January 2006, the number of three-year-olds for funding purposes was brought up to 90 per cent. of the projected population.

For 2007-08, each local authority’s Dedicated Schools Grant will be calculated by multiplying their full-time equivalent pupil numbers (aged 3-15) from the January 2007 pupil count by their Dedicated Schools Grant Guaranteed Unit of Funding (the Dedicated Schools Grant Guaranteed Unit of Funding is also unchanged from that set in December 2005).


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