Hughes, Stephen

English

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     School Statistics Compendium, 2012 SB 83/2012                                                                                                                              11 September 2012 ‘School Statistics Compendium, 2012’ is an annual bulletin based mainly on the results of the school census and incorporating data from other collections on teachers (Stats 3), special educational needs (Stats 2), attendance and exclusions, made to the Welsh Government. The Department for Education in England has provided additional information on teachers.   The information in this bulletin was previously produced under the titles ‘Schools in Wales: General Statistics’, to 2009, and ‘Schools Census: Final Results’, to 2011. Additionally, the statistical bulletin ‘Independent Schools’ Census’ has been incorporated into it as Section 12.  The original 2012 school census release can be found at – http://wales.gov.uk/topics/statistics/headlines/schools2012/120711/?lang=en The accompanying data is split into sections, each section a separate Excel file. A full list of sections and the area of information they cover is shown below.  List of sections Section title Section 1 Trends in Education. Section 2 Pupils. Section 3 Provision for pupils aged under 5. Section 4 Primary education. Section 5 Secondary education. Section 6 Special education. Section 7 Ethnic background, National Identity and Language. Section 8 Welsh language. Section 9 Provision of meals and milk. Section 10 Classes. Section 11 Staff and Governors. Section 12 Independent schools. Section 13 Attendance and exclusions. Glossary (PDF) Definitions of all the terms used in the release and data files.  Each section provides all Wales information. Selected items are also shown at local authority (LA) level. In addition, the majority of the data will also be available on StatsWales (a free to-use internet service that allows visitors to view, manipulate, create and download tables from the most up-to-date and detailed official data in Wales).  To view the data please select the “Schools and Teachers” folder at the navigation screen of the following site:   www.statswales.wales.gov.uk            1     Statistician: Stephen Hughes         Tel: 029 2082 5060                     E-mail: school.stats@wales.gsi.gov.uk    Next update: September 2013 (provisional)  Twitter: www.twitter.com/statisticswales | www.twitter.com/ystadegaucymru     2  Notes  1. Context  1.1 Policy/Operational The majority of the data are derived from the Pupil Level Annual School Census (PLASC) returns and STATS 1 returns supplied by schools open on Census day in January each year.  The returns are authorised by headteachers and validated by local authorities (LAs).  The Department for Education in England provides additional teacher data from their Database of Teacher Records. The remainder of the information is collected from the LAs through data collections that are published separately and shown here in summary. A list of those publications is shown below.  1.2 Related Publications The latest National Statistics on teachers produced by the Welsh Government were released on 14 June 2012: Teachers in service, vacancies and sickness absence, January 2012Since the above release is from a different source (Stats 3), figures may not match the school census information and therefore caution should be taken when making comparisons. The latest National Statistics on pupils with statements of Special Educational Needs, produced by the Welsh Government, were released on 13 June 2012:  Pupils with statements of Special Educational Needs, January 2012Since the above release is from a different source (Stats 2), figures may not match the school census information and therefore caution should be taken when making comparisons. The latest National Statistics on absenteeism from secondary schools in Wales produced by the Welsh Government were released on 6 September 2011: Absenteeism from secondary schools, 2010/11The latest National Statistics on absenteeism from primary schools in Wales produced by the Welsh Government were released on 14 December 2011: Absenteeism from primary schools, 2010/11The latest statistics on exclusions from schools in Wales produced by the Welsh Government were released on 28 February 2012: Exclusions from Schools, 2010/11 2. Data sources Pupil Level Annual School Census (PLASC) / School Census (STATS 1 Return) PLASC is an electronic collection of pupil and school level data provided by all maintained sector primary, secondary, nursery and special schools in January each year.  Schools record data on pupils and the school throughout the year in their Management Information System (MIS) software.  This data is collated into an electronic PLASC return and submitted to the Welsh Government through DEWi, a secure online data transfer system developed by the Welsh Government.  From January 1994 independent schools in Wales complete a STATS 1 return which replaced Form 101A (school census return for independent schools prior to January 1994). Special Education Provision (STATS 2) In addition to information gathered on the PLASC returns on pupils in special and ordinary maintained schools who receive special education, each local authority completes an annual return (in January) relating to those children for whom it is responsible.  It records the number of children for whom the authority maintains a statement of special educational needs as well as the kind of provision made for them, whether  3 within the authority's area or elsewhere. In addition it also records those assessed during the previous calendar year and the number of statements issued as a result of those assessments.  