§ Mr. Cryerasked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the total number of children of employees of his Department in receipt of financial assistance for attendance at private fee-paying day or boarding schools; and what is the current total cost for the academic year 1982–83.
§ Mr. Wiggin:Boarding school allowance is being paid in respect of 220 children of civilian employees of the Department who are serving abroad and 21,000 children of members of the Armed Forces. These totals include 3,258 children attending boarding schools maintained by local education authorities. No allowance is paid to assist with day school fees in this country.
The estimated cost for the financial year 1982–83 is £465,000 for Ministry of Defence civilian staff and £63 million for the Armed Forces.