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22 July 2008 : Column 1304W—continued
(c) The costs for broadcast media for the public information campaigns since the Departments inception are £1,520,004.80.
Departmental Written Questions
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how long on average his Department took to answer (a) ordinary written and (b) named-day questions in each of the last three years. [215464]
Mr. Lammy: Information on the average number of days taken to answer parliamentary questions is not readily available in the format requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Dudley College
Mr. Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what assessment he has made of the findings of the recent Ofsted report on Dudley college. [220490]
Bill Rammell: I am delighted to say that Dudley college of technology was graded good for overall effectiveness in its recent inspection by Ofsted. I commend the college on the significant improvements they have made since their previous Ofsted inspection in February 2007.
These results show that with strong leadership and management, and good quality teaching, colleges can greatly improve their performance to meet the needs of learners and employers and play a key role in the local community they serve. I would like to congratulate the staff and students at Dudley College of Technology on this transformation.
The improvements made by Dudley college of technology demonstrate that the measures we introduced in the FE reform White Paper to tackle and eliminate under performance, are clearly working.
Education: Employment
John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what his latest estimate is of the number of adults who after taking part in publicly-financed education courses found work with salaries between (a) £10,000 to £15,000, (b) £15,000 to £20,000, (c) £20,000 to £25,000 and (d) above £25,000. [220705]
Bill Rammell: The information requested is not available. However, DIUS does publish information on labour force survey estimates of hourly earnings according to highest qualification held in the “Statistical First Release, Highest Qualification Held by Adults: England 2007” available at:
Information on the salaries of newly qualified first degree graduates (based on their employment situation six months after graduation) is collected and published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency, but the information is only available for around 50 per cent. of graduates who enter employment. The latest such information is available at
Education: Prisons
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what procedures are in place to ensure inmates are able to continue and complete study courses following (a) (i) managed and (ii) involuntary moves by HM prison service to other detention facilities, (b) the granting of early release and (c) the completion of custodial sentences. [220745]
Mr. Lammy [holding answer 21 July 2008]: The Learning and Skills Council contracts with providers to deliver learning and skills to prisoners. Transferring prisoners are able to continue learning with the provider at the receiving establishment, and it is a contractual requirement on the provider to try to ensure that learning can be continued on release.
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what steps he has taken to improve completion rates for inmates undertaking study courses. [220746]
Mr. Lammy [holding answer 21 July 2008]: The Learning and Skills Council took responsibility for learning and skills in prisons, and let new contracts through a refreshed set of providers in summer 2006. The specification for those contracts put in place a detailed requirement for the delivery of learning that has led to 55 per cent. of learners in the 2006/07 academic year completing their learning aims, which represents a significant achievement at a time when the prison service is facing real challenges in terms of overcrowding and the consequent need to move prisoners around the estate. The Learning and Skills Council is developing arrangements, including a new specification, for the successor contracts it will let for August 2009 that will incorporate payment arrangements to reward learner outcomes.
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what steps he has taken to improve levels of educational attainment among the prison population in England and Wales. [220747]
Mr. Lammy [holding answer 21 July 2008]: The Government have put in place a significant programme of action to improve levels of educational attainment among the prison population in England and Wales. Funding for offender learning has more than trebled since the predecessors of the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills and the Department for Children, Schools and Families took responsibility for offender learning in 2001 and is expected to exceed £170 million in 2008-09. We have introduced heads of learning and skills in prisons to take day to day responsibility for managing the learning and skills. Prisons are now subject to the same inspection arrangements as the rest of the further education sector, delivered by Ofsted and Estyn. Inspection outcomes are improving and the proportion of failed inspections are falling to similar levels as those in community adult learning settings. In England we have given responsibility for planning and funding offender learning to the Learning and Skills Council, operating collaboratively with the National Offender Management Service in commissioning the service to be delivered. Since the Learning and Skills Council took responsibility for the service, participation rates have risen from an estimated 36 per cent. in the 2006-07 academic year to 39 per cent. in the August 2007 to May 2008. Similar arrangements apply in Wales, with the director of offender management Wales playing a significant role in planning the service.
