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5 Feb 2008 : Column 1097Wcontinued
These figures were all based on outputs from our teacher supply model, which takes account of range of factors that determine how many teacher training places we need to set for future years. One of these factors is new curriculum pressures or initiatives that
will affect the number of teachers needed in different subjects, and one of these was a need to provide more teachers of food technology. The targets we gave the TDA therefore made allowance for an expansion in this area. The modelling and targets also took account of the fact that there will be significantly fewer secondary pupils in the next few years.
We have been working with the TDA to find ways of increasing the number of teachers of food technology in recent years. We will continue to do so in pursuit of this new commitment that the Government have announced.
Approximately 15 per cent. of secondary schools do not currently offer food technology at key stage 3. In March 2008 we will be carrying out a survey of these schools in order to understand what additional support will be needed to enable them to offer food technology. In advance of the results of that survey, no estimate has been made of the cost of retraining existing teachers.
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families whether compulsory cookery lessons will be provided in academies. [183774]
Jim Knight: Cookery lessons will not be compulsory in academies. However, we expect all academies to offer cookery courses as they all have or will have high quality cooking facilities.
Mr. Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will take steps to ensure that (a) food labelling, (b) farming, (c) the origins of food and (d) obesity become part of the compulsory cooking lessons syllabus for children aged 11 to 14 years. [183890]
Jim Knight: Beginning in September 2008, the revised key stage 3 design and technology programme of study will require pupils to be taught:
a broad range of practical skills, techniques and equipment and standard recipes, and how to use them to develop, plan and cook meals and single or multiple products;
how to plan and carry out a broad range of practical cooking tasks safely and hygienically;
healthy eating models relating to a balanced diet, nutritional needs of different groups in society and factors affecting food choice and how to take these into account when planning, preparing and cooking meals and products; and
the characteristics of a broad range of ingredients including their nutritional, functional and sensory properties.
Food technology will be an optional strand of the programme of study from 2008 and become compulsory in all maintained schools from September 2011.
We are supporting the Year of Food and Farming that is bringing together a unique education and industry partnership across the country to help schools teach about farming and the origins of food. Our Growing Schools programme will take forward the legacy from the year, providing continued support for schools, including information and guidance on farm visits.
Ms Dari Taylor:
To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of local
authorities in administering support required by primary legislation to parents who foster and adopt children. [183551]
Kevin Brennan: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to her on 25 June 2007, Official Report, column 532W.
The research study into the specialist support services available for birth parents in adoption cases, referred to in the earlier reply, is now due to report to the Department in September 2008.
Ms Dari Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many (a) couples and (b) individuals made enquiries to local authorities to (i) foster and (ii) adopt a child or children in the last 12 month period for which figures are available. [183553]
Kevin Brennan: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to her on 25 June 2007, Official Report, column 532W.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the criteria are for access to the Gifted and Talented scheme; and what measures his Department has taken to ensure that selection for the scheme is fair and objective. [183738]
Jim Knight: Secondary schools and post-16 institutions are asked to identify those pupils who meet the published criteria for the national top 5 per cent. by ability whether or not they were known to be registered with the former National Academy for Gifted and Talented Youth (NAGTY). These criteria are at:
All primary and secondary schools and post-16 institutions are also asked to identify as gifted and talented pupils whose ability is developed to a level significantly ahead of their year group within that school/college, or who have the potential to develop such ability. Schools and colleges are expected to follow the Departments guidance at:
John Cummings: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many reported cases of bullying there were in each school in Easington constituency in (a) 2006 and (b) 2007. [183027]
Kevin Brennan: The requested information is not collected centrally.
Tables showing the number of permanent and fixed period exclusions in each local authority area by reason for exclusion have been placed in the Library. This includes a category relating to bullying. School level data on exclusions by reason could be produced only at disproportionate costs.
Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assessment he has made of the amount of physical education training provided during initial teacher training for primary school teachers. [183661]
Jim Knight [holding answer 31 January 2008]: Training providers must design their programmes to enable trainees to meet the standards for qualified teacher status. These standards set out what the outcomes of training must be, but neither this Department nor the Training and Development Agency for Schools prescribe either the content of training, or the amount of time that must be spent on each aspect of it.
Most training takes place in schools and this provides trainees with the opportunities they need to meet all of the standards. The standards themselves require trainees to be able to teach across the range of core and non-core subjects of the pupils curriculum, including PE. In addition, all trainees are expected to be able to create safe learning environments when they teach.
