Written question asked by Lord Lucas (Conservative), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Baroness Morgan of Drefelin (Labour) on Monday, 20 April 2009.

Schools: Performance Tables

Question: To ask Her Majesty's Government further to the Written Answer by Baroness Morgan of Drefelin on 2 April (HL 2339), why qualifications have to be approved by the Secretary of State for use in maintained schools before they can be reported in the achievement and attainment tables.

Answer: Including only qualifications approved under Section 96 of the Learning and Skills Act 2000 for funding in maintained schools ensures that the attainment reported in the achievement and attainment tables is properly comparable. To gain approval, such qualifications will have been accredited by Ofqual as meeting the necessary standard and be subject to Ofqual’s regulation to ensure that that standard is maintained. They will also have met the criteria by which we judge qualifications to meet priorities for public funding. It is right that the Tables should reflect these priorities. It is particularly important to ensure that the attainment reflected by the "5 A*-C GCSEs including English and mathematics" indicator includes the priority aspects of learning in English and mathematics that the national curriculum reflects.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 2807; 709 c369-70WA
Session: 2008-09
Related items: Schools: Performance Tables
Tuesday, 12 May 2009
Written questions
House of Lords; Schools: International GCSEs
Thursday, 2 April 2009
Written questions
House of Lords
Subjects: Qualifications Statistics Standards Schools
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk