§ MR. WADDY (Lincoln, Brigg)I beg to ask the Vice President of the Committee of Council on Education how many districts there are in Great Britain in which there is no school under the control of a School Board; in how many of such districts the only existing school is under the control of the Established Church; in how many of such districts the only existing school is under the control of the Wesleyan Methodist Church; and in how many of such districts the only existing school is under the control of the Roman Catholic Church?
§ SIR W. HART DYKEThere are 14,146 school districts in England and Wales, of which 3,166 are under School Boards, but in a few of these there are no Board Schools. I have no information as to the distribution of Denominational Schools in the districts where there are no School Boards?
§ MR. SUMMERSWill the right hon. Gentleman ask for information on the subject from the Inspectors?
§ SIR W. HART DYKEI do not see how it can be acquired without a special inquiry in every district.
§ VISCOUNT CRANBORNE (Lancashire, N.E., Darwen)I beg to ask the Vice President of the Committee of Council on Education whether he can state how many public elementary schools in the year preceding the last inspection had been open for 45 weeks or more, and how many for 44, 43, 42, and 41 weeks respectively?
§ SIR W. HART DYKEThe Department are not in possession of any collected information which, would enable me to answer my noble Friend's question; but I wish to correct an impression which appears to be general, that the 785 amount of the fee grant which it is proposed to give to all schools, has anything to do with the number of weeks during which a school is generally open. The sum of 10s. was fixed upon as almost exactly representing the average fee now paid in schools of all denominations throughout England and Wales.
§ VISCOUNT CRANBORNEMay I ask if it will be possible for the Education Department to give this information? If so, I will move for a Return.
§ SIR W. HART DYKEI will make further inquiry, but am afraid the information which the noble Lord desires will be very difficult to obtain.
§ MR. BARTLEY (Islington, N.)Is not the average fee 11s. 1d., and not 10s.?
§ SIR W. HART DYKEWe have done our best to ascertain, and I am assured that it is as nearly as possible 10s. I do not say that that is absolutely correct, but it is as nearly as possible.
§ MR. JOICEY (Durham, Chester-le-Street)I beg to ask the Vice President of the Committee of Council on Education if his attention has been called to the following figures, as given in the Return of "Schools Examined," No. 403, 1890, namely, Trimdom Colliery, Durham, Average Attendance of Boys, 158; Income from Fees, £85 9s. 4d.: Average Attendance of Girls and Infants, 260; Income from Fees, £107 15s. 5d.: making a total of Average Attendance, 418; Income from Fees, £193 4s. 9d.; and whether, in this and similar cases, where two or more schools are under the same management, and where a grant of 10s. per head, after allowance is made for children under 5 and over 14, equals or exceeds the present total for income of the schools, it is proposed under the Elementary Education Bill to allow the higher feed school to charge to the scholars the excess fee over the amount of the fee grant to that school?
§ SIR W. HART DYKEThere appears to be a misprint in the latter part of the question. As far as I can understand it I have no hesitation in giving an affirmative answer.
§ MR. JOICEYI beg to ask the Vice President of the Committee of Council on Education whether it is proposed under the Elementary Education Bill to pay the fee grant of 10s. to a school such as the Crooks' Charity School, 786 Hartlepool, which in 1889 received no income from fees?
§ SIR W. HART DYKEThere is nothing in the terms of the Elementary Education Bill to prevent such a school as that mentioned enjoying the benefits of the proposed fee grant.