66. Mr. Creech Jonesasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Education what is the present position of local authorities in the matter of maintenance allowances for school children between the ages of 14 and 15 attending elementary schools; what powers do the local authorities at present exercise anywhere; are any grants towards the cost forthcoming from national funds; have any schemes of maintenance allowance been presented in the past two years; and, if so, with what result?
Mr. LindsayThe authority for the granting of maintenance allowances by local education authorities to children in public elementary schools is contained in Section 24 of the Education Act, 1921. At present 54 local education authorities have arrangements for the award of such allowances. These arrangements generally provide for the award of allowances to children over the age of 14 subject to an undertaking that the child will remain at school till the end of the term in which he becomes 15, or the completion of a four years' course. Eight of these authorities award allowances to children below the age of 14. Subject to the arrangements having been approved by the Board of Education, grant is payable by the Board to local education authorities at the rate of 50 per cent. on maintenance allowances which are awarded to pupils who have attained the school leaving age for the time being in force in the authority's area. During the 1841 last two years, four new schemes for the award of maintenance allowances to public elementary school children have been submitted by local education authorities. Of these, three were approved and one was not accepted for the purposes of grant by the Board.
Mr. Creech JonesIs it still the policy of the Board to give favourable consideration to representations for such allowances, and do I gather that the Board have not reversed their policy since the passing of the 1936 Act?
§ Mr. E. J. WilliamsIs the Minister prepared to increase the maintenance grant, particularly in view of the increase in the cost of living?
Mr. LindsayI think that inquiry comes under a separate question, but I think it would be possible to revise the scales if the selection were made carefully and were reasonable.
§ 68. Mr. Leachasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Education whether he is now prepared to make good the losses in grants incurred by those local authorities which have, in strict conformity with the law, made grants to pupils in public elementary schools?
Mr. LindsayIt is presumed that the hon. Member refers to the provision in the Elementary Education Grant Regulations which excludes from recognition for grant expenditure by local education authorities on maintenance allowances paid to children while still under a legal obligation to attend school. My Noble Friend is not prepared to amend the regulation in question, and he cannot admit that the authorities who have incurred expenditure upon maintenance allowances which is expressly excluded from recognition for grant can be said to have incurred losses in grant.
§ Mr. LeachIs the hon. Gentleman not aware that the law allows educational authorities to do what they have been doing in this respect for the last 20 years, and that by an administrative order of his own Department they have been refused the right to grant? I want to know whether he proposes to reverse that policy?