HC Deb 23 July 1953 vol 518 c56W
54. Mr. Swingler

asked the Minister of Education if she will now make and publish a calculation of the number of school places required adequately to cater for the growing number of children in the schools and for the children moving to new areas; and if she will make this calculation the basis of determining her policy in the matter of school building.

Miss Horsbrugh

No. I would refer the hon. Member to the answer which I gave him on 16th July and to my Department's reply to the Select Committee on Estimates, published as their Tenth Report.

Mr. Swingler

asked the Minister of Education how the estimate of 1,480,000 places, mentioned in the footnote of page 5 of her Department's reply to the Select Committee on Estimates, was arrived at.

Miss Horsbrugh

This was explained in the answer which I gave the hon. Member on the 17th July, 1952. 1,480,000 represents the 1,593,000 mentioned in that reply, less the 110,000 written off by my predecessor when he decided to re-cast the school building programme on the basis of maintaining class sizes at the level existing at the end of 1949.