§ Mr. WattsTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what impact this year's funding proposals will have on the budgets of(a) community colleges, (b) sixth-form colleges and (c) sixth-form schools. [62253]
§ Margaret HodgeTotal funding for further education in 2002–03 allocated to the Learning and Skills Council is £4.25 billion. This is a £313 million, or 5 per cent., increase over expenditure in 2001–02. The allocations by the Department cover FE sector colleges and do not differentiate between sixth-form colleges and general FE colleges.
The LSC has a budget of £1.35 billion for the funding of LEAs for post-16 education in schools in 2002–03. Comparable figures for LEA spending in 2001–02 are not available. Every school has a Real Terms Guarantee figure based on spending in the baseline year, 2000–01. The overall budget for every school with a sixth form must contain an element which is at least equal to that amount. The 2002–03 LSC funding allocation for two thirds of school sixth forms is higher under the LSC formula than under the Real Terms Guarantee.