§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will make a statement on the rationale for the transfer of responsibility for purchasing and commissioning prison education services from governors; [7199]
(2) who in the prison service will be responsible for commissioning and purchasing prison education services when that responsibility transfers from governors. [7198]
§ Beverley HughesContracts for prison education services are due to run until 2004. Under these arrangements, prison governors retain the responsibility for commissioning and purchasing services. The prisoner Learning and Skills Unit based at the Department for Education and Skills will be reviewing mechanisms for funding, procurement and delivery of education and training. The outcomes of this review will determine where responsibility will lie after 2004.
§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many(a) NVQs and (b) other nationally recognised qualifications have been achieved by prisoners in each year since 1997. [7202]
§ Beverley HughesLast year, over 60,000 certificates were awarded to prisoners for units of attainment leading to nationally recognised qualifications, including nearly 12,500 full qualifications at basic skills level 2. No reliable information is available on the achievement of National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) specifically, or for qualifications achieved in the period before 2000. The Prisoners' Learning and Skills Unit located in the Department for Education and Skills will be implementing new procedures next year to capture this kind of information.