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4 Feb 2009 : Column 1318W—continued
Association for Citizenship Teaching
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much funding his Department has provided to the Association for Citizenship Teaching in each year since 2003. [252917]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The following figures show how much the Department has funded the Association for Citizenship Teachers (ACT) in each year since 2003:
| Funding for ACT (£) | |
Building Schools for the Future Programme
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assessment his Department has made of the contribution of the Building Schools for the Future programme to educational transformation and learning attainment; and if will make a statement. [252589]
Jim Knight: In 2006, we commissioned PricewaterhouseCoopers to evaluate the impact of Building Schools for the Future (BSF) on educational attainment. This is in line with HM Treasury “Green Book” requirements for independent evaluation of major new programmes. PricewaterhouseCoopers has now delivered its second annual report on this evaluation, which we published on 20 January 2009. I will make this report available in the House Library.
Although 50 BSF schools are now open, the pupils have only been in the new schools for a short time. So it is still too early for pupils' results in tests and exams to tell us about the benefit the pupils are deriving from the new schools. The report therefore concentrates on management of the programme. It shows that BSF is gaining momentum, and that as schools and authorities progress through it, there is increasing sharpness of focus on achieving educational transformation. The majority of head teachers view BSF as educationally transformational and believe that it will allow their schools to deliver better outcomes for pupils, that teachers will be able to focus more on personalised teaching and learning, and that it will increase the range of services offered to support learners and their families.
Building Schools for the Future Programme: Standards
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what plans his Department has to ensure that the operational performance of Building Schools for the Future schools meets the standards projected by the design team in each case. [252664]
Jim Knight: Within ‘Building Schools for the Future’ (BSF), the strategic partnering agreement between a local authority and its private sector partner (PSP) requires the PSP to carry out a customer satisfaction evaluation of every school that is built one year after it has opened. The methodology is to capture customer views through use of the design quality indicator tool, DQI for Schools.
All major school projects, including those constructed within the BSF programme, are required to undergo an environmental assessment using the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM). This method now includes a post-construction review which compares an assessment of the environmental impact of the school as constructed against impact as designed.
But BSF is much more than a building programme; it forms part of the Government's wider strategy to transform children and young people's experience of schooling. So in 2006 the Department commissioned PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) to evaluate the impact of BSF on educational attainment. PwC has now delivered its second annual report on this evaluation, which was published on 20 January 2009.
Commercial Group
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assessment he has made of the performance of his Department's Commercial Group in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [247272]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Commercial Group's responsibilities fall under four main areas: Capability and Capacity of Procurement, Estates and Facilities Management, Enterprise Resource Planning and Sustainable Development. The Permanent Secretary and his Management Board keep under regular review the Department's performance, including that of Commercial Group.
In addition, a procurement capability review was carried out by the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) in 2007 which was reviewed again by OGC in 2008. Positive progress was noted as the Department implements its post-review action plan.
Departmental Catering
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what (a) directly-operated and (b) franchised catering outlets his Department provides for staff. [249066]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Department for Children, Schools and Families does not directly operate any catering facilities. Catering in all of our buildings is provided by our contracted service provider, Aramark. This includes a staff restaurant and vending in all four buildings and a cafe area in Sanctuary Buildings, London.
There are no franchised catering outlets in any of our headquarter buildings.
Departmental Expenditure Limits
Mrs. Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much of his Department’s (a) voted and (b) non-voted capital departmental expenditure limit for 2008-09 remains unallocated. [250930]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Department does not have any voted unallocated provision for capital departmental expenditure limit (DEL) in 2008-09. The Department currently has no non-voted capital DEL which will be reflected in the publication of the spring supplementary estimate 2008-09, provisional on 10 February 2009.
The last reported non-voted capital DEL figure of £63.7 million can be sourced from the Department’s 2008-09 winter supplementary (page 33) as published on HM Treasury’s website under “unallocated capital provision”.
Departmental ICT
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) which ICT projects his Department and its predecessors initiated and abandoned before completion in each year since 1997; what costs were incurred in each project; who the contractors for each were; on what date each was (a) commenced and (b) abandoned; and if he will make a statement; [251386]
(2) what the initial estimated (a) cost and (b) delivery date was of each ICT project initiated by his Department and its predecessors in each year since 1997; what the (i) outturn cost and (ii) completion date was of each such project subsequently completed; which contractors were hired for each project; and how much has been paid to each contractor in respect of each project to date. [251375]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) does not hold a current comprehensive list of ICT projects at the level of detail requested. This could be calculated only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Ministerial Policy Advisors
Mr. Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the cost of provision of Government cars to special advisers in his Department has been in the last 12 months. [251024]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: In accordance with paragraph 10.11 from the Ministerial Code, the Department does not provide Government cars to special advisers.
Departmental Public Expenditure
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much capital expenditure has been brought forward in response to the economic downturn by his Department, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies to (a) 2008-09, (b) 2009-10 and (c) 2010-11; from which years such expenditure has been brought forward; and if he will make a statement. [251396]
Jim Knight: The Department for Children Schools and Families, together with its agencies and non-departmental public bodies have identified up to £800 million to be brought forward from the 2010-11 financial year to the 2009-10 financial year.
