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14 Oct 2008 : Column 1112W—continued
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much his Department expects to spend annually on the education maintenance allowance from 2013 onwards. [226039]
Jim Knight: Forecasts of expenditure beyond the current comprehensive spending review period are not available.
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many people eligible to receive the education maintenance allowance achieved three As at A-level in each year since the allowance was introduced. [226042]
Jim Knight: The Department for Children, Schools and Families does not hold information on the percentage of those claiming education maintenance allowance studying for AS or A-level exams.
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what percentage of those claiming education maintenance allowance studied for AS or A-level exams in each year since the allowance was introduced. [226044]
Jim Knight: The Department for Children, Schools and Families does not hold information on the percentage of those claiming education maintenance allowance studying for AS or A-level exams. The evaluation of the EMA pilots did examine the impact of EMA on participation and attainment but did not focus on those studying for specific examinations.
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what percentage of students eligible to receive the education maintenance allowance have not received a payment under the scheme. [226045]
Jim Knight: The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) is responsible for the delivery of education maintenance allowance (EMA). The LSC has reported technical and processing issues which have resulted in delays to the delivery of EMA to learners.
The LSC have been working with their contractor to improve the position. I wrote to the Chairman of the Select Committee on 8 October to provide an update on progress. A copy of that letter has been copied to the hon. Gentleman and placed in both Libraries of the House.
It should be noted, however, that eligibility for EMA is based on household income. The Department for Children, Schools and Families does not hold information on the household income of all households containing a 16 to 19-year-old who are participating 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 have not received a payment.
Education: Children in Care
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what percentage of children in care (a) gained five or more GCSEs at C grade or above and (b) entered university in the latest period for which figures are available. [226584]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The percentage of children looked after continuously for at least 12 months who gained five or more GCSEs or GNVQ equivalents at grades A*-C is given within table C of the Statistical First Release “Outcome Indicators for Children Looked After, Twelve months to 30 September 2007—England” which can be found at:
Information on entries to university of children in care is not held centrally.
Education: Private Finance Initiative
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assessment he has made of the likely effect of the economic situation on the delivery of private finance initiative educational projects; and if he will make a statement. [226568]
Jim Knight: The only educational projects where private finance initiative (PFI) is involved are for school buildings and facilities management.
Market interest in BSF continues to be healthy, and to date, no BSF PFI schemes have been delayed or halted as a result of the current economic conditions. Working with Partnerships for Schools, we are closely monitoring the impact of the current financial climate on the marketability of new PFI projects.
An operational PFI contract could be affected where the private sector partner’s ability to deliver becomes affected. Where this has happened in the past, we have worked with HM Treasury to ensure that the authority and its schools continue to benefit from the services promised by the PFI contract.
Education: Young People
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families which local authorities are involved in the 14 to 19 engagement programme; and if he will make a statement. [225852]
Jim Knight: In the 2008/09 academic year there are 112 local authorities involved in the Key Stage 4 engagement programme, listed as follows. These schemes will provide for 21,500 young people who are demotivated by the normal curriculum and are at serious risk of dropping-out. Partnerships of schools, colleges, employers, voluntary sector organisations and training providers have developed a range of work-focused learning, often taught outside typical classrooms, demonstrating the usefulness of learning, developing skills and remotivating young people to continue their education. These local authorities are leading the way in developing this important provision. Of a sample of the Year 11 pupils involved in 2006/07, the first year of the programme, 77 per cent. progressed to full-time learning and 6 per cent. to full-time employment after age 16.
Barking and Dagenham, Barnet, Barnsley, Bedfordshire, Bexley, Birmingham, Blackburn with Darwen, Blackpool, Bolton, Bournemouth, Bradford, Brighton and Hove, Bristol, Bromley, Bury, Calderdale, Cambridgeshire, Cheshire, Coventry, Croydon, Cumbria, Derby, Derbyshire, Devon, Doncaster, Dudley, Durham, East Riding of Yorkshire, East Sussex, Essex, Gloucestershire, Greenwich, Hackney, Halton, Hampshire, Haringey, Havering, Herefordshire, Hertfordshire, Hillingdon, Hounslow, Hull, Isle of
Wight, Islington, Kent, Kirklees, Knowsley, Lambeth, Lancashire, Leeds, Leicester, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Liverpool, Luton, Manchester, Medway, Middlesbrough, Milton Keynes, Newcastle, Newham, Norfolk, Northamptonshire, North East Lincolnshire, North Lincolnshire, Northumberland, North Yorkshire, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, Oldham, Peterborough, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Reading, Redbridge, Rochdale, Rotherham, Rutland, Salford, Sandwell, Sefton, Sheffield, Shropshire, Solihull, Somerset, Southampton, Southend on Sea, South Gloucestershire, South Tyneside, Southwark, Staffordshire, St. Helens, Stockport, Stoke on Trent, Suffolk, Swindon, Tameside, Telford and Wrekin, Thurrock, Torbay, Tower Hamlets, Trafford, Wakefield, Walsall, Waltham Forest, Warrington, Warwickshire, Wigan, Wirral, Wolverhampton, Worcestershire, York.
