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29 Jan 2008 : Column 254W—continued

Children: Sports

Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what estimate the Government have made of the total number of children not meeting the two hour sport and physical education public service agreement target. [181784]

Kevin Brennan: The PE and school sport public service agreement set out in the comprehensive spending review 2004 is for 85 per cent. of 5 to 6-year-olds to be participating in at least two hours high quality PE and school sport by September 2008. The 2006/07 school sport survey found that 86 per cent. of 5 to 16-year-olds were doing the two hours. Around 900,000 5 to 16-year-olds are currently not doing the two hours, but we expect this number to reduce significantly by September 2008.

Children's Centres: Graduates

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of children's centres in each local authority employs at least one graduate. [182072]

Beverley Hughes [holding answer 25 January 2008]: The information is not available in the form requested. Sure Start Children's Centres that provide integrated early learning and full day care (early years provision) are required to employ a graduate with qualified teacher status. This will include all centres serving the most disadvantaged communities and centres in less disadvantaged communities where full early years learning and care is provided on site to meet local demand. Local authorities confirm the teacher is in post when they seek designation for a Sure Start Children's Centre. There may also be graduates working as managers or in other professional capacities in centres. The proportion of centres with graduates will therefore vary from authority to authority depending on a variety of local factors.

Children's Centres: Standards

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families in which (a) regions and (b) local authority areas has the target to provide a Sure Start Children’s Centre for every community by 2008 been met to date. [178700]

Beverley Hughes: The target for a Sure Start children’s centre for every community is 2010 not 2008. Local authorities in all regions are making good progress and we are on course to achieve the Government’s interim target of 2,500 Sure Start children’s centres by 2008.

Climate Change: Curriculum

Stephen Hesford: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps have been taken to make the teaching of climate change and its
29 Jan 2008 : Column 255W
implications for the future part of the curriculum; and if his Department will consider combining physical education with green activities, such as planting trees. [182743]

Kevin Brennan: Under both the current national curriculum in England for science and the new science curriculum to be taught in schools from September 2008, pupils aged 11-14 are taught about renewable energy and the possible impact of human activity, such as the burning of fossil fuels, on the environment. The current geography curriculum for 11 to 14-year-olds requires pupils to be taught about resource planning and management issues, for example developing alternative energy sources. From September 2008, “environmental interaction and sustainable development” will be one of the key concepts in the new geography curriculum for 11 to 14-year-olds with a requirement to study climate change.

Getting young people involved in activities such as cycling is also of great value in promoting habits that are both environmentally friendly promoting personal health and wellbeing.

In addition, the Growing Schools initiative encourages, supports and inspires all schools to harness the full potential of the living world as a cross-curricular teaching and learning resource, both within and beyond the school grounds. The programme focuses particularly on food, farming and environmental issues and on ensuring pupils are given first hand, practical experience in the outdoor classroom.

Education Maintenance Allowance: Tyne and Wear

Mr. Kemp: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils in (a) Tyne and Wear and (b) Houghton and Washington East constituency were eligible for education maintenance allowance at (i) £30, (ii) £20 and (iii) £10 in the last three years. [181552]

Jim Knight: The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) operate the education maintenance allowance (EMA) for the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF). They hold information about take-up, at local authority level, since the scheme was rolled out nationally from September 2004. This information is published on the LSC website and is updated every month. It can be found at:

One of the criteria used to assess eligibility for the education maintenance allowance (EMA) is the household income of the young person. Since we cannot estimate this with accuracy at a local level, and not everyone who is eligible for EMA takes it up, it is not possible to provide estimates of the number of EMA eligible pupils.

Education Visits: Bureaucracy

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps he is taking to reduce the administrative burdens associated with undertaking an outdoor school trip. [182920]


29 Jan 2008 : Column 256W

Jim Knight: In the Children’s Plan published earlier this month we said that we will ensure that schools and local authorities take a proportionate approach to health and safety to allow children to take risks while staying safe. Through the Learning Outside the Classroom Manifesto we are already working with local authorities, sector bodies and school work force representatives to provide up to date guidance, resources and training modules. These will make it clear that all young people should experience the world beyond the classroom as an essential part of their learning and personal development whatever their age or circumstances, and provide schools with the tools they need to make these opportunities available. We are also standardising quality and safety accreditation schemes so that schools can be confident in using external venues. This work includes revising our existing guidance “The Health and Safety of Pupils on Educational Visits” and we will expect local authorities to adopt these straightforward procedures when the guidance becomes available later this year.

