§ 118. Mr. Mulleyasked the Minister of Education if she will make it clear to local education authorities that there should be no reduction in the number or amounts of university awards as part of the economies she has instructed.
§ 119. Mr. Mulleyasked the Minister of Education if she will circularise those local education authorities whose university awards are below the national average, based on school population, in number and amount, urging that increases be made; and if she will now give a list of these local education authorities.
§ Miss HorsbrughI shall be sending a communication to local authorities on this matter shortly as promised in Circular 242. I also propose to circulate a table showing the number of awards granted by individual authorities related to the relevant population statistics.
§ 120. Mr. Mulleyasked the Minister of Education what percentage of local education authorities' university awards is met by Exchequer grant and what percentage by local rates; and what percentage of total expenditure of local education authorities is represented by university awards.
§ Miss HorsbrughSixty per cent. of the cost of university awards made by local education authorities is met by Exchequer grant through my Ministry. Of the remaining 40 per cent., varying proportions62W are met by the Exchequer through Exchequer equalisation grant in areas qualifying for that grant, which may I understand amount to well over 50 per cent. in the case of the poorest areas, the rest falling on the rates.
The annual financial returns made to my Department by authorities do not show the cost of university awards separately from the cost of other awards to pupils and students. The total cost of awards to pupils and students amounted to 4.9 per cent. of the total expenditure of local education authorities on main grant services, on the basis of the pre-audit returns for 1950–51, and to about 5 per cent. on the basis of their revised estimates for 1951–52.