Asked by: Ben Wallace (Conservative - Wyre and Preston North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assistance his Department makes available to schools to survey for and remove asbestos.
Answered by David Laws
The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 set out the standards and duties to manage asbestos in non-domestic premises including schools. This includes the need to assess and manage the risks through the formulation of a site-specific asbestos management plan.
On 24 January I announced the 2014-15 maintenance allocations, which are released as a non-ringfenced capital grant. The priorities for its use are decided locally and this can include supporting schools with asbestos issues.
Asked by: Ben Wallace (Conservative - Wyre and Preston North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what additional funding his Department makes available to schools to commission extra-curricular activities and projects.
Answered by David Laws
The two main grants to schools to fund their day-to-day activities are the Dedicated Schools Grant and the Education Services Grant. The Education Services Grant is given to local authorities to provide education services for pupils in maintained schools, and is given directly to academies. When a school receives either of these grants, the funding is not ring-fenced: the school can spend it as it chooses. Schools are therefore free to decide how much of this funding they want to spend on extra-curricular activities and projects.
The Department for Education also provides specific ring-fenced funding, through the primary PE and sport premium, for the improvement of PE and sport in primary schools. Headteachers are free to use this funding, an investment of over £150 million a year to 2015/16, to provide extra-curricular clubs for activity and sport, and for sport-related projects.
Asked by: Ben Wallace (Conservative - Wyre and Preston North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when he plans to review the list of facilitating subjects for Key Stage 5 performance tables.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
The facilitating subjects are identified by the Russell Group of universities as A level subjects that are required more often than others by universities. The list includes English literature along with mathematics, further mathematics, physics, biology, chemistry, geography, history and languages (classical and modern).
The Russell Group is an independent organisation; it recently reviewed the list of facilitating subjects and confirmed no change was needed. The Department for Education publishes a measure in the key stage 5 performance tables of the percentage of students achieving AAB grades at A level, including in at least two facilitating subjects.
Asked by: Ben Wallace (Conservative - Wyre and Preston North)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will add economics, English literature and computing to the list of facilitating subjects for Key Stage 5 performance tables.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
The facilitating subjects are identified by the Russell Group of universities as A level subjects that are required more often than others by universities. The list includes English literature along with mathematics, further mathematics, physics, biology, chemistry, geography, history and languages (classical and modern).
The Russell Group is an independent organisation; it recently reviewed the list of facilitating subjects and confirmed no change was needed. The Department for Education publishes a measure in the key stage 5 performance tables of the percentage of students achieving AAB grades at A level, including in at least two facilitating subjects.