§ MR. TALBOT (Oxford University)I beg to ask the Vice President of the Committee of Council on Education whether it is in accordance with the present practice of the Department to refuse grants to schools in rural districts, under Articles 104 and 105 of the Code, which serve a population under 500, when the population of the ancient civil parishes out of which those districts are taken exceed that limit, although such schools have previously received such grants; and when this change of policy originated?
§ MR. ACLANDThe school district in these Articles is defined by the Education Act of 1870 as the civil parish. There has been no change of policy whatever in this respect. Any grants which may have been made to schools where the population of the civil parish exceeded the prescribed limit must have been made in error, and would, of course, be discon- 661 tinued as soon as the mistake was discovered. I suppose it is to such cases that the hon. Member refers.
§ In reply to a further question,
§ MR. ACLANDsaid, the hon. Gentleman would see from the Annual Report this year in what cases the grant had been refused. He would probably remember that during the latter part of the period of Office of the late Government a Return was given to show how the grant was allotted. In some cases it was seen that the allotment was contrary to the law, and hence it was that it had since been refused in those instances.