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22 Nov 2010 : Column 94W—continued
| School type | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | |
| Percentage of pupils entering GCSE | ||||||||
| School type | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | |
Geography: Education
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what recent representations he has received on the teaching of geography in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools; and if he will make a statement; [22008]
(2) what steps he is taking to promote the teaching of geography in schools; and if he will make a statement. [21900]
Mr Gibb: We have made clear that we intend to review the National Curriculum. Our intention in doing this is to restore it to its original purpose-a core national entitlement organised around subject disciplines. One of the tasks of the review will be to identify the aspects of geographical knowledge that all children should acquire at certain ages.
We will be announcing details of the review later in the year and are committed to ensuring that it will be conducted in an open and transparent manner. We intend to consult a wide range of interested parties, including subject associations, teachers and academics, before coming to any conclusions.
Ahead of the review we have received a number of representations about the teaching of geography in primary and secondary schools. In particular, the Geographical Association has encouraged its members to write to MPs to reinforce the message that geography matters; MPs have written to departmental Ministers.
A child's education is diminished without a sound knowledge of geography. The Government want to encourage children to study geography beyond the age of 14. One of the options we are presently exploring is to give special recognition to pupils studying a broad range of academic subjects, including English, maths, science, a modern or ancient language and a humanity, such as history or geography. Our proposals for an "English Baccalaureate" along these lines could provide schools and students with the incentive to follow the courses which best equip them to succeed, and help ensure that all young people have the chance to do a balanced range of GCSE subjects.
Languages: GCSE
Chris Skidmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many pupils were entered for a GCSE in a modern foreign language in 2009 in each local authority; and what proportion this represented of the total number of pupils entered for GCSEs in 2009 in each case. [20226]
Mr Gibb: The requested information is shown in the following table.
Primary Education
Tristram Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what his policy is on future priorities for primary education. [21387]
Mr Gibb: The Government's priorities for primary education are to: (1) improve the quality of teaching in primary schools, a first step has been to expand the Teach First programme into primary schools; (2) give teachers all the powers they need to tackle poor behaviour and restore discipline; (3) increase the autonomy of the primary school system, for example, by opening up the Academies programme to primary schools and supporting the establishment of new Free Primary Schools; (4) create a fairer funding system by introducing the Pupil Premium from 2011, which will provide additional funding for disadvantaged pupils, including those in primary schools, to ensure they benefit from the same opportunities as pupils from more advantaged families; (5) introduce a reformed National Curriculum, which will focus on the core knowledge which children need to acquire in traditional subject disciplines, while giving teachers greater freedom to decide how to teach, including by reducing bureaucracy and data burdens; and (6) ensure that teachers have a secure understanding of how to teach phonics given the importance of learning to read in the early years of primary school.
Primary Schools: Sex Education
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what information is provided to parents of children in primary schools on the content of sex education being taught in the school; and if he will make a statement; [20250]
(2) if he will bring forward legislative proposals to require the provision of further information for parents about the material being used to teach sex and relationships education in schools; and if he will make a statement. [20251]
Mr Gibb: Governing bodies currently have a statutory responsibility to ensure that schools have a sex education policy in place which as a minimum should provide information on how sex education will be provided, any sensitive issues that will be covered, and who will provide it. This must be made available to parents on request. Where primary schools have chosen not to provide sex education, they must still have a written policy statement to that effect.
We believe that it is far better to encourage and reinforce the importance of regular and open communication between schools and parents through clear guidance, rather than through additional legislation. Many schools have good channels of communication with parents which help them understand what exactly is being taught in school-including in sex and relationships
education (SRE)-and gives them an opportunity to comment on content and the manner in which that content will be presented. Schools may decide to amend their SRE programmes if a majority of parents are unhappy about their content.
Ultimately, parents have the right to withdraw their children from SRE teaching, outside the national curriculum, if they are not happy with the school's approach.
Primary Schools: Technology
Dr Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of teaching of technology education in primary schools. [22860]
Mr Gibb: In June 2008 Ofsted published 'Education for a technologically advanced nation', a report based on a three-year evaluation of design and technology in primary and secondary schools.
"Achievement and progress were good in a third of the primary schools visited and satisfactory in the vast majority. Standards rose during the period of the survey(1)."
