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23 Oct 2008 : Column 586W—continued
Pupil Referral Units: Special Educational Needs
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupil referral units do not have provision for pupils with special educational needs, broken down by local authority. [229626]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: According to my Department’s record of information supplied by local authorities at the time of registration, 366 pupil referral units catered for pupils with special educational needs and 184 pupil referral units did not indicate whether they catered for pupils with special educational needs. However, pupils with special educational needs are likely to be attending all types of school and other provision, so there are likely to be children with special educational needs in pupil referral units in addition to the 366.
Pupils: Per Capita Costs
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much was spent per head of the population on education in (a) rural and (b) urban areas in 2007-08. [228110]
Jim Knight: The latest figures available are shown in the following table (2006-07). Figures for 2007-08 are still being collected and validated by the Department for Children, Schools and Families.
| Combined local authority and school based expenditure per pupil( 1) : 2006-07: Cash terms figures as reported by local authorities in England as at 15 October 2008( 2) | |
| Total combined LEA and school based expenditure1 (£ per pupil) | |
| (1) Combined local authority and school based expenditure includes all expenditure on the education of children in local authority maintained establishments and pupils educated by the authority other than in maintained establishments. This includes both school based expenditure and all elements of central LA expenditure except youth and community and capital expenditure from revenue (CERA). Certain elements of central local authority expenditure cannot be attributed to a particular phase of education and consequently a sector breakdown is not available. Pupil figures include all pre-primary pupils, including those under fives funded by the authority and being educated in private settings, pupils educated in maintained mainstream schools and any other local authority maintained pupils. All pupil numbers are adjusted to be on a financial year basis. (2) The classification of local authorities into those which are predominately urban and predominately rural is based upon The Rural and Urban Area Classification (2004) sponsored by the Countryside Agency (CA), the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), Office for National Statistics (ONS), the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) and the Welsh Assembly Government. Predominantly rural local authorities are classified as those which consist of more than 50 per cent. rural output areas. Note: Figures are rounded to the nearest £10. | |
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the average financial allocation per pupil was in (a) Devon local authority area and (b) England in each of the last five years. [228871]
Jim Knight: The revenue funding figures per pupil aged 3-19 in real terms for Devon local authority and the England average for years 2004-05 to 2005-06 are as follows:
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
The revenue per pupil figures shown in the following table are taken from the dedicated schools grant (DSG) which was introduced in April 2006. They are not comparable with those for the years 2004-05 to 2005-06 because the introduction of the DSG in 2006-07 fundamentally changed how local authorities are funded.
The 2004-05 to 2005-06 figures are based on Education Formula Spending (EFS) which formed the education part of the Local Government Finance Settlement, plus various grants. This was an assessment of what local authorities needed to fund education rather than what they spent. The DSG is based largely on an authority's previous spending. In addition, the DSG has a different coverage to EFS. EFS comprised a schools block and an LEA block (to cover LEA central functions), whereas DSG covers only the school block. LEA block items are still funded through DCLG's Local Government Finance Settlement but education items cannot be separately
identified. Consequently, there is a break in the Department's time series as the two sets of data are not comparable.
To provide a comparison for 2006-07 DSG, the Department have isolated the schools block equivalent funding in 2005-06; as described above this does not represent the totality of “education” funding in that year.
The figures are for all funded pupils aged 3-19 and are in real terms.
| DSG baseline plus grants | DSG plus grants | |||
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
| Note: Price Base: Real terms at 2007-08 prices, based on GDP deflators as at 30 September 2008. | ||||
Qualifications
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what plans he has for the future of BTEC qualifications. [229025]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: In our 14-19 Qualifications Strategy we set out our criteria for public funding. We will in future direct funding to one of the four national routes: GCSE/A level; Diplomas; Apprenticeship and FLT.
BTECs are currently available within Diplomas; Apprenticeships and FLT and will therefore continue to be eligible for public funding. We have stated our intention to reduce the number of qualifications taken as standalones including the BTEC. There will be a gradual and managed transition to the new 14-19 offer as the national suites become widely available, with the primary consideration being meeting the needs of learners.
This will not impact on the availability of standalone vocational qualifications for adults.
Schools: Assessments
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many people who were entered for a (a) GCSE and (b) A Level did not sit one or more exams in each of the last five years. [224796]
Jim Knight: The Department does not hold the information required to answer this question.
Schools: Bureaucracy
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what average proportion of (a) primary and (b) secondary school teacher's working time was spent (i) completing Government-originated forms and (ii) classroom teaching in the most recent period for which figures are available. [227897]
Jim Knight: The Department does not hold any information about the time teachers spend completing Government-originated forms.
