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19 May 2008 : Column 141W—continued
Children, Schools and Families
Social Inclusion: Teacher Training
16. Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps he is taking to ensure that the special educational needs content of teacher training courses prepares teachers to deal with social inclusion matters. [205981]
Kevin Brennan: Initial teacher training is designed to enable trainees to meet the professional standards for qualified teacher status (QTS). Those acquiring QTS must be able to use a range of teaching strategies and resources, take account of diversity and promote equality and inclusion. The Training and Development Agency for Schools is developing a range of units for training providers to help trainees meet the standards for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities.
Children’s Centres
18. Ms Barlow: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what progress has been made towards meeting the target of providing 3,500 children's centres by 2010. [205983]
Dr. Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what progress has been made towards meeting the target of providing 3,500 children's centres by 2010. [205976]
Beverley Hughes: I refer my hon. Friends to the answer I gave earlier today to the hon. Member for South Swindon (Anne Snelgrove).
Free Nursery Places: Copeland
19. Mr. Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many children in Copeland constituency receive free nursery places. [205984]
Beverley Hughes: All three and four-year-olds are entitled to receive 12.5 hours of free provision for 38 weeks of the year, rising to 15 hours by 2010. 96 per cent. of all three-year-olds nationally, and nearly all four-year-olds access some free provision.
The latest data we have, for 2007, show that in Copeland 660 three-year-olds and 690 four-year-olds receive free part-time nursery places, across the maintained and private, voluntary and independent sectors.
Bullying
20. Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps he is taking to tackle the bullying of school children with special needs. [205985]
Kevin Brennan:
This week we are launching tailored guidance which provides schools with comprehensive advice on how to prevent and tackle the bullying of children with SEN and disabilities. Heads and governors have statutory duties to prevent the bullying of these children which are outlined in the guidance.
The anti-bullying alliance and national strategies will provide support and challenge for local authorities and schools to ensure the guidance is effectively implemented on the ground.
Apprenticeships
21. Ms Angela C. Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps are taken in schools to encourage pupils to take up apprenticeships upon leaving. [205986]
Jim Knight: “World-class Apprenticeships” sets out how we will strengthen and expand apprenticeships so that by 2013 every suitably qualified young person who wants an apprenticeship will be able to access one. The Education and Skills Bill before the House requires schools to provide impartial careers education. Information about apprenticeships is included in 14-19 area prospectuses. We are also building a new apprenticeship national matching service that will provide on-line access to apprenticeship vacancies.
Testing
22. Mr. Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of school tests for measuring the performance of pupils and schools. [205987]
Jim Knight: The rigorous test development process undertaken by the National Assessment Agency, and regulation, now by Ofqual, ensure that national curriculum tests are fit for purpose. Those tests provide reliable, objective information about the attainment of every pupil in the core subjects of the national curriculum and about the performance of every school in equipping pupils with the skills they need for life. Test results help us to improve performance throughout the education system.
GCSEs
23. Sarah McCarthy-Fry: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps he is taking to enable 30 per cent. of pupils in all schools to achieve at least five good GCSEs including English and mathematics. [205988]
Ed Balls: We will invest £200 million over the next three years to ensure that by 2011 at least 30 per cent. of pupils in every secondary school will achieve at least five good GCSEs including English and mathematics or the school will be subject to formal intervention. We announced this investment in the Budget, and in June we will publish our strategy to achieve this ambition.
Building Schools for the Future
Mr. Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what progress has been made in the Building Schools for the Future programme; and if he will make a statement. [205973]
Jim Knight: Building Schools for the Future continues to make good progress, with 13 schools now open, and a further 35 expected to open by April 2009. 17 local authorities have reached financial close, covering over 200 schools and £3.9 billion capital investment. Beyond 2010-11, we expect that around 200 new or remodelled schools will open each year. 72 local authorities are currently in waves 1-6 of the programme, with almost 1,000 secondary schools currently developing plans for modernisation.
Term-time Pupil Absence
Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what his Department's policy is on pupils being taken out of school during term-time for holidays. [205979]
Kevin Brennan: Our policy is to discourage all avoidable absence, including term-time holidays, because of the increased risk of underachievement or harm to children. We trust head teachers to judge whether any given absence is justified, such as a family crisis or when a parent's employer cannot or will not release them during normal school holidays. Head teachers can grant up to 10 days’ holiday absence from school for special reasons, and longer periods in exceptional circumstances.
Absenteeism: Yorkshire and the Humber
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what percentage of pupils in secondary education in each local authority in Yorkshire and the Humber was classed as persistent absentees in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [206221]
Kevin Brennan: The first year for which information is available on Persistent Absentees is 2005-06.
The available information is given in the table, and was published as part of the Statistical First Release: ‘Pupil Absence in Schools in England, including Pupil Characteristics, 2006/07’ at:
Assessments: Lost Property
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) how many SAT examination papers were recorded as missing in 2007; [203220]
(2) how many GCSE examination papers were recorded as missing in 2007. [203221]
Jim Knight: A total of 2,282 key stage 2 and 3 test scripts were recorded as missing out of a total of some 9.6 million. Missing scripts are those scripts lost during the marking process (including the transfer of scripts between schools and markers).
A total of 4,985 GCSE (including GNVQ) and A level scripts were recorded as missing as at results day in summer 2007. These figures are for English- based awarding bodies only. The total number of GCSE (including GNVQ) and A level scripts marked for the summer 2007 exam series was some 16 million. It is not possible to get a separate breakdown for GCSEs.
The awarding bodies which offer GCSE and A level examinations are required by the regulator to have arrangements in place to ensure that candidates whose examination scripts are lost are not disadvantaged.
Children: Day Care
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) how many and what proportion of children aged (a) three and (b) four years were in daycare settings for more than 12.5 hours a week in (i) Basingstoke constituency, (ii) Hampshire and (iii) England in each year for which records are available; [203023]
(2) how many and what proportion of children under the age of three years were attending daycare settings in (a) Basingstoke constituency, (b) Hampshire and (c) England in each year for which records are available. [203025]
Beverley Hughes: The 2004 Parents’ Childcare Survey estimated that 35 per cent. of 0-2 year olds and 86 per cent. of 3-4 year olds had used some formal child care in the week before the survey. The following table shows what proportion of children in these age groups had used different types of formal provision.
| Table 1: Use of formal child care in the last week by age of child, 2004 | ||
| 0-2 per cent. | 3-4 per cent. | |
| Notes: The percentages for the different types of formal provision do not sum to the total ‘Early years provision and formal child care’ figure as a child may attend more than one type of provision. Comparable data are not available for previous years due to changes in the definitions of the different types of formal provision. Data are not available at a local authority level. Data on 3 and 4 years olds attending daycare settings for more than 12.5 hours a week are not available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. | ||
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