The next Ofsted report on this subject is due in spring 2011.
(1) Ofsted, 2008, Education for a technologically advanced nation in schools- Design and technology in schools 2004-07, p5
Dr Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the potential contribution of technology teaching to improving attainment levels among (a) boys and (b) girls. [22862]
Mr Gibb: In June 2008 Ofsted published 'Education for a technologically advanced nation', a report based on a three-year evaluation of design and technology in primary and secondary schools.
The report found achievement and progress were good in two-thirds of the secondary schools and have improved steadily(1). Between the ages of 11 and 16, boys performed less well than girls. The report pointed out, however, that the highly performing departments where boys' attainment at GCSE is close to that for girls, had a number of features in common: performance is partly secured by excellent relationships and discipline, strong vigilance and tight coursework management; high degree of mutual courtesy in lessons and boys are made to feel as included in the activities, and are enabled to see their relevance, as well as the girls(2).
The next Ofsted report is due in spring 2011.
(1) Ofsted, 2008, Education for a technologically advanced nation in schools-Design and technology in schools 2004-07, p5
(2) As above, p44
School Leaving: Northumberland
Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he made of the number of students educated in (a) Wansbeck constituency and (b) Northumberland who left full-time education at the age of 16 years in the latest period for which figures are available. [22930]
Mr Gibb: Estimates of participation in education and training for 16 and 17-year-olds in each local authority in England are published by the Department in a Statistical First Release (SFR) each June. The full SFR can be found on the Department's website and data by local authority are contained in the fifth set of tables listed on this page:
These latest estimates show that approximately 3,000 young people of academic age 16 in Northumberland were in full-time education from a population of 4,000 at the end of 2008.
The remaining approximately 1,000 young people left full-time education. Figures are not available by parliamentary constituency.
Schools: Admissions
Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether he plans to bring forward proposals to give head-teachers more control over school admission policies. [22280]
Mr Gibb: Admissions policies are set and applied locally by admission authorities. For community and voluntary-controlled schools, this is one of the 152 local authorities in England. For foundation and voluntary-aided schools, this is the governing body of schools which set their own admissions policies. Academies are responsible for agreeing their own admission policies with the Secretary of State.
The Secretary of State has indicated his intention to review the admissions framework and the School Admissions Code, with a view to making it simpler and fairer. However, we will maintain a strong and clear framework that continues to ensure fairness and transparency.
Schools: Offences against Children
Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what recent research he has evaluated on the incidence of the experience of pupils of unwanted sexual contact at school; and if he will make a statement. [23019]
Mr Gibb [holding answer 9 November 2010]: The Department for Education has not conducted any research to evaluate the incidence of the experience of pupils of unwanted sexual contact at school. There are currently no plans to undertake such research.
Everyone shares responsibility for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people, irrespective of their individual roles. Schools and further education colleges have a duty under s175 of the Education Act 2002 to carry out their functions with a view to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. This includes being able to identify children and young people who are suffering or likely to suffer significant harm, and taking appropriate action with the aim of making sure they are kept safe.
Schools: Sports
Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much his Department allocated to the School Sport Partnership Programme in the academic years (a) 2009-10 and (b) 2010-11. [22097]
Mr Gibb: The Department allocated funding to the School Sport Partnership network as follows:
(a) £115 million in 2009-10 and;
(b) £114 million in 2010-11.
Secondary Education: Kingston upon Thames
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the number of secondary school places required in North Kingston in 2015. [18336]
Mr Gibb: It is the responsibility of each local authority to manage the supply and demand for primary and secondary school places in their area and secure a place for every child of statutory school age who wants one. Ministers play no role in deciding primary and secondary school provision in individual authorities and constituencies but the Department provides capital funding to enable local authorities to provide sufficient school places.
Teachers: Training
Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps his Department plans to take to ensure that teachers are provided with sufficient training and ongoing support to challenge all forms of violence against girls. [21744]
Mr Gibb [holding answer 4 November 2010]: The coalition Government are determined to put in place robust and effective measures to protect children and young people from harm, including violence.
The Department for Education is contributing to the Home Office led, but cross government, ending violence against women and girls (EVAWG) strategy. Full details will be published next spring, including about the role of schools.
