§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what plans he has to develop the Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant. [108517]
§ Jacqui Smith[holding answer 7 February 2000]: As part of the drive to raise the achievement of ethnic minority pupils, we are making available more money than ever before through the Ethnic Minority and Traveller Achievement Grant. For 2000–01, £162.5 million will be available to LEAs to improve the attainment of ethnic minority, Traveller and refugee pupils, an increase of 7 per cent on the amount available for these purposes in 1999–2000. From April 2000, we are phasing in a needs-based formula for allocating the Grant for raising ethnic minority achievement. Increasingly, as we build up for the first time a national picture of achievement levels, we will target the Grant at those who need it most. In further developing the Grant we will seek to embed in local strategies the knowledge we are acquiring about good practice in raising achievement levels.