§ Mr. Canavanasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the total amount of money spent (a) by his Department and (b) by Scottish local authorities on education and training for the 16 to 19-year-olds; and what is the breakdown of (b) for each region and islands authority.
§ Mr. Alexander FletcherThis information is not available since, in general, neither central nor local government expenditure is attributable to particular age groups.
§ Mr. Canavanasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what initiatives his Department has taken to improve educational and training opportunities for 16 to 19-yearolds since he took office in May 1979.
§ Mr. Alexander FletcherA number of new initiatives have been taken or set under way since May 1979. Preparation for working life begins before the minimum school leaving age, and the Munn and Dunning development programme announced in March 1980 includes the piloting of appropriate courses and examinations for less able pupils in the final two years of compulsory education.
Beyond the minimum school-leaving age, we have encouraged the trend for more 16–18-year-olds to remain in full-time education. In October 1979, we issued a consultative document, "16–18s in Scotland: the first 2 years of post-compulsory education", which discussed various possible ways of improving provision for young people in post-compulsory education and enhancing their employment prospects. In 1979, we set up the Council for Tertiary Education in Scotland, and the council is at present preparing reports on the structure and management of tertiary education in Scotland outside the universities and on vocational preparation.
We have expanded the programme of unified vocational preparation for young people entering jobs offering little or no systematic training, and we are planning for further growth in the programme over the next two years. We have greatly expanded the provision of further education, vocational training and work experience 44W for unemployed young people under the youth opportunities programme, and we are aiming, as resources permit, to work towards the point where every 16 and 17-year-old not in education or a job will be assured of vocational preparation lasting as necessary up to his or her 18th birthday.
In collaboration with other Departments, we have supported the efforts of the Manpower Services Commission to assist and improve skills training and related further education for young people in jobs calling for long-term training and, although precise figures are not available, it is estimated that since May 1979 the Manpower Services Commission has, through Government—funded training support schemes, assisted more than 4,700 young people to enter apprenticeships and other forms of long-term training in Scotland over and beyond industry's normal recruitment.
Finally, we have published jointly with the Manpower Services Commission and the Department of Employment the consultative document "A New Training Initiative", which makes proposals for the long-term improvement of our training system. Two of its three main objectives are of particular relevance to 16 to 18-year-olds:
- a. the development of better arrangements for skill training to agreed standards; and
- b. the improvement of vocational education and training for all young people under 18.
I am keeping the possibilities for further initiatives in this field under continual review.
§ Mr. Canavanasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the total number of 16 to 19-year-olds at school in Scotland for each year since the last raising of the school leaving age; and if he will express those figures as a percentage of the total population in that age group for each of those years.
§ Mr. Alexander FletcherThe following table shows 16 to 19-year-olds staying on at school in Scotland in each year since 1972–73, the year when the school leaving age was last raised.
16 to 19-year-olds* staying on at school Year Thousands Per cent.† of age group 1972–73 51.0 211 1973–74 52.7 21.3 1974–75 51.2 20.2 1975–76 51.2 19.9 1976–77 53.4 20.4 1977–78 53.0 20.0 1978–79 53.0 19.7 1979–80 55.0 20.3 Notes: *Age at 31 December of session. †Percentages of home population of these ages.
§ Mr. Canavanasked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many 16 to 19-year-olds are at present participating in the youth opportunities programme in Scotland; and what is that figure expressed as a percentage of the total population of that age group.
§ Mr. Alexander FletcherOn 30 April 1981, the latest date for which information is available, an estimated 19,500 young people aged 16 to 19 were participating in 45W the youth opportunities programme in Scotland. This represented approximately 5.4 per cent. of the total population in that age group.
§ Mr. Canavanasked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many 16 to 19-year-olds are unemployed in Scotland; what is that figure expressed as a percentage of the total population in that age group; what is the breakdown of that figure for each travel-to-work area in Scotland; and what were the corresponding statistics in May 1979.
§ Mr. Alexander FletcherInformation is not available in the precise form requested. On 9 April 1981, the latest date for which information is available, 52,664 young people aged 16 to 19 years were registered as unemployed in Scotland. This represented approximately 14.7 per cent. of the total population in that age group. The corresponding figures for April 1979, the closest date to May 1979 for which comparable information is available, were 32,039 and 9.0 per cent. Information on the numbers in the specified age group who were registered as unemployed in. each travel-to-work area in Scotland is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. The following table gives this information analysed by regional and island authority areas:
Numbers aged 16 to 19 registered as unemployed in Scotland Regional/island authority area April 1981 April 1979 Borders 443 249 Central 2,927 1,445
Young people aged* 16 to 19 in Education in Scotland (Thousands) 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–076 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 Full-time School 51.0 52.7 51.2 51.2 53.4 53.0 53.0 55.0 Non-advanced FE 7.0 6.0 7.7 9.8 11.0 11.7 11.7 11.8 Advanced FE† 5.3 5.7 5.9 6.3 6.3 5.7 5.5 5.6 University 7.4 7.6 7.8 8.1 8.4 8.8 9.1 8.8 Total full-time 70.7 72.0 72.6 75.4 79.1 79.2 79.2 81.3 Part-time Non-advanced FE 52.6 54.1 53.2 53.4 52.1 51.2 55.1 54.0 Advanced FE 0.3 0.3 0.8 0.9 1.0 1.3 1.7 1.7 Total part-time 52.9 54.4 54.0 54.3 53.2 52.5 56.8 55.7
46W
Young people aged* 16 to 19 in Education in Scotland (Per cent, of age group‡) 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 Full-time School 21.1 21.3 20.2 19.9 20.4 20.0 19.7 20.3 Non-advanced FE 2.9 2.4 3.0 3.8 4.2 4.4 4.3 4.4 Advanced FE† 2.2 2.3 2.3 2.4 2.4 2.2 2.1 2.1 University 3.1 3.1 3.1 3.2 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.2 Total full-time 29.3 29.1 28.7 29.3 30.3 29.9 29.4 30.0 Part-time Non-advanced FE 21.8 21.9 21.0 20.8 20.0 19.3 20.5 19.9 Advanced FE 0.1 0.1 0.3 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.6 Total part-time 21.9 22.0 21.3 21.1 20.4 19.8 21.1 20.6 * Age at 31 December of session. † Includes students at colleges of education. ‡ Per cent, of the home population in the age group.
Regional/island authority area April 1981 April 1979 Dumfries and Galloway 1,142 704 Fife 2,930 1,510 Grampian 2,364 1,179 Highland 1,389 1,134 Lothian 6,093 3,565 Strathclyde 31,300 19,707 Tayside 3,724 2,349 Orkney 77 38 Shetland 64 25 Western Isles 211 134
§ Mr. Canavanasked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many 16 to 19-year-olds are in (a) full-time and (b) part-time education or training in Scotland; what is the breakdown of that figure for each type of educational or training institution; what is the figure expressed as a percentage of the total population in that age group; and what are the corresponding statistics for each year since 1970.
§ Mr. Alexander FletcherInformation in the form requested is not readily available and could not be provided except at disproportionate cost.
Estimates of the number of 16 to 19 year-olds who were in full-time or part-time education in Scotland, excluding those in non-vocational further education, are shown in the following table for each year since 1972–73, the year when the school leaving age was last raised.