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23 Feb 2009 : Column 442W—continued
“Among schools that charge users for childcare and activities, the majority provide help for families who struggle to pay the full fee. Schools most commonly do this by charging a lower fee or waiving payment altogether (53%), or by signposting families to other sources of support such as the Working Tax Credit (49%).”
Of those eligible to benefit from the child care element of tax credits—available for working parents to help with the cost of Ofsted-registered child care or activity-based provision—take up has increased from 14 per cent. in 2004-05 to 17 per cent. in 2006-07. The latest Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) snapshot data shows that 19 per cent. of families were receiving the child care element in December 2008, which equates to about 460,000 families.
The Department does not collect data on point (c) of the question.
HMRC published data do not record what types of provision a family is using.
Children: Protection
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) how many serious case reviews have been conducted into the deaths or serious injuries of children in each local authority area in each of the last five years; [240761]
(2) how many Part 8 reviews into child deaths occurred in each local authority area in each of the last five years. [240758]
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many serious case reviews have been conducted into the (a) deaths and (b) serious injuries of children in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority area. [241890]
Beverley Hughes [holding answer 8 December 2008]: Data currently held by the Department for Children, Schools and Families indicate that, of all notifications received between 1 April 2007 and 31 March 2008 of serious child care incidents, 89 serious case reviews had been initiated where a child died and abuse or neglect was known or suspected to be a factor and 60 were initiated in other circumstances, including where a child sustained a potentially life-threatening injury or serious and permanent impairment of health and development through abuse or neglect. These figures are broken down by local authority in the table, a copy of which has been placed in the Libraries.
Data prior to 1 April 2007 are not available in this form. However, the Department commissions an academic biennial analysis of all serious case reviews to help ensure lessons are clearly identified and disseminated. The latest report for the period 1 April 2003 to 31 March 2005 indicates that of the 161 serious case reviews in that study, two thirds were commissioned after a child had died and a third after a child was seriously injured. Links to these reports are as follows:
Analysing Child Deaths and Serious Injury through Abuse: What can we Learn? A Biennial Analysis of Serious Case Reviews 2003-05 at:
Improving Safeguarding Practice—Study of Serious Case Reviews 2001-03 at:
Learning from Past Experience—A Review of Serious Case Reviews at:
Information on the number of serious case reviews following the death of a child in each local authority area between 2000 and 2005 has been given in the reply on 24 July 2006, Official Report, columns 837-39W.
Departmental Buildings
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will place in the Library a copy of the (a) display energy certificates and (b) advisory reports for public buildings issued in respect of each property occupied by his Department. [256041]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Department will place in the Libraries a copy of the display energy certificates and their associated advisory reports in respect of each property occupied by the Department.
Departmental Disciplinary Proceedings
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many staff in his Department and its predecessor were disciplined for (a) bullying and (b) harassment of colleagues in each of the last three years. [254092]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: There have been no recorded cases of bullying or harassment of employees in the Department or the former Department for Education and Skills which resulted in staff being disciplined.
Departmental Foreign Workers
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many (a) EU foreign nationals and (b) non-EU foreign nationals are employed by his Department. [256215]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The information could be obtained in the form requested only at disproportionate cost as once individuals are appointed to the Department, having cleared nationality, passport, proof of identity, reference and criminal records bureau checks, our human resource information systems does not distinguish between EU or non-EU nationality.
Departmental Lobbying
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families whether Ministers in his Department received representations from (a) Lord Moonie, (b) Lord Taylor of Blackburn, (c) Lord Snape and (d) Lord Truscott in the last seven months. [255227]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Department has no record of Ministers receiving representations from (a) Lord Moonie, (b) Lord Taylor of Blackburn, (c) Lord Snape and (d) Lord Truscott in the last seven months.
Departmental Pensions
Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps his Department is taking to advise staff of pension options available to them in relation to added years or additional voluntary contributions. [253263]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Members of the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme receive an annual benefit statement showing the pension built up to date, and also a projection of their pension on retirement if they continue in service to scheme pension age. The benefit statement prompts the member to consider boosting their pension and provides details of the civil service pensions website (www.civilservice-pensions.gov.uk) where staff can obtain further information, including options for making additional voluntary contributions and a calculator to work out costs for added pension (previously added years).
New entrants are informed of pension options in the employment offer and are provided with a pension information pack.
The Cabinet Office provides leaflets that explain added pension and additional voluntary contributions for members. The information is also available in scheme booklets. These are available on the civil service pensions website or on request from the member’s pensions administrator.
The Department lists all pension scheme options for employees on its intranet including help and support and updates and links to the Cabinet Office pension website. This website can also be accessed via the Department’s intranet.
Where an employee considers making changes to their pension arrangements based on updated information, the guidance on the intranet always advises that the individual seeks professional financial advice before taking action.
Departmental Plants
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much his Department has spent on flowers in each year since its establishment. [254872]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Department for Children, Schools and Families was created on 28 June 2007.
There has been nil expenditure on flowers in the Department for Children, Schools and Families since this time.
Departmental Policy Advisers
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent discussions his Department has had with outside organisations to discuss policy on reducing the effect of the recession on matters within his Department’s responsibility. [254050]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Department for Children Schools and Families has regular engagements with outside organisations including other relevant Government Departments on a range of issues relating to the economy.
Departmental Public Appointments
Mr. Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families which of the public appointments for which his Department is responsible are due to be (a) renewed and (b) filled in the next 24 months; what the (i) remit, (ii) salary, (iii) political restriction, (iv) eligibility requirement and (v) timetable for each appointment is; and what records his Department keeps in respect of such appointments. [254232]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Information on appointments made by the Department for Children, Schools and Families is published in the Department’s annual report on the Department’s website at
and in press notices issued when individual appointments are made. More detailed information about individual appointments is set out in the relevant body’s annual report and in the body’s relevant legislation.
Vacancies may be advertised on the Cabinet Office Public Appointments website at
Information on individual appointments is provided in the advert and the candidate’s information pack. The process for making a public appointment, including guidance on when to appoint, political activity and eligibility criteria, follows the Cabinet Office publication “Making and Managing Public Appointments”. For appointments regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments, the appointments process also complies with the “Code of Practice for Ministerial Appointments to Public Bodies”. Copies are in the Libraries.
Departmental Public Expenditure
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what his Department's capital spending (a) was in each year from 2001-02 to 2007-08 and (b) is planned to be in each year from 2008-09 to 2014-15 in 2005-06 prices; and if he will make a statement. [253462]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: We are unable to provide capital spending figures prior to 2002 as they do not take into account Machinery of Government changes that took place in June 2007. Table 1 details the capital spending for the current Department, as published in the 2008 departmental report (DAR).
| Table 1: DCSF capital spending 2002-08 | |
| Outturn | Capital spending (£ million) |
| (1) Actual Outturn as DAR 2007-08 figure was provisional at time of publication | |
The Department operates on comprehensive spending review cycles which currently extend to 31 March 2011 only. Figures from 2011-15 are not available at the present time. Table 2 is the Department's planned capital expenditure from 2008-11 at 2005-06 prices. These figures are based on the estimated Spring Supplementary figures and the gross domestic product (GDP) deflators published by Treasury on 23 December 2008.
| Table 2: DCSF planned capital spending | |
| Capital budget (£ million) | |
Departmental Publications
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the answer of 12 January 2009, Official Report, columns 9-10W, on departmental publications (1) what estimate he has made of the cost of answering the question, broken down by sub-category of expenditure; [248473]
(2) which documents were circulated to schools by his Department in exceptional circumstances in 2008. [248474]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The cost of preparing an answer to the question was considered likely to exceed the disproportionate cost threshold and, as a consequence, no estimate of likely expenditure was necessary. Similarly, to retrieve the information as to which documents the Department has circulated to schools in exceptional circumstances in 2008 can also be obtained only at a disproportionate cost.
Departmental secondment
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many people have been seconded to his Department from the private sector in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [256903]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Department was created on 28 June 2007. The number people seconded into the Department from the private sector is set out as follows:
| Secondees from the private sector | |
| (1) From 28 June 2007 | |
Education: Finance
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families on what date his Department received from each local authority information which enabled National Challenge monies to be allocated; and if he will make a statement. [257389]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Following written submissions from local authorities in the summer, officials from the Department met with all local authorities in September and October. There was an ongoing exchange of information as plans were refined throughout the autumn before being approved by Ministers.
Extension Awards
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils took advanced extension awards in (a) the state sector and (b) the independent sector in each year since 1997. [242005]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Advanced Extension Awards were first introduced in 2002, but the Department has only held comprehensive data on these qualifications since 2006.
The number of Advanced Extension Awards taken in maintained and independent schools in each of the last three years is provided in the following table:
| Maintained s chools | Independent s chools | |
| Note: These figures relate to 16-18 year olds (age at start of academic year, i.e. 31 August) | ||
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