§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education and Skills (Lord Filkin)My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (Mr Charles Clarke) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
I am today laying before Parliament the Government's response to the report by the Education and Skills Select Committee on secondary school admissions. This is the fourth part of the committee's enquiry into secondary education.
11WSI welcomed the report when it was published at the end of July. It is thoughtful and detailed, focusing on the nature of the school admission and the school admission appeals codes of practice and on selection and standards. Our response shares that focus.
We agree with the committee that every school should be a good school and we welcome its belief that schools are improving. We share its concern that not all schools are or are perceived to be good schools. Earlier this year we published our five-year strategy for children and learners. In it we set out our plans for greater diversity and freedoms for schools to drive up standards so that parental choice becomes more meaningful. We also expect schools to work more collaboratively and to take collective responsibility for all children in their area. Our response to the committee's report needs to be seen in the context of the five-year strategy.
We understand the committee's wish to see stronger codes of practice and we will amend them in a number of areas and include a list of appropriate and acceptable admissions oversubscription criteria. This clearer guidance will be helpful to the schools adjudicators who must have regard to the code in determining objections to admission arrangements referred to them.
We continue to believe in the local decision-making framework for admissions, with its emphasis on local discussion and consensus, which we put in place in 1998. We strengthened that framework in 2002 and it is too early to evaluate the effect of those measures—in particular co-ordination of admissions and the working of admission forums. We do not think it necessary or appropriate to consider new regulatory measures before we see the results of those changes. Nevertheless we do want to help admission forums to work effectively. We are therefore developing—as set out in our five-year strategy—guidance for admission forums on how to develop protocols for hard to place children and how to seek agreement with admission authorities on them.
We are mindful of the committee's concerns on the quality of some admission appeals. We have already produced some training materials for appeal panel members but we have committed in the response to developing exemplar letters and other materials for 12WS admission authorities to use in their communications with parents on their appeals.
Our position on selection is clear. We do not support academic selection at age 11 and do not wish to see it extended. We have looked very carefully at the committee's concerns about aptitude selection. We want all secondary schools to play to their strengths and provide a flexible curriculum to meet the needs of individual pupils. Selection by aptitude allows a small number of pupils who would not otherwise have the opportunity to do so to benefit from particular curriculum strengths.
The schools adjudicator takes the view that it is possible to assess aptitude—rather than academic ability—in subject areas such as sport, the visual and performing arts and languages. The Government believe there is general acceptance that such a distinction is possible and will continue to allow admission authorities that wish to do so to select a small percentage (up to 10 per cent) of pupils in these subjects. We intend to prohibit new aptitude selection in design and/or information technology but allow schools already using such selection to continue to do so. We are not intending to introduce aptitude selection in any other area.
We share the committee's aspirations for an admissions system that is transparent and fair. The changes we are intending to make in response to the committee's report will ensure that this is the case.