The following table shows the number of Bachelor of Education/MA (four years) and Professional Graduate Diploma in Education (one year) course places the Scottish Funding Council will fund through its main teaching grant in the General Fund for Universities and those over baseline numbers which will be funded separately by the Scottish Government in 2011-12.

Total Full-Time Equivalent BEd/MA and PGDE Student Places, 2011-12

The following table shows how many students entered four year Bachelor of Education/MA and one year full-time and two year part-time Professional Graduate Diploma in Education courses by institution since 2009-10.

BEd/MA and PGDE Intakes

Notes:

The Open University offers a PGDE maths course (five to 10 places have been available). No returns have been received confirming numbers each year entering the course.

The following is the original answer (published on 15 June 2011); see below.

The following table shows how many students entered four year Bachelor of Education/MA and one year full-time and two year part-time Professional Graduate Diploma in Education courses by institution since 2009-10.

BEd/MA and PGDE Intakes

Notes:

The Open University offers a PGDE maths course (five to 10 places have been available). No returns have been received confirming numbers each year entering the course.

In May 2011, 2,218 potential probationary teachers were allocated places on the Teacher Induction Scheme for 2011-12. The number who start, and successfully complete, their probationary year cannot be confirmed until the start and end of the 2011-12 school year respectively.

The number of teaching posts that will available for the school year 2012-13 will depend on local authorities’ recruitment needs at that time.

The following table shows the number of Bachelor of Education/MA (four years) and Professional Graduate Diploma in Education (one year) course places funded by the Scottish Funding Council through its main teaching grant in the General Fund for Universities and those over baseline numbers funded separately by the Scottish Government in each of the last five years.

Total Full-Time Equivalent BEd/MA and PGDE Student Places, 2006-07 to 2010-11

The Scottish Government’s commitment to teacher employment has now been agreed by all three parties to the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers. The agreement will ensure that there will be a sufficient number of vacancies for all teachers seeking employment in 2011 to apply for.

Recruitment to these vacancies will be in accordance with each local authority’s existing locally agreed procedures which need to comply with current equality and employment legislation.

We have not carried out such a survey. Support under the Air Discount Scheme is granted to individual consumers under the European Commission’s Aid of a Social Character mechanism and we believe that it is not intended to extend to business-related travel.

The analysis of the judgement in the case between The Queen (on the application of TA Gwillim and Sons) and the Welsh Ministers has shown that it is not necessary to make any announcement about the conclusions. This is because there is no read-across between the judgement and Scottish producers whose Single Farm Payment (SFP) entitlements may have been affected by agri-environmental commitments.

In essence, the circumstances in the Welsh case were unique to Messrs Gwillim (indeed there were no other cases similarly affected in Wales) and to certain arrangements for claiming support payments in Wales. On this latter point, the Welsh authorities allowed landlords to participate in agri-environment schemes and tenants to claim under direct support schemes: effectively the same land supporting two beneficiaries which in the Welsh case led to Messrs Gwillim’s SFP being adversely affected by the actions of his landlord in relation to an agri-environment scheme (“Tir Gofal”) that required limitations on livestock in order to enhance the landscape and wildlife of the land. The Welsh authorities no longer allow this dual claiming of land which brings them into line with the position as it has been in Scotland. My officials have satisfied themselves, therefore, that a “Gwillim” scenario could not have arisen here, given the bar on dual claiming of land and the way SFP was implemented in Scotland.

The independent evaluation of low-cost initiative for first time buyers by ODS Consulting demonstrated that in particular the shared equity schemes had delivered their objectives by meeting buyers’ housing needs. Whilst recognising that there are still some areas of Scotland where shared ownership was popular, the Scottish Government decided to focus its resources on those schemes which were effective in delivering key outcomes, such as helping first time buyers and delivering mixed communities; which offered the best value for taxpayers’ money; and which were shown to be most affordable to buyers.

Registered social landlords (RSLs) may set up shared ownership schemes as long as they ensure good value for money and support for the sharing owner and provided that, in marketing the properties, they are careful to ensure that buyers fully understand what they are taking on. We would also expect RSLs to consider how this proposed activity fits with their overall purpose. In addition, the Scottish Housing Regulator and the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator have recently issued joint guidance on what charitable RSLs need to consider when looking at any low cost home ownership initiative.

People buying a New Supply Shared Equity property from a registered social landlord must generally take an equity stake of between 60 and 80 per cent of the market value of the property. The grant provider may however agree to reduce the minimum equity stake to 51 per cent.