HC Deb 21 February 1996 vol 272 cc358-9
10. Sir Sydney Chapman

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what percentage of 16-year-olds stay in full-time education; and what was the figure 10 years ago. [14685]

Mr. Paice

I am pleased to tell my hon. Friend that 71.5 per cent. of 16-year-olds were in full-time education in 1994–95. This compares with 47.3 per cent. in 1985–86.

Sir Sydney Chapman

I welcome that dramatic increase. Given that there has been an even more dramatic increase in the number of young people going into higher education, does my hon. Friend agree that encouraging pupils to stay on for an extra year in school and encouraging even more people to take higher education courses are the best ways of equipping our young people with the skills necessary for the jobs of the future?

Mr. Paice

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. It is essential that our young people have a range of opportunities to continue learning. That is why the Government introduced general national vocational qualifications—to re-excite young people who have been turned off by conventional education. It is also why we set further education colleges free from the dead hand of local authorities—so that they can go on finding new ways of teaching. It is, moreover, why we introduced the guarantee that no 16 or 17-year-old need stop learning once he has left compulsory education.

Mr. O'Hara

Is it not a bit short-sighted of the Government to congratulate themselves on staying-on rates at 16? The rates for 17-year-olds and beyond are disastrous. Surely the Government should pay attention to the fact that ours is one of the lowest staying-on rates for 17 and 18-year-olds in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Mr. Paice

The staying-on rate at 16 is excellent, and our higher education numbers are among the best in Europe. The staying-on rates for 17-year-olds are 77 per cent. in the United Kingdom, 86 per cent. in Canada, 82 per cent. in Switzerland and 93 per cent. in Germany. Of course we would like an improvement in the figures for 17 and 18-year-olds. That is why we have challenged FE colleges to increase their recruitment again this year. Growth is continuing. We are also developing modern apprenticeships; more than 20,000 will be in place this year. We hope for 60.000 next year, providing a range of opportunities so that all young people can continue to learn.

Mr. Harry Greenway

Does my hon. Friend agree that the improved staying-on rate for 16-year-olds almost certainly reflects improved examination achievement at that age and at A-level? It is amazing that more than one in three now go into higher education. Does my hon. Friend share my suspicion that the recent test results of younger children understate their achievements? It seems odd that they can under-achieve to the extent that the tests seem to show and yet do so well at 16 and in higher education.

Mr. Paice

I do not intend to second-guess the results of Ofsted's work, or the results of the tests, but my hon. Friend's important point needs examining. Our GCSE results at 16 are improving every year, as is the number going into higher education. That is exceptionally good, and the Government are extremely proud of it—despite the continual bleatings and whingeings of the Labour party.