§ Mr. Bill WalkerTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement about support for partnerships between education and business in Scotland.
§ Mr. Allan StewartI attach high priority to establishing effective links between the worlds of education and business. Each has a vital role in the future well-being of our country and it is essential that they work closely together. Much valuable work is already going on in this field but it is recognised by many of those involved that the effectiveness of these efforts could be improved.
Proposals to promote and develop education-business link activities feature prominently in the business plans submitted by the local enterprise companies and I very much welcome this. In order to further assist this work and ensure that it attracts the priority which I believe it requires, additional financial support is being made available specifically to encourage the development of education-business partnerships.
This funding will be provided to local enterprise companies through Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise to support a variety of aspects of liaison between business and education, including providing 586W placements with business for pupils and teachers, business visits to schools and a wide range of innovative activities which will bring benefits to both education and business.
The LEC-promoted partnerships will be expected to raise funding from other sources so that maximum benefit can be gained from public support.
I am confident that local enterprise companies, education authorities and organisations already involved in this area will work closely together to get these partnership arrangements under way to the benefit of the whole community and I am now inviting education authorities and other interested parties to approach their LECs to discuss how these proposals can best be taken forward.