§ Mr. Bernie GrantTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what measures he has taken to assist museums to be able to respond to the demands to be made on them from classroom teachers who will be implementing the history national curriculum in terms of staff and other resources; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. EggarResponsibility for funding staff at national museums rests with my right hon. Friend the Minister for the Arts. Aside from independent museums, funding for local museums is in the main provided by local authorities. The Government will be providing some £170 million in specific grants in the 1991–92 financial year to help schools with the implementation of the national curriculum. It is up to each LEA to decide how to deploy the funds allocated to it, according to local needs and priorities.
§ Mr. Bernie GrantTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science what evidence he has of the effect274W of his Department's circular regarding parents' financial support for school visits on the number of such visits to museums; and what action he plans to take.
§ Mr. FallonMy right hon. and learned Friend has recently completed a review of the evidence of the effects of the charging provisions of the Education Reform Act 1988 and circular 2/89 on school activities and concluded that the evidence does not point to a need to change the law. Evidence was received from a range of sources and included a survey of a sample of schools and all local education authorities commissioned from the National Foundation for Educational Research. The evidence suggests that there has not been a significant change in the number of visits to museums since 1988.