Departmental Written Questions
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families on how many occasions in the last 12 months Ministers in his Department have used their discretion to rule that a parliamentary question for written answer should be answered because it would be in the public interest to do so, even though to do so would exceed the disproportionate cost threshold of £700. [249133]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The information requested is not recorded. We aim to publish as much information as possible and would consider providing an answer, despite it exceeding the disproportionate cost threshold, if it was deemed to be in the public interest.
Education Maintenance Allowance
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what investigations he has undertaken into the circumstances surrounding the failure of the contract to deliver the education maintenance allowance in 2008; and what conclusions he has drawn from that investigation. [249611]
Jim Knight: The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) have operational responsibility for the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) and as such they contract for the help line, assessment and payment function for EMA. The management of that contract including its performance is a matter for the LSC. The LSC has instigated its own internal review of the contract failures by Liberata last year. The review has been commissioned by Chris Banks the LSC National Chair and Mark Haysom the LSC Chief Executive and is independent of the LSC executive. The review report will go to the LSC National Council in early March. The Department will consider lessons learnt in the light of the outcome of the LSC's review.
Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families when Miss Emma Roberts of West Lancashire constituency will begin receiving education maintenance allowance payments; and whether those payments will be backdated to September 2008. [252783]
Jim Knight: This is a matter for the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) who operate the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) for the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF). Mark Haysom the LSC’s chief executive, will write to the hon. Member for West Lancashire with the information requested and a copy of his reply will be placed in both Libraries.
Education: Assessments
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families when he last met the Examination Officers Association to discuss the effect on the conduct of examinations of recent problems with the marking and return of examinations and test scripts. [252578]
Jim Knight: I met Andrew Harland, the chief executive of the Examination Officers' Association (EOA), on 5 June 2008. This meeting was to discuss the work the EOA is doing to support examinations officers. My officials have had regular contacts with the EOA since then.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the timetable is for the introduction of single level tests after the conclusion of the pilots in July 2009; and if he will make a statement. [252777]
Jim Knight: No decisions have yet been made about any roll out of single level tests (SLTs) nationally. Any roll out will be subject to positive evaluation findings and to endorsement of the approach from Ofqual. We are therefore continuing to monitor progress closely and have asked the expert group on assessment to consider emerging evidence on single level tests from the making good progress pilot.
Education: Finance
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent estimate he has made of the levels of spending on (a) primary schools, (b) secondary schools and (c) colleges in (i) England, (ii) the North East and (iii) Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland constituency in each of the next five years. [252551]
Jim Knight: The Department maintains records of allocations made, on a local authority basis, to local authorities and schools in England. It does not maintain separate records of primary and secondary schools, as expenditure on these is prioritised locally. It does not maintain records of further education college allocations. Actual expenditure within an authority will differ from allocations made. This is due to (a) timing differences between allocations and spend (b) local prioritisation (c) other local resources. Allocations are made on a three year basis, currently covering the years 2008-09 to 2010-11. Accordingly, no figures are maintained beyond 2010-11. Allocations made so far in respect of England, the North West, Middlesbrough and Cleveland, for the period 2009-10 and 2010-11 are set out in the following table.
| £ million | ||
| 2008-09 | 2010-11 | |
GCSE
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families at how many maintained mainstream schools (a) 50 per cent. or more and (b) 75 per cent. or more of pupils did not attain any GCSE grades higher than a D in the latest period for which figures are available. [241872]
Jim Knight: In 38 maintained mainstream schools 50 per cent. or more of the pupils did not attain any GCSE and equivalent grades higher than a D in 2007/08.
No maintained mainstream schools have 75 per cent. or more of the pupils who did not attain any GCSE and equivalent grades higher than a D in 2007/08.
These figures relate to GCSE and equivalent and based on pupils at the end of KS4 in all maintained mainstream schools.
Only schools with 10 or more pupils are included in the answer.
Michael Gove:
To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families in how many schools
less than 30 per cent. of eligible pupils achieved five GCSEs at grades A* to C including English and mathematics in the last 12 months, broken down by decile of income deprivation affecting children indices. [251049]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The information requested is shown in the following table:
| Number of schools( 1, 2) where fewer than 30 per cent. of pupils( 3) achieved five or more A*-C grades at GCSE or equivalent including English and mathematics by IDACI decile( 4) , 2007/08( 5, 6) | |
| IDACI Decile( 4 ) (percentage) | Number of schools where fewer than 30 per cent. of eligible pupils achieved 5+ A*-C at GCSE including English and maths in 2007/08 |
| (1 )Including only those maintained mainstream schools with results published in the 2008 Achievement and Attainment tables. (2 )Including city technology colleges and academies. (3 )Pupils at the end of key stage 4. (4 )2007 Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index at Super Output Area level based on the location of the school. (5 )Figures are based on revised data. (6 )Includes attempts and achievements in previous academic years. | |
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