HC Deb 29 June 1993 vol 227 c467W
Mr. Churchill

To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many(a) primary and (b) secondary schools have 50 per cent. or more of their pupils drawn from the ethnic minority population; and what additional resources are made available to assist such schools, with particular reference to the teaching of English, where required.

Mr. Robin Squire

Under the ethnic monitoring survey schools collect information on the ethnic origin of pupils on admission at ages five and 11. Data relating to individual schools are not returned to the Department, except in the case of grant-maintained schools. For other schools, returns are aggregated by local education authority area.

Grant under section 11 of the Local Government Act 1966 is available for the employment of additional staff to meet the special needs of new Commonwealth pupils arising from language and cultural barriers. In 1993–94, section 11 grant for education will be around £120 million, the majority of which will be used to support provision for English as a second language. In addition, there is an ethnicity factor intended to take account of the needs of pupils who may not have English as a first language in the additional educational needs index which is used to weight standard spending assessments.