§ Mr. HobanTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on the part played by consideration of best value in determining whether surplus schools should be closed. [85554]
§ Mr. Miliband[holding answer 5 December 2002 ]: Surplus places can represent poor use of resources. This is why the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister sets annual Best Value Performance Indicators for the percentage of surplus places in an LEA each year. Decisions on whether to close schools are taken by the local School Organisation Committee or, if the Committee cannot agree unanimously, by the independent Schools Adjudicator. Guidance issued by the Secretary of State requires both bodies to consider a range of factors, including standards and access.
§ Mr. HobanTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what financial penalties are in place if local education authorities have surplus school places. [85557]
§ Mr. Miliband[holding answer 5 December 2002]: Local education authorities receive funding based on pupil numbers and there are no financial penalties for having surplus school places. While resources devoted to maintaining surplus school places can sometimes be more effectively used to support schools in raising standards, we recognise that in some cases it may not be possible to remove all surplus places due to demographic changes and falling rolls.