HL Deb 27 January 1983 vol 438 c462WA
Lord Vaizey

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What the proportion of 18 year-olds entering higher education was in 1969, 1979, 1981 and 1982, and what it is anticipated to be in 1983 and 1984, for home-based full-time students in England and Wales

The Earl of Swinton

Information is not readily available in the form requested. However, it is estimated that home entrants under 21 to higher education in England and Wales expressed as a percentage of 18 year-olds (the age participation rate) were as follows:

1969–70 1979–80 1981–82 1982–83

13.3 11.9 12.9 12.8 (provisional)

The age participation rate for higher education is normally expressed for Great Britain as a whole, so that these figures differ slightly from those usually provided. Projections for 1983–84 and 1984–85 cannot yet be provided because the implications of the Government's expenditure plans for student admissions in future years have to be discussed with the bodies concerned.