| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
13 Jun 2007 : Column 1166W—continued
| Special s chools | ||||||||
| Pupils with statements of SEN | Pupils with SEN without statements | Pupils with no identified SEN | Total | |||||
| Number of permanent exclusions per pupil | Number | Percentage( 3) | Number | Percentage( 3) | Number | Percentage( 3) | Number | Percentage( 3) |
| (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. Includes non-maintained special schools. Excludes general hospital schools. (2) This analysis is based on incomplete pupil level data. Any findings based on these figures should be used with caution. Those pupils who have been permanently excluded from more than one different school during the 2004/05 school year have been selected. (3) Number of pupils who have been permanently excluded expressed as a percentage of the total number of pupils who were permanently excluded from same type of school. Based on incomplete pupil level data. (4) Less than five, or a rate based on less than five. (5) Information presented here has been derived from an extract of the national pupil database which has selected pupils with multiple cases of exclusion from different schools collected via 2006 school census and linked to the available characteristic data (special educational needs) collected via the 2006 school census. Note: Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10. There may be discrepancies between the sum of constituent items and totals as shown. Source: School Census/National Pupil Database | ||||||||
Special Educational Needs: Training
Mr. Beith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps are taken to ensure that teachers in training are given a basic understanding of the range of special educational needs they are likely to encounter in mainstream schools. [141592]
Mr. Dhanda: In order to be awarded qualified teacher status, all trainee teachers must demonstrate that they understand their responsibilities under the statutory special educational needs code of practice, know how to seek advice from specialists on less common types of SEN, can differentiate their teaching to meet the needs of pupils, including those with SEN, and can identify and support pupils who experience behavioural, emotional and social difficulties.
We are proposing that from September 2007 the standards for qualified teacher status will be strengthened to require teachers to know and comply with current legislation on the well-being of children and young people, to know and understand the role of others when dealing with children who have SEN or disabilities, and to communicate effectively with parents and carers.
The current induction standards require newly qualified teachers to demonstrate that they can plan effectively to meet the needs of pupils in their classes with SEN, with or without a statement. The standards also demand that they work collaboratively with both other teachers and specialists to ensure that provision is suitable for SEN pupils. The revised standards framework will reinforce, build on and strengthen the current standards surrounding SEN.
Once qualified, all teachers are expected to discuss their own development needs in performance management reviews, and to address development priorities. This could include strengthening knowledge and understanding of SEN. Where schools have identified a need to strengthen knowledge and understanding of SEN, as a school improvement priority, this should be addressed through their school improvement and development plans.
All schools receive a school development grant which they are able to use to support improvements in any aspect of teaching and learning. A wide variety of courses are available covering SEN, ranging from awareness-raising through to in-depth studies leading to specific qualifications. It is, however, a matter for individual teachers and their schools to determine their own particular training and development needs. Local authorities may retain a proportion of this grant, under certain conditions, to provide specific training and development of SEN.
The Department's published SEN strategy, ‘Removing Barriers to Achievement’ recognised the importance of training and committed us to work closely with the Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA) to ensure that initial teacher training and programmes of continuing professional development provide a good grounding in core skills and knowledge of SEN. We have commissioned the TDA to carry forward a range of initiatives designed to improve and strengthen the SEN skills and confidence of trainee, newly qualified and established teachers. These initiatives are being implemented and evaluated over the period 2005-08 at a cost of approximately £1.1 million.
Ofsted will be undertaking a thematic review of the journey the intending teacher takes in terms of acquiring SEN and disability knowledge and skills during their initial training and induction. It is envisaged that the fieldwork for this will begin in September 2007.
Student Loans Company
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make it his policy to pass Student Loans Company (SLC) money deducted from a former student’s monthly salary onto the SLC immediately after deduction; and if he will make a statement. [141479]
Bill Rammell: Student loans repayments are not transferred to the Student Loans Company. They reduce the net assets, representing outstanding loans, on the Department for Education and Skills balance sheet. It is only information about repayments made by individual borrowers that is passed to the Company to allow it to issue annual statements. Once that information is received by the Company, repayments are attributed to each month of the tax year in which they were made by the borrower and monthly interest is calculated accordingly. This ensures that even if there is a delay in repayment details reaching the Company, the borrower does not pay any additional interest. No borrower pays too much interest as a result of the time lag in updating their account and nor does the Department or the SLC gain any additional income from the interest paid.
Training
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps his Department is taking (a) to extend workplace training and (b) to ensure that older people can improve skills. [137754]
Phil Hope
[holding answer 21 May 2007]: Train to Gain is a new brokerage service designed to support businesses in finding the right training and skills for them to succeed. It helps to meet business demands through impartial advice linked to high quality training
that is delivered in the workplace, wherever and whenever best meets the needs of the company. As at March 2007 a total of 135,860 employees were in programmes of learning, of which 23,610 (18 per cent.) were aged 50 or over. Plans are already under way to expand the Train to Gain service and the Leitch Review has recommended a significant further expansion of the programme. The Government response to the Leitch Review will be published this summer.
More widely, older people benefit from the skills strategy, in particular our priorities to help people without the foundation of employability represented by basic skills and a first full level 2 qualification.
Aggresive Children Pupils
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what (a) training and (b) guidance is provided to teachers on the physical restraint of aggressive pupils. [141922]
Jim Knight: Individual schools are best placed to make decisions about the training needs of their staff. A number of organisations offer training in physical restraint and related techniques such as de-escalation. With funding from the Department of Health and Department for Education and Skills, the British Institute of Learning Disabilities has established an accreditation system for organisations offering such training.
DFES Circular 10/98 provides schools with general guidance on the use of force to control or restrain pupils. This is currently being reviewed with the aim of publishing revised guidance later this term. The Department also provides more specialised guidance on physical intervention with pupils with special educational needs.
Young People: Unemployment
David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps he is taking to tackle the number of 16 to 18-year-olds not in employment, education or training undertaking apprenticeships. [140574]
Phil Hope: Our 14-19 implementation plan commits us to making an offer of learning to every young person on completion of year 11 ensuring that they can progress to further study. In addition the Connexions Service supports 16 to 18-year-olds not in education, employment or training and will advise them on a range of options, including apprenticeships. A quarter of a million apprentices are currently in learning. We are introducing an entitlement to funding for an apprenticeship place so that every young person leaving school who wants to continue their learning in a work-based environment should be able to. We expect to offer this entitlement at the same time as that to study any one of the 14 diplomas, in 2013.
| Index | Home Page |