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12 Mar 2010 : Column 560W—continued
Truancy
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families in how many schools placed in special measures more than (a) five, (b) 10, (c) 15, (d) 20, (e) 25, (f) 30, (g) 35, (h) 40, (i) 45, (j) 50, (k) 60 and (l) 75 per cent. of pupils were classified as persistent truants in the latest year for which figures are available. [315521]
Mr. Coaker: The available information, on persistent absentees, is shown in the tables. These cover both authorised and unauthorised absence. Unauthorised absence is absence without leave from a teacher or other authorised representative of the school. This includes all unexplained or unjustified absences, such as lateness, holidays during term time not authorised by the school, absence where reason is not yet established and truancy.
| Maintained primary( 1) , state funded secondary( 1, 2 ) and special( 3) schools: Number of schools placed in special measures by the percentage of persistent absentees( 4, 5) , Year: 2006/07 , Coverage: England | ||||
| Number of schools in special measures | ||||
| Percentage of school enrolments who are Persistent Absentees( 6, 7) : | Total | Primary | Secondary | Special |
| (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) Includes maintained secondary schools, city technology colleges and academies (including all-through academies). (3) Includes maintained and non-maintained special schools. Excludes general hospital schools. (4) Includes schools with at least one enrolment aged between 5 and 15. (5) Persistent Absentees are defined as having 64 or more sessions of absence (authorised and unauthorised) during the year, typically over 20 per cent. overall absence rate. (6) The number of Persistent Absentees expressed as a percentage of the total number of enrolments. (7) Those schools counted in the 'more than 60%' category are also counted in all the lower categories. Similarly, for schools in the 'more than 50%' category, and all lower categories. (8) The total number of schools includes five schools (three primary and two special) that did not return absence data. Source: School Census | ||||
Young People's Learning Agency
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will take steps to ensure that the Young People's Learning Agency publishes on its websites minutes of its council and committee meetings within two weeks of those meetings taking place; and if he will make a statement. [320277]
Mr. Iain Wright
[holding answer 4 March 2010]: I expect the Young People's Learning Agency (YPLA) to follow best practice in making information publicly
available, in line with the model publication scheme set out by the Information Commissioner's Office.
The agency will commence operations on 1 April 2010 and will consider a publication scheme at its first meeting, although it is important to note that I would not expect the agency to publish records of any meetings until they have been agreed as a proper record.
Health
Abortion
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 4 March 2010, Official Report, columns 1393-94W, on abortion, whether his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated studies which demonstrate a direct causal link between its expenditure on contraception services in the last two years and the trend in the abortion rate over the same period; and if he will make a statement. [322101]
Gillian Merron: The Department has not commissioned or evaluated any studies which seek to demonstrate a direct causal link between recent investment in contraception and the decline in abortion rates over the same period. However, research undertaken in the United States found that 86 per cent. of the reduction in the US teenage birth rate between 1995 and 2002 was due to increased contraceptive use Santelli et al, "Explaining Recent Declines in Adolescent Pregnancy in the United States: The Contribution of Abstinence and Improved Contraception Use", American Journal of Public Health, January 2007, vol. 97, No. 1. A copy has been placed in the Library.
Blood: Contamination
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department has made an estimate of the cost to the public purse of implementing Lord Archer's recommendations on compensation to those affected by NHS-supplied contaminated blood. [322033]
Gillian Merron: The Department has made an estimation that the potential cost of implementing in full Lord Archer's recommendations as set out in his report, on financial relief to those affected by NHS-supplied contaminated blood and blood products, could be approximately £3-3.5 billion.
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what financial assistance, excluding lump sum payments, is available for those diagnosed with (a) HIV and Hepatitis C, (b) HIV only and (c) Hepatitis C only as a result of the transfusion of NHS-supplied contaminated blood. [322034]
Gillian Merron:
The Government currently make ex-gratia payments to those infected with HIV by contaminated NHS blood and blood products, through the Macfarlane and Eileen Trusts and to those infected with hepatitis-C by contaminated NHS blood and blood products through the Skipton Fund. In addition to the new flat rate sum of £12,800 per annum paid to infected
registrants with the Macfarlane and Eileen Trusts, the trusts make discretionary payments which vary on a case by case basis. The Skipton fund only makes lump sum payments.
Cancer: Birmingham
Richard Burden:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of urgent GP referrals for suspected cancer in Birmingham were seen by a specialist within two weeks of referral in each year since 1997; what percentage of urgent GP referrals of cancer cases in Birmingham were treated within two months of referral in each of those years; what the average waiting time to be seen by a specialist in cases of non-urgent GP referral for suspected cancer in Birmingham was in each such year; what the average
time from referral to treatment in cases of non-urgent GP referral for cancer in Birmingham was in each such year; and how many cancer consultants there were in Birmingham in each such year. [321571]
Ann Keen: The information is not available in the format requested. However, data relating to the percentage of patients with suspected cancer seen within two weeks (from 2002-03) following urgent referral from a general practitioner, and the percentage of patients with suspected cancer receiving treatment within two months (from 2004-05), in the Birmingham area, has been placed in the Library.
The number of medical consultants working within the six main cancer specialities in the Birmingham area from 1997 to 2008 are shown in the following table:
| Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust | University Hospital Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust | Birmingham Children' s Hospital NHS Trust | Birmingham Women' s Healthcare NHS Trust | Royal Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust | Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust | |
| Notes: 1. The six main cancer specialties include clinical oncology, medical oncology, haematology, histopathology, palliative medicine and clinical radiology. 2. Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust was formed in 2002 from a part merger of Sandwell Healthcare NHS Trust and City Hospital NHS Trust. It is therefore not possible to accurately map this trust prior to 2002. Source: The NHS Information Centre for health and social care, medical and dental workforce census. | ||||||
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