THREE out of ten primary schoolchildren in East Lancashire are being taught in classes of 31 or more as education bosses struggle to cut class sizes by 2001.

A bleak warning came today in figures released from a new study by the Department for Education and Employment.

It shows thousands of children are affected by overcrowded classes in the area's schools.

In schools controlled by Lancashire County Council, more than 1,200 classes have more than 31 pupils while 167 of those have more than 36.

In Blackburn with Darwen, 158 classes have more than 31 children while 17 have more than 36.

And in league tables showing class sizes for individual local education authorities in the North West, Lancashire and Blackburn with Darwen are placed well down, with only Blackpool faring worse.

But Mr Blunkett said the number of pupils aged five to seven in classes of more than 30 had fallen by almost 130,000 in January and similarly the number of pupils aged eight to 11 in classes of more than 30 had also gone down.

He said an extra 2,700 teachers had been recruited into schools in just over 12 months, while cash boosts had helped to provide more classrooms.

Mr Blunkett added that reducing class sizes had not affected parental choice. "We have been able to ensure that significantly more children will be able to get into their first choice school than would otherwise be the case," he said.

Blackburn with Darwen Council has already received a £1.8million boost to provide extra classrooms and teachers in an effort to cut class sizes before the deadline.

Coun Kathy Stephenson, vice-chairman of the education and training committee, has said there was good evidence that smaller classes helped raise standards for younger pupils, and that the Government's drive to reduce infant class sizes fitted well with the council's determination to raise standards.

Local authority performance indicators published by the Audit Commission last month revealed that Lancashire County Council had a higher percentage of children in classes of more than 30 than almost anywhere else in the country.

The authority declined to comment.

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