HC Deb 01 February 1999 vol 324 cc482-3W
Mr. Hancock

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Bury, North (Mr. Chaytor) of 14 January 1999,Official Report, column 261, what is the participation rate of 3-year-olds in early education in England. [67853]

Ms Hodge

The information is not available in the form requested. There were 222,000 or 35 per cent. of three-year-olds maintained nursery and primary schools in England in January 1998; this figure rises to 251,000 or 40 per cent. of three-year-olds if special and independent schools are included. In addition, the Government have set a target to double the national participation rate of three-year-olds in free early education places to 66 per cent. by 2002, using the maintained, voluntary and private sectors.

Mr. Hancock

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Bury, North (Mr. Chaytor) of 14 January 1999,Official Report, column 261, what is the participation rate of 3-year-olds in early education in Southampton. [67857]

Ms Hodge

The information is not available in the form requested. There were 406 3-year-olds in maintained nursery and primary schools in the Southampton Local Education Authority in January 1998. In addition, the Government have set a target to double the national participation rate of 3-year-olds in free early education places to 66 per cent. by 2002, using the maintained, voluntary and private sectors.

Mrs. May

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will list the additional factors relating to young children used by his Department in determining the 50 local education authority areas which have been given preference in distributing funding for early education places for 3-year-olds. [68524]

Ms Hodge

The 50 Local Education Authorities which will receive Funding in 1999–2000 for early education places for 3-year-olds are those with the highest levels of social need measured by the Government' s Index of Local Deprivation (ILD) augmented by two factors: low birth weight and the proportion of births to teenage mothers.

The indicators that were used to draw up the ILD are:

  • housing lacking amenities;
  • over-crowded housing;
  • 17-year-olds no longer in full-time education;
  • derelict land;
  • income support;
  • dependent children of income support recipients;
  • low educational attainment (percentage of children gaining GCSE passes at grades D-G only plus those not gaining any GCSE passes);
  • long term unemployment;
  • unemployment;
  • insurance premiums;
  • non income support recipients in receipt of council tax benefit;
  • standard mortality ratios.