| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
9 Feb 2009 : Column 1736W—continued
Steer Review
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families when he expects the next report arising from the Steer Review to be published. [247414]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: I am expecting Sir Alan to issue his latest report within the next three weeks.
My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, has asked Sir Alan to use this report to advise him on how to make school partnerships for improving behaviour and tackling persistent absence more effective; what more might be done to encourage early intervention and more consistent good practice in provision for pupils with special educational needs; and the links between pupil behaviour and school policies on learning and teaching.
Teaching Methods
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what strategies his Department has introduced to encourage personalised teaching and learning; and what mechanisms he has established by which the effectiveness of these strategies will be assessed. [253300]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: £1.6 billion is being made available across 2008-11 for personalised learning and special educational needs (SEN). This money is not ring-fenced and schools are free to spend it in a way which best supports their individual needs. In October 2008 we launched “Personalised Learning—A Practical Guide” to provide support and guidance to schools in prioritising their spending.
Core strategies underpinning personalised teaching and learning include:
The Assessment for Learning Strategy to help schools improve and plan their Assessment for Learning (AfL) provision, underpinned by £150 million being made available to schools across 2008-11. Progress against strategy objectives and their impact is being monitored and driven forward in partnership with key agencies including the National Strategies (NS) and the QCA.
From September 2010, access to a named personal tutor for every secondary school pupil and their parents. The personal tutor will know them in the round and will normally be the first point of contact for parents to discuss a range of academic and pastoral issues with the school.
One-to-one tuition in reading, writing and mathematics, being introduced nationally from 2009 in Key Stages 2 and 3 and, in National Challenge schools, at Key Stage 4. One-to-one tuition is being rigorously evaluated as part of the Making Good Progress Pilot.
Focused support in reading, writing and mathematics through the Every Child a Reader (ECaR), Every Child a Writer (ECaW), and Every Child Counts (ECC) suite of programmes.
Public Service Agreements and national targets for 2011 have a dual focus on ensuring that pupils reach the levels expected for their age in both English and mathematics (threshold targets) and improving the rates of progress made by pupils from ages 5-16 (new progression targets), with increased attention to achieving faster progress for underachieving groups.
Written Answers to Questions
Monday 9 February 2009
Health
Abortion
Mr. Goodwill: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many terminations of pregnancies where severe disability was suspected were carried out in the most recent 12 month period for which figures are available. [254563]
Dawn Primarolo [holding answer 5 February 2009]: There were 1,939 abortions performed under section l(l)(d) of the Abortion Act in England and Wales in 2007, the last year for which figures are available. The full table showing the breakdown by principal medical condition for abortions performed under section 1(1)(d) is available in the Abortion Statistics, England and Wales: 2007, copies of which have been placed in the Library.
Ambulance Services: Crimes of Violence
Mr. Denis Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many recorded attacks on ambulance crews there were in each NHS ambulance trust area in each of the last three years. [254202]
Ann Keen: Since 2004-05, the number of physical assaults against staff reported by NHS bodies in England has been collected annually by the National Health Service Security Management Service. The number of physical assaults reported against staff in ambulance trusts in the period 2005-06 to 2007-08 are shown in the following tables.
| 2006-07 | |
| Number | |
| 2007-08 | |
| Number | |
| Note: On 1 July 2006, the 30 NHS ambulance trusts in England merged to create 12 reconfigured trusts. On 1 October 2007, Staffordshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust merged with the West Midlands Ambulance Service Trust. The total number of reported assaults before and after mergers are shown against the reconfigured trusts as they were at the end of the reporting years. | |
Anorexia: Internet
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues on the Pro Ana web sites relating to anorexia; and if he will make a statement. [254580]
Phil Hope: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has not discussed this issue with ministerial colleagues. Responsibility for the regulation of the internet rests with the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform.
The Department is concerned about the risks posed by websites which encourage anorexia or bulimia, but cannot take any legal action against them. Such sites are not in themselves illegal and may also be hosted overseas.
We continue to explore a variety of courses of action. For example, we have worked with a media agency which offered their expertise pro bono to run advertisements directing youngsters to more appropriate sites.
Blood: Donors
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to allow gay men to donate blood. [254900]
Dawn Primarolo: Current policy excludes men who have ever had sex with men, whatever their sexual orientation, from blood donation.
The United Kingdom adopts a highly precautionary approach to blood safety. The guiding principle is that if the best available evidence shows that there are reasonable grounds to believe that a course of action will improve the safety of the blood, this action should be taken. The Department is committed to regularly reviewing this evidence, and has asked its expert advisory committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs to do this in 2009.
Care Homes: Elderly
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many visits the Minister for Care Services has made to (a) care homes, (b) day centres and (c) other services for older people. [254591]
Phil Hope: I have undertaken visits to the following care homes for older people, day care centres for older people and other services for older people:
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |