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12 Nov 2009 : Column 994W—continued
Pupils: Absenteeism
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils in each Bassetlaw secondary school had an unauthorised absence in the latest period for which figures are available. [299304]
Mr. Coaker: It has not proved possible to respond in the time available before Prorogation.
Pupils: Abuse
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what guidelines his Department provides for teachers who suspect abuse or maltreatment of a pupil. [299840]
Dawn Primarolo: It has not proved possible to respond in the time available before Prorogation.
Pupils: Costs
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what his most recent estimate is of the cost to parents of having a child at state school. [299803]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: In February 2009, we published the Cost of Schooling Survey 2007. This survey was commissioned to provide robust and up-to-date evidence on the costs to parents associated with sending their children to maintained schools.
The survey found that the total amount spent by parents in 2007 was, on average, £683.79 for a child at primary school and £1,195.47 for a child at secondary school. These figures include the amount spent on school uniform, PE kit, school trips, class materials, stationery items, swimming lessons, school fund contributions, school lunches, travel, school photographs, charity contributions and other activities.
Pupils: Per Capita Costs
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the average per student funding 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 700 and (h) over 700 students in (i) rural and (ii) non-rural areas in 2006-07; and if he will make a statement. [296947]
Mr. Coaker: It has not proved possible to respond in the time available before Prorogation.
Qualifications and Curriculum Development Authority
Michael Gove:
To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the cost has been of relocation of the Qualifications and Curriculum Development Authority from London to Coventry; how much was spent on (a) consultants for advice in relation to the move and (b) on physically moving; how many (i) retention payments, (ii) relocation payments and (iii)
redundancy payments were provided to staff at each grade; how many staff received each type of payment; whether retention payments were single payments; what costs were met through relocation payments; and if he will make a statement. [286984]
Mr. Iain Wright: In the final report from his Independent Review of Public Sector Relocation in March 2004, Sir Michael Lyons recommended that 20,000 civil service jobs should move from London, to contribute to the reform of public services and to improve regional growth and national competitiveness. Following the Government's response in July 2004, the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) undertook to relocate 400 posts to Coventry by March 2010, as part of the Department's response to the Lyons agenda. The organisation remains on course to achieve this goal. Interim Ofqual, which is currently part of QCA, is now fully based in Coventry.
For the period 1 April 2007 to 30 June 2009, total expenditure on relocation was £24.5 million. Of this,
some £3 million was spent on consultants to provide specialist advice and skills not held within the organisation. The costs incurred over the short term will be offset by longer term savings. In particular, the rent payable for the organisation's office space will reduce from £6 million per annum in London to £1.4 million per annum in Coventry, and QCDA is using the opportunity of the relocation to restructure.
Staff cost savings of approximately £400,000 per annum have already been generated, and this is expected to grow as more staff are recruited in the West Midlands. QCDA's annual administrative costs will be a forecast 5 per cent. lower in real terms after the relocation is completed.
Expenditure on moving, including retention, relocation and redundancy payments provided to staff, and numbers of staff in receipt of payments is shown in the following table.
| £ | ||||||
| 2008-09 | 2009-10 (up to 30 September 2009) | |||||
| Staff Grade | Retention( 1) | Relocation | Redundancy | Retention( 1) | Relocation | Redundanc y |
| (1) Retention payments are all single payments Source: Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (September 2009) | ||||||
Costs met through relocation cover reimbursement of staff claims for physical moves to the Midlands, including for example stamp duty on the purchase of a new house or additional commuting costs to Coventry.
School Meals
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what targets he has set for the uptake of school meals in primary and secondary schools; what progress has been made in reaching such targets; and if he will make a statement. [279321]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: School lunch take-up is one of the indicators of the Child Health PSA and is one of the indicators in the National Indicator Set. Increasing school lunch take-up is also the key priority for the School Food Trust (SFT), as set out by the Secretary of State in his remit letter for the 2009-10 financial year. The remit letter is published on the School Food Trust website
The Department originally set a very stretching target to increase school lunch take up by 10 percentage points (pp) by autumn 2009 with an interim target of 4 pp by March 2008. In the light of the 2008 survey results, the Secretary of State has set the School Food Trust, in the 2009-10 remit letter, a trajectory consistent with achieving an increase in take up in primary schools of 1.7 pp between April 2009 and March 2010, and 2 pp between April 2010 and March 2011; and in secondary schools, 1.0 pp between April 2009 and March 2010, and 2.0 pp between April 2010 and March 2011.
