§ Mr. Greenwayasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) how many of Her Majesty's inspectors were established in 1975, 1980, and in each succeeding year; and if he will make a statement;
(2) what duties are expected of Her Majesty's Inspectorate; if he has any plans to expand the number of them in coming years; and if he will make a statement.
§ Sir Keith JosephThe Government's views on the work of Her Majesty's Inspectorate are set out in detail in the policy statement I presented to the House on 24 March 1983. Copies are available in the Library.
The number of inspectors in post varies in relation to the timing of retirements and new appointments. At 1 April each year the numbers in post were as follows:
Full-time equivalents 1975 430 1980 421 1981 407 1982 391 1983 383 Recruitment competitions are currently in train with the aim of increasing the number of Her Majesty's inspectors to 450 as rapidly as possible and to 490 by April 1988. The increase beyond the previous complement of 430 is to enable the inspectorate to undertake additional work in relation to teacher training and public sector further and higher education.