HC Deb 12 July 1995 vol 263 cc668-9W
Mrs. Dunwoody

To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) if she will list the components of the standard spending assessment which account for differences in the standard spending assessment between London and Cheshire, other than the area cost adjustment; and if she will make a statement on the reasons for this differentiation; [33056]

(2) if she will list the components of the standard spending assessment which account for differences in the standard spending assessment between Manchester and Cheshire, other than the area cost adjustment; and if she will make a statement on the reasons for this differentiation; [33055]

(3) if she will list the average standard spending assessment per pupil in (a) London, (b) Manchester and (c) Cheshire, broken down into (i) total, (ii) additional educational needs and (iii) area cost adjustment. [33009]

Mr. Robin Squire

Within the education standard spending assessment methodology, there are three cost adjustments, apart from the area cost adjustment, which reflect variations between authorities in the cost of providing a standard level of service: (i) additional educational needs; (ii) sparsity; and (iii) free school meals.

The table sets out how much of the overall education SSA per pupil for London, Manchester and Cheshire is attributable to the allowance for additional educational needs and the area cost adjustment. The figures are based on the primary sub-block of education SSAs but similar differentials apply to the secondary sub-block.

Education SSA per 5–10 year-old
LEA
Overall SSA £ Attributable to AEN £ Attributable to ACA £
London 2,451 510 378
Manchester 2,258 673 0
Cheshire 1,817 253 0

Mrs. Dunwoody

To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what plans she has to reassess the calculation of the standard spending assessment for pupils in secondary and primary schools; [33012]

(2) what plans she has to exclude pupils in independent schools from the calculation of the population receiving secondary and primary education, as part of the standard spending assessment; [33010]

(3) if she will list the percentage of pupils in (a) state schools and (b) independent schools in (i) London (ii) Oxfordshire and (iii) Cheshire. [33011]

Mr. Squire

We are consulting the local authority associations about the possibility of excluding from that part of the education standard spending assessment methodology that relates to resident population pupils in independent schools. All representations will be carefully considered before we decide whether changes should be made.

The table sets out the number of pupils in state schools and the number of children in independent schools as a percentage of resident population aged five to 18. A residual proportion of authorities' population is in neither state nor independent schools.

Proportion of population in state schools Proportion of population in independent schools
London 73.4 8.9
Oxfordshire 69.6 12.4
Cheshire 77.9 4.3