The 2007-08 annual survey of school lunch take-up showed an increase in primary schools of 1.7 pp from 41.3 per cent. in 2006-07 to 43 per cent. in 2007-08. These figures illustrate that the number of primary school children eating school meals rose by 62,712 from 2006-07 to 2007-08. In secondary schools the previous decline levelled out to 0.1 pp. The results of the SFT's 2008-09 annual survey of school lunch take up were announced at the Local Authority Caterers' Association annual conference on 9 July 2009. These figures showed that, in the subsets of local authorities for which comparisons could be made, take-up in primary schools rose by 0.1 per cent., and in secondary schools rose by 0.5 per cent.
Schools
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils were being educated in schools of more than (a) 400, (b) 500, (c) 600 and (d) 700 pupils in (i) 1997 and (ii) 2003. [298341]
Mr. Coaker: It has not proved possible to respond in the time available before Prorogation.
Schools: Counselling
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will bring forward proposals for a national programme for schools counselling in England. [298371]
Ms Diana R. Johnson [holding answer 9 November 2009]: Many schools will already have school counselling services which they find valuable, and as I set out in my answer of 2 November 2009, access to counselling services has been provided locally through a number of DCSF initiatives developed in recent years, including through the Targeted Mental Health in Schools programme and local Behaviour and Education Support Teams.
In addition, we have introduced a range of other national programmes which also help children and young people develop social and emotional skills, improve self-esteem and self-control and build resilience, take-up of which is widespread. Of these, the Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning programme is currently running in 89.5 per cent. of primary schools and 64 per cent. of secondary schools, as at 28 October 2009, 99.2 per cent. of schools were participating in the Healthy Schools Programme, with 81.3 per cent. having achieved Healthy Schools Status and subject to the passage of the Children, Schools and Families Bill, Personal, Social, Health and Economic education will be a statutory part of the curriculum from September 2011.
In addition, the "Your Child, Your Schools, Our Future" White Paper has said that through the new Personal Tutor role, every young person in secondary school will get the help they need to progress in learning and wider support in making choices through difficult times.
We have no plans for a national programme for counselling in schools in England. Ultimately, it is for a school's governors to make decisions about the use of its delegated budget to meet the school's priorities, which may include purchasing services of this kind.
Schools: Inspections
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families for what reasons special schools classified as outstanding by Ofsted are subject to inspection every three years; and if he will make a statement. [298774]
Mr. Coaker: This is a matter for Ofsted. HM Chief Inspector, Christine Gilbert, has written to the hon. Member and a copy of her reply has been placed in the House Libraries.
Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 10 November 2009:
Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for a response.
Ofsted began inspecting under its new framework for maintained schools in September 2009. Under this framework, Ofsted is now varying the frequency of the inspection of mainstream schools that do not cause concern or require significant improvement. Schools judged to be good or outstanding at their last inspection will be inspected once within a five year period, provided that an annual risk assessment does not indicate that there has been a drop in their performance, or identify other factors that suggest an inspection would be appropriate.
The annual risk assessment and inspection selection process is based on nationally standardised, validated data for attainment and progress, which are not available for special schools. This means that Ofsted cannot apply these procedures for special schools and pupil referral units (PRUs) in the same way as for mainstream schools and, given the higher risk entailed, Ofsted will be continuing to inspect all special schools and PRUs in the third year after their previous inspection. This will help to ensure that Ofsted's inspection arrangements remain rigorous in holding to account the provision for some of the most potentially vulnerable young people,
A copy of this reply has been sent to Vernon Coaker MP, Minister of State for Schools and Learners, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.
Schools: Standards
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many national challenge schools there are in each local education authority; what proportion of all schools that figure represents; and for how long each such local education authority has participated in that scheme. [298956]
Mr. Coaker: It has not proved possible to respond in the time available before Prorogation.
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) which schools inspected since September 2009 were rated as inadequate; and if he will make a statement; [299038]
(2) which schools inspected in 2009 had their procedures for safeguarding rated as inadequate; and if he will make a statement. [299039]
Mr. Coaker: It has not proved possible to respond in the time available before Prorogation.
Schools: Uniforms
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assistance his Department provides to low-income families for the purchase of school uniforms. [299801]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: Our guidance to schools is clear that governing bodies must give high priority to cost considerations when they set their school uniform policy, and to ensure that these costs are kept to a minimum by having a uniform that is widely available. It also states that the school uniform chosen should be affordable and not act as a barrier to parents when choosing a school.
Local authorities have discretionary powers to provide school clothing grants or to help with the cost of school clothing in cases of financial hardship. Local authorities that choose to offer such grants set their own criteria for eligibility as they are best placed to determine the level of need in their area.
Secondary Education: Gloucestershire
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families who is responsible for the implementation in Gloucestershire of the recommendations made in the report of the Badman review of secondary education. [299855]
Ms Diana R. Johnson: It has not proved possible to respond in the time available before Prorogation.
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