HC Deb 24 October 1963 vol 682 cc227-30W
Mr. Dodds

asked the Minister of Education (1) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Dorset are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all those children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(2) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Essex are not on any school register, and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(3) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Buckinghamshire are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(4) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Cornwall are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(5) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Durham are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(6) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Gloucester shire are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(7) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in the Isle of Ely are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(8) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Lincolnshire (Kesteven) are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(9) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Lincolnshire (Lindsey) are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(10) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Somerset are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(11) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in West Suffolk are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(12) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Surrey are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(13) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in West Sussex are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(14) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Yorkshire (East Riding) are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(15) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Yorkshire (West Riding) are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(16) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Carmarthenshire are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(17) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Glamorganshire are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(18) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Monmouthshire are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(19) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Kent are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations;

(20) how many children of gypsies and other travellers of school age in Hertfordshire are not on any school register; and what action is being taken or contemplated to ensure that all these children attend school in accordance with statutory obligations.

Sir E. Boyle

With one exception, all these local education authorities are either unaware of any such children out of school in their areas or are taking immediate steps to secure the registration of children who have newly arrived. The exception is the Isle of Ely authority which, in a special inquiry last week, discovered 72 children not on school registers. Despite the difficulty of enforcing school attendance in families moving frequently from place to place, the authority is doing everything it can to get these children into school.