§ Mr. Peter Bruinvelsasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will provide figures showing the number of village schools in each local education authority.
§ Mr. DunnThe information requested is not available centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
§ Mr. Peter Bruinvelsasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is Her Majesty's Government policy towards village schools.
§ Mr. DunnWe recognise the valuable contribution of village schools to the education of their pupils and to the rural communities which they serve. In token of this, my right hon. Friend informed the House during the Second Reading of the Education Grants and Awards Bill that one of the possible activities for support through these grants might be curriculum development in rural primary schools. The additional costs to local authorities of providing schools in sparsely populated areas is already recognised through an allowance made for sparsity of population in the calculations underlying rate support grant. However, local authorities' policies for education in rural areas need to take account of my right hon. Friend's policy on falling school rolls, set out in circular 2/81, that authorities should seize the educational and financial benefits of taking surplus places out of use. Where this leads to proposals for the closure of a school, these are considered on their individual merits in the light of the circumstances of the case, including the objections made.