We are continuing to drive forward the agenda of attainment and employment through the programme of activity set out in ‘Reducing Re-offending Through Skills and Employment: Next Steps’ (December 2006) with two test bed regions (the west midlands and the east of England) trialling the plans set out in the document, ready for implementation from summer 2009.
Educational Psychology: Training
Stephen Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills whether trainee educational psychologists are expected to pay for their transport costs when visiting pupils during their placements; and if he will make a statement. [220226]
Kevin Brennan: I have been asked to reply.
Detailed arrangements for the support offered to individual trainee educational psychologists (EPs) are matters for local determination between the host local authority, the trainee and training provider.
Under the current postgraduate grant scheme for educational psychology training places, administered by the Children's Workforce Development Council, trainees receive a bursary of £14,500 (£14,900 with London weighting) in their the first year. Arrangements vary for years two and three depending on what has been agreed regionally.
Where trainees are employed as trainee EPs, they are entitled to the same services and allowances as any other employees of the local authority, including being able to claim back expenses. Where trainees are on
bursaries, local authorities are not necessarily bound by the same obligations. Some training providers are making provision to cover trainees' expenses, up to a fixed amount, where they receive a bursary.
The CWDC will keep the current arrangements under review in the light of operational experience.
Fish
Mr. Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how much fish was procured by his Department since establishment, broken down by species; and what amount and value of such fish met the Marine Stewardship Council standard in each such year, broken down by species. [217885]
Mr. Lammy: We do not have data on how much fish this Department has procured.
Further Education
Mr. Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what the 10 most popular courses delivered in further education colleges at Level 4 and above were in 2005-06; and how many students enrolled on each. [219526]
Mr. Lammy: Table 1 shows the 10 most popular specific qualification aims at Level 4 and above in 2005/06.
Table 2 shows the 10 most popular Sector Subject Areas for teaming aims at Level 4 and above in 2005/06, and the total number of learning aims at this level in further education colleges.
Further Education: Halifax
Mrs. Riordan: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what assessment he has made of the performance of further education colleges in Halifax in the last 12 months. [219987]
Bill Rammell: Ofsted is the body responsible for assessing the quality of provision in further education colleges. Ofsted inspected Calderdale college in November 2007 and published its judgment that the provision is satisfactory in January 2008. In addition, the Learning and Skills Council as part of its commissioning process discusses and reviews performance with all providers. As a matter of course, west Yorkshire LSC will be conducting this activity with Calderdale college on an annual basis.
Further Education: Student Wastage
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what research he has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the reasons why students in further education who failed to complete their courses did so in the last three years. [220138]
Bill Rammell: Our research shows that reasons for leaving from FE courses are quite disparate (reflecting the wide range of learners, courses, and learning modes). The most common main reason for leaving FE was that the course was not what the learner wanted to do after all.
We will be establishing a universal adult advancement and careers service through the merger of nextstep and learndirect-advice to be fully operational from autumn 2010 which will help individuals make the choices on learning that are right for them.
We want to make sure that we are meeting the needs of learners. It is encouraging that success rates have increased in FE—rising year-on-year since 2000/01 to 78 per cent. in 2006/07, and that over 90 per cent. of learners are satisfied with their overall learning experience.
Full details of the research can be found in the regular national learner satisfaction survey undertaken by the Learning and Skills Council
http://research,lsc.gov.uk/LSC+Research/published/learner-satisfaction/
and the survey of early leavers from further education and wok-based teaming courses
The Learning and Skills Council have commissioned a further two projects;
(1) Learner journeys on several different Learner Support programmes.
(2) Understanding the needs of disadvantaged learners and non learners.
Higher Education
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what progress has been made on including UK material in the best practice compendium on the modernisation of universities, as referred to in section 2.3 of EU document 2008/C 86/01. [217994]
Bill Rammell: The UK has been actively engaged in developing the compendium and has contributed several examples of best practice to it. The compendium will be a web-based tool and it will allow access for policy makers, practitioners and the wider public to search and download information. It is currently being tested and is expected to go live by the end of this month.
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