§ 29. Mr. Laneasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science on what basis he decided the total and make-up of the school building programme for 1969–70.
§ Miss BaconThe total was based, in the main, on the estimated need for new school places in relation to the population increase and housing development. Most of the authorised projects were tied to the same criteria but I was able to include some others urgently needed to implement secondary reorganisation schemes and to replace old schools. I approved only projects on which an actual start is likely in the programme year.
§ 56. Mr. Ronald Bellasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what criterion he applied in deciding upon the recent reductions in provisional school building programmes of local education authorities.
§ Miss BaconThe annual reductions for 1968.69 and 1969–70 amounted to £36 million which was the value of the special allocations to authorities for raising the school leaving age. In each of these years £7 million was added to help
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§ Miss BaconAbout 50 per cent. of pupils in maintained schools now remain voluntarily in school at least up to the calendar year in which they become 16, 29 per cent. to 17, 15 per cent. to 18 and 5 per cent. to 19. Figures for previous years have been published in Statistics of Education 1967, Volume 1, Table 7, an extract of which is as follows: authorities whose reorganisation plans were jeopardised by the withdrawal of the £36 million, for the revised major programmes, whose value was unaltered. I selected mainly projects needed because of population growth and housing development. But I was able to include some urgently required to replace old schools.