§ Dr. TongeTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will provide a breakdown by region 361W of the number of state schools which sought approval from his Department for the sale of playing fields between 1990–2000. [136752]
§ Jacqui Smith[holding answer 6 November 2000]: The information is not available in the form requested.
Prior to October 1998 only grant-maintained schools were required to seek consent from the Secretary of State before selling any land. Since the introduction in October 1998 of section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998, local authorities and governing bodies of all maintained schools, including foundation schools, have been required to obtain the Secretary of State's consent before disposing of playing fields or any part of a playing field. The Secretary of State will grant such approval only if the application meets the tough criteria against which all applications are considered.
Before the change in the law, local authorities could and did sell playing fields as and when they chose to do so. An estimated 40 playing fields a month were sold in this way under the previous Government.
Since October 1998 there have been 180 applications from local authorities and governing bodies to sell a playing field or part of a playing field. The following table provides a breakdown of these applications by local education authority.
362W
Table showing by local education authority the number of applications for consent to the sale of playing fields from 1 October 1998 to 6 November 2000 Local education authority 1998 1999 2000 Barking and Dagenham — — — Barnet 1 — — Barnsley — — 1 Bath and North East Somerset — 1 — Bedfordshire — 1 — Bexley — — 1 Birmingham — — — Blackburn with Darwen — — — Blackpool — — — Bolton — — — Bournemouth — — — Bracknell Forest — — 1 Bradford — — 1 Brent — — — Brighton and Hove — — — Bristol 1 — — Bromley — — — Buckinghamshire — 4 4 Bury 1 1 — Calderdale — — 1 Cambridgeshire — — — Camden — — 1 Cheshire 1 6 1 Co. Durham — 2 2 Cornwall — — 1 Coventry — 1 — Croydon — 1 — Cumbria — 4 1 Darlington — — — Derby City of — — — Derbyshire 1 1 2 Devon — 2 — Doncaster — — 1 Dorset 1 — 1 Dudley — — — Ealing — 1 — East Riding of Yorkshire — — — East Sussex — 1 — Enfield — — — 363W
Table showing by local education authority the number of applications for consent to the sale of playing fields from 1 October 1998 to 6 November 2000 Local education authority 1998 1999 2000 Essex 1 1 1 Gateshead — — — Gloucestershire — 1 2 Greenwich — — — Hackney — — — Halton 1 — — Hammersmith and Fulham — 1 — Hampshire — 1 5 Haringey — — — Harrow — — — Hartlepool — — — Havering — — — Herefordshire — — — Hertfordshire — 2 3 Hillingdon — — — Hounslow — — — Isle of Wight — — — Isles of Scilly — — — Islington — — — Kensington and Chelsea — — — Kent — 4 4 Kingston upon Hull — — — Kingston upon Thames — — — Kirklees — 1 — Knowsley — — — Lambeth — — — Lancashire 1 3 1 Leeds — 1 — Leicester, City of — — — Leicestershire — — — Lewisham — — — Lincolnshire — — — Liverpool — — — London, Corporation of — — — Luton — — — Manchester — 1 2 Medway Towns — — — Merton — — — Middlesbrough — — — Milton Keynes 1 2 — Newcastle 1 2 1 Newham — — — Norfolk — 1 1 North East Lincolnshire — — — North Lincolnshire — — — North Somerset 1 — — North Tyneside 1 — — North Yorkshire 1 3 — Northamptonshire — — 1 Northumberland — 2 1 Nottingham — 2 1 Nottinghamshire — 2 1 Oldham — — — Oxfordshire — 2 1 Peterborough — — 1 Plymouth — — — Poole — — — Portsmouth — — — Reading — — — Redbridge — — — Redcar and Cleveland — — — Richmond upon Thames — — — Rochdale — 1 — Rotherham — — — Rutland — — — Salford — 2 — Sandwell — — — Sefton — — — Sheffield — 1 — Shropshire — 1 — Slough — — —
Table showing by local education authority the number of applications for consent to the sale of playing fields from 1 October 1998 to 6 November 2000 Local education authority 1998 1999 2000 Solihull — — — Somerset — 2 — South Gloucestershire — — — South Tyneside — — — Southampton — 1 — Southend-on-Sea — — — Southwark — — — St. Helens — — — Staffordshire — 2 — Stockport — — — Stockton-on-Tees — — — Stoke-on-Trent — — — Suffolk — — — Sunderland — — — Surrey 3 6 3 Sutton — — — Swindon — — — Tameside — — 2 Telford and Wrekin — 1 — Thurrock — — — Torbay — — — Tower Hamlets — — — Trafford — — 1 Wakefield 2 2 — Walsall 1 1 2 Waltham Forest — — — Wandsworth — 1 — Warrington — — — Warwickshire 1 6 4 West Berkshire — — — West Sussex 1 3 1 Westminster — 1 1 Wigan — 3 3 Wiltshire — 2 1 Windsor and Maidenhead — 1 — Wirral — — — Wokingham — — — Wolverhampton 1 1 — Worcestershire — — — York — — 1 Total 23 94 63 Note:
School playing fields means school playgrounds and other pupil recreation and social areas as well as grassed playing fields. It also means small areas of playing fields as well as whole playing fields.