§ Mr. HinchliffeTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what assessment he has made of the impact of recent changes to the Education (Mandatory Awards) Regulations for vocational courses involving work experience and a work placement on the take-up rate for places on two-year certificate of qualification in social work courses; and if he will make a statement. [10153]
§ Dr. HowellsFurther to the previous reply I gave to the hon. Member on 24 June 1997,Official Report, column 446, only sandwich courses leading to the DipHE (social work) will be affected by the recent changes to the provisions for sandwich courses in the regulations, DipHE (social work) courses are offered by 54 institutions in the United Kingdom, with about 6,000 students in attendance. Not all these students will hold mandatory awards. On the evidence provided so far to the Department by the Central Council for the Education and Training of Social Workers, no course has yet been discovered that has clearly been affected by the new provisions.