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27 Mar 2007 : Column 1406W—continued


Secondary Education: Curriculum

Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to his answer of 12 March 2007, Official Report, column 36W, on secondary education: curriculum, whether he expects Ofsted to take into account non-statutory guidance accompanying the National Curriculum when inspecting a school. [127934]

Jim Knight: Ofsted inspectors are required by the framework for inspection to evaluate the extent to which learning programmes match learners’ aspirations and potential, building on their prior attainment and experience, and how far the curriculum meets external requirements and is responsive to local circumstances. External requirements are those of the National Curriculum, but inspectors would also be aware of other guidance received by schools. The Chief Inspector will consider what if any additional advice needs to be provided to inspectors in the light of guidance issued to schools.

Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to his answer of 12 March 2007, Official Report, column 36W, on secondary education: curriculum (1) whether the regional events planned by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority will be open to the general public; [127935]

(2) how the regional events planned by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority will be publicised. [127936]

Jim Knight: The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority's regional events are being run with local authorities and are designed for specific audiences. For example, two of the regional events will be for parents. Local authorities are hosting the events and it is they who are inviting delegates to attend. QCA will also be
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running seminars and exhibiting at the Education Show later this month which is widely attended by parents and teachers. All those with an interest in the consultation can complete the response form online at www.qca.org.uk/secondarycurriculumreview/.

Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to his answer of 12 March 2007, Official Report, column 36W, on secondary education: curriculum, what the purpose was of the visit of the Director of Curriculum to South Africa. [127937]

Jim Knight: The purpose of the visit of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority’s Director of Curriculum to South Africa was to inform them about the curriculum and qualifications in England, to learn more about their curriculum and to share examples of good practice. The visit was at the request of the Western Cape Education Department, who are interested in learning from our curriculum experience.

Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will place in the Library the (a) agendas and (b) minutes of meetings of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority Secondary Curriculum Review External Committee. [128728]

Jim Knight: The Department has no plans to ask the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority to release the agendas and minutes of its Secondary Curriculum Review External Committee.

Secondments

Mr. Duncan Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which staff in his Department are (a) seconded from organisations with charitable status and (b) have (i) costs and (ii) salaries met (A) in part and (B) in whole from (1) public funds and (2) by the charity from which they are seconded. [102409]

Mr. Dhanda: The Department currently has a total of 83 inward secondments the vast majority of which are from organisations in the wider public sector. The costs and salaries for inward secondments to the Department are met in full from public funds by the business unit engaging them.

There is no current requirement on Departments to formally collect information on the status of organisations to determine whether they have charitable status.

Special Educational Needs

Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will place in the Library a copy of the draft guidance on Planning and Developing Special Educational Provision issued for consultation on 8 March 2007. [127381]

Mr. Dhanda: The information requested has been placed in the House Library.


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Teachers: Primary Education

Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many students qualified to become primary school teachers in each of the last five years; and how many vacancies for primary school teachers there were that period. [128336]

Jim Knight: The numbers of primary trainee teachers gaining qualified teacher status (QTS) in academic years, 2000/01 to 2004/05, the latest year for which information is available, are shown in the following table:

Primary teachers gaining qualified teacher status by academic year
Number of teachers

2000/01

10,540

2001/02

10,720

2002/03

11,930

2003/04

12,470

2004/05

12,690

Notes:
1. Includes those trained through SCITTs, but excludes completers through employment based routes.
2. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 10.
Source:
Training and Development Agency’s Performance Profiles

The numbers of vacancies for nursery and primary school teachers for January in years, 2001 to 2005 are shown in the following table:

Full-time vacancies in local authority maintained schools in England: January of each year
Nursery and primary( 1,2)

2001

2,110

2002

1,800

2003

1,110

2004

780

2005

740

(1) The vacancies are only those available on the date of the survey in January. They are advertised vacancies for full-time permanent appointments of at least one-term duration and include those being covered on a temporary basis by a teacher with a contract of less than one term.
(2) In January 2006, there were 710 vacancies in nursery and primary schools in England. However, the information on the number of trainee teachers gaining QTS for 2005/06 is yet to be published.
Source:
618g survey

The number of people to be trained to be teachers each year is calculated taking account of the forecast demand for teachers due to pupil numbers, teacher wastage, returnees and retirements and new curriculum pressures. This will inevitably be greater than the number of vacancies at the single point in January when vacancy statistics are counted. Most vacancies will be filled by schools as from the start of the academic year in September and therefore will not be shown as such at the single point in January when vacancy statistics are counted. The January figure is therefore a reflection of posts that are unfilled at that time, not of vacancies that have become available and been filled during the year.

Teaching Assistants: County Durham

Dr. Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many teaching assistants there are in County Durham; and how many there were in 1997. [123656]


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Jim Knight: The following table provides the full-time equivalent number of teaching assistants employed in local authority maintained schools in the former County Durham local authority area in January 1997 and 2006.

