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School Ratios

Volume 957: debated on Tuesday 7 November 1978

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asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if she will list the 10 education authorities with (a) the worst primary school ratios, and (b) the worst secondary school ratios.

It is difficult to make valid comparisons of the average pupil-teached ratios within schools between one local authority and another unless differences in the age ranges of pupils, sizes of school, arrangements for the education of 16- to 18-year-olds in either secondary schools or further education colleges, and the development of middle school systems are taken into account. However, without taking account of any of these circumstances the 10 authorities in England with the highest numbers of pupils per qualified teacher in primary and secondary schools for January 1978 are listed below:

Primary

  • Bexley
  • Bolton
  • Bromley
  • *Dudley
  • Enfield
  • Essex
  • Oldham

years for which figures are available and for the two preceding years.

The pupil-teacher ratios within maintained primary and secondary schools for each local education authority in Greater Manchester for the years 1976, 1977 and 1978 were as follows:

  • Sandwell
  • Stockport
  • Sutton

Secondary

  • †‡Devon
  • †Dudley
  • †Isle of Wight
  • †Leeds
  • †Oxfordshire
  • ‡Richmond-upon-Thames
  • †‡Somerset
  • †Suffolk
  • †Wakefield
  • †West Sussex
  • * Including middle deemed primary schools
  • † Including middle deemed secondary schools
  • ‡ Excluding tertiary colleges