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Mr. Thomas Cox
asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the total number of children attending nursery schools in each of the regions of England; and what percentage this represents of children under the age of 5.
Dr. Boyson
In January 1979, the latest date for which the information is available, the figures were as follows:
| FULL-TIME AND PART-TIME PUPILS UNDER 5 YEARS IN MAINTAINED NURSERY SCHOOLS AND NURSERY CLASSES IN MAINTAINED PRIMARY SCHOOLS | ||
| Region | Number of pupils | Percentage of estimated population aged 3 and 4 years |
| North | 21,485 | 28 |
| Yorkshire and Humberside | 31,073 | 26 |
| North West | 34,530 | 21 |
| East Midlands | 20,123 | 21 |
| West Midlands | 27,285 | 21 |
| East Anglia | 3,930 | 8 |
| South East | ||
| Greater London | 39,582 | 26 |
| Other South East | 26,679 | 11 |
| South West | 5,561 | 6 |
| England | 210,248 | 18 |
Mrs. Renée Short
asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what advice he has given to local authorities about the provision of nursery education.
Dr. Boyson
In paragraph 31 of the recent White Paper "The Government's Expenditure Plans 1980–81" local authorities were advised that
"it should be possible to maintain expenditure on the under-fives at about the present level".