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10 July 2006 : Column 1453W—continued
Higher Education
Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the future higher education needs of West Lancashire; and if he will make a statement. [83565]
Bill Rammell: The Department works mainly through the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) on matters relating to the expansion of higher education provision in England.
HEFCE has undertaken a number of reviews, in consultation with interested bodies, of higher education provision in the north. Emanating from this has been a number of proposals for the expansion of HE provision within the Lancashire and Cumbria areas. I expect an announcement to be made later this year on these proposals, including those specific to my hon. Friend’s constituency, West Lancashire.
Lockers
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) how many secondary schools in (a) England and (b) Sutton have locker facilities for every pupil; and if he will make a statement; [83452]
(2) what plans he has to ensure that each pupil from Years 7 to 11 has access to locker facilities; and if he will make a statement. [83430]
Jim Knight: We do not collect information about provision of pupil locker facilities. The Department requires school buildings to have facilities for storing pupils’ clothes and other belongings, and the Department’s recommended area standards for secondary school buildings include an appropriate allowance. Schools make their own decisions about the best way to provide storage; many choose to provide lockers.
Ofsted Early Years
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many out of school services were registered with Ofsted Early Years in Lancashire in each year since 1997. [81765]
Beverley Hughes: This is a matter for Ofsted. HM chief inspector of schools, Maurice Smith, has written to the hon. Gentleman and a copy of his reply has been placed in the Library.
Letter from Maurice J Smith, dated 7 July 2006:
Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, for reply.
You asked how many out of school services were registered with Ofsted Early Years in Lancashire in each year since 1997.
In response, the table overleaf shows two sets of figures:
1. The number of providers who registered each year who offered out of school provision.
2. The total number of active providers who provided out of school care at the end of each year.
Ofsted only took over responsibility in September 2001, thus the first full year of data shown is for 2002. The total ODC figure for 2002 is not included as we do not have published figures that go back to this time.
| Information on ODC providers in Lancashire local authority | ||
| Number of ODC providers registered each year to provide this type of care( 1) | Number of active ODC providers who provide this type of care at the end of each year( 2) | |
| (1) Data is based on a snapshot of Ofsted’s Regulatory Support Application (RSA) taken on 6 April 2006. Data relates to when providers are eligible to offer out of school provision. (2) Data is based on unrounded December Quarterly Childcare Statistics | ||
A copy of this reply has been sent to Beverley Hughes and will be placed in the Library of both Houses.
Olympics
Mr. Andy Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which officials in his Department (a) are responsible for Olympics-related activity and (b) sit on the inter-departmental steering group for the Olympics. [81561]
Jim Knight: Helen Williams, director, Curriculum and Pupil Wellbeing, is responsible for Olympics-related activity within the Department for Education and Skills, and is the representative on the inter-departmental group.
Parent and Children Services
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what measures are (a) in place and (b) planned to ensure that public services for parents and children recognise and meet the needs of fathers. [84168]
Mr. Dhanda: The Government recognise the importance of involving both fathers and mothers in the public services for children and families. We are making progress on supporting fathers. For example:
we have issued guidance to local authorities that sets out our expectations of the way that Sure Start children’s centres should personalise services for fathers, offering the support and opportunities they need to engage fully with their parenting role;
in the national service framework for children, young people and maternity services a marker of good practice is that primary care trusts and local authorities provide targeted information and support for fathers as well as mothers; and
as part of our work to encourage schools to work more closely with parents, we will particularly focus on the importance of involving fathers.
The Department will be working closely with the Equal Opportunities Commission in the future to ensure that, as local authorities and other partners plan their services for children, young people and families they are fully aware of the gender equality duty and ensure that fathers and other male carers receive the support they need to achieve the best outcome for children.
Personal Finance Education
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what discussions he has had with the Financial Services Authority on how it plans to introduce content on personal finance education into the school curriculum in 2008. [83257]
Jim Knight: Ministers and senior officials hold regular discussions with the Financial Services Authority about personal finance education in schools, including the content of personal finance education. DfES continues to work closely with the FSA on the development of it national strategy for promoting financial literacy.
Private Members' Bills
Mr. Amess:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) pursuant to the answer of
27 June 2006, Official Report, column 312W, on Private Members' Bills, what estimate he has made of the cost of answering the question; and if he will make a statement; [82629]
(2) pursuant to the answer of 26 June 2006, Official Report, column 103W, on the Education and Skills Committee, what estimate he has made of the cost of answering the question; and if he will make a statement. [82630]
Mr. Dhanda: The Department does not keep a central record of the information requested. An assessment of the staff time and associated costs required to provide answers was estimated to be significantly in excess of the disproportionate cost threshold of £600.
Public Appointments
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many public appointments are within his patronage; what (a) salary and (b) other emoluments are attached to each; and what the comparable figures were in (i) 1976, (ii) 1986 and (iii) 1996. [83184]
Mr. Dhanda: The numbers of public appointments made by the Secretary of State for Education and Skills and the remuneration attached to each of the chair and board member appointments of bodies sponsored by my Department are set out in the following table. There are a total of 21 chair and 249 board member appointments. The information is correct as at 1 April 2006 and covers those bodies that fall under the remit of the Commissioner for Public Appointments.
The Department for Education and Skills came into existence in 2001. Comparable figures for appointments made to bodies by the Secretary of State of the Department's predecessors in 1986 and 1996 can be found in public bodies, the annual Cabinet Office publication, prepared by the agencies and public bodies team in the Cabinet Office. Copies are available in the House of Commons Library.
Pupil Absence
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many pupils in each London borough missed at least half a day due to unauthorised absence in (a) primary schools, (b) secondary schools, (c) special schools and (d) pupil referral units in the last year for which figures are available, expressed as a percentage of pupils of compulsory school age. [81714]
Jim Knight: The information requested has been placed in the House Libraries.
Pupil Referral Units
Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many places are available at pupil referral units in (a) West Lancashire and (b) Lancashire; what their occupancy rate is; and if he will make a statement. [83562]
Jim Knight: The information on pupil referral units (PRUs) in Lancashire and West Lancashire is set out in the table.
| Number | |
| (1) The number of places available is reported to the Department when a local authority registers a PRU. This denotes the capacity of the PRU. (2) Pupil numbers are collected via the annual school census and they relate to the 2005 census. The figures relate to the number of pupils on the PRU register on the day of the census. | |
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