§ Mr. HarveyTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will set out, including statistical information relating as directly as possible to the North Devon constituency, the effects on North Devon of his Department's policies and actions since 2 May 1997. [155903]
§ Mr. WillsOutlined are details of the effects of a range of the Department's policies on the North Devon constituency and Devon LEA.
Beacon Schools
The Park Community School—awarded Beacon status from 1 September 1998 for working with the home to foster a positive approach to school—home school contracts, personal student development, mentoring and academic tutoring, special educational needs, initial teacher training, and continuous professional development.
School Achievement Awards
Eighteen schools in the constituency were among 108 in Devon to be allocated a total of £728,400 in March 2001. Staff at 16 of the 18 schools in the constituency received Improvement Awards because pupil performance in 2000 was substantially better than in 1997, or because schools had come out of special measures. The remaining two schools received Excellence Awards, because pupil performance in 2000 was better than most schools in similar circumstances. Awards were worth around £5,000 for a typical primary school and £25,000 for a typical secondary school.
Classroom of the Future
Devon LEA was awarded £900,000 as part of the above initiative in February 2001. The stated aim is, in the context of recent educational research, to provide life long learning opportunities that broaden experiences for pupils and the whole community. It will be an inclusive project that provides greater educational opportunities for those living in rural communities, so that social exclusion in isolated rural areas to longer exists. The proposal is to set up units in two primary schools and a community college within an existing cluster of schools, and to work with three technology colleges. The potential of information and communications technology is fully explored, in combination with sustainable design. Partners include Exeter and Plymouth Universities and the Timber Research and Development Association.
687W
Infant Class Sizes £000 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 Total Revenue Funding 1,000 1,831 2,596 5,427 Capital Funding 523 732 719 1,974 The September 2000 figures show that in Devon there are now 62 (0.3 per cent.) pupils remaining in infant classes of 31 or more. The figure in January 1998 was 5,639 (26 per cent.).
Performance Indicators
England averages include independent schools.
Key Stage 2, percentage of pupils achieving level 4 19971 1998 1999 2000 English LEA 62 66 72 75 England 63 65 71 75 Maths LEA 62 60 70 72 England 62 59 69 72 Science LEA 67 72 80 86 England 69 69 78 85 GCSE—percentage of pupils achieving: 5+A*-C grades LEA average 44 47 48 49 England average 45 46 48 49
Devon LEA Capital funding £000 Credit approvals 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 Total ACG 10,890 6,788 6,727 9,467 10,072 43,944 SCA 2,771 857 1,200 328 1,400 6,556 Grants New Deal for Schools 1,018 2,397 4,763 7,536 — 15,714 NDS Condition Funding — — — — 1,520 1,520 National Grid for Learning — 979 1,213 2,342 3,620 8,154 Voluntary Aided Grant 1,002 187 251 387 1,768 3,595 Devolved Formula Capital — — — 5,013 4,101 9,114 Science Labs — — — 327 327 654 Energy — 175 — — — 175 AMP Support — — 108 — — 108 SEED Challenge — — — 341 395 736 Class Size Initiative — 247 1,001 664 — 1912 Outside toilet removal — 972 — — — 972 Schools Security at 75 per cent. 262 219 231 233 165 1,110 SSLU's — — — 114 99 213 Schools Access Initiative at 85 per cent. — — — 22 581 603 Total 15,943 12,821 15,494 26,774 24,048 95,080 Further Education
Student numbers at all FEFC funded institutions where home postcode is in the Local Authority District of North Devon.
688W
1996–97 to 1999–2000 16–18 Adult Full-time Part-time Full-time Part-time FEFC funded 1996–97 1,273 268 268 5,378 1997–98 1,250 298 278 5,520 1998–99 1,272 295 214 4,985 1999–2000 1,318 261 225 5,288
Key Stage 2, percentage of pupils achieving level 4 19971 1998 1999 2000 5+A*-G grades LEA average 90 91 91 91 England average 86 88 89 89 No passes LEA average 5 4 4 4 England average 8 7 6 6 Average point score LEA average N/A 38.4 38.7 39.2 England average N/A 37.0 38.1 38.9 1Results prior to 1998 include Plymouth and Torbay
A/AS level and Advanced GNVQ Average points for 2 or more A/AS levels 1998 1999 2000 LEA average 16.3 17.3 17.9 England average 17.8 18.2 18.5 A/AS average per entry LEA average 5.2 5.5 5.3 England average 5.4 5.5 5.5 Average point score GNVQs LEA average 10.5 10.7 10.6 England average 9.6 9.9 10.1 Funding per pupil
In Devon LEA, funding per pupil has increased by £240 in real terms between 1997 –98 and 2000 –01.
1996–97 to 1999–2000 16–18 Adult Full-time Part-time Full-time Part-time Non–FEFC funded 1996–97 50 172 43 929 1997–98 58 154 65 955 1998–99 59 207 127 1,370 1999–2000 57 175 1ll 987 Modern Apprenticeships
Information on Modern Apprenticeships for all English constituencies will be placed in the Library by the end of March 2001.
689WNew Deal for Young People
In the North Devon constituency, 786 young people have joined the New Deal to end December 2000. 450 have found jobs, 349 of which are sustained.
Labour Market Statistics
The working age employment rate in Devon in Autumn 2000 was 77.8 per cent., above the UK rate of 74.7 per cent. The rate in Autumn 1997 was 77.3 per cent.
The claimant unemployment rate has fallen from 5.8 per cent. in February 1997 to 4.0 per cent. in February 2001 in the North Devon constituency.