§ 36. Mr. Ednyfed Hudson Daviesasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many children in England and Wales who had attained the statutory age for school attendance have been refused admission to school during the present term; and if he will indicate the areas in which this has happened most.
§ Miss BaconThis information is not available. I know that a few authorities have had difficulty recently, among them, Ealing, Birmingham and Wolverhampton.
§ Mr. DaviesIs my right hon. Friend aware that this is indeed a problem in some parts of the country? Will she bear in mind that to attend to this end of the educational scale is just as important as the extension of the school leaving age?
§ Miss BaconYes, I know this is extremely important. If my hon. Friend has any particular area in mind, perhaps he will let me know.
§ Mr. GurdenWill the Minister of State now answer my earlier question? Will she ask her colleagues to inform her of the number of immigrant children coming to the country so that the load on local authorities may be established?
§ Miss BaconI am sorry, I did not hear the hon. Member's question.
§ Mr. GurdenWill the right hon. Lady now ask her colleagues to tell her how many immigrant children are coming to the country so that she can tell the local authorities the load to expect in the schools?
§ Miss BaconWe know how many immigrant children come into the country but, as I explained to the hon. Member when I answered his question, the difficul- 614 ties he had in mind in Birmingham were not produced by the immigrant children but by the general shortage of places.