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28 Jan 2008 : Column 168W—continued
There is no comparable nationally expected level of achievement in literacy for 16-year-olds (pupils at the end of Key Stage 4). The Government’s current public service agreement target is for 60 per cent. of 16-year-olds to achieve five good GCSE grades (A*-C) or equivalent by 2008. Figures for 2007 published on 9 January show that this target has been met. But we are raising the bar and in future the target for the end of Key Stage 4 will be measured against the proportion of pupils achieving five grades A*-C or equivalent, including GCSE English and mathematics. The figures for pupils in England achieving this standard for each year since 1998 are given as follows:
| Percentage | |
In 2007 60.0 per cent. of pupils in England achieved at least Grade C in GCSE English compared with 53.2 per cent. in 1998.
London Academy Edgware
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assessment he has made of student attainment at the London Academy; and if he will make a statement. [177681]
Jim Knight: In 2007, 54.6 per cent. of pupils at the London Academy achieved five or more passes at grades A-G in their GCSEs. This represents an increase of 3.7 percentage points over results for 2006—significantly higher than the national improvement rate of 2.6 percentage points.
When English and maths are included, 39.1 per cent. of pupils achieved five or more passes at grades A*-C—an increase of 7.1 percentage points over results for 2006—nearly four times the national improvement rate of 1.8 percentage points.
Music: General Certificate of Secondary Education
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many maintained mainstream schools do not offer music at GCSE. [182245]
Jim Knight: The Department for Children, Schools and Families does not hold information on the subjects each school offers at GCSE.
Primary Education
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families by what date English local authorities must submit their plans for primary school reorganisation; and if he will make a statement. [181793]
Jim Knight: To access funding for the primary capital programme, English local authorities must submit by 16 June 2008 a primary strategy for change. This document must set out how they will use available funding strategically to renew at least half of all primary schools by 2022-23. Guidance issued on 8 December 2007 states that the strategy should take into account the views and aspirations of local stakeholders and support the delivery of the national policy objectives set out in the Children’s Plan. It will be for local authorities to determine whether this will require any reorganisation of primary school provision and, if so, to publish statutory proposals at the appropriate time.
Primary Education: Isle of Wight
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what discussions he has had with the Isle of Wight council on possible Government intervention should existing primary schools not be closed. [181929]
Jim Knight: No Ministers or officials from the Department of-Children, Schools and Families have had any discussions with the Isle of Wight council about intervention should existing primary schools not be closed under current reorganisation proposals.
Pupil Exclusions
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) what number and proportion of pupils (a) entitled to and (b) not entitled to free school meals were given a fixed period exclusion from school in the latest year for which figures are available; [182243]
(2) how many pupils who had English as an additional language received a fixed period exclusion in the most recent period for which figures are available; [182275]
(3) what proportion of pupils given a fixed period exclusion were in schools with (a) more and (b) less than 50 per cent. of pupils with English as an additional language; [182286]
(4) what proportion of pupils given fixed period exclusions were in secondary schools with (a) fewer than 1,000, (b) more than 1,000 and (c) more than 1,500 pupils in the latest year for which figures are available; [182287]
(5) in how many schools more than 20 per cent. of pupils have received more than one fixed period exclusion; [182288]
(6) how many pupils received more than 15 fixed period exclusions in the latest year for which the data are available. [182289]
Jim Knight: The information requested can be provided only at disproportionate costs.
Pupils: English Language
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils speak English as an additional language, broken down by their first language. [182276]
Jim Knight: The requested information is not held centrally.
As part of the School Census, schools are required to record first language data to identify those pupils whose first language is known or believed to be other than English; known or believed to be English; or unclassified. This information was published in the Statistical First Release: Schools and Pupils in England, and is provided in the table.
From January 2007, where a pupil's first language is not English, schools were given the option of using the short code list (as presented in the table) or the extended language code set (which consists of over 300 language codes). Not all schools have chosen to use the extended language codes. Therefore the Department does not hold complete data for actual first language.
Pupils: Per Capita Costs
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much was spent on average per pupil in (a) state schools and (b) private schools in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [180787]
Jim Knight: The information requested is set out in the following table. As my Department does not collect information for the independent sector, information for independent day school fees are taken from the Independent Schools Council (ISC) Census.
As set out in Budget 2006, it is the Government’s aim, over time and adjusting for inflation, to increase levels of maintained school funding to average private sector day school levels in that year, 2005-06. Our private sector target is an estimated £8,000 per pupil in independent day schools in 2005-06 compared with total revenue and capital funding per pupil in the maintained sector of £4,750. We have so far increased maintained sector funding to £5,550 per pupil this year, which is £5,300 in real terms at 2005-06 prices.
As a result of the comprehensive spending review settlement for education, total per pupil revenue and capital funding will rise to £6,600 in 2010-11, or £5,750 per pupil in real terms at 2005-06 prices. This means that between 2005-06 and the end of the CSR period we will have raised maintained sector funding by £1,000 per pupil in real terms, equivalent to closing the gap with the private sector target by 30 per cent.
Progress over future spending reviews will depend on the Government’s fiscal position; demographic change; and progress by schools in continuing to deliver improvements in results and wider support for parents and pupils.
Budget 2006 also announced a separate commitment to close the gap between the state sector and private sector levels of per pupil capital investment. The schools capital settlement for 2008-11 fully closes this gap by providing for maintained sector capital investment to rise to £1,110 per pupil by 2010-11 which is in line with 2005-06 private sector levels, adjusted for inflation.
School Meals: Norfolk
Dr. Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many school dinners were served in Norfolk schools in each of the last 12 months. [182099]
Kevin Brennan: The information requested is not collected by this Department. The School Food Trust carries out an annual survey of school meal take-up. The second annual survey was conducted in April 2007; and a further survey will take place in 2008. The information collected is collated by region not by local authority.
Schools: Admissions
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what his latest projections are of pupil numbers in (a) secondary schools and (b) primary schools in each local authority area in each year until 2025; what pupil numbers were in each category in each year since 2000; and if he will make a statement. [180688]
Jim Knight: The Department has published short-term forecasts of local authority pupil numbers which are used to underpin the indicative allocation of the Dedicated School Grant (DSG) over the three years of the CSR period to 2010-11, These forecasts are broken down into three age groupings: under-fives, five-10 and 11 to 15-year-olds and are available on teachernet at:
The available information on the number of pupils at primary and secondary schools in each local authority is published annually by the Department. From 2005 the figures can be found in the Statistical First Release “DCSF: Schools and Pupils in England,” the latest of which can be accessed at:
Figures for 2004 and earlier were published in the Statistical Volume “Statistics of Education Schools in England 2004 Edition”, which can be accessed at:
Equivalent publications are available for earlier years. Copies of both the forecasts and pupil numbers have been placed in the House Library.
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many surplus places there are in each local authority in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools; and if he will make a statement. [181794]
Jim Knight: The Department collects information from each local authority on the number of surplus places through an annual survey. The most recent published data relate to the position at January 2007 and show the breakdown of surplus places by local authority in primary and secondary schools. The data are available at http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/management/fallingschoolrolls/context/stats/ and a copy has been placed in the Library.
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what options other than closing schools are available to local education authorities to address an excess of school places. [182806]
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