§ Ms McCaffertyTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many 16 and 17-year-old parents(a) have taken and (b) are taking part in the education maintenance allowance pilots following the publication of the Social Exclusion Unit report, "Teenage Pregnancy", in June 1999. [129254]
§ Mr. Wicks[holding answer 10 July 2000]: This information is not available at the present time. There is no special treatment of teenage parents in the main EMA pilots, but the evaluation should provide an indication of the numbers involved and will provide an assessment of any factors which are particularly relevant to teenage parents. The first results from this evaluation should be available towards the end of this year. Also, from September, two of the 15 original EMA pilot areas (Stoke-on-Trent and Cornwall) will test out additional flexibilities intended to help teenage parents participate in education, while still maintaining the 'something for something' principle.