§ Mr. Allan StewartTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has decided the amount of fee remission grant to allocate to schools participating in the assisted places scheme in respect of session 1989–90.
§ Mr. Michael ForsythThe allocations of fee remission grant for 1988–89 are shown in the table. I have decided to admit two additional schools to the scheme, Hamilton college, and Oxenfoord Castle school, Midlothian, which are included in the table and I am also currently looking at an extension of the scheme to cover pupils in the later stages of preparatory schools in the 1989–90 session. Overall, these allocations and the extension of the scheme to the preparatory sector should result in a significant increase in the number of pupils being assisted from the current level of about 2,670 to about 2,830 and there will be further expansion to bring the total benefiting to about 3,000 by the 1991–92 academic session. The scheme will continue to concentrate assistance on less well-off families, increasing their opportunities to exercise real choice in the education of their children.
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School £ Albyn School for Girls, Aberdeen 34,00 Belmont House School, Newton Mearns 38,000 Craigholme School for Girls, Glasgow 56,000
School £ Dollar Academy 126,000 Edinburgh Academy 122,000 Fernhill School, Glasgow 75,000 Fettes College, Edinburgh 115,000 Fort Augustus Abbey School 120,000 George Heriot's School, Edinburgh 465,000 Glasgow Academy 85,000 Glenalmond College, Perthshire 162,00 Gordonstoun School, Morayshire 100,000 Hamilton College 16,000 The High School of Dundee 364,000 The High School of Glasgow 119,000 Hutchesons' Grammar School, Glasgow 247,000 Keil School, Dumbarton 143,000 Kelvinside Academy, Glasgow 136,000 Kilgraston (Convent of the Sacred Heart), Perthshire 116,000 Kilquhanity House School, Castle Douglas 35,000 Lomond School, Helensburgh 113,00 Loretto School, Musselburgh 100,000 Merchant Company Schools, Edinburgh 1,250,000 Merchiston Castle School, Edinburgh 199,000 Morrison's Academy, Crieff 320,000 Oxenfoord Castle School, Midlothian 12,000 Rannoch School, Perthshire 88,000 Robert Gordon's College, Aberdeen 100,000 Rudolf Steiner School of Edinburgh 120,000 St. Aloysius' College, Glasgow 260,000 St. Denis and Cranley School, Edinburgh 57,000 St. George's School for Girls, Edinburgh 41,000 St. Leonard's School, St. Andrews 71,000 St. Margaret's School for Girls, Aberdeen 29,000 St. Margret's School for Girls, Edinburgh 131,000 Strathallan School, Forgandenny, Perthshire 151,000 Wellington School, Ayr 93,000 West of Scotland School Company 571,000 Total 6,380,000
§ Mr. Allan StewartTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will announce the statistics for the assisted places scheme in Scotland in the 1988–89 school session and the income scale which will apply to the scheme in school session 1989–90.
§ Mr. Michael ForsythAt the beginning of the current school session there were 2,543 pupils receiving assistance under the assisted places scheme. Additional pupils will be admitted to assisted places throughout the 1988–89 school session and I expect that the final total will be broadly in line with that for the 1987–88 session, when 2,670 pupils benefited.
The scheme continues to concentrate assistance on lower income families. In 1988–89 1,108 pupils (44 per cent. of those in the scheme) will be receiving full fee remission because they have a family income of £7,258 per annum or less. A further 121 pupils (4 per cent.) have family incomes between £7,259 and £8,000 per annum and 86 (3 per cent.) between £8,001 and £8,500.
For school session 1989–90 I propose to lay regulations before the House in due course providing for progressive parental contributions for one assisted pupil in relation to family income as follows:
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Part of relevant income to which the specified percentage applies Parental contribution (percentage) That part (if any) which exceeds £7,418 but does not exceed £8,066 9 That part (if any) which exceeds £8,066 but does not exceed £8,725 12 That part (if any) which exceeds £8,725 but does not exceed £10,032 15
Part of relevant income to which the specified percentage applies Parental contribution (percentage) That part (if any) which exceeds £10,032 but does not exceed £12,043 21 That part (if any) which exceeds £12,043 but does not exceed £14,668 24 That part (if any) which exceeds £14,668 33 The relevant income scale is open ended, but the remission can of course be given only where the parental contribution is less than the school tuition fee.