§ Mr. Peter Robinsonasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) how many controlled, voluntary and maintained primary schools in the Belfast education and library board and South Eastern education and library board areas do not have sufficient pupils to meet the numerical criterion laid down in the Department of Education's standards for a viable primary school; and if he will list the names of each of these schools;
(2) what criterion is laid down by the Department of Education for a viable (a) primary school in an urban area, (b) primary school in a rural area, (c) secondary school in an urban area and (d) secondary school in a rural area; and how many schools in each of the five education boards' areas do not meet this criterion;
(3) how many controlled, voluntary and maintained secondary and grammar schools in the Belfast education 227W and library board and the South Eastern education and library board areas do not have sufficient pupils to make them viable according to the Department of Education's criterion and regulations for secondary schools; and if he will list the names of each of these schools.
§ Mr. ScottThe numbers of controlled, maintained and other voluntary primary schools in the Belfast education and library board and South-Eastern education and library board areas which did not have sufficient pupils at January 1982 to meet the numerical criteria for a viable primary school suggested in the Department of Education's document "Schools and Demographic Trends—A Backcloth to Planning" were as follows:
Belfast board South-Eastern board Controlled primary schools 23 51 Maintained primary schools 18 23 Other voluntary primary schools 1 2 Total 42 76 For primary schools it was suggested that rationalisation should be considered where enrolments to individual schools fell below 200 in urban areas and 100 in rural areas.
In the case of secondary schools, the criteria suggested for an 11 to 16 school is a minimum enrolment of 600 for schools in urban areas, although it is recognised that, particularly in rural areas, a lower figure of 280 to 300 may have to be accepted. For 11 to 18 all-ability schools the minimum enrolment suggested is about 1,000, and for grammar schools about 500. On the basis of enrolments at January 1982 the numbers of schools which fall below these criteria are as follows:
Primary Secondary Belfast 42 28 South-Eastern 76 9 North-Eastern 124 16 Western 102 13 Southern 163 13 Total 507 79 The numbers of controlled and maintained secondary schools and of controlled and voluntary grammar schools in the Belfast and South-Eastern education and library board areas which did not have sufficient pupils at January 1982 to meet the cirteria suggested in the Department of Education's Document "Schools and Demographic Trends—A Backcloth to Planning" were as follows:
Belfast board South-Eastern board Grammar Controlled 1 — Voluntary 6 1 Secondary Controlled 10 6 Maintained 11 2 Since the list of schools in each case is very long, I shall write to the hon. Member.