The available information on the average number of hours per week spent by teachers about different activities is published by the Office of Manpower Economics (OME) and summarised in the following table:
| Average time worked per week by full-time classroom teachers, total hours and proportions spent on grouped activities (March 2008) | ||
| Percentage | ||
| Primary classroom teachers | Secondary classroom teachers | |
These figures are based upon a sample survey of around 2,000 teachers in England and Wales during a single week in March 2008. The full report “Teachers’ Workloads Diary Survey” was published in August 2008 and can be found on the OME website at:
Schools: Land
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much land has been bought for educational use in England in (a) the last 12 months and (b) the last 10 years. [229055]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: We do not hold information on land that has been bought for educational use in England by local authorities or other educational organisations.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how educational land is valued for sale. [229056]
Jim Knight: Any application submitted for approval to sell a school playing field, under section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998, must include a valuation for the land in question. This valuation must be provided by the district valuer or an independent professionally-qualified valuer. It is expected that schools or local authorities should only sell publicly owned land for best value.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the area of educational land is in England; and what the average amount of land per school is. [229057]
Jim Knight: Data on areas of school playing fields and external spaces were supplied to the Department by local education authorities in 2001 and 2003. However, the completeness and quality of data is insufficient to accurately assess the area of land in England that is occupied by schools for educational purposes, or to determine the average amount of land per school.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what restrictions are in place for the selling of educational land for residential use. [229074]
Jim Knight: Educational land generally comprises the school buildings and the playing fields. The Secretary of State’s consent is not normally needed to sell school buildings. Before any school or local authority in England can sell a school playing field or any part of a school playing field, they must obtain the Secretary of State’s consent, under section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. In the case of school buildings or playing field land which has been used in the last eight years for a community school, the local authority must seek confirmation from the Secretary of State that the land is not required for the purposes of an academy.
Any subsequent use of land is a matter for the local planning authority.
Schools: Sport
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of (a) primary schools and (b) secondary schools in Peterborough offer competitive sports as part of their curriculum. [229454]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: All schools must provide competitive games activities, as this is a compulsory part of the physical education national curriculum.
Schools: Standards
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many national challenge schools will be entering national challenge trusts. [224871]
Jim Knight: We are continuing to talk to all local authorities with national challenge schools as they develop plans for school improvement, including national challenge trusts, and will look to develop national challenge trusts where that is the most appropriate way to meet schools’ needs.
Schools: Stoke on Trent
Mr. Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assessment he has made of the likely effects on educational standards in Stoke-on-Trent over the next 10 years of the closure of Longton High School and Trentham High School. [228647]
Jim Knight: DCSF officials have asked the council to set out its vision for transforming secondary education through a ‘Strategy for Change’ for BSF. This strategy must explain how the council proposes to raise secondary school standards and aspirations over the next 10 years, and address falling pupil numbers in the city. It will be assessed by the Department when formally submitted. The proposed plans for schools in Stoke are part of a strategic approach and should not be viewed in isolation.
Secondary Education: Assessments
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many students in maintained schools in September have begun working towards (a) the Cambridge Pre-U examination and (b) the International Baccalaureate. [227962]
Jim Knight: The Department does not currently hold this information.
Information on the number of students entered for the Cambridge Pre-U exam and the International Baccalaureate in the 2008/09 academic year will be collected in the Autumn School Census (currently in progress). Initial results from the census will be available from January 2009.
Secondary Education: Finance
Mr. Roger Williams:
To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the average
amount of funding per student was in comprehensive secondary schools of (a) fewer than 100, (b) 100 to 199, (c) 200 to 299, (d) 300 to 399, (e) 400 to 499, (f) 500 to 599, (g) 600 to 699 and (h) 700 and above in (i) rural and (ii) non rural areas in the most recent year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [227306]
Jim Knight: The revenue funding that local authority maintained secondary schools in England receive (this excludes Academies) is a matter for individual local authorities to decide locally through their own local funding formulae (subject to satisfying the minimum funding guarantee for schools). Consequently, the amount of money allocated to each secondary school in England depends very much on the individual local authorities’ own policy for funding their schools.
The following table shows the cash terms figures as reported by local authorities as at 14 October 2008.
| Children, Schools and Families Financial Data Collection (BUDGET): 2008-09—total budget share plus revenue grants( 1,2) per pupil( 3) allocated( 1) to local authority maintained secondary schools( 4,5) at the start of the 2008-09 financial year: cash terms figures( 6) as reported by local authorities as at 14 October 2008 | ||||||
| Urban( 5) local authority maintained secondary schools( 4) | ||||||
| Secondary schools (exc. middle deemed) | Middle deemed secondary schools | All secondary schools (inc. middle deemed) | ||||
| Number of schools | Average budget share plus grants per pupil (£ per pupil)( 1,2,3,6) | Number of schools | Average budget share plus grants per pupil (£ per pupil)( 1,2,3,6) | Number of schools | Average budget share plus grants per pupil (£ per pupil)( 1,2,3,6) | |
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