§ Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what proportion of(a) teachers and (b) lecturers come from ethnic minority backgrounds; and what initiatives he proposes to increase their number. [1042]
§ Ms Estelle MorrisThe Department does not collect the information required. The Teacher Training Agency has introduced various initiatives to attract ethnic minority entrants to teaching, including targeting recruitment advertisements. The Agency is responsible for allocating student numbers to teacher training institutions, based on the quality assessment of the institution. Within any given quality category, trainers with special features, including their record in recruiting people from ethnic minorities, may be given priority over others.