HC Deb 20 June 1991 vol 193 cc284-5W
Mr. Battle

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what steps his Department has taken to involve consumer views in the development of performance indicators.

Mr. Eggar

In developing preformance indicators the Department bears in mind the needs of users and parents of the users of the education system. Schools are required to publish a variety of data relating to their performance. From this autumn, secondary schools will be required to publish examination results in a common and consistent form in their prospectuses and in governing bodies' reports to parents. These requirements were the subject of an earlier consultation which stressed the importance of taking the views of parents into account.

Primary schools have been encouraged to publish their school-level results of the tests on seven-year-olds this summer. Regulations will be made to require schools to publish the aggregated results of formal assessments at ages 11, 14 and 16.

We are consulting about how further education colleges should publish their results. In higher education, the statutory funding councils are working with other interested groups to develop performance indicators within their sectors. My right hon. and learned Friend also publishes reports by Her Majesty's inspectorate on educational provision in individual schools and colleges.

Mr. Battle

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what performance indicators are published for his Department.

Mr. Eggar

A range of performance indicators has been included in the departmental report on the Government's expenditure plans 1991–92 to 1993–94 (Cm 1511), a copy of which is in the Library.