HC Deb 06 November 1987 vol 121 cc891-2W
Mr. Boswell

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether he will estimate for primary and secondary maintained schools in England, respectively, the current average annual cost of education, including free school transport, per pupil; and also whether he will tabulate these figures for convenient size bands of schools.

Mr. Dunn

The latest available estimate of the current cost per school pupil may be made from local authority returns of 1987–88 budgeted expenditure to the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy as follows:

Estimated Expenditure1 per pupil 1987–88
Nursery and primary schools2 £ Secondary schools £
Net recurrent institutional expenditure3 916 1,403
Home to School Transport 7 33
Total 923 1,436
1 At November 1986 prices.
2 Separate figures for primary schools are not available.
3 Includes the cost of salaries and wages, premises running costs and certain supplies and services. It does not include the cost of school meals, central services or the financing costs of capital expenditure.

Information on which to base the costs of different sizes of schools is not available.