Full-time equivalent teaching assistants in local authority maintained schools in former County Durham, Darlington and Durham, January 1997 and 2006
1997 2006

Former County Durham

640

Darlington

300

Durham

1,100

Total

640

1,400

Note:
Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.
Source:
Annual School Census.

Durham and Darlington local authorities were created as separate local authorities with responsibilities for education on 1 April 1997. Prior to this date figures for Durham and Darlington were included in the former County Durham local authority area.

Third Sector Forum

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when he expects the minutes of the Third Sector Forum for Children and Young People which took place on 22 January to be published; and what the reason is for the delay in the publication. [129879]

Mr. Dhanda: The notes from the meetings of the DfES Third Sector Forum for Children and Young People’s Services held on 22 January 2007 will be made public on 26 March. They will be found on the Every Child Matters website through the Strategy and Governance section on the Third Sector Forum page. The reason for the delay in the publication is administrative oversight.

Young People: Antisocial Behaviour

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of community sport and cultural activities funded by his Department in engaging young people most at risk of committing antisocial behaviour. [128265]

Jim Knight: Although the funding of community sport and cultural activities is primarily the concern of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, youth work providers do use sport and cultural activities in the process of working with young people—sometimes utilising funding issued by the DfES.

The main DfES programme working in this way has been the Positive Activities for Young People programme (PAYP). Between April 2003 and March 2006 PAYP engaged 290,000 young people (85 per cent. of whom were classified as being ‘at risk’) in constructive leisure time activities. 47 per cent. of the activities were sport or arts based. The evaluation of PAYP found that the programme had achieved a range of positive outcomes
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for participating young people, including contributing to reductions in criminal and antisocial behaviour, supporting people back into education, and offering opportunities for personal development.

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has undertaken of (a) how far youth activities meet the demands of people and (b) the impact on the provision of youth activities on preventing involvement in antisocial behaviour. [128269]

Jim Knight: The Youth Matters green paper (2005) set out a range of proposals for youth activities and support. The subsequent consultation drew a strong and positive response—including from over 19,000 young people.

The Education and Inspection Act 2006 introduced a new duty on local authorities to secure young people’s access to positive activities. The duty also requires local authorities to consult young people about local positive activities, including the need for new provision and any access issues, and to take these views into account.

Activities for young people are one of the key elements of the Respect Action plan for tackling antisocial behaviour. Such youth activities contribute to the prevention of a range of negative outcomes, including involvement in antisocial behaviour. For example, the evaluation of the Positive Activities for Young People programme (PAYP) found that the programme had achieved a range of positive outcomes for participating young people, including contributing to reductions in criminal and antisocial behaviour, supporting people back into education, and offering opportunities for personal development.

Young People: Education and Training

Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) how many young people not in employment, education or training there were in Hampshire in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement; [117373]

(2) when he will answer question number 117373, on young people, tabled by the hon. Member for Basingstoke on 17 January 2007. [129615]

Bill Rammell [holding answer 23 January 2007]: The following table gives the estimated number and percentage of 16 to 18-year-olds not in education, employment or training (NEET) in the South Central Connexions Partnership area in every year since 2002. The South Central area includes the local authorities of Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and Southampton.

Estimated number and percentage of 16 to 18-year-olds in South Central Connexions Partnership area who were not in education, employment or training, November 2002-05
Number Percentage

2002

3,070

5.2

2003

3,340

5.8

2004

2,720

4.7

2005

3,630

6.1


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These figures are drawn from the operational client management systems maintained by Connexions services. It only includes those people known to the service (about 85 per cent. of the population); some young people who attended independent schools or were at school outside England are excluded. The age relates to those of calendar year age 16-18 on the date of measurement.

This NEET measure is that used for setting and monitoring Connexions performance. The definition differs from that used to measure the national departmental PSA NEET target. Along with not covering the entire population, the Connexions NEET measure excludes those on gap years, or in custody. The PSA measure is for academic rather than calendar age 16-18.

The Department has a target to reduce the proportion of 16 to 18-year-olds NEET by 2 percentage points by 2010.

There is a close alignment between poor educational attainment pre-16 and the likelihood of becoming NEET between the ages of 16 and 18. Our 14-19 reforms are aimed at raising attainment levels, and
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ensuring that as many young people as possible remain in education and training up to the age of 18.

Youth Matters set out a series of reforms aimed at improving the way in which services work together to support young people particularly those most at risk of underachieving.

Youth Work: Finance

Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills who the recipients of grants made by the National Voluntary Youth Organisation grant programme are; and how much was paid to each recipient for each year between 1997 and 2006. [130295]

Mr. Dhanda: The NVYO grant scheme is a three-year cycle of funding. The current cycle covers the three years 2005-08. Individual awards, including separate amounts for the three years involved are shown in the first table. Total amounts only are available for the 2002-05 scheme and these are shown in the second table.

Figures prior to 2002 are not readily available.


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