§ Mr. SelousTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment has been made of the requirement for new(a) lower, (b) middle and (c) upper schools in the South-West Bedfordshire constituency to take account of anticipated house building in the area until 2011. [4717]
§ Mr. TimmsThe Government believe that decisions concerning the organisation and supply of school places are best taken locally—by the main partners in the provision of education who have knowledge of local needs. It is the responsibility of local education authorities (LEAs) to ensure that there are sufficient school places within their area.
Should a district council propose new housing developments we would expect the LEA's School Organisation Plan (SOP) to reflect any projected increases in the pupil population. All LEAs are required to produce a SOP, which sets out how they propose to deal with deficits and surpluses of school provision over a rolling 5-year period. The SOP sets the context for proposals to change school organisation in the area, and may include proposals to establish new schools or enlarge existing ones.
If, as a result of housing developments, the LEA identifies a need for additional school places, we would consider any future capital bids from Bedfordshire that meet the published criteria for support.
§ Mr. SelousTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children in South-West Bedfordshire have school meals provided by the local authority. [4718]
§ Mr. TimmsThe information requested is shown in the following table.
Number and percentage of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals, January 2000 Number of pupils Percentage of pupils South-West Bedfordshire Parliamentary Constituency Maintained nursery and primary schools 813 11.4 Maintained secondary schools 855 9.1 England Maintained nursery and primary schools 821,521 18.3 Maintained secondary schools 523,630 16.5
§ Mr. SelousTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the class sizes for(a) lower, (b) middle and (c) upper schools were in Bedfordshire on 1 May; and what they are projected to be on 1 May 2002. [4720]
§ Mr. TimmsThe available information is shown in the following table.
407W
Average class sizes in Bedfordshire LEA, January 20011 Schools Average class size Middle deemed Secondary schools 26.2 Comprehensive Upper schools 19.4 1 Provisional