§ Mr. McNamaraasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) how many children aged between 9 and 12 years are deprived of free school milk as a result of being placed in junior high schools as a result of secondary school reorganisation ; and what proportion of school children in that age group they represent;
(2) whether he will publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT a list of those authorities, and the number of schools and pupils in each authority, where children aged 9 to 12 years are not in receipt of school milk as a result of the reorganisation of secondary education;
(3) whether he will seek to amend the regulations to allow children aged between 9 and 12 years to receive free school milk before the coming winter.
§ Miss BaconThere are nearly 12,000 pupils aged 9 and 10 in middle schools deemed to be secondary schools and therefore ineligible for free school milk. These pupils represent less than 0.9 per cent. of their age group. Pupils in these schools aged 11 and 12 are not rendered ineligible for free milk as a result solely of reorganisation since they would be in secondary schools in any case. The local education authorities concerned and the number of schools and pupils are as follows :
Authority Number of middle schools deemed secondary Pupils at these schools Pupils aged 9 and 10 at these schools Hull County Borough 49 17,839 9,500 (estimated) London Brough of Merton 15 4,396 1,198 Yorkshire West Riding 18 6,355 1,063 Total 82 28,590 11,761 The withdrawal of free school milk from children at maintained secondary schools including middle schools deemed to be secondary was made by statute, and amending legislation would be required to make a change. It is open to local education authorities to ask that schools catering for pupils of, say, 9 to 13 should be deemed to be primary schools.
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