§ Mr. TredinnickTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make a statement on class sizes in primary schools since May 1997. [119639]
§ Ms Estelle MorrisThe size of primary classes has gone down in each of the past two years after rising steadily throughout the previous 10 years. In January
190W 1998, the average size of primary classes was 27.7. In January 1999, the figure was 27.5, and in January 2000 it was 27.1. The figure in January 1988 was 25.4.
The number of free places provided for four-year-olds in the private, voluntary and independent sectors, by term, from autumn 1998 to spring 2000 (by LEA area) LEA number LEA name Autumn 1998 Spring 1999 Summer 1999 Autumn 1999 Spring 2000 201 City of London 9 5 11 3 4 202 Camden 520 539 578 531 522 203 Greenwich 373 301 324 337 300 204 Hackney 468 471 522 546 489 205 Hammersmith and Fulham 212 242 285 214 221 206 Islington 175 209 280 203 192 207 Kensington and Chelsea 167 173 148 120 142 208 Lambeth 447 457 580 747 836 209 Lewisham 297 249 311 320 268 210 Southwark 379 355 438 370 386 211 Tower Hamlets 63 66 84 64 65 212 Wandsworth 802 910 936 786 830 213 Westminster 350 353 372 358 356 301 Barking and Dagenham 13 19 30 6 28 302 Barnet 361 639 820 303 592 303 Bexley 367 245 348 315 263 304 Brent 190 263 342 207 274 305 Bromley 1,604 1,192 1,866 1,683 1,196 306 Croydon 586 689 927 552 663 307 Ealing 338 411 505 0 403 308 Enfield 203 507 736 185 505 309 Haringey 56 116 161 53 164 310 Harrow 285 246 371 305 268 311 Havering 96 499 763 92 460 312 Hillingdon 378 330 377 357 323 313 Hounslow 53 85 113 50 98