§ Mr. RedwoodTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the rate of early school leavers was in England in the last year for which figures are available. [83200]
§ Mr. Miliband[holding answer 25 November 2002]: By law, children in England should not leave full-time education in school until the last Friday in June in the school year in which a child reaches 16. Figures are not available centrally on those that do leave early, for whatever reason. Some indication can be obtained by comparing pupil numbers from the same cohort at ages 14 and 15 in successive Annual Schools Censuses. The difference between the numbers of pupils aged 14 in 2001 and aged 15 in 2002 registered at all schools in England as shown by the Department's Annual Schools' Census was 9,600—a fall of 1.6 per cent. However, this comparison will be affected by the net impact of population migration, differences in the numbers of pupils educated other than at school and those on remand or in Young Offenders institutions; it will also exclude pupils leaving school after the Census date (in January) but before the regulations entitle them to do so (in June).