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22 Jun 2010 : Column 200W—continued
Children in Care: GCE A-level
Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many young people in local authority care obtained one or more A-levels in (a) Wigan, (b) the North West and (c) England in each of the last five years. [1757]
Tim Loughton: Information on A-level attempts and achievements of looked after children is not available.
Children in Care: GCSE
Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many young people in local authority care were awarded five A* to C grades at GCSE in (a) Wigan, (b) the North West and (c) England in each of the last five years. [1758]
Tim Loughton: The number of children looked after continuously for at least 12 months at 30 September achieving five or more A*-C grades at GCSE or any GNVQ equivalent in each year from 2005-09 can be found in the following Statistical First Releases (SFRs):
These figures are based on the OC2 return which, up to 2008, collected information on Key Stage 4 attainment in GCSE and GNVQ equivalents only. As of November/December 2010, attainment of looked after children will be reported on in a new SFR based on data matched from the National Pupil Database (NPD) to the Children Looked After database (based on the SSDA903 return). This matched dataset will allow us to report on Key Stage 4 attainment of looked after children at GCSE or any equivalent level, bringing the figures into line with those for all children.
In 2009, figures were also collected in the OC2 return on Key Stage 4 attainment at GCSE or any equivalent. These figures were collected on a voluntary basis, with data returned by 127 of 152 LAs. The figures can be found in the following SFR:
| Statistical First Releases | |||
| Year | Title | URL | Table |
|
Outcome Indicators for Children Looked After, Twelve months to 30 September 2009-England | |||
Children in Care: Wigan
Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many young people under the age of 18 years are in local authority care in Wigan constituency. [1759]
Tim Loughton: Information on looked after children is not available at constituency level.
Children: Databases
Ed Balls: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what recent discussions he and his Ministerial colleagues have had with (a) local authorities and (b) other stakeholders on the future of ContactPoint. [1219]
Tim Loughton: We have confirmed with local authorities and other partners our firm intention to end the ContactPoint database as soon as practicable. Both coalition partners' manifestos included a clear commitment to scrap ContactPoint, to fulfil a longstanding policy commitment, discussed with a wide range of interested organisations in recent years. We have consistently opposed a database, which contains details about all children in England, accessed by hundreds of thousands of people and signalled our opposition in debates on the original legislation in the 2004 Children Act.
We will consider the scope for a more proportionate approach to protecting children most in need and will continue to engage our partners as we take the work forward.
Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the savings to be made as a result of his Department's decision to end the ContactPoint database in each of the next five financial years. [1940]
Tim Loughton: We have made clear our firm intention to end the ContactPoint database as soon as practicable. As we do so, we intend to consider the scope for a more proportionate approach to protecting the most vulnerable children. We shall make a further announcement shortly. The impact on the Department's existing expenditure plans will be determined in the light of those decisions.
Departmental Manpower
Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many full-time equivalent staff at each Civil Service grade are employed in the private office of each Minister in his Department. [126]
Tim Loughton: Details of the number of full-time staff employed at each Civil Service grade in each Minister's office are as follows:
| Grade 5 | Grade 6 | Grade 7 | Higher executive officer | Executive o fficer | Executive a ssistant | |
The Department has fewer Ministers and fewer staff than under the previous administration.
Departmental Official Cars
Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many Government (a) cars and (b) drivers are allocated to Ministers in his Department. [292]
Tim Loughton: Under the arrangements inherited from Ministers in the previous Government, the current interim arrangements for the Department for Education are (a) five cars and (b) five drivers allocated to Departmental Ministers. This is supplemented by the use of pool cars as needed.
The new Ministerial Code, published on 21 May 2010, contains changes that affect Ministerial entitlement to travel by Government car. It states that
"the number of Ministers with allocated cars and drivers will be kept to a minimum, taking into account security and other relevant considerations. Other Ministers will be entitled to use cars from the Government Car Service Pool as needed".
The Ministerial Code, published on 21 May 2010, is available on the Cabinet Office website.
The Department for Education is working with the Department for Transport and its Government Car and Despatch Agency to effect the transition to new arrangements.
Departmental Public Appointments
Mr Watson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many (a) political appointments and
(b) other personal appointments he has made since his appointment; and at what estimated annual cost to the public purse. [374]
Tim Loughton: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister, on 3 June 2010, Official Report, column 99W.
Education Maintenance Allowance
Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans he has for the future of the education maintenance allowance. [1668]
Mr Gibb: I can confirm that the education maintenance allowance (EMA) will be paid in full this year.
Education Maintenance Allowance: Redcar
Ian Swales: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many individuals in Redcar constituency are in receipt of education maintenance allowance. [3542]
Mr Gibb [holding answer 21 June 2010]: This is a matter for the Young People's Learning Agency (YPLA) who operate the education maintenance allowance for the Department for Education. Peter Lauener, the YPLA's chief executive, will write to the hon. Member and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Library.
Education: Finance
Ed Balls: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what grants in what amounts his Department has made to local authorities in 2010-11; and whether each such grant is ring-fenced for a specific purpose. [1205]
Mr Gibb [holding answer 7 June 2010]: Details including the amounts of the grants that the Department for Education will be making available to local authorities in 2010-11 are set out in the following table. The table also sets out which grants will be ringfenced.
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