Teaching Methods
Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will place in the Library the report of his Department's evaluation of the (a) Every Child a Reader and (b) Every Child Counts programme for 2009-10. [21797]
Mr Gibb: All three Every Child programmes, Every Child a Reader, Every Child a Writer and Every Child Counts, are currently being independently evaluated. The evaluations will be completed in late 2010 or early 2011.
The final reports for all three programmes will be made publicly available and copies will be placed in the Libraries of the Houses of Parliament.
Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans he has to improve the (a) literacy and (b) numeracy of the lowest achieving five per cent. of children aged between six and seven years; and what plans his Department has for the future of the (i) Every Child a Reader and (ii) Every Child Counts programmes. [22113]
Mr Gibb: The Government are committed to raising standards of literacy and numeracy in schools, in order to equip every child with the basic skills they need to succeed throughout their education and later in life.
We will therefore be strengthening the use of systematic synthetic phonics in teaching children to read. This will be backed up by a new age six reading test, which will allow teachers to identify and help those children who are struggling.
For those children who fall behind in literacy and numeracy, the Government have committed to fund the Every Child suite with £89 million for 2010-11. We are currently working through proposals for intervention programmes beyond 2011 and will set out these proposals in the forthcoming Schools White Paper.
Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether his Department plans to allocate funding to schools participating in the (a) Every Child a Reader and (b) Every Child Counts schemes to enable them to continue these programmes after September 2011; and if he will make a statement. [22114]
Mr Gibb: For those children who fall behind in literacy and numeracy, the Government have committed to fund the Every Child suite with £89 million for 2010-11. We are currently working through proposals for intervention programmes beyond 2011 and will set out these proposals in the forthcoming Schools White Paper.
Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will ensure that his Department continues to provide support for teacher training and evaluation for the Every Child a Reader and Every Child Counts programmes for the purposes of enabling schools to continue to access these programmes after 2011; and if he will allocate funding for (a) the training of specialist teachers to deliver these programmes and (b) the continuation of evaluation studies in respect of these programmes by the Institute of Education and Edge Hill University after 2011. [22115]
Mr Gibb: For those children who fall behind in literacy and numeracy, the Government have committed to fund the Every Child suite with £89 million for 2010-11.
All three Every Child programmes are currently undergoing robust independent evaluations, to report in late 2010-early 2011, which will give a substantive view of the impact of the programmes.
We are currently working through proposals for literacy and numeracy intervention beyond September 2011, which is subject to final decisions following the spending review, and we will set out these proposals in the forthcoming Schools White Paper.
Written Questions: Government Responses
Ms Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education when he plans to answer question 21041, tabled on 27 October, on children without school places; and if he will make a statement. [25556]
Mr Gibb: A response was sent to the hon. Member on 16 November 2010, Official Report, column 756W.
Justice
Approved Premises
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many persons resident in approved premises in England and Wales there were on the most recent date for which information is available. [25738]
Mr Blunt: According to the most up to date available monthly management information provided by all approved premises, the number of residents in approved premises on 30 September 2010 was 1,882.
Approved Premises: Offenders
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people resident in approved premises in England and Wales are (a) sex offenders, (b) violent offenders and (c) former convicted terrorists. [25739]
Mr Blunt: The number of sex offenders and violent offenders accommodated in approved premises in England and Wales will vary from time to time. Statistical information about the offending history of most offenders residing in approved premises at any one time is not collected centrally, although offenders' assessed level of risk of harm at the point of admission is.
As of the end of September 2010, there were 12 offenders residing in APs who had been convicted for Terrorist Act offences or terrorist-related offences. This information has been obtained from the specialist team within the National Offender Management Service who have responsibility for monitoring the whereabouts of convicted terrorists and terrorist-related offenders.
Departmental Postal Services
Brandon Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what the monetary value was of contracts between his Department and its predecessors and (a) Post Office Ltd and (b) Royal Mail in (i) 1997-98 and (ii) each year since 2004-05; [24936]
(2) what steps his Department has taken to identify those of its services that could be provided through the Post Office network. [24937]
Mr Djanogly: The Ministry of Justice currently has no formal contracts for postal services with either Post Office Ltd or Royal Mail. However, it has a number of local agreements for fixed and variable services i.e. timed delivery, collections, business response, diversions etc.
