To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on (a) class sizes and (b) teacher retention in the London borough of Havering. [94206]

Over the last five years, average class sizes in maintained primary and secondary schools in Havering LEA have been very similar to the national average, as shown in the table. In September 2002, Havering achieved full compliance with infant class size legislation.Retention of good quality teachers in Havering, as elsewhere, is a key priority and we are aware that some schools in some areas are still experiencing problems. However, the new National Agreement signed by the Department and its key partners will enable us to take forward our plans for remodelling the teaching profession. This in turn will address the key recruitment and retention issues of workload and bureaucracy. Taken together with our work on improving pupil behaviour and strengthening leadership within schools, we believe this will lead to a further increase in new teachers in London and elsewhere and encourage more existing teachers to remain in the profession.