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10 Jun 2008 : Column 206W—continued
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what percentage of students who had previously studied for (a) higher national diplomas and (b) foundation degrees went on to study for honours degrees in each year since 1997-98. [209475]
Bill Rammell: The available information on Higher National Diploma (HND) qualifiers and Foundation Degree (FD) qualifiers who went on to study a first degree in the following academic year only is shown in the tables. The figures were derived from the destinations surveys, which collect information about the destinations of qualifiers six months after qualification. Figures for 2006/07 will be available next month.
The available information is limited to qualifiers who went on to study for a first degree in the year immediately following qualification: it does not cover those who chose to progress to a first degree at a later stage.
For a number of reasons, it is difficult to draw reliable conclusions about the trends in the numbers of FD qualifiers who went on to study for a first degree in the following academic year, compared to students who completed HNDs. FDs were only introduced in 2001/02 and until 2004/05 there were relatively low numbers of qualifiers, which makes the figures inherently more volatile. It is also important to note that FD qualifiers tend to be older than HND qualifiers. Older qualifiers are less likely to go on to study for a first degree in the year immediately following qualification, because they are often already employed and tend to have other financial and domestic commitments. They may therefore be more likely to proceed to further study at a later date.
In addition, the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) reported in their January 2007/03 (web only) report, Foundation Degrees Key Statistics 200142 to 2006-07, that some students on FDs who proceed to further study are reported as having qualified with an honours degree without having been reported as obtaining a FD degree, which has the effect of reducing the number of FD qualifiers who are recorded as having gone on to study for a first degree.
| Number of UK Domiciled HND qualifiers and the number of those who went on to Study for a First Degree in the following academic year—UK Higher Education Institutions: Academic years 1997/98 to 2005/06 | |||
| Of which are studying for a First Degree in the following academic year( 1) | |||
| Academic year in which qualification obtained | HND Qualifiers of known first destination | Number | Percentage |
| (1) Covers students who are participating in (a) work and further study and (b) further study only, based on their situation six months after obtaining their qualification. Not all students provide information of their destination, for instance; the response rate to the questionnaire from HMD qualifiers was 66 per cent. for the 2004/05 academic year. Note: Figures have been rounded to the nearest five. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA)—First Destinations Supplement (FDS) 1997/98 to 2001/02 and the Destination of Leavers from Higher Education Survey (DLHE) 2002/03 to 2005/06. | |||
| Number of UK Domiciled foundation degree qualifiers and the number of those who went on to study for a First Degree in the following academic year—UK Higher Education Institutions: Academic years 1997/98 to 2005/06 | |||
| Of which are studying for a First Degree in the following academic year( 1) | |||
| Academic year in which qualification obtained | Foundation Degree qualifiers of known first destination | Number | Percentage |
| (1) Covers students who are participating in (a) work and further study and (b) further study only, based on their situation six months after obtaining their qualification. Not all students provide information of their destination, for instance, the response rate to the questionnaire from Foundation Degree qualifiers was 70 per cent. for the 2004/05 academic year. (2) Foundation degrees were introduced in 2001/02 and usually take two years to complete. As such, figures for first degree students with a prior foundation degree qualification are only available from 2002/03. Note: Figures have been rounded to the nearest five. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA)—First Destinations Supplement (FDS) 1997/98 to 2001/02 and the Destination of Leavers from Higher Education Survey (DLHE) 2002/03 to 2005/06 | |||
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills (1) what percentage of state school leavers entered Russell Group universities in (a) 1997 and (b) 2007; [209488]
(2) how many UK-domiciled students at English Russell Group universities were from state schools in (a) 1997 and (b) 2007. [209491]
Bill Rammell: Information on the percentage of state school leavers entering Russell group universities in 1997 and 2007 is not held centrally.
The figures in table 1 show the proportion of young full-time first degree entrants to English Russell group HEIs, who had previously attended state schools or colleges, along with the benchmarks for each institution.
Information in the table is taken from table T1a of the Performance Indicators in Higher Education. Figures for the 1997/98 academic year were published by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), and figures for the 2006/07 academic year were published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA).
For each institution, the performance indicator is shown against a benchmark. This is a sector average which is adjusted for each institution to take into account the following factors: subject of study, qualifications on entry and age on entry. The benchmarks can be used to show how a university is performing compared to the sector as a whole, and also help to determine whether a meaningful comparison can be drawn between two or more universities. The benchmarks are not targets.
Manufacturing Industries: Training
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what recent steps the Government has taken to increase skills levels in manufacturing and technology industries. [208858]
Mr. Lammy: Manufacturing and technology industries are important drivers of growth in the UK economy. Ensuring employers have a skilled work force, capable of unlocking growth and innovation is critical to supporting these industries to succeed.
The Government are currently reviewing their Manufacturing Strategy, and as part of this process will look at how they can help British industry take advantage of the opportunities presented by globalisation and climate change. Exploring the future skills needs of manufacturing is a key element of the review.
Working with employers, the Government have introduced National Skills Academies, centres of excellence in the development of training programmes for their sector. A National Skills Academy for Manufacturing was launched in January 2007 and further academies covering the Process, Nuclear and Food and Drink Manufacturing sectors have been announced. We are also expanding and enhancing the Apprenticeship programme to ensure more employers and employees can benefit from high-quality work-based training.
In recognition of the need to go further in meeting the strategic skills needs of the economy, the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills announced on 28 May that the Government will earmark £65 million of funding from the Train to Gain budget to help employers in the science, engineering and manufacturing technologies sector to ensure that their employees have the skills they need to drive future productivity and competitiveness.
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