We are due to start further competition against the new Buying Solutions Postal Services Framework RM782 which was recently awarded following the delay after the general election outcome and Efficiency Reform Group findings. We had originally planned to have this in place in January 2010.
The Ministry of Justice has identified that out of the 14 Lots within the new Postal Services Framework, Royal Mail is listed in 13 and would be involved in the further competition on the services it can provide through its network.
It is expected that we will have formal contract(s) in place by April 2011 with the successful bidder(s).
HM Inspectorate of Prisons: Public Appointments
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice on what criteria Nick Hardwick was appointed Chief Inspector of Prisons; and who the other candidates were for that post. [24989]
Mr Blunt: Mr Hardwick was selected as a result of an open recruitment process. All applications for the post were assessed against criteria in the person specification shown. We consider that it would be a clear breach of the Data Protection Act 1998 to disclose the names of the other candidates without their consent.
The post holder is not expected to have a background within the criminal justice or immigration systems, but will have an appreciation of the issues affecting these areas, and be able to demonstrate strong performance across the range of competencies set out as follows.
Candidates will be able to demonstrate:
Proven ability to lead effectively a multi-disciplinary team, including experienced professional staff.
Ability to develop and maintain demonstrable and perceived independence from the inspected agencies.
The ability to establish credibility with the public, Ministers and other stakeholders.
Authority and influence at very senior levels across a broad range of stakeholders and delivery partners.
Highly developed inter-personal skills and the willingness to work collaboratively with others, with the ability to feel at ease with prisoners, prison staff, senior managers in the criminal justice system and their counterparts in other areas inspected.
Strategic Thinking and Judg ment
An ability to process and interpret complex information and to offer well-developed analytical reasoning skills and judgment based on evidence.
The ability to provide impartial, objective and pragmatic advice with excellent judgment in both operational and political matters.
High integrity and a genuine commitment to helping raise standards within prisons, immigration detention and other places of custody and to furthering the contribution prisons can make to reducing re-offending.
An incisive and independent mind and highly developed analytical skills.
Excellent judgment in both operational and political matters.
Excellent communication skills and proven ability to handle the media.
Experience of formulating and presenting technical advice and reports to others at senior levels.
HM Land Registry
Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the address is of each property (a) leased and (b) owned by his Department or its agents for use by HM Land Registry; and what the annual rental costs associated with each such property were in each of the last three years. [24850]
Mr Djanogly: The information requested is as follows:
32, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London WC2A 3PH
(Surplus to requirements, currently being disposed of)
Birkenhead Office-Rosebrae Court
Woodside Ferry Approach, Birkenhead, Merseyside, CH41 6DU
Croydon Office-Trafalgar House
1 Bedford Park, Croydon, CRO 2AQ
Durham Office-Southfield Hous e
Southfield Way, Durham, DH1 5TR
Lytham Road, Warton, Lancashire, PR4 1TE
Leicester Office-Westbridge Place
Leicester, LE3 5DR
St Oswald's Road, Leicester LE3 6RJ
Nottingham Office-Chalfont Drive
Nottingham, NG8 3RN
Tailyour Road, Crownhill, Plymouth, PL6 5HY
(Surplus to requirements, currently being disposed of)
Plymouth Office (Information Systems)-Seaton Court
2 William Prance Road, Plymouth, PL6 5WS
Portsmouth Office-St Andrew's Court
St Michael's Road, Portsmouth, Hampshire, PO1 2JH
(Surplus to requirements, currently being disposed of)
Stevenage Office-Brickdale House
Swingate, Stevenage, Hertfordshire, SG1 1XG
(Surplus to requirements, currently being disposed of)
High Street, Swansea SA1 1 PW
(Vacated and on the market for sale)
Hall Park Way, Telford, TF3 4LR
Tunbridge Wells Office-Forest Court
Forest Road, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN2 5AQ
(Being vacated) (Surplus to requirements, currently being disposed of)
RFS( 1) Plymouth-Drakes Hill Court
RFS Wales-Manstleton (Cwmbrla)
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