HL Deb 09 February 2000 vol 609 cc655-7

2.45 p.m.

Lord Dormand of Easington

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What are the criteria on which specialist schools are established.

Lord Bach

My Lords, the criteria against which specialist schools are designated are published in four guidance documents, each dealing with one category of specialism: technology; languages; sport and the arts. These set out the considerations taken into account when deciding to designate a school as a specialist school. The criteria address, first, sponsorship; secondly, school and community development plans; and thirdly, location.

Lord Dormand of Easington

My Lords, I thank my noble friend for that helpful Answer. First, does he accept that the success of specialist schools depends on having available high quality specialist teachers? For the foreseeable future, there will be a shortage of such teachers in some areas. Secondly, does my noble friend agree that frequently parents submit more applications than there are places in such schools? How will children be selected or chosen from that list?

Lord Bach

My Lords, one of the ways in which specialist schools can contribute is by giving a clear message that the country values teachers in those specialisms. Of course, we should and do put those teachers high on our agenda and make it clear that their jobs are very important indeed. I can tell my noble friend that specialist schools do not have as much trouble recruiting teachers as they might have. The crucial point is that specialist schools will take on the responsibility for training other teachers. That is how we shall raise standards and, in turn, entice more able people into the profession.

In response to my noble friend's question about parents, as he indicated, it is a fact that specialist schools are popular. By September of this year, 86 per cent of local authorities will have a specialist school. At the moment, there does not appear to be any great difficulty for parents who wish to secure places for their children.

Lord Quirk

My Lords, taking as a measure the number of pupils who get five or more GCSE passes at grades A to C, is it not the case that specialist schools are doing twice as well as the rest of the secondary school system? If that is the case, is it not an indication that the present criteria are working pretty well and that we should in fact be vastly increasing the number of specialist schools?

Lord Bach

My Lords, I agree with the noble Lord. On average last year, the 330 specialist schools improved their A to C examination performance by 2.5 percentage points over 1998 compared with an average of 1.5 percentage points for all other schools. Some 16 specialist schools are in this year's list of top improving schools, which is 15 per cent of the list. As regards increasing the number of specialist schools, that is certainly something that the Government intend to encourage. We have already doubled the number of specialist schools from 222 when we came into office to 403 today. I hope that the noble Lord will be pleased to hear that we expect to double that number to 800 by 2003.

Baroness Blatch

My Lords, can the noble Lord tell the House the difference between selection for specialist schools and selection on the basis of ability?

Lord Bach

My Lords, I thought that I would be asked that old chestnut. I am only the last in a long line of Members of this House—even of those standing where I am now—to be questioned on the definition of ability and aptitude.

Baroness Blatch

My Lords, I did not ask that question.

Lord Bach

My Lords, there is no doubt at all that the noble Baroness implied that question. The noble Baroness ought to understand that all schools with specialisms—including specialist schools—can, if they so wish, select up to 10 per cent of their intake on aptitude; not on ability, but on aptitude. The fact is that, among specialist schools, it is thought that fewer than 5 per cent take part in any selection whatsoever. Furthermore, I should like to add that the record of the party opposite in government was appalling in this field and the country gave its verdict on that educational policy in May 1997. Things have moved on since then and it is about time that the party opposite—and in particular the noble Baroness—moved on.

Lord Mackay of Ardbrecknish

My Lords, taking mathematics as an example, perhaps the noble Lord can explain to me the difference between aptitude and ability in mathematics.

Lord Bach

My Lords, I certainly would not dream of taking on the noble Lord in the field of mathematics. However, I believe that the best definition of "aptitude" is that given by my noble friend Lady Blackstone in this House on 11th March 1999. Perhaps the noble Lord heard it himself. My noble friend said: Aptitude has nothing to do with prior or current educational attainment. The code '— about which she was talking— makes it clear that children who will be able to benefit from teaching in a specific subject or who have demonstrated a particular capacity to succeed in a subject can be regarded as having an aptitude for that subject.—[Official Report, 11/3/99; col. 441.] In other words, ability relates to attainment already reached; aptitude is as I have described.

Lord Tope

My Lords, did the Minister say in one of the quieter moments just now that only 5 per cent of specialist schools had applied the selection test? If that is right, on reflection will he agree that these Benches were right to argue that facilities in specialist schools should be available to all pupils, regardless of aptitude or ability?

Lord Bach

My Lords, in the real world, the ability to go to a school of this kind is practically universal. So far, the number of people who have been tested in this way is very small. That does not prove the noble Lord or his party right, but these matters are progressing.