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14 Oct 2008 : Column 1108W—continued
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many civil servants transferred from his Department to other Government departments in each of the last 24 months. [224804]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Department was formed as part of the machinery of government changes announced on 28 June 2007. Figures are only available up to the end of August 2008.
During the period 28 June to 31 August, a total number of 116 employees have transferred to other Government Departments:
| Month | Number of employees |
Departmental Public Participation
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many public consultations were launched by his Department in each year since 1997. [225884]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The figures for DCSF and its predecessors, the Department for Education and Employment and Department for Education and Skills are as follows:
| Consultations launched | |
Departmental Publications
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what estimate he has made of the number and proportion of all staff in his Department who were involved with the preparation and publication of (a) reports and (b) consultations in each year since 1997. [225904]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The information requested is as follows:
(a) The Department has a central publications team which, since DCSF was established in 2007, has comprised of 2.5 full-time equivalent staff. However, central records are not held of the many different officials who contribute to the undertakings and
publication of the Department's reports. It is therefore not possible to give an accurate estimate of their number or proportion without incurring disproportionate cost.
(b) The Department currently has a central consultation unit which comprises 7.4 full-time staff. This unit manages around 60 per cent. of the Department's consultations and provides support to policy teams running the remainder. Information on the number and proportion of policy team staff involved in consultations is not held centrally and could not be provided without incurring disproportionate cost.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many reports were published by his Department and its predecessor in each year since 1997. [225905]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: This Department and its predecessors published the following number of corporate reports since 1997:
| Number | |
Our central records do not show items which may have been produced under devolved budgets by individual policy teams.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what estimate he has made of the average number of days spent on the preparation and publication of (a) reports and (b) consultations by his staff in each year since 1997. [225906]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The information is as follows:
(a) Because budgets for the Department's publications are devolved to individual policy teams, we do not keep central records to show how long staff spend on the undertaking and publication of reports each year. It is therefore not possible to give an accurate estimate without incurring disproportionate cost.
(b) The number of days spent undertaking consultations is not recorded centrally and could not be collated without incurring disproportionate cost.
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much his Department spent on the (a) production and (b) publication of reports in each year since 1997. [226093]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Since its formation, this Department spent £37,720 on production of its corporate reports in 2007 and £21,112 (to date) in 2008.
Our records do not distinguish between the costs of production and publication, and central records do not show items which may have been produced under devolved budgets by individual policy teams.
Departmental Redundancy Pay
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much was spent by his Department on voluntary early release schemes and redundancies in each of the last 10 years. [224801]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Department was formed as part of the machinery of government changes announced on 28 June 2007.
During the period 28 June to date, the cost of voluntary early releases to the Department is £13.2 million. This covers releases planned until September 2009.
Departmental Telephone Services
Colin Challen: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what agencies or units for which his Department is responsible require the public to make telephone calls to them on numbers which charge more than the national call rate; and how much income each such agency has derived from such charges in each of the last three years. [225718]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The information is as follows:
(a) The DCSF general inquiry line uses an 0870 number to provide a standard call rate for members of the public irrespective of where they live in the country. The Department does not receive any income from the use of an 0870 number.
(b) The Department also contracts with suppliers to provide helpline services to the public, usually in support of information campaigns.
The Sexwise inquiry number is an 0800 number and is therefore free from landlines. The Affordable Childcare Campaign Helpline is also a free 0800 number. Calls to this number are diverted to local family information services in each local authority. The transfers are also cost free to callers.
As with all 0800 numbers, some mobile network charges may apply.
(c) The Department does not have any agencies.
(d) We do not hold costs for our non-departmental public bodies.
Diplomas: Mathematics
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families which diplomas will include (a) compulsory and (b) optional mathematics A-level. [226028]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Mathematics A-Level isn't compulsory for any Diploma, but will be available to learners as part of additional/specialist learning. This offers young people the opportunity to study mathematics where it supports their progression to employment or further study.
Education Maintenance Allowance
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many people claimed the education maintenance allowance in each year since its introduction. [226031]
Jim Knight: The numbers of successful EMA claims in each academic year since inception is shown in the following table:
| Numbers accessing EMA | |
| Notes: 1. Young people who have claimed EMA while on an E2E programme and then progressed in the same year to a school sixth form or a college course will be counted twice in the yearly figures; 2. These figures are for England only. | |
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what estimate he has made of the number of those aged 16 years and older in education who are eligible to claim education maintenance allowance but do not do so. [226032]
Jim Knight: Eligibility for the education maintenance allowance (EMA) is based on household income. The Department for Children, Schools and Families does not hold information on the household income of all households with a 16 to 19-year-old who participate in a course that meets the EMA valid provision criteria. Therefore it is not possible to calculate the precise number of students who are eligible for EMA on household income grounds but do not do so.
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what percentage of those in (a) full-time and (b) part-time education aged (i) 16, (ii) 17 year and (iii) 18 years claimed education maintenance allowance in each year since its introduction. [226033]
Jim Knight: The percentages of people studying in full-time education and who received EMA since the scheme was nationally rolled out in 2004 are shown in the following table. The information on the percentage of those in part-time education aged (i) 16 (ii) 17 and (iii) 18-years-old claimed educational maintenance allowance in each year since its introduction is not available as the information held is not broken down in this way.
| Table 1: Percentage of people studying in full-time( 1) education who received EMA | |||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | |
| (1) Estimated percentage is likely to include EMA recipients who are studying on courses of less than 450 guided learning hours per year, which is the definition used for full-time full year courses. Notes: 1. EMA is only available for people studying on courses of at least 12 guided learning hours a week. This is the only management information known about course length of EMA recipients, therefore it not possible to split figures into full and part-time. 2. Information is only available since national rollout in 2004-05. 3. Breakdown for 2007-08 is not available at present. 4. Figures are for England only. | |||
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