HL Deb 18 July 1994 vol 557 cc83-4

4 After Clause 17, insert the following clause:

Power to reimburse certain payments to persons formerly employed in teacher training

'.—(1) A higher education funding council may make payments, subject to such terms and conditions as they think fit, to—

  1. (a) the governing body of a grant-maintained school or grant-maintained special school, or
  2. (b) a further education corporation or the governing body of any institution designated under section 28 of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992, 84 in respect of expenditure incurred or to be incurred by that body in making safeguarded salary payments to which this section applies.

(2) This section applies to payments made to a person who in consequence of a direction given by the Secretary of State under—

  1. (a) regulation 3(2) of the Further Education Regulations 1975,
  2. (b) regulation 15 of the Education (Schools and Further Education) Regulations 1981, being a direction relating to a course for the training of teachers, or
  3. (c) regulation 16 of those Regulations,
ceased before 1st April 1989 to be employed in a college for the training of teachers, or in a department for the training of teachers in any other establishment of further education.

(3) The amount of the safeguarded salary payment is the amount by which, in consequence of the matters mentioned in subsection (2), a person's salary exceeds that which would normally be appropriate to the post held by him.

(4) A body to which subsection (1) (a) or (b) applies shall give to a higher education funding council such information as the council may require for the purposes of the exercise of their power under that subsection.'.

Baroness Blatch

My Lords, I beg to move that the House do agree with the Commons in their Amendment No. 4.

This is a purely technical amendment updating existing legislation to enable the higher education funding councils to perform their functions effectively. Its length belies its modest, though important, effect.

The new clause relates to payments under the "Crombie" scheme which was set up to assist those who were redeployed following the reorganisation of teacher training establishments in the 1970s and early 1980s. The scheme allowed those who were moved to jobs at a lower salary in schools and further education colleges to receive salary enhancements. The necessary funds have since been paid by successive funding bodies to local education authorities.

A number of local authorities have suggested the need to revise payment arrangements because some of those involved are no longer local authority employees. They work in grant-maintained schools or further education colleges. The new clause therefore enables the funding councils to make payments direct to such schools and colleges in respect of any relevant staff now in their employ. I am sure that this explanation will help the House to agree with the new clause.

Moved, That the House do agree with the Commons in their Amendment No. 4.—(Baroness Blatch.)

On Question, Motion agreed to.