Teachers employed by LAs (STATS 3) An annual return is completed by each LA in January and records the number of teachers in service.  The return covers teachers in all maintained establishments, namely schools, pupil referral units, further and higher education institutions, adult education centres, as well as peripatetic teachers, teachers with service divided between different types of school and teachers on secondment. (The higher education institutions transferred out of LA control in April 1992, while the further education institutions transferred in 1993. The teachers at these institutions no longer count as in service with the LAs).  As a result the numbers are larger than those recorded on the PLASC returns where only teachers in post within schools are covered.  This overall total is used to calculate the pupil teacher ratio overall shown in Table 1.3 which differs from that in Table 1.1. Pupil Attendance The Pupils’ Attendance Record is made up of pupil-level attendance data collected electronically from maintained schools, care of their Local Authority (LA), and school-level attendance data from special and independent schools collected via a voluntary, paper-based survey. Both collections are carried out by the Knowledge and Analytical Services within the Welsh Government. Exclusions data Exclusions data for Wales are collected annually from local authorities via the Exclusion Monitoring Form. Pupil numbers used to calculate exclusion rates are taken from the January PLASC and the Educated Other than at School (EOTAS) Pupil Census. All collections are carried out by Knowledge and Analytical Services within the Welsh Government.  3 Coverage The data in this bulletin relates to all maintained and independent schools in Wales.  4. Rounding and symbols In tables where figures have been rounded to the nearest final digit, there may be an apparent discrepancy between the sum of the constituent items and the total shown. The following symbols have been used throughout the publication: - percentages less than 0.05 but not zero . not applicable .. not available ~ not yet available * figure is less than 5, or is based on a figure less than 5.  5. Key Quality Information This section provides a summary of information on this output against five dimensions of quality: Relevance, Accuracy, Timeliness and Punctuality, Accessibility and Clarity, and Comparability.  It also covers specific issues relating to quality of 2012 data, and describes the quality management tool applied to this area of work.  Between September and November 2010 we conducted a public consultation on our Education Statistics outputs, in which we asked for feedback on the quality of the outputs.  A summary of responses has been published and is available here: http://wales.gov.uk/consultations/statistics/education/?lang=en 5.1 Relevance The statistics are used both within and outside the Welsh Government to monitor educational trends and as a baseline for further analysis of the underlying data. Some of the key users are: • Ministers and the Members Research Service in the National Assembly for Wales; • The Department for Education and Skills in the Welsh Government;  4 • Other government departments; • The research community; • Local Authorities and schools; • Students, academics and universities; • Individual citizens, private companies and the media. These statistics are used in a variety of ways.  Some examples of these are: • General background and research; • Inclusions in reports and briefings; • Advice to Ministers; • The all-Wales education core data packs (the replacement for the National Pupil Database); • LA and school comparisons and benchmarks; • To inform the education policy decision-making process in Wales including school reorganisation; • Development of a national banding system for Wales; • To inform ESTYN during school inspections; • The education domain of the Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation; • To assist in research in educational attainment. 5.2 Accuracy The Welsh Government works closely with schools and LAs in order to ensure all data are validated before tables are published.  PLASC data is collated into an electronic return and submitted to the Welsh Government through DEWi, a secure online data transfer system developed by the Welsh Government.  Various stages of automated validation and sense-checking are built into the process to ensure a high quality of data.  5.3 Timeliness and Punctuality DEWi was available for uploading files on 17 January 2012, with schools asked to submit data for every pupil on roll at the school on 17 January. Schools and LAs were then asked to validate their data within the validation period, which closed on 11 May.  5.4 Accessibilty and Clarity This Statistical Bulletin is pre-announced and then published on the Statistics section of the Welsh Government website.  It is accompanied by more detailed tables on StatsWales, a free to use service that allows visitors to view, manipulate, create and download data.  5.5 Comparability This bulletin shows data at Wales and LA level for 2011/2012 with some historical information for Wales in certain tables. It expands the information originally published as the School Census Results release on 11 July. That release can be found at – http://wales.gov.uk/topics/statistics/headlines/schools2012/120711/?lang=en 

School statistics compendium, 2012

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