§ 4. Mr. JannerTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will make a statement concerning financial provision for extra-curricular activities.
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education and Science (Mr. John Butcher)The Education Reform Act responded to pressure to clarify the law on charging for school activities. Schools may not charge for provision offered during school hours, with the exception of individual music tuition. They may charge for extra-curricular activities provided outside school hours, as long as these are not an essential part of the curriculum. Local authorities and schools can still invite parents to make voluntary contributions towards the cost of any school activity, but the child's participation in the activity must not be dependent on the parents' willingness to contribute.
§ Mr. JannerDoes the Minister not recognise that the new rules will effectively kill off the vast majority of school visits overseas, almost all of which take place in term time? Some 40,000 Leicestershire children have benefited from those important educational opportunities in the past few years, but they will no longer be able to do so. Will the Minister reconsider this wicked invasion of the rights of schools to provide extra-curricular activities which in their own way, as the Minister himself has said, are as valuable as much that goes on in the school term?
§ Mr. ButcherI can only assume that the hon. and learned Gentleman has deliberately misunderstood the import of what is proposed. As he knows, it was in response to representations from local education authorities and under pressure from certain judicial decisions that we had to recodify this part of the law. Those who wish to enjoy trips abroad, for language purposes and so on, will still be able to do so—
§ Mr. JannerIf they can afford it.
§ Mr. ButcherParents will be asked for a contribution. Most parents who were willing to pay charges before are unlikely to refuse a voluntary contribution if they regard an activity as educationally worthwhile.
§ Mr. Andrew MacKayIs my hon. Friend aware that trips which are more localised than those referred to by the hon. and learned Member for Leicester, West (Mr. Janner) are in great danger? In my education authority of Berkshire all school trips have been cancelled, which is causing great concern to parents and teachers. It seems that the code and regulations are the exact opposite of what the House and the Government wanted.
§ Mr. ButcherThe full circular will be issued in January. In response to representations from hon. Members, and particularly from my hon. Friend the Member for Berkshire, East (Mr. MacKay), I have asked officials to ensure that it eliminates any ambiguities in the draft circular which may have caused concern to some local authorities. Some local authorities have been better than others at interpreting the draft circular to allow current practices to continue.
§ Mr. Simon HughesCan the Minister assure the House that the circular will not mark the beginning of a two-tier state education system—one for students with no parental support, whose parents cannot afford an increasing number of activities after school and during the holidays, and another in which an increasing range of activities will be paid for by parents with money, thus giving their children all the advantages that until now have been free and available for all?
§ Mr. ButcherThat is simply not correct. The kind of trips about which hon. Members are concerned have not necessarily been free in the past. We have been anxious to find a way to retain and codify the principle of free school education while still permitting flexibility for voluntary contributions to be made.
As for hardship, I do not see why the legislation should lead to increased pressure on school budgets. If activities are worthwhile, parents will surely still be willing to contribute to their cost, but LEAs and schools—this answers the hon. Gentleman's point—will have discretion as before to help in cases of hardship.