Asked by: Craig Tracey (Conservative - North Warwickshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when her Department plans to make available data which sets out the results achieved from the Careers and Enterprise Company investment for pupils in secondary schools and colleges.
Answered by Robert Halfon
The Careers & Enterprise Company is making excellent progress and is having a real impact across the country by linking schools and colleges with employers and providers of careers and enterprise activities. The Company is delivering lasting, powerful connections between local businesses and nearby schools and colleges through its Enterprise Adviser Network. The Company has already appointed 78 Enterprise Coordinators and almost 1,200 advisers. Over 900 schools and colleges (in 37 out of 38 Local Enterprise Partnership areas in England) have been helped to develop better careers and enterprise programmes for their pupils. In addition, the Company has launched its £5 million careers and enterprise fund to boost provision for nearly 250,000 young people across England in 75% of ‘cold spot’ areas. It has also launched a £12 million Mentoring Investment Fund to scale-up mentoring and tackle disengagement across England. Details of the Company’s achievements and progress are summarised in their first annual report published in June this year. The report can be found here: https://www.careersandenterprise.co.uk/posts/careers-enterprise-company-first-annual-review-published
Asked by: Craig Tracey (Conservative - North Warwickshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when she expects the decommissioning of Sparrowdale School to be completed.
Answered by Edward Timpson
School playing fields are protected by Section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. Schools and local authorities must obtain the Secretary of State’s approval before they can dispose of their land. Applications to dispose of school playing fields are considered by the independent school playing fields advisory panel, and are approved only when it is demonstrated that the application meets published criteria.
The Department is aware of an application by Warwickshire County Council to seek approval to dispose of the former Sparrowdale Special School. The application is currently being processed by officials at the Education Funding Agency; a final decision should be expected in the summer. The application will only be considered when sufficient information is available to consider how the sale proceeds will be invested to benefit other local schools. The Secretary of State will consider the recommendation of the panel before making her final decision.
The Department has published a list of decisions since May 2010 on applications for consent to dispose of school playing field land: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-land-decisions-about-disposals