The overall amount of time available for training on many primary programmes is inevitably limited. Training providers themselves make professional judgments about the balance of the various elements of the training programme. Additionally, they are required to take account of individual training needs and to personalise training provision to meet the needs of individual trainees. The specification of training hours for aspects of provision would not be consistent with this flexible approach.
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much of the public spending on Sure Start, early years and childcare announced on 2 August 2007 will be allocated to each of the five projects mentioned in the announcement in each of the next three years. [183813]
Beverley Hughes: Over £4 billion has been allocated to Sure Start, Early Years and Childcare in the next three years and will help to improve life for disadvantaged children in England.
The following table shows a breakdown of funds allocated between 2008-09 and 2010-11:
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) what steps the Government have taken to improve the emotional wellbeing of school children since 1997; [183839]
(2) what support the Government provide to schools for children with mental health problems. [184119]
Jim Knight [holding answer 4 February 2008]: A variety of work has been developed to improve the emotional wellbeing and mental health of school children. The National Healthy Schools programme which has existed since 1999 promotes a whole school approach to both physical and emotional health, and one of its core themes is emotional health and wellbeing. To achieve national healthy school status, schools now need to satisfy the criteria for all four core themes and last year new guidance was issued on promoting emotional health and wellbeing to support work in this area. Currently 95 per cent. of schools have joined the National Healthy Schools programme and 55 per cent. are meeting the new standards.
The National Framework for Children and Young People and Maternity Services (NSF), published in 2004, set out a 10-year programme of improvements for child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS). In support of this, grant funding to local authorities for CAMHS has increased from £10 million in 1999-2000 to £91 million in each financial year from 2003-04 to 2007-08 to strengthen the provision of targeted mental health services for children and adolescents. We also announced plans in 2007 for an independent review of CAMHS.
The Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning (SEAL) programme was created to develop all children and young peoples social and emotional skills at school, which help to underpin emotional wellbeing, and it was made available to primary schools in 2005. Approximately 60 per cent. of primary schools have voluntarily adopted SEAL, and 15 to 20 per cent. of secondary schools are expected to start implementing it by July 2008.
In 2007 we announced that we will invest an additional £60 million over three years to support schools to work with mental health practitioners and others to improve the mental health and emotional wellbeing of pupils.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many schools in Essex fingerprint pupils; and if he will make a statement. [178838]
Jim Knight [holding answer 30 January 2008]: The Department is not aware of any schools in Essex which fingerprint pupils. Some schools may use biometric technology systems involving the recording of some fingerprint characteristics.
The Department does not routinely keep records of such schools since the decision to introduce biometric technology is for each school to make.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what (a) primary and (b) secondary schools closed in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority. [183809]
Jim Knight: The primary and secondary schools that have closed within the last five years, by year and local authority are shown in a document that has been placed in the House Library.
Schools can be closed for a number of reasons including: to meet demographic changes (population decline); as part of an amalgamation; to allow a Fresh Start school to replace a school in special measures; to allow a school with a religious character to replace a school without a religious character; or as part of another type of local reorganisation.
Mr. Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) what the closing date is for applications for grants from the basic needs allocation-related safety valve fund in the present period; [184083]
(2) how much has been allocated to the basic needs allocation-related safety valve fund; [184084]
(3) how many applications for the basic needs allocation-related safety valve fund have been made, broken down by (a) authority and (b) value of application. [184085]
Jim Knight: The closing date for applications for basic need safety valve funding, in respect of the spending review period 2008-09 to 2010-11, is 29 February. No budget has been allocated specifically for these applications as this is a demand-led programme. Total additional capital allocations for new pupil places will depend upon the value of successful applications that are received.
No completed application has yet been received.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) how many incidents involving knives were reported at schools in England in 2007; [184032]
(2) how many knives were confiscated at schools in England in 2007. [184033]
Jim Knight: The requested information is not collected centrally.
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many groups of parents have established maintained schools under section 10 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006; and where these schools are located. [184024]
Jim Knight [holding answer 1 February 2008]: No schools have yet been established by groups of parents under section 10 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006. With the support of the local authority, proposals have been published by a group which include parents for a new secondary school to open in Sheffield in 2011 to replace two closing schools. There is also interest from parents groups in entering proposals for new schools into competitions.
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