HC Deb 26 July 2000 vol 354 cc664-5W
Mr. Clappison

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how much schools were charged in respect of examination fees for (a) GCSE examination entries and (b) A levels in each year of the last five years. [131693]

Mr. Wicks

As schools are charged individually and may have arrangements with more than one awarding body to buy a range of qualifications of which GCSE and GCE A level are but two, it is not possible to provide precise figures. Estimates of the amounts charged to maintained schools (including grant maintained schools) in England, Northern Ireland and Wales, based on the number of reported entries and the average fee charged for each qualification in each year are set out in the table:

£million
GCSE GCE A level
1995 77.5 8.83
1996 81.9 9.3
1997 83.5 10.5
1998 84 11.5
1999 88.8 12.6

Note:

This information has been provided by the Joint Council for General Qualifications.

The increases in charges are due to higher numbers of entries, as well as to take account of inflation.