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) what his most recent estimate is of the number of 16 to 18-year-olds who are not in education or training, broken down by parental income decile; [226048]
(2) what his Department’s most recent estimate is of the number and percentage of 16 to 18-year-olds not in education or training; and how many of these belong to households with annual incomes (a) below £30,810, (b) below £25,522 and (c) below £20,817 a year. [226049]
Jim Knight: A combined response to PQs 226048 and 226049 is provided here due to the similarity of the questions and data availability.
The Department publishes estimates of 16 to 18-year-olds who were not in education or training (NET) in a Statistical First Release, which can be found at the following link:
The latest estimate for 16 to 18-year-olds who were NET in England at the end of 2007 was 21.3 per cent. or 430,000 young people.
These figures cannot be broken down by income decile or household income.
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many 16 to 24 year olds were not in full-time education, employment or training in each (a) local authority area and ( b) parliamentary constituency in the latest period for which figures are available; and what proportion of the population of 16 to 24 year olds this represented in each such area. [226204]
Beverley Hughes: The Department publishes estimates of 16 to 24-year-olds who were not in education, employment or training (NEET) in a quarterly brief on NEET, which can be found here:
The data are not split by full/part time education. These figures come from the Labour Force Survey and the latest, quarter two 2008, figure for 16 to 24-year-olds not in education, employment or training in England was 840,000 or 14.0 per cent. of the population. These figures cannot be disaggregated to local authority or parliamentary constituency level.
However, we can give an indication of the number of 16, 17 and 18-year-olds(1) NEET at the end of 2007 in local authorities in England from data provided by
Connexions services. This can be found on the Department's website at the following link:
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/1419/index.cfm?go=site.home&;sid= 42&pid=343&lid=337&ctype=Text&ptype=Single
Data provided by Connexions services are used to set and monitor local authority NEET targets. However, it should be noted that figures are calculated on a different basis from that used in the Department's estimates, and therefore do not give the same totals.
(1) Connexions service figures relate to calendar age (rather than academic age as is used in the Department's participation estimates)
Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assessment he has made of the effect that the Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant has had on improving educational performance; and if he will make a statement. [227014]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant (EMAG) has risen from £162 million in 2004-05 to £187 million in 2008-09 and will rise to £206 million by 2010-11. This ring-fenced grant provides specific funding to contribute to the work of local authorities and schools in narrowing achievement gaps for black and minority ethnic pupils, and covers some of the additional costs in meeting the needs of bilingual learners and underachieving pupils. In the five years 2002 to 2007 the proportion of children from most ethnic minority groups achieving national expectations at key stages 2 and 4 has increased faster than that of the whole cohort. The targeted use of EMAG has contributed towards this desirable outcome.
General Certificate of Secondary Education
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils obtaining five good GCSEs including English and mathematics also received an equivalent qualification worth four GCSEs in the latest period for which figures are available. [226446]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The information requested is not readily available; however the following information shows the percentage of pupils who achieved 5 or more A*-C grades at GCSE only and the additional contribution provided when each equivalency is included.
| Qualification | Percentage |
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of pupils gaining five good GCSEs did so by gaining five separate GCSE qualifications excluding equivalents in each of the last five years for which data are available. [226480]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The information requested is as follows:
| Percentage of pupils achieving 5 good GCSEs excluding equivalents | |
| Percentage | |
| Note: Figures relate to pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 in all schools. | |
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of pupils did not obtain a single D grade or above at GCSE in the latest period for which figures are available. [226485]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: 84,906 pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 did not obtain a single D grade or above at GCSE in 2006/07. This was 13.1 per cent. of all pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 in all schools.
Headteachers: Vacancies
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many (a) primary and (b) secondary schools are without a permanent head teacher in each local authority area. [225429]
Jim Knight: The information is not available in the format requested.
January 2008 figures for head teacher posts that were either vacant or temporarily filled are provided in the following table.
Post are counted where a permanent head teacher is expected to return to the post. It will include posts filled on a temporary basis, those that have not yet been advertised as vacant and where an appointment has been made and not yet taken up.
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