Emergency Protection Orders

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent discussions he has had with local authority children’s services on their use of emergency protection orders; and if he will make a statement. [181856]

Beverley Hughes [holding answer 24 January 2008]: The Department for Children, Schools and Families has not had any recent discussions with local authority children’s services on their use of emergency protection orders (EPOs). We strengthened guidance on the use of EPOs in revised guidance to local authorities, “Working Together to Safeguard Children”, issued in 2006. This guidance makes clear that emergency action normally takes place following an inter-agency strategy discussion and that, where a single agency has to act immediately to protect a child, a strategy discussion should take place as soon as possible. It also explains that legal advice should normally be obtained before initiating legal action, in particular when an EPO is to be sought. Through the Children and Young Persons Bill, we are amending the legislative provision for EPOs to remove an anomaly identified by the courts in equivalent legislation in Northern Ireland.

English: Assessments

Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will publish the findings of the pilot stage tests in English and mathematics taken by 40,000 pupils in December 2007. [182455]

Jim Knight [holding answer 28 January 2008]: In December 2007, 22,543 pupils took a total of 42,833 tests in the first round of single level tests as part of the Making Good Progress pilot. As this is the first pilot of a new assessment instrument, the National Assessment Agency is reviewing the outcomes from those tests before we release them to the individual schools which participated. We expect to publish overall results as part of PricewaterhouseCoopers' independent evaluation of the first year of the pilot.


29 Jan 2008 : Column 257W

Free School Meals: Easington

John Cummings: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils were in receipt of free school meals in Easington in each
29 Jan 2008 : Column 258W
year since 2004; and if he will make a statement. [182657]

Jim Knight: The requested information is shown in the table.

Maintained nursery, primary and secondary schools( 1, 2) : School meal arrangements, Easington parliamentary constituency, position in January each year, 2004-07
Maintained nursery and primary schools Maintained secondary schools
Number on roll( 3) Number of pupils taking free school meals( 4) % taking free school meals( 4) Number of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals % known to be eligible for free school meals Number on roll( 3) Number of pupils taking free school meals( 4) % taking free school meals( 4) Number of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals % known to be eligible for free school meals

2004

7,914

1,786

22.6

2,131

26.9

4,833

763

15.8

1,032

21.4

2005

7,646

1,667

21.8

2,043

26.7

4,795

695

14.5

1,124

23.4

2006

7,505

1,531

20.4

1,894

25.2

4,813

640

13.3

1,089

22.6

2007

7,462

1,536

20.6

1,906

25.5

4,756

646

13.6

1,004

21.1

(1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) Excludes city technology colleges and academies. (3) Includes dually registered pupils and boarding pupils. (4) Relates to the number of pupils who actually took a free school meal on the say of the census in January. Source: School Census.

General Certificate of Secondary Education

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils sat more than 15 GCSEs in each year since 1997. [182230]

Jim Knight: The information can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

General Certificate of Secondary Education: Bexley

Mr. Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils sat (a) GCSE and (b) A-Level (i) history and (ii) geography in the London Borough of Bexley in each of the last 10 years; and what results were achieved. [181479]

Jim Knight: The information requested is shown in the following tables.

Number of pupils in Bexley achieving each grade in GCSE geography and history in 1997/98 to 2006/07
Grade
A* A B C D E F G U Absent Total entries

Geography

2007

69

149

143

233

107

52

24

20

19

1

817

2006

105

104

132

191

121

70

32

14

12

1

782

2005

94

123

147

216

168

98

47

21

24

1

939

2004

63

108

154

241

153

76

38

20

24

1

878

2003

66

140

158

216

147

91

61

24

17

5

925

2002

81

143

199

321

205

129

92

36

31

3

1,240

2001

59

115

159

243

149

90

57

20

14

1

907

2000

59

115

159

243

149

90

57

20

14

1

907

1999

48

138

158

245

175

91

60

18

13

6

952

1998

40

140

178

244

202

138

84

36

24

4

1,090

History

2007

96

217

238

230

151

78

51

24

15

1

1,101

2006

89

187

257

252

179

93

49

19

5

3

1,133

2005

63

163

236

257

167

118

47

25

17

3

1,096

2004

70

143

227

239

142

96

52

24

8

2

1,003

2003

66

146

195

209

126

117

67

33

15

1

975

2002

69

159

213

240

170

118

109

54

36

10

1,178

2001

42

139

207

241

153

95

74

27

27

1

1,006

2000

42

139

207

241

153

95

74

27

27

1

1,006

1999

46

111

194

184

167

120

66

50

30

1

969

1998

34

116

215

186

153

101

63

44

15

6

933

Note:
Figures relate to 15-year-olds, (age at the beginning of the academic year, ie 31 August), in all schools

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