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7 Mar 2006 : Column 1456W—continued
Private Finance Initiative Contracts
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many (a) secondary and (b) primary schools in each local authority area are involved in private finance initiative contracts. [55973]
Jacqui Smith: Set out in the following table is the breakdown by local authority area of primary and secondary schools involved in private finance initiative contracts. For clarity I have further separated out those schools that are now deemed as all through", namely covering both primary and secondary provision in the one establishment.
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Post-Graduate Certificate in Education
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what guidance is issued by her Department on the interviewing of applicants for post-graduate certificate in education courses; [55334]
(2) what steps her Department is taking (a) to monitor and (b) standardise interviews for admission to post-graduate certificate in education courses. [55333]
Jacqui Smith:
The entry requirements for Initial Teacher Training (ITT) are contained in Qualifying to teach", the Secretary of State's Standards for the award of qualified teacher status and Requirements for Initial Teacher Training. These apply to all routes into
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teaching—not only PGCE. Comprehensive guidance on all of the ITT requirements, including those that relate to entry and interview requirements, are provided in the TDA's accompanying Handbook of Guidance". Requirement 1.8 states that:
All providers must ensure that, as part of the selection procedures, candidates admitted for training have taken part in a group or individual interview."
Guidance is provided on pages 70 and 71 of the Handbook" and provides examples of the kinds of evidence that would be used in order to assess whether candidates have the full range of qualities needed to be a successful teacher. Guidance also notes the requirement for partnership schools to be involved in the selection process.
The monitoring of selection and entry procedures is undertaken by Ofsted. Every Ofsted inspection of an accredited ITT provider will provide a judgement about the quality of the management and quality assurance of training provision Through interview and other mechanisms, all providers must make judgments of every applicant in accordance with the Requirements. These include judgments relating to:
However, providers may set their own entry requirements additional to those prescribed by the Secretary of State.
Primary Schools (Radstock)
Dan Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much the Government contributed to the establishment of Trinity Primary and St. Nicholas Primary schools in Radstock. [54367]
Jacqui Smith: The Radstock Primary Renaissance project which resulted in the opening of two new primary schools, Trinity Church of England Primary, and St. Nicholas Church of England Primary, was supported by £4.6 million of Targeted Capital Funding.
Pupil Funding (Barnet)
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what spending changes there were in (a) cash and (b) percentage terms in funding per pupil in the London borough of Barnet (i) in total, (ii) for primary schools and (iii) for secondary schools in 1996–97 to 2006–07; and if she will make a statement. [56882]
Jacqui Smith:
The data I placed in the Library to accompany my written statement of 7 December 2005 on the School Funding Settlement for 2006–07 and 2007–08, sets out each authority's Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) increases for those years. My statement and more detailed information may be found on the Teachernet website at: www.teachernet.gov.uk/management/schoolfunding/2006–07_funding_arrangements/
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The DSG is not broken down into funding per pupil for primary and secondary pupils: that is a matter for local authorities.
Figures for 2008–09 to 2010–11 will not be available until after the next Spending Review, due to be announced during the summer 2007.
Pupil Health
Dr. Stoate: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps her Department is taking to ensure that schools devise strategies for pupils with (a) asthma and (b) other long-term conditions to help them to manage their conditions. [55228]
Maria Eagle: The Department for Education and Skills and the Department of Health guidance 'Managing Medicines in Schools and Early Years Settings' (2005) has been written to help schools and their employers to develop their local policies on managing medicines and supporting pupils with medical needs including those with long term conditions such as asthma. The guidance is, however, advisory only and it is for school and employers to develop their own policies in the light of local needs and resources.
Dr. Stoate: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what training teachers of physical education receive to ensure that they are qualified to work with children and young people with (a) asthma and (b) other long-term conditions. [55229]
Jacqui Smith: Most children with medical conditions can participate in physical activities and extra-curricular sport. Any restrictions on a child's ability to participate in physical education should be recorded in their individual health care plan including any precautionary measures before or during exercise and access to their medicines such as asthma inhalers. The advice given in the Department for Education and Skills and the Department of Health guidance 'Managing Medicines in Schools and Early Years Settings' (2005) recommends that all staff, particularly PE teachers, should have training or be provided with information about asthma once a year. It is for teachers employers to arrange appropriate training in collaboration with local health services.
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