Young People (Complaints)

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will specify what formal procedures for making complaints and representations, specifying where appropriate under which sections of which Acts, are available locally and nationally to children and young people under 18 years of age who wish to make complaints about matters which are the responsibility of his Department.

Provision is made in sections 68 and 99 of the Education Act 1944, as extended by section 219 of the Education Reform Act 1988, for complaints to be made to the Secretary of State about the conduct of local education authorities and the governing bodies of maintained schools (including grant-maintained schools), higher education corporations and certain institutions of further

	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987	1988	1989	1990	1991 (est)
IACR³	803	783	789	774	750	680	557	523	480	477	449	433
IAH	328	311	314	310	299	307	252	283	282	264	292	283
IAPGR	343	330	338	327	326	345	331	270	254	266	337	321
IER	131	129	138	129	124	122	133	123	97	115	115	103
IFR	380	394	420	434	451	447	496	473	450	435	381	245
IGER	431	432	441	425	435	442	388	378	381	364	308	285
IHR²	443	430	440	438	452	425	353	323	326	318	(295)²	(260)²
IPSR⁴	266	282	278	274	282	279	309	373	274	271	234	234
Total	3,125	3,091	3,158	3,111	3,119	3,047	2,819	2,746	2,544	2,510	2,116	1,904
											(2411)	(2,164)

Notes:

¹ Abreviations:

IACR—Institute of Arable Crops Research

IAH—Institute of Animal Health

IAPGR—Institute of Animal Physiology and Genetics

IER—Institute of Engineering Research

IFR—Institute of Food Research

IGER—Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research

IHR—Institute of Horticultural Research

IPSR—Institute of Plant Science Research

² IHR became part of the British Society for Horticultural Research (BSHR) on 1 April 1990. The figures in brackets show the number of AFRC scientific staff seconded to BSHR.

³ The figures for IACR for 1980–84 include the former Letcombe Laboratory and the Weed Research Organisation, which closed in 1985 and 1986 respectively. They also include the former Soil Survey and Land Resource Centre, which was transferred to the Cranfield Institute of technology in 1986–87.

⁴ The figures for IPSR for 1980–86 include that part of the former Plant Breeding Institute which was purchased by Unilever plc in 1986–87.

or higher education maintained or assisted by local education authorities, in the exercise of their functions under the Education Acts. Where the complaint relates to the curriculum or religious worship the complaint must first be made at local level, under arrangements made by the local education authority pursuant to section 23 of the Education Reform Act. None of these provisions imposes any formal restriction on the age of the complainant.

Volume 178: debated